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MG MGA - Color of Radiator Fan

Hey guys, can anyone tell me what the color of the fan on the MGA should be. I have a 59 and I am putting it back together and read that the closest color is school bus yellow. But, I have also heard that sunburst yellow is acceptable.

Thanks,
Don Rosales

Don. Yes, yes, yes! Paint it yellow. A Rustoleum color of "Sunburst Yellow" #7747 has been quoted in Moss Motors catalog for over 20 years and is by that note, very acceptable. I believe there are many various shades of yellow out there but the point is to put originality aside if your car's fan was painted anything but yellow.

Some MGA fans came black, some were painted MG Maroon. The factory got the Safety part of its slogan correct when they finally standardized fan color in the later years' production. All 19 years of MGB production had yellow fans. It truly makes a difference in my book. With the engine at idle and bonnet lid open for purposes of motor adjustment, the outline of the maiming finger guiotinne is clearly visable, giving the enthuiast a last warning. Not so with darker colors, as they easily blend to the surround and lay in wait for the forgetful...and who hasn't been?

The most comprehensive and exaustivly detailed concours specification this writer has ever seen is that of an MGA Club's, who origins I forget. The list includes many named original bolt manufactures and it in fact excluded--almost forbids, a particular brand name of English bolt on the undercarriage! Its that anal.

Its only, non-penalizing exception of that Club's specs is that of a yellow fan "as it was done for safety reasons".

Cheers,

Paul

Paul Hanley

What is "anal" about a competition that is for the car that most resembles the original in having it actually doing it! It would appear to me to be the right thing to do! Could you tell me Paul why you disagree?
Bob (robert) I am turning? yes I once owned an MGWasp!!

Bob I know flame wars is really boring right now but come on be nice. One of the other meanings of anal is meticulous and I am sure that is what he meant. Besides we all know a car right off the line at Abingdon would never win, too many fit and finish flaws from day one.
R J Brown

RJ

I was going to agree with Bob before you posted. I guess it's another one of those words in our 'common language' that implies a totally different meaning. I had never heard of it being used to mean meticulous.

Steve
Steve Gyles

Bob! No offense meant, mate. Simply trying to keep everyone at 10 fingers! See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anal_retentive

Cheers,

Paul
Paul Hanley

Personally it appears to mean the same to us in English, the fact still remains in my eyes, if you are having a concours competition then surely the winner should be the most accurate car! Nit picking is part of that process, why do you need to overlook some points? Allowing modifications of any part devalues the competition! I think myself and Steve understood the use exactly.
By the way it is because I think safety is important that my car is NOT concours and I enjoy its modifications. If someone wants to make a car exactly the same as it left the factory and trailor it to an event then good luck to them and the stewards should reward that enthusiasm.
Bob (robert) I am turning? yes I once owned an MGWasp!!

Thanks Guys. Didn't mean for an argument to begin, just wanted a paint color. :)
Don Rosales

That's "colour" on an MGA!

Clausager says fans went from black to red in 1958, and then to yellow definitely on the Mark II, but may have been yellow on some 1600 Mark I cars. Nowadays, most fans are yellow for safety reasons.
P. Tilbury

If we're going to yellow on a safety basis, then let's take it a step further and remove the metal fan and replace it with a plastic one from a 'B. Some of these fans have got 50 years on them. I was talking to someone yesterday with 2 near misses from metal fans that disintegrated. In one gase, the blade came off and fortunately went down and hit the floor. In the other instance it came off and perforated the bonnet while driving. Think about that next time you've got your head under the bonnet revving the engine! Stand out of the line of fire!

TTFN

Derek Nicholson

After darn near lopping off the end of my thumb in my TF, I painted that fan yellow too. Wrong, but I’ve kept my fingers out of the MGA fan for years.
David Werblow

"Anal" is pop-psychobabble for "anal retentive", a personality trait linked by Freud to infant pride in not soiling one's diapers. Such infants, according to Freud, tend to grow into fastidious adults. The opposite tendancy, "anal expulsive" personality, supposedly springs from infants who take pride in regular bowel movements no matter what the consequences. Freud says they tend to grow up to be slovenly. "Anal expulsive" is a type of "anal" ingored by people who take "anal" to always mean "anal retentive" but in fact just the word "anal" alone has no psychological meaning at all. A perfect example of anal retentive and anal expulsive personalities exists in the characters of Felix and Oscar in "The Odd Couple."
David Breneman

Confirmed Derek! I've had a metal fan blade exit straight up and gash the bonnet lid. That wasn't the worst of it. Since this happpened while driving at high speed, (I was accelerating past 80mph) the unbalanced engine shook the car violently--almost out of control. I still use metal fans though...but I check the rivets frequently. And I'm never in it's pathway when working on a spinning engine, as a memorial to that fast & lucky ride.

Paul
Paul Hanley

This thread was discussed between 28/08/2006 and 03/09/2006

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