MG shopping - keep an eye out!

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Bob1035
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MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Bob1035 » Mon Jan 03, 2022 4:23 am

Long story short, I've been commissioned to find an MG for my sisters upcoming birthday next year, and I'm hoping the DWC car guys can keep any eye out for me. Any MG experiences or buying advice is welcomed as well!

Looking specifically for the following
MGB, roadster, no rust, preferably restored, and frankly I'd be stoked about some sort of motor swap or restomod. The catch is it has to be red :gayumbrella:

Basically this, but in red

Long story long: my dad bought and restored cars with each of his kids when we were in high school. He and I (I'm the youngest) did a 72 Porsche 911T, my older sister did a 74 914, and my oldest sister did a 76 (I think?) MGB. Anyway, all three are long gone, but my brother in law tasked me to help source a replacement for the MG for a milestone birthday coming up.

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Ryeguy
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Ryeguy » Mon Jan 03, 2022 8:30 am

I don't know where you are located, but if you are in the Northeast, this place has a good reputation for their work: http://www.britbits.com/html/sales.html

Bob1035
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Bob1035 » Mon Jan 03, 2022 8:58 am

Ryeguy wrote:
Mon Jan 03, 2022 8:30 am
I don't know where you are located, but if you are in the Northeast, this place has a good reputation for their work: http://www.britbits.com/html/sales.html
Perfect, thanks for the link! I'm in Maryland, but certainly not opposed to a road trip.

We drove my grandfathers 74 Karmann Ghia from Santa Cruz CA to Charlotte NC a while back, and it was a blast!

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Erratic101
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Erratic101 » Mon Jan 03, 2022 9:34 am

I just bought my MG B back in September. Love it. I just searched Craigslist and Facebook marketplace. Just change your location to other cities and you can quickly search the country.

Image
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I have since changed the steering wheel, gear shifter, pulled the stereo, and blanked it

Bob1035
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Bob1035 » Mon Jan 03, 2022 1:32 pm

Oh man, the cream on red is gorgeous!

I'm seriously afraid this endeavor will result in two MG purchases, a nice one for sis and a beater for me!

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Erratic101
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Erratic101 » Mon Jan 03, 2022 9:48 pm

Bob1035 wrote:Oh man, the cream on red is gorgeous!

I'm seriously afraid this endeavor will result in two MG purchases, a nice one for sis and a beater for me!
Thanks. I love these MG’s. I may actually pick up a midget or an A at some point too.

Bob1035
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Bob1035 » Sat Feb 19, 2022 1:16 pm

Anyone in the New Haven, CT area?

Looking at vintage dealer in Stratford and hoping for some local intel

ezcheese
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by ezcheese » Fri Mar 11, 2022 12:46 pm

If you haven't already, I would check the MGB resource page on bring a trailer and you can set notifications for each time one is listed for auction as well!

https://bringatrailer.com/mg/mgb/
¯\_(ツ)_/¯

ezcheese
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by ezcheese » Fri Mar 11, 2022 12:51 pm

The other thing I meant to say about bring a trailer is that it can be really helpful to get to know about a certain model of car you're interested in by putting the ones that come up for auction in your watch list and reading the comments as the auctions progress. A lot of knowledgable people come out of the woodwork to comment on certain aspects of the car and add insights that will be helpful.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯

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amckiwi
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by amckiwi » Fri Mar 11, 2022 2:24 pm

Bring / buy a trailer is probably good advice anyway

If I had an inkling to buy an MG my mates would all say forget the romance of the brand buy an MX5 / Miata

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Erratic101
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Erratic101 » Fri Mar 11, 2022 2:48 pm

amckiwi wrote:Bring / buy a trailer is probably good advice anyway

If I had an inkling to buy an MG my mates would all say forget the romance of the brand buy an MX5 / Miata
When I was looking for a my MG my brother said the same thing. There’s no comparison though. Driving a ‘73 MGB is nothing like a Miata.

Bob1035
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Bob1035 » Sat Mar 12, 2022 1:20 pm

If it was my car, it would be a miata 100%.

That being said, this: https://www.newenglandclassics.com/cars/NE-1980-23/ is on its way here. Being delivered to me for storage and "review" while we wait to surprise my sis with it for Mother's Day. I'm super stoked to get to experience it!

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Torrid
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Torrid » Sat Mar 12, 2022 3:02 pm

I had a buddy in high school that had one and another guy I worked with about 8 years ago. I really love these cars. I've always been about fast/muscle cars but these are a totally different experience. "Motoring" as my buddy put it.

Bob1035
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Bob1035 » Sun Mar 20, 2022 3:44 pm

Arrived today, and its pretty cool! Definitely a driver, original paint as far as I can tell, so its not perfect but it looks good enough. Runs great, its hilariously fun. Starts right up and the motor runs great. Of course it has an oil leak I need to investigate so you know its British :lol:
IMG-3828.jpg
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Erratic101
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Erratic101 » Mon Mar 21, 2022 12:18 am

Bob1035 wrote:Arrived today, and its pretty cool! Definitely a driver, original paint as far as I can tell, so its not perfect but it looks good enough. Runs great, its hilariously fun. Starts right up and the motor runs great. Of course it has an oil leak I need to investigate so you know its British
IMG-3828.jpg
:lol:
Glad it came out good and appears to be solid. I had heard very mixed reviews about NEC and that the owner was a complete ass unless you were spending g big money.

“Hilariously” fun is a great way to describe what it’s like to drive one of these. You just can not be sitting in it and not have a giant smile on your face.

Bob1035
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Re: MG shopping - keep an eye out!

Post by Bob1035 » Mon Mar 21, 2022 2:51 am

I can see that about Marc the owner, could totally see him coming of as an ass, but I'm happy overall with how it went down, and my complaints are few so far. Hopefully no gremlins lurking, but I'll be going over it with a comb over the next month, although its a vintage British car, so I guess that comes with the territory unless you're in the legit show car crowd.

Having driven the car some more, its awesome, I "get it" now, having not even been in an MG in 20 years. Its tiny, visceral, noisy (in a good way), and I was surprised how quick it felt.

FWIW, my brother in law is 6'4", going to be a riot seeing him in this thing. Good thing my sis is 5'5"!

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