MGs on Patrol

One of the most successful features in the MG Car Club’s monthly magazine Safety Fast! over the last few years has been the “So you want to buy an MG?” series of buyers’ guides. Those guides have been both comprehensive and authoritative as they have been well researched and prepared by Club members who clearly know their individual models very well. This book contains the guides to the MGBGTV8 and the MG RV8 models together with a five part guide to buying a classic MG and useful checklists and other materials.

This book is the definitive study, for the author has gone back to factory records and to the people who worked on the car in the ‘fifties, to find out how it was conceived, manufactured and marketed. Here is the real story of the MGA’s engineering, body styling and every aspect of the car’s development and production – including MG’s strategy to beat its competitors.In seven years of production, there were major successes and sad disappointments. The MGA was the car that was “right first time” and though the Twin Cam variant was a nightmare for the factory, it is now the most sought after model.This book tells how the sleepy Thames-side village of Abingdon became a mass-production centre for the MGA, how the MGA became one of America’s best-loved sports cars and how the MGA has become one of today’s classic cars, cherished by enthusiastic owners all over the world.

This is the inside story of the MG Design office, from 1956 until its closure in 1980. Explaining how the various models were drawn, planned, and developed by the small team of engineers, it also shows how the input and control changed from Morris, Wolseley, Riley Group, Austin-Morris, and Austin Rover. The effects of the Triumph-Austin merger are detailed in model changes, alongside the effects of safety legislation, mainly imposed by the United States. Trying to remain as individual as possible during this period, MG developed record breakers and a unique Competition Department. Special cars were built and tested, and prototypes for the MGB replacement were drawn up all in parallel with the development of MG production cars using engines from any part of the company.

With their strong mechanical elements, solid construction and useful performance, few classic British sports cars are quite so practical to own today as the MGAs built from 1955 to 1962. The aim of this book is to show, in words and pictures, how MGAs altered in detail through the course of production, in order to enable owners, enthusiasts and prospective purchasers to identify the parts, finishes and equipment that are correct for their car. Colour photography of outstanding specimens shows every permutation of MGA specification in remarkable detail. The MGA Restorer’s Guide is accepted by classic car owners, buyers and enthusiasts as the definitive source of advice on correct original and authentic specifications and equipment. Information has been drawn from factory records, parts lists and catalogues, as well as the accumulated knowledge of the most respected restorers.