Life with a new B
Discussion
My late father bought his inca yellow 79 B Roadster in 1987. Sadly, he died last year and I've now inherited it, finally bringing it home last night. The MG B I had before the Alfa was a 77, but the cars are chalk and cheese - his car has fantastic bodywork, where mine was shot in some hidden and expensive places. My car was a far superior car to drive.
The 120 mile drive home yesterday has given me a shopping / to do list!
- Adjust valve clearances. Very very very tappetty engine. So loud you can barely hear the exhaust. It's more tappetty than a 20 year old fiesta.
- sort timing out as it pinks.
- clock doesn't work.
- no speakers for the stereo
- excessive vibration from front wheels at motorway speeds - stub axles? bushes?
- handling is appalling. I mean scarily terrible. If it rolled any more I could scrape the wing mirrors on the white lines! So there's a load of stuff to do there. My dad liked the standard suspension as it gave him plenty of warning. I hate it. My B had a koni rear, lowered, parabolic springs and a 7/8" anti roll bar at the back and lower and stiffer springs at the front with uprated lever arms. So I intend to start out on a similar route. My car felt taut and that's what I want.
- the black hood resembles an elderly gorilla's back. Fortunately I have half a bottle of renovo restorer left from doing the Alfa hood and it works fantastically.
- the armrest has no latch
- the glovebox paint has peeled off and looks tatty
- the hood frame doesn't seem to sit as low as it should. Might try greasing the joints and having a general play to get it low enough to use the tonneau.
- doesn't seem to like starting when warm. Fuel pump may need replaced. It has new filters and new fuel lines.
- brakes aren't bad, but the pedal seems long. Might upgrade the pads. Definitely need to stiffen the front suspension up a bit. It feels like you're about to go over the handle bars when you stand on them!
Over the long term, when finances are flush (i.e. probably never!) I want to replace the 1990s club alloys that he put on for some minilites and those rubber bumpers are definitely coming off. I lived with rubber bumpers on my B for 5 years, but there's no doubt that MGs look better in chrome and that extra weight makes a huge difference.
Further bulletins as events arise. I now own 2 x 2 seater yellow convertibles. The neighbours are beginning to despise me.
The 120 mile drive home yesterday has given me a shopping / to do list!
- Adjust valve clearances. Very very very tappetty engine. So loud you can barely hear the exhaust. It's more tappetty than a 20 year old fiesta.
- sort timing out as it pinks.
- clock doesn't work.
- no speakers for the stereo
- excessive vibration from front wheels at motorway speeds - stub axles? bushes?
- handling is appalling. I mean scarily terrible. If it rolled any more I could scrape the wing mirrors on the white lines! So there's a load of stuff to do there. My dad liked the standard suspension as it gave him plenty of warning. I hate it. My B had a koni rear, lowered, parabolic springs and a 7/8" anti roll bar at the back and lower and stiffer springs at the front with uprated lever arms. So I intend to start out on a similar route. My car felt taut and that's what I want.
- the black hood resembles an elderly gorilla's back. Fortunately I have half a bottle of renovo restorer left from doing the Alfa hood and it works fantastically.
- the armrest has no latch
- the glovebox paint has peeled off and looks tatty
- the hood frame doesn't seem to sit as low as it should. Might try greasing the joints and having a general play to get it low enough to use the tonneau.
- doesn't seem to like starting when warm. Fuel pump may need replaced. It has new filters and new fuel lines.
- brakes aren't bad, but the pedal seems long. Might upgrade the pads. Definitely need to stiffen the front suspension up a bit. It feels like you're about to go over the handle bars when you stand on them!
Over the long term, when finances are flush (i.e. probably never!) I want to replace the 1990s club alloys that he put on for some minilites and those rubber bumpers are definitely coming off. I lived with rubber bumpers on my B for 5 years, but there's no doubt that MGs look better in chrome and that extra weight makes a huge difference.
Further bulletins as events arise. I now own 2 x 2 seater yellow convertibles. The neighbours are beginning to despise me.
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