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MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG MGA - Some General Questions

Are the smooth aluminum front valances (in either frp or aluminum) deeper (less ground clearance) than the standard valance?
Who supplies the best WS glass? Called the company in MA that has some WS on Ebay now and they said their glass is only 3/16 thick--made in China. Sports and Classics supplies glass of the Triplex brand. Moss tells me that they no longer have BMH glass. Anyone with recent experience.
Does anyone have dimensions of the front frame attachment? In particular the spacing of the bumper studs from center line and the distance between.

Thanks for any help.

For those of you who might care or those of you who want to shoot me for commiting a terrible sin against originality (Originality Sin?). I am in the initial stages of doing an MGA V8 conversion. I am using a factory engine with SU carbs and a factory OD transmission. Engine is sitting in frame along with the transmission. Engine is merely mocked up. I am sectioning the transmission tunnel at present. Trying to keep the car as vintage as possible (Oxymoronic?), so I am debating about making it look like an old rally car, hence no bumpers but may retain the fittings to switch back and forth. Any way that's my story and I am sticking to it.
James Johanski

You'll burn in hell for that (V-8 conversion).
Del Rawlins

If James will burn in HELL, I hate to think what will happen to my uncle. He use to have a junk yard (autojumble). I hate to think as to how many MGA's along with other old classic cars he stripped and then sent to the metal crusher. Maybe I shoud give him a nice cold beer now when he can enjoy it.!!! Maybe since he sold me one from his yard and I saved it from the cursher he will be saved.
JEFF BECKER

>> You'll burn in hell for that (V-8 conversion).

With the amount of heat that penetrates the cockpit from the standard 4 cylinder engine, the v-8 may mean that he doesn't have to go all the way to hell in order to burn.
Andy Bounsall

Del

Wasn't that "go like hell"?

Larry
Larry Hallanger

Hi James,

A friend of mine bought the fibreglass valance and sent it back as it was cr . .! I am redoing a '58 coupe as a replica rally car, and have just bought an 18g steel valance from Jorge Cervera of San Diego (actually made in Mexico), and it is very nice. You can find this on ebay if you want a steel unit. The buy-it-now price is US$249.95.

The two centre bumper studs on my car are 22 inches centre to centre, and they seem to be pretty straight. I do not have the outer ones fitted. (I am not fitting a front bumper, and will just use the inner studs to mount spot light brackets on).

Hope we can see your car at GT32 in Whistler next year.(see www.GT32.com)

Regards, Peter.
P. Tilbury

Of all the information available for our MGA's there is not one speck of information readily available regarding the front frame extention. No wedsites show the dimensions...Barney doesn't have them...Electric Works won't give up there knowledge and the manuels and books show abosolutely nothing. No where is there a diagram with the correct measurements available for reference. WHY. Gord
Gordon Harrison

Why? Because the vendors want to sell you a new one for $300+

Last time I had mine off the car was at beginning of restoration in 1977. The whole car was back on the road in late 1986, and the front frame hasn't been off since.

If anyone would like to measure one and send the dimensions I would be happy to post it.
Barney Gaylord

Del, I take my chances!
Andy, I will insulate against heat and maybe add AC.
Larry, I will go to hell anyway for all of my other sins.
P.Tilbury, Don't think I will make it for GT 32. Anyway, If Del is there, it may not be safe for me.
Gordy and Barney, Thanks for your help and answers.

Now, anyone out there know the dimensions of the frame extension and does anyone know if the smooth valance is deeper (I can deal with FRP cracking). Someone out there knows and won't tell. C'mon--don't hide your knowledge--let it come to the dark side.
James Johanski

James

Any chance of seeing photographs as you progress through your conversion. Sin or otherwise, I am sure there are many of us who would like see the transplant.

Steve
Steve Gyles

Steve, I will in the future seek a way to post the pictures--hopefully without creating a web site. Doing this is probably about 3 months away.
James Johanski

James, from comparison photos of cars with the original valance and the smooth competition style I can't see and difference in depth from the lower body line to the bottom of the valance. I'm also wanting the smooth comptition look on my car, but am considering a modification to the original steel unit instead of the FG or aluminum unit mostly because of strength. I can't help with the front frame extension dimensions, mine was badly bent due to accident damage and I just removed the bumper mountings from it and will run without bumpers. I guess we'll both be warm and toasty along with at least two others that have swapped engines in their MGAs. I'm using an inline 4 liter 6 rather than the V8.
Bill Young

Barney,
I agree with your reasoning, in regard to the suppliers not giving out the frt frame demensions,but I find it strange that the owners manuel comes with a complete set of frame demensions. These would have been supplied,I assume, in order to correct any frame damage after an accident. Well,if your car was frt ended you would certainly need the frt frame ext demensions....yet they are not offerred. VERY STRANGE.

The best thing that could happen would be if someone out there with a professionally rebuilt unit or a new repro unit, made some diagrams....took some measurements and sent them to you. Then theses critical demensions would be available to all.

PS: This is not to take away from all of the highly reputable suppliers ,who help and aid us in our repairs but it is not everyone who has the availability of these suppliers (close at hand) or the deep pockets needed to have the parts replaced or rebuilt.
Gordon
Gordon Harrison

James

I was refering on how the car "will go" and not on "where you might go" 8^)


Gordon

I have a "spare" front extension in my shed that will "eventually" be modified for the anti-roll bar installation. Needs some rust repair as part of the process. What dimensions do you need? I can pull it out and get them for you.


Barney

What specific information, and in what format, would you like for your site?


Larry
58A
Larry Hallanger

Larry,
I would suggest bolting the unit to a flat surface and then taking as many critical demensions as possible. All demensions that would be critical to re-aligning the extention should be considered. The more....the better. If you were to use the diagram from a suppliers catolog, you could co-ordinate the reference points with it.

