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MG MGA - To Restore or Not to Restore?

Hello all. I'm at a crossroads.

The doglegs on my '62 need to be replaced, both rear fenders must come off the car for this (I'm told) and I'm probably looking at a total repaint since the car is a faded red and I'm told the paint will be near impossible to match. Add to that the body piping needs replacing and the front shroud has one spot that could use some attention under the windshield weather-stripping.

So, is it possible to repair these panels using the patches and match the paint, or is this the start of a slippery slope toward a full restoration?

I might add the frame looks good, but this car is mostly original, including wiring and has never been restored, but it has been garaged its entire life. Oh, and sometime in the next year the front end needs to be rebuilt, bushings are beginning to go.

The car itself runs great and is a daily driver, and I don't intend on changing that. It has a relatively new engine and tranny (24K).

All this leads me to believe it may be time to restore her, but I don't have the estimated $20-30K to do it, but I don't want to end up with an Earl Scheib or worse an car in pieces I can't get back together.

Any advice from folks that may have reached this point at some time?

I've attached a recent pic of her som you can see what I'm working with.

Cheers,
Christopher


C W Wilson

It looks very nice. You can do a running mechanical restoration without restoring the car. It does sound like a repaint is in order - what is the condition of the sills / rockers? If it's generally OK, then do the cosmetics, and the essential mechanicals, and leep driving.

I had to do a mechanical restoration of my car last year - it was leaking oil everywhere. Just replacing all the seals, rubber bushes and gaiters is not that expensive, and while everything was off, I also painted underneath and in the engine compartment so all looks like new.

dominic clancy

Just a few thoughts for you to consider; if the fenders are removed for dogleg repair and piping removal, there will be stubborn bolts (rusty) to deal with. The splash shields behind the fenders will also have rusted hardware, and the rubbers along the edge of the them will probably be bad (not a big deal to replace). When one starts to remove bady panels for repair, there are usually more problems to be found (good or bad depending on your goals). What's under the windscreen rubber, rust? These conditions do not seem to warrant a full restoration. By all means rebuild the suspension and go over the brake system. As Dominic said, I would go for the "rolling restoration". Take your car to a reputable body shop for an opinion on the paintwork. Many shops can do a remarkable paint match these days.
G Goeppner

Loking at your posted image, you definitely have something to work with. I have seen a LOT worse get a restoration. Iwould make the effort to restore it.

I have a 1979 MGB and have spent a lot more than what this car will ever be worth on engine rebuild which included a new alloy head, clutch kit soft top,and the list goes on. For what I spent on this rubber bumper B, I could have bought an MGA in good condition in the first place.
Still, no regrets. The car is NOT for sale.

That being said, yes - go ahead an restore it. The MGA's hold their value very well. The MGB's are reasonably holding value but not to the extent of the MGA's. Take your time, shop wisely and ask a lot of questions.

This forum is why we are all here.

cheers

Gary :>{D

79 MGB
gary hansen

A good paint man can match anything. I would do the repairs on the rear fenders. If you are thinking about redoing the front piping, I would plan on a restore or at least a total repaint. If you are trying to keep it original, I am not sure I would do anything but the leg repairs. As for the cost of a total restore, if your estimate is accurate, prices have gone way up. I restored mine (56) for about $5000 in 86-90. That included new interior, a new top, and 4 new dayton wire wheels with new tires, on top of all the other little bits that need attention. I had to replace dog legs also and it was a PAIN. The repair panels look like they are made flat, and of course the fender is curved. I spent a LOT of time with a torch reshaping the repair panels to make them work. Same thing with the grill, although yours looks good. I will have to attach a picture of mine when I get home of before and after so you can see what $5000 got me.

Dennis, Az
rtoys

Enjoy the car and drive it. Do the mechanical in small bites so the car is not laid for long periods. The suspension stuff can be done during the winter months. The cars are more fun to drive than trip over in the garage. Based on the picture your car is a hardly a beater. Good luck. IMHO
Bill Haglan

Assuming the sills are solid, if my car looked that good, I would follow Dominic's and Bill's advice. Do the necessary mechanical stuff, do the minimum body work, and drive it!

Ken
k v morton

I think the only rational solution is to trade it for mine. :-)
Steven B

I'm with Bill and Dominic, private garages around the world are full of thousands upon thousands of cars in bits for year after year that never really needed complete restorations. If you can afford someone else to do it, or you know that you will have the time to restore it, then fine. Otherwise keep it on the road, because once you start to remove parts....
Neil McGurk

Gary Hansen writes:

"Loking at your posted image, you definitely have something to work with. I have seen a LOT worse get a restoration. Iwould make the effort to restore it."

Been there, done that. :-)

http://tildebang.com/mg/index39.html

The car you're starting with appears to be in remarkably good shape for an unrestored vehicle. How can you NOT go ahead and start restoring it?
David Breneman

This thread was discussed between 06/11/2007 and 08/11/2007

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