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MG MGA - Where are they now?

I've been working on a project for the Heritage Motor Centre at Gaydon recently and this picture of 2 MGA's being unloaded at the docks, was part of the the new display we created.
I asked the the curator permission to post this picture here to see if anyone knows of the whereabouts of these 1956 Roadsters today (or if they even still exist).
The chassis numbers marked on the crate and are - 19585 for the top one & 19684 for the lower one. The crate is also marked 'Gough Industries - Los Angeles' which would suggest these are being unloaded in LA (although the image is recorded by BMIHT as being taken in Canada but this may be incorrect).
Does anyone out there know or indeed ever owned either of them?

(Please note this image is a copyright of BMIHT.)


Chris Bond

Chris,

Fists place I always look is the Holand registry list:

http://www.mgcars.org/mgarh/register/list.htm

But Alas I don't see them there.
Then ask NAMGAR.

Found this photo you might like.

Cheers
Mark



Mark Hester

Mark, Nice photo. A ship's hold I guess. Do you know when or where? Bob P.
rsa prentice

It does look like the hold of a ship, but it seems that they are in the process of still being crated. It would be unusual to do the crating in the ship's hold.


Mick
M F Anderson

Its a warehouse where the crating took place. The additional pillars probably supported a rolling gantry electric hoist which would have been used to move and stack the crates (probably holding the photographer too).
Great photos!

Cheers,
Matthew.

PS. Anyone ever seen a TF in a crate? I would love to see that photo.
Matthew Magilton

Matthew,
Found some TD's in a crate.....

http://www.mgcars.org.uk/mgtd/mgtd_heritage_pics.htm

SPW
Steve Wincze

Chassis number 19585 is listed on the register maintained by NAMGAR. The complete details are HDL43/19585, body # 29565, engine# 15GBUH/41733.
The colour code'L' means "Light Blue." The B&W photo seems to indicate a light colour, but not white.
Chris, could the other chassis number for lower car be 19586, it would make more sense to be shipping chassis numbers which are closer together, rather than 99 apart.
The NAMGAR Registrar could probably provide details on whereabouts of this MGA.
Garry
Garry Kemm

Steve: Yes, I know of those excellent photos too (but still not TF, I'm a difficult customer!).
Notice how in those crated TD photos we see the same steel pillars as in the MGA crating photo.

Cheers,
Matthew.
Matthew Magilton

I noticed that. The Td photo states that the units are packed at Nuffield Exports.
Mike Parker

Hi Mark,

Thanks for that, I'll try NAMGAR.

Nice photo of them being crated.

Chris.
Chris Bond

I think I have a few more similar photos at home.
I'll try and upload them over the w/end

Cheers
Mark.
Mark Hester

The picture Mark posted is from my web site. It was indeed taken at the factory in Abingdon.
David Breneman

David, are you sure this is an Abingdon factory? Weren't the cars railed out of Abingdon?

Cheers,
Matthew.
Matthew Magilton

David,

The building in Mark's photo seems too high for the Abingdon buildings.
In the book "MG's Abingdon factory" by Brian Moylan there are many photos of the Abingdon factory over the years, both inside and outside the buildings.
None of the buildings seems to be that high.
Nuffield were at that time exporting many models of cars in addition to MG's from Abingdon. These also had to be crated by Nuffield Exports. Maybe the warehouse was near the shipping port.
Anybody know the actual details?


Mick
M F Anderson

I notice on the front page of my various MG factory publications, Manuals etc. that the address of Nuffield Exports is given as Cowley, Oxford but this may be an office address, not also the warehouse.


Mick
M F Anderson

Here's some more



Mark Hester

And This one


Mark Hester

Great pictures Mark.
Bodies en route to Abingdon from Carbodies(?)
Note how the screens and hoods were already fitted. Probably the upholstery too, like the T types.
And LHD export cars by the wharf. Are they near the crating wharehouse? (That would make sense). Or were some ships capable of drive on/drive off?

Cheers,
Matthew.
Matthew Magilton

The second of the newer pictures Mark submitted is also from my web site ( http://www.tildebang.com/mg/index14.html ). I'm attaching another one, showing care being loaded onto a train. I'll have to go back to my notes, but I believe that the picture originally was describe as "crated cars leaving the factory" so the initial description may have used to loose definition of "factory". I took it to mean a building on the Abingdon complex.


David Breneman

That's "cars", not "care", but we assume one is being used with the other. :-)
David Breneman

The MG works and the railway were at opposite sides of Abingdon-
Works http://tinyurl.com/ll8guu (see Nuffield Way and Kimber Rd)
Station http://tinyurl.com/nwqwhs (see Magnette Close)

Cowley, on the other hand, had its own rail sidings that went right inside the works - one still exists http://tinyurl.com/llz2t3
Geoff Everitt

Seems odd to me that they would bother removing the screens for delivery within Britain. Maybe those RHD cars are bound for Australia and New Zealand? We took a few thousand in crates.

Cheers,
Matthew.
Matthew Magilton

Matthew,

The RHD Australian MGA's were CKD. The bodies were welded together and painted in Australia. Complete pushrod roadsters were not crated for Australian delivery. Only pushrod coupes and all Twin Cams were shipped complete to Australia.
The question remains, where were RHD cars without windscreens going to be delivered?


Mick
M F Anderson

You are right Mick, I should have checked "MG's Downunder".
Interesting the used of brown paper around the cockpit. A preparation for crating?
I think South Africa were painting their own too?
Maybe Japan?
Were they crated for Ireland?

Cheers,
Matthew.
Matthew Magilton

There were some other RHD markets, including Sweden, Malta, India, Thailand, Malasia, Singapore, Malta etc.etc.
Neil McGurk

Is Sweden RHD? Yumpin' yimminee!
David Breneman

Sweden is now LHD but it was RHD drive when the MGA was built.



Mick
M F Anderson

It appears that the situation in Sweden was more complicated than first thought. They drove on the left side of the road until 1967 and then changed to driving on the right side of the road. However, it appears that most cars before 1967 had the LHD steering position, but driving on the left hand side of the road. Strange!


Mick
M F Anderson

Mick, that's planning!
Neil McGurk

That transition must have been a nightmare.
David Breneman

They still do that in the U.S. Virgin Islands; drive on the left with mostly U.S. sourced vehicles that have conventional LH drive. It's scary on some of the very narrow mountain roads. Apparently it would cost too much for public transit to change over.
John DeWolf

David, they did it in stages; Trucks the first week, then buses and cars, with motorcycles the week after that... LOL

Seriously though, it was a wonder of logistics (that could probably not be repeated with the complexity of modern road systems). It was literally done overnight!

I worked for Volvo for about 17 years and lived in Gothenburg for a year. Obviously, the older guys remember the switch quite clearly.

For more information:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dagen_H
Neil McGurk

This thread was discussed between 01/07/2009 and 07/07/2009

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