Once Barney has your base measurement, other people could offer their findings and the measurements could be compared,for accuracy. In the end it may be possible to offer the proper demensions ,to everyone ,for future reference.
thanks Gord
Gordon Harrison

Basic dimensioning starts with the pattern of the eight mounting bolts and extends to the position of the two large front studs with threads and shoulders. Then dimension the size and height of the center hole for the crank handle. Finally note the positions of the small holes in the sides for the bolt-on brackets. It wouild also be nice to have the dimensions arond the sway bar mounting points in case someone wants to convert the early model to the later model.

Best form of document could be a CAD drawing converted to pdf format. In a pinch, if I had all the dimensions I could make a drawing.
Barney Gaylord

>...Barney doesn't have them...Electric Works won't
>give up there knowledge and the manuels and books
>show abosolutely nothing

As the owner of Eclectic Motorworks and having repaired a lot of frame extensions, I can tell you a couple of things:
1. I can't give away the dimensions because I don't know them. We built a jig years ago using the factory dimensions for the 8 mounting holes at the chassis (these are in the service manual) and then averaged the dimensions of about 20 extensions for the other parts. I am not a blueprint person and don't now how to properly describe these dimensions. But I can build a jig to fit parts...
2. We got into the extension repair business because reproduction extensions have been of spotty quality over the years. Last time I checked (3+ years ago), a reproduction piece was 3/4" too narrow at the front bumper irons.
3. Even if I could give you the dimensions, I couldn't guarantee it would fit your car. Due to production variances and 40+ years of use, many MGAs are out of spec in other ways and therefore the front extension needs some tweaking to fit.
4. I do plan to write a story for MGA! magazine about repairing and fitting frame extensions sometime soon. It will have some "common sense" dimensions and practices/procedures in it.

I hope that helps a little.

--Carl

p.s. You can barely see our jig in the pictures at:
http://www.eclecticmotorworks.com/extprices.html
Carl Heideman

Carl,
You da man!
I, for one, appreciate all you do for the MG community. Great to meet you at Gatlinburgh and I love that new Knee Panel half piece you sold me. Fits great!
Regards,
Gerry Foster
G T Foster

I will have my body off the frame in a week or two - if I could just get the last two body/chassis bolts out - the two furthest back inside the boot (trunk)! Of course they are rusted tight. Can't get at the bolt heads to cut them or drill them off, and can't get at the nuts to break them off!

Any suggestions from anyone who has had the same problem?

Didn't mean to change the topic - I could measure up the front extension once I have the body off, is where I was headed with this.

Peter.
P. Tilbury

Peter,

We often have to heat those bolts up with a torch to red hot so we can get them out. But, if you put a vice grip on down below and then use a wrench or socket up above, you can often just break them in two. They're just 5/16" so they often are weak enough.

By the way, my main frame extension tip for anyone is to measure several diagonals like right rear to left front, etc.. If you get them all within 1/8"-1/4", your extension will be square. Then fit your valence and front bumper and make sure everything lines up, tweaking as necessary.

--Carl
Carl Heideman

Carl- I'm confused,what does this mean- "MGA 1600 frame extensions can accept a swaybar, 1500s cannot". How do you know what you have on a car? Or does this mean that a 1500 has to be modified to take a sway bar and a 1600 is already to go from the factory? On my 1600 I know it had been bent at one time but fits good now. It has no cutouts for a bar so I'm not sure it's the original one. Seems to me if I want to add one it would be best just to drop off the whole car right? Thanks Gary
gary starr

Gary, Carl has covered this in detail on his web site. Check out http://www.eclecticmotorworks.com/extprices.html
for the full story on the conversion from an original 1500 non-sway bar extension into the later 1600 type.
Bill Young

Carl,
Many thanks for this information and I look forward to reading your book. The situation of not having any dimension for the frt frame extention must be as frustrating for you as it is other Mga people. I find it hard to believe that with all of the info gathered and avaiable today (regarding MGA's ) that there is no record of these dimensions. Someone must have or be able to locate the origional spec drawings for this part. Unfortunately, 50 years later, a pristine NOS frt ext is not available to measure.

Although I am not a client,(gets real expensive to repair things when you have, basic repair price,shipping,insurance, Canadian customs duties & tariffs and the USA exchange) I wish you many more years of sucess.

Gordon
Gordon Harrison

Bill- I saw that but what I don't get is he says 1600 can accept but 1500 cannot. Does he mean that 1600 are all ready to go from the factory with out any work,or the 1600 extensions the only ones that can be modified?
gary starr

The 1600 type front frame (and most current replacements) have the provision for mounting the sway bar. The 1500 type do not, but can be modified to be like the 1600 type.
Barney Gaylord

According to Clausager, the frame extension was modified for the sway bar beginning with car number 66574. The first MGA 1600 was car number 68851. So if that is correct, there were at least a couple thousand 1500s with the modified design frame extension.
Del Rawlins

If you want to get into real useless trivia, there were actually 3 MGA frame extensions. Early 1500s had no sway bar provision and a smallist "D" shaped cutout for the steering rack. Later 1500s had a bigger "D" shaped cutout, but still no sway bar provision. As stated above, late 1500s and all 1600s had provision for the swaybar. As far as I know, most Twin Cams had provisions for the swaybar.

We never see an unrestored pushrod MGA with a factory installed swaybar. We have seen several Twin Cams with the factory bar.

We highly recommend the swaybar, so all our customers install them. We usually use a 9/16" MGB bar or 5/8" if the customer really drives hard.

--Carl
Carl Heideman

This thread was discussed between 08/11/2006 and 11/11/2006

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