Project MGB - Update

[Adam]

Well, some of you may remember the MGB Project car I bought.



If not, click here!

Here's an update. I hired a tandem trailer today and went and picked it up. We managed to fit all of the (numerous) boxes of parts, bumpers, the transmission, engine and car itself all into the two vehicles for one trip.

Once we got it home, we started pulling it apart.





You'll notice the engine bay is freshly painted. This car originally lived in Colorado and was converted to RHD after it arrived here in Melbourne in 1998. Conversion is an incredibly simple process with these cars. The people who professionally converted it for my friend painted the engine bay after the job was finished.



We pulled all the lights out, removed what was left of the wiring loom and started looking carefully for rust. What you see above is mostly dust and surface rust, certainly nothing structural and certainly no perforation in the trunk.



We pulled the guards/fenders off and checked for more rust. At this stage, we decided the doors needed to come off too. (next)

[Adam]

Here's Dad removing the door. He's a veteran MGB guy (glutton for punishment) and it's great to be able to tackle a job like this with him. We don't spend enough time together like this.



The battery boxes are virginal! No rust there, either. Normally, MGBs have a dual 6v battery system, wired in series to produce 12v. We converted my Mother's '68 MGB to a single 12v battery for servicability reasons - this car will get the same treatment. I'm toying with the idea of moving the fuel pump into the empty battery cavity for better access should it crap out down the track.



The chassis you see next to the MGB is from my Honda S600 Coupe. We're sending off the MG to be sandblasted inside and out, with particular attention to the inside of the trunk and the passenger compartment and the S600 chassis will go off and be done too. We'll probably powdercoat that satin black. We'll be stripping the MG back to bare metal for the paint job, too. We're almost certainly going to change the colour - neither of us like the blue, but we're keen on a metallic silver. So what if it's not a genuine colour!?



We did find a little rust in the floor, but nothing we can't handle. Some slight perforation, which we can repair before we paint.

Another update coming soon! - after the sandblasting.

[GrindingGears]

Soo, are ya gonna drop a 3.0 flat-six in that beauty?

[Adam]

LOL, no unfortunately it'll be powered by a 1.8 four-banger. We've got a Weber 45DCOE and some nice headers put aside for it, though.

[oldE]

Sometimes its hard to tell from the color rendition; but is that French Racing Blue on that car? The silver will be nice too. The Webbers and Headers will give it enough of an attitude. Have you considered converting to coil-over shocks? So many choices at this point. Enjoy!
Les

[J1NX3D]

sweet! i like the chrome bumper ones best!

i have a friend converting his '78 (?) to a 3.5 rover v8, mildly modified. hes been slowly chipping away at it for 3 yrs now

[LeeH]

I'm not a big MG fan, but this one caught my eye:
http://www.wirewheel.com/Cars/Auto_Generated_Pages/1019390667.shtml