Is It Okay to Call It a Midget?
Discussion
Hello Everyone,
You may remember me from the 205 Roland Garros thread, well I'm back with more classic car content, this time we're going back to the 70s!
Grab a Tea, or a Bovril in true 70s spirit and put your feet up.
Before we dive in, allow me to do some explaining as to how a guy in his 30s has ended up with your Grandad's MG.
I'm a strong believer in experiencing all the different flavors of the automotive hobby, I was yet to sample the old British sportscar one so I booked a classic car tour with a local company to see if they were my thing or not.
I fell head over heels in love with the Frogeye but also loved the MGB, I didn't fit in the Spitfire and the Morgan was well out of my price range. This set the brainworm turning and before long the 205 was moved on and I was on the hunt for the next car.
After hours of research i'd set my heart on a round wheel arch MG Midget, these were only produced for 2 years, had the 1275 engine and most importantly no hideous rubber bumpers.
Finding a good one was becoming tricky and after missing out on a few I stumbled across a blue one on Facebook marketplace. Pictures weren't the best and the details were scarce, but it looked pretty good.
I phoned the seller and after a quick chat it sounded good, he was a classic car restorer and had taken this one on as a personal project. It was 90% done but unfortunately a recent illness meant he wanted to move the car on and take a well deserved break. We agreed for a time and date to view the car and before long I was on my way to take a look.
Within a few minutes of looking around the car it was clear it had been really well sorted, new floors and sills, back to metal respray and a general going through/replacing anything that it needed. No tin-worm was present and despite it sitting for 3 months it fired right up. The gauges didn't work, door locks weren't engaging and a few other minor snags were present. I made a reasonable offer and the seller accepted, collection would be in a few days time once i'd arranged logistics.
The car wasn't a million miles from home and to my mind It made sense to try and drive it back to shake out any jobs it needed. Trains were booked, a bag was filled with all manner of random tools and collection day came along.
After some tense reversing out of the sellers tight driveway I was on my way, first priority was a fuel stop and then a gentle drive of 50 miles cross country back home.
The obligatory petrol station photo:
The journey home was pretty smooth, it has a stumble and miss occasionally but it tracks straight, rides well and generally feels pretty solid.
One thing did fall off though, a rather viscous speed bumper saw the driver's side headlight ring pop off and roll down the road like a hubcap in a buddy cop car chase scene. Luckily I spotted this and was able to turn around and collect it
Other than that we made it back home and the car is tucked away in the garage.
There's lots to fettle and fix but so far i'm pleased to say i'm hooked.
Thanks
Alex
You may remember me from the 205 Roland Garros thread, well I'm back with more classic car content, this time we're going back to the 70s!
Grab a Tea, or a Bovril in true 70s spirit and put your feet up.
Before we dive in, allow me to do some explaining as to how a guy in his 30s has ended up with your Grandad's MG.
I'm a strong believer in experiencing all the different flavors of the automotive hobby, I was yet to sample the old British sportscar one so I booked a classic car tour with a local company to see if they were my thing or not.
I fell head over heels in love with the Frogeye but also loved the MGB, I didn't fit in the Spitfire and the Morgan was well out of my price range. This set the brainworm turning and before long the 205 was moved on and I was on the hunt for the next car.
After hours of research i'd set my heart on a round wheel arch MG Midget, these were only produced for 2 years, had the 1275 engine and most importantly no hideous rubber bumpers.
Finding a good one was becoming tricky and after missing out on a few I stumbled across a blue one on Facebook marketplace. Pictures weren't the best and the details were scarce, but it looked pretty good.
I phoned the seller and after a quick chat it sounded good, he was a classic car restorer and had taken this one on as a personal project. It was 90% done but unfortunately a recent illness meant he wanted to move the car on and take a well deserved break. We agreed for a time and date to view the car and before long I was on my way to take a look.
Within a few minutes of looking around the car it was clear it had been really well sorted, new floors and sills, back to metal respray and a general going through/replacing anything that it needed. No tin-worm was present and despite it sitting for 3 months it fired right up. The gauges didn't work, door locks weren't engaging and a few other minor snags were present. I made a reasonable offer and the seller accepted, collection would be in a few days time once i'd arranged logistics.
The car wasn't a million miles from home and to my mind It made sense to try and drive it back to shake out any jobs it needed. Trains were booked, a bag was filled with all manner of random tools and collection day came along.
After some tense reversing out of the sellers tight driveway I was on my way, first priority was a fuel stop and then a gentle drive of 50 miles cross country back home.
