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2000 - A Tough Year: In the year 2000, I watched my wife waste away with cancer. To say that I was depressed was the world’s greatest understatement. She was my life: My partner; my advisor; my lover; my wife, and my very best friend.
A Real Ugly Duckling: I had also given up my pilot’s license, so my hobby was gone. I decided to donate a bunch of aviation stuff so I drove out to the local airport to drop it off. On the way out, I saw the unmistakable nose of an MGA sticking out from a tarp.
I had owned a couple of MGA’s and the idea of restoring one seemed like a good idea.
I asked the hangar owner if it was his. He told me it was a very special car. Oh no, not one of those, please!….it was the saddest looking 1959 MGA I had ever seen.
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A Botched Mess: Unfortunately, someone had put a Pinto engine in it which took away 90% of the value. I offered him $500.00 for the lot and he accepted.
A Cleanup Mess: The engine compartment was full of rat’s nests, straw, mouse droppings, and Black Widows.
It took an entire day to get the engine and transmission out and five days to get rid of that Pinto engine.
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Gene's MGA started as a miserable mess with a botched engine compartment...
He stripped it down to the frame and rebuilt it from the wheels up, putting in a new 1800 cc MGB engine, a five-speed transmission, red leather interior, and a beautiful paint job.
2000 was a really tough year - this restoration project was just what he needed to re-focus and accomplish something great. Read his description of the work he did. |
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Now, To Start: Now to actually start with the restoration.
I slowly removed everything: The fenders, hood, trunk and such I hung from hooks in the ceiling. I got the body off without too much trouble. It was a year before they went back on.
I then dismantled the suspension and all the related parts and trucked them and the frame to the sandblaster’s. I was happy with the work: Everything was blasted clean and there was no rust damage.
Putting It Back Together: The powder-coater did all 50 pieces in a day and a half and charged me $150.00. I figure I got the frame done for $3.00! Everything was now satin black and like new, maybe better.
I reassembled everything with all new stainless steel bolts and nuts and aircraft hardware where needed. The frame and suspension were now better-than-new.
A set of chrome Dayton 60-spoke wheels and Dunlop radial whitewalls added a lot.
What to Do About the Engine: Remembering my old 57 MGA – and how much I disliked the stock engine and transmission – I set out to “improve the breed.” A newly overhauled MGB 1800cc five-bearing engine still in the shipping crate was available locally. I I got a real bargain on it.
The guy selling the engine was the mechanical guru for the local Vintage MG Club. We became, and still are, good friends and he helped me immensely on the project.
Upgrading the Transmission: Spotting an ad in a British magazine, I located a Hi-Gear conversion for bolting a 5-speed all-syncro transmission to an MGB. Calling England, the dealer told me I would need some parts for an MGA that were no longer available, but he had them in stock. He had the entire conversion at my door from England for under $1600.00 including air freight and duty.
After a ten minute bolt-on to the engine, I installed new alternator; distributor; water pump etc.
Red Leather Interior: The interior kit came from Scarborough Faire in Pawtucket, RI. Her prices are good, her service is excellent, and her products can’t be beaten. I bought beautiful bright red leather! The seat kits were really not hard and the carpet went in fine. Aircraft seat belts topped it off.
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Getting the Body Up to Par: I trucked the body, fenders, doors, hood, and deck to the sandblasters.
The Pinto engine installation really did a lot of damage. I had to fabricate new metal and do a lot of welding. A good friend, Kevin
James, a club member and MGA owner and BRG trophy winner, spent two long evenings helping fix the damage.
A Perfectionist for a Paint Finish Coach: It took six more months of filling, grinding, sanding, sanding… and sanding some more.
Kevin stopped by often to check progress and usually would mumble something like, “Feels like a bag of walnuts. Do it over.” He taught me so much about the cost of a nice finish. Finally he pronounced it ready for paint. He was an instructor for Axo-Nobel-Sikkens auto paints, so I had a real advantage. We applied one coat of sealer, two coats of color, and three coats of clearcoat.
Finishing It Up: Reassembly took a couple of months: All new stainless steel hardware, re-chroming, the rest of the interior, the tonneau cover, the windshield frame, and new glass.
I now had a brand new MGA and it was absolutely beautiful! Getting the engine running was another adventure altogether.
Entering it a show, I was beside myself with pride when I got the 1st place trophy.
My big priority for now is getting a top and side curtains. There’s a big difference in the weather in Southern California than here in Reno – where we got 83” of snow last winter!
What's Ahead? Would I do it again? Not an MGA. I’m too old to start that again. However, I am awaiting delivery of a 1968 MGC-GT with an automatic Transmission.
Now if that needs work… who knows??!!
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