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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Starting a Spridget that's not run for many years

This could be an informative video series to follow through from start, and refer to, for those in a similar position with a car that's not run for years.

The car is going to be taken to a 'driver quality car' with videos to follow on whatever is found.

Austin Healey Sprite Mark II - Will It Run? - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75mJPwmRRio
Nigel Atkins

1500 sills and misaligned heater blower and matrix housing. Having sat that long checking for oil pressure would have been a priority while the plugs were out not after the engine was running, I wonder how much damage got done to the bearings as they would have been dry after that long a period of inactivity.
David Billington

I think we'd (I'd) decided the heater to blower are "all like that sir, it's not a Roll Royce you know".

Possibly 40 years ago they were more bothered about getting the car together than concours correctness - they were more old bangers than 'classics' (extremely overpriced old bangers) 40 years ago. They must have been two-a-penny in the USA, and this isn't a 'Bugeye' or even a midget. Good job it's a 'classic' or it'd be worthless now. 😁

Yes I'd have stopped turning earlier, but then I'd worry about running without coolant, and what if there wasn't an oil pressure gauge to worry about.

And I wanted to know what that blue light was for.

As for the battery in a bag and the additional wiring, warnings of previous owners/tinkers bodging and boobytraping those that follow, great stuff.

I think a mechanic that deals with these old cars found in a barns and rust yards has less sympathy, or worry. Engines run for ages without oil. It's an unknown engine as well so might be taken apart anyway.

Steve normally gets them going and together by using what parts he has and passes them on to the next guy to either drive and improve or perhaps rebuild to 'correctness' and probably never drive other than to sunny shiny shows to compare correctness with or against other examples and possibly trialed anyway.

I'd sooner see a Mk2 Sprite with 'wrong' sills being driven than a shiny static example with 'correct' sills - am I wrong, or is it the others. 🤣
Nigel Atkins

This thread was discussed on 17/04/2021

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG Midget and Sprite Technical BBS is active now.