The obligatory petrol station photo:
The journey home was pretty smooth, it has a stumble and miss occasionally but it tracks straight, rides well and generally feels pretty solid.
One thing did fall off though, a rather viscous speed bumper saw the driver's side headlight ring pop off and roll down the road like a hubcap in a buddy cop car chase scene. Luckily I spotted this and was able to turn around and collect it
Other than that we made it back home and the car is tucked away in the garage.
There's lots to fettle and fix but so far i'm pleased to say i'm hooked.
Thanks
Alex
Also had a 1500 MG Midget back in the early 80's (I'd have been in my early 20's) - I made the mistake of buying a car from the coast and fairly soon found whilst it looked fairly good from the outside most of the paint was covering chicken wire and filler.
Great little car, std with the exception of a "peco" exhaust which was basically straight pipe with a couple of "cherry bomb silencers" thrown at it and pancake filters which I'm sure did nothing for performance.
Roof was never up (only one hole when it was down and hundreds when it was up) so a nicely made tonneau cover kept the weather out of the cockpit when parked up
I did the "205" thing after the Midget went in 1986
Last taxed in 1988 so shortly after it left my care it looks to have been terminally rusty by that point
Great little car, std with the exception of a "peco" exhaust which was basically straight pipe with a couple of "cherry bomb silencers" thrown at it and pancake filters which I'm sure did nothing for performance.
Roof was never up (only one hole when it was down and hundreds when it was up) so a nicely made tonneau cover kept the weather out of the cockpit when parked up
I did the "205" thing after the Midget went in 1986
Last taxed in 1988 so shortly after it left my care it looks to have been terminally rusty by that point
RandomCarChat said:
Doesn't it look absolutely lovely in that photo. Also looks very pristine which is nice, and I don't remember them looking that good when much younger.A friend of mine had a much shabbier Midget in the early 1990s at university, parked on the road in central Oxford. It didn't come to as much harm as my Polo or my then g/f's Mini when left for days at a time.
Great choice, and I think a much better looking car than the well-loved frogeye Sprite.
I'm sure you'll love having a Midget. The round wheel arch cars are the sweet spot in my opinion. However, I'm biased...
This was my first car pictured in 1981, by which time I'd already covered 30,000 miles in it. Whilst not exactly trouble free (AA man on one occasion remarked 'Oh, it's you again!) it was a lot of fun and had long spells of being completely dependable.
This was my first car pictured in 1981, by which time I'd already covered 30,000 miles in it. Whilst not exactly trouble free (AA man on one occasion remarked 'Oh, it's you again!) it was a lot of fun and had long spells of being completely dependable.
Heaveho said:
It's now politically incorrect to call it a " Midget ".
" Car of restricted growth " is currently deemed as acceptable, although the next committee meeting may overturn this.
But that is not specific enough. Overall restricted growth, or certain component parts?" Car of restricted growth " is currently deemed as acceptable, although the next committee meeting may overturn this.
What about corgi? Is 'dwarf dog' offensive?
Pica-Pica said:
Heaveho said:
It's now politically incorrect to call it a " Midget ".
" Car of restricted growth " is currently deemed as acceptable, although the next committee meeting may overturn this.
But that is not specific enough. Overall restricted growth, or certain component parts?" Car of restricted growth " is currently deemed as acceptable, although the next committee meeting may overturn this.
What about corgi? Is 'dwarf dog' offensive?
Loved my midget. WTG192H
It was a bit of a "bitsa", then we realised it was 3 chassis numbers away from being a mk..er...4?? So it had the earlier chrome grill but split bumpers. I reckon they had ran out of bumpers and started using the split bumpers early.
It was tuned with a loud exhaust and...get this... chromed air filters. Power and style, as they say.
It was a bit of a "bitsa", then we realised it was 3 chassis numbers away from being a mk..er...4?? So it had the earlier chrome grill but split bumpers. I reckon they had ran out of bumpers and started using the split bumpers early.
It was tuned with a loud exhaust and...get this... chromed air filters. Power and style, as they say.
Pica-Pica said:
Heaveho said:
It's now politically incorrect to call it a " Midget ".
" Car of restricted growth " is currently deemed as acceptable, although the next committee meeting may overturn this.
But that is not specific enough. Overall restricted growth, or certain component parts?" Car of restricted growth " is currently deemed as acceptable, although the next committee meeting may overturn this.
What about corgi? Is 'dwarf dog' offensive?
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