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MG MGB Technical - Miata IRS in a B?

Has anyone looked at transplanting a Miata rear suspension into a B? I know that the track is wider. I have no idea what would be entailed in shortening the Miata drive axles for such a project. I do know that if they were not done properly, the broken ends spinining under the car would be VERY scary. If anyone has experience in shortening these types of axles I would like to hear from them.

Pete
Pete

Why not just buy a Miata? Why not love our B's for waht they are? I can see upgrading to some extent but if you change it too much it isn't the same car.
Just my 2cts worth
Pat in Tehachapi
patrick bailey

I own both a Miata and a 'B. I like both; each has it's particular advantages and disadvantages. To me, the biggest advantage the Miata has in regard to the rear suspension is ride quality, not handling. The Miata probably has better control on rough pavement - but both are pretty skittish under those conditions.
I wouldn't make the switch. Getting the setup properly engineered isn't a task for the backyard mechanic. Most likely you'd end up with an MG that handled worse than the original - and quite possibly unsafe as well.
J.G. Reed

www.mgbv8.co.uk , http://rebornco.com/mgbv8/newmgbv8.htm

A couple sites about cars with Jaguar IRS installations. I don't know how the miata IRS is built, ie. is it one whole system that comes out, or is the car part of the sytem, but I do know the jaguar system does come out in one piece.

Anthony
Anthony Morgan

Check the archive, the V8 conversion section, or maybe post a question there. Theres a company , Hawk car's or something like that who make a very neat bolt in independant suspension. Comes with brakes etc. It's designed to bolt up to your existing shocker boltholes and spring hangers and requires no cutting or perminant changes, so you can take it out again I suppose. It was mention in one of the "MG world" Magazine issues (no photo) and makes an appearance in Roger Williams book "How to improve your MGB, MGC & MGV8"(detailed photograph). A figure of 1500 pounds was mentioned which I find a bit breathtaking, but it looked pretty good.
Peter

http://www.hawkcars.co.uk/parts/mgbsusp.html

I saw the Hoyle rear suspension kit mentioned by Peter at Stonleigh yesterday and it looks superb. And, as mentioned, the added attraction of bolting straight in.

Geoff King has one fitted to his V8 Roadster.

HTH
Martin ZT

Thanks for the replies. I drove a Miata for 13 years. Yep, great car. I have had an MGB for 26 years. Guess which car stayed in the corral? The suspension on the Miata is quite nice; light and self packaged double A-arms/ The Jag stuff is very heavy and not very modern. The Hawk stuff imported into Canada would be as much as a nice B by the time you added it all up. Do not worry about carving up a good B; the project is a 61 Bug Eye sprite. It will be getting either a Susuki swap or a GM V6 to go with the suspension.

Pete
Pete

Pete,

Not sure how far this project has progressed

http://www.mlgcars.fsnet.co.uk/irs.htm

Frontline are also looking at a rear redesign.

Paul
Paul Wiley

Paul:

Now that is what I am talking about! Problem is that by the time you get the thing into Canada, it is 0ver 4 thousand Canadian dollars. I want to do the same thing only with a Miata centre section and uprights. What I want to know is if anyone has experience shortening a halfshaft.

Pete
Pete

Pete, any good driveline shop can shorten a half-shaft for around $125, but that was a few years ago in northern Minnesota.

Jeff Schlemmer

As other side of pond

Could try these or Strange

http://www.currieenterprises.com/html/custom/rearendservices.htm

With Hawk above I believe this keeps splines with tube and rewelded, not to keen of recutting spline unless heat treated afterwards.

In UK places like GKN motorsports could produce right length half shaft, must be places in Canada.

Paul
Paul

Pete. Not sure what you are trying to accomplish here. I drove my original 79B from Orlando, Fla. to Tucson. Several years ago, while staying in Orlando while my mother was in the hospital (long term), I purchased a 95 Miata for my younger daughter and drove it to the Phoenix, Az. area, recreating the original trip. I did not find any advantages over the B. (But, it was just as much fun and the Miata is a great car.) My older daughter, who drives a 77B and I have driven the Miata on trips of over 100 miles and find we prefer the stock MGB to the Miata. (That is, our Bs have rebuilt front suspensions and rebuilt rear suspensions and handle as if they were new.)

So, while you pose an interesting question, what benefits do you expect from such a conversion? Les
Les Bengtson

Les:

Alway glad to hear from you. What do I hope to acomplish.....? Fear not, I am not about to cut up the "MG FROM HELL", my 67 GT. I WAS only hours away from ordering a V6 conversion kit from Dan Wayde, when a nice neighbour gave me a 1961 Bug Eyed Sprite. The sprite is rough but restorable. The worst part is the structure that retains the 1/4 elliptic springs; it is gone. So I have a V6 engine, and I have a 5 speed tranny, and I will need some kind of a rear suspension. The easy way out is a solid axle out of a Camaro or Mustang: shortened to match. The Miata rear is a nice design and seems like a good candidate for this project. If the axles can be safely shortened, it will be a nice rear end for this Hot Rod.

As I mentioned above, I owned a Miata for 13 years. Drove it summer and winter. Great car. I have driven both on nonstop trips from Toronto to Rapid City SD many times. 25 hours best time. The B would leave me battered, with the Miata I was tired of driving and tired of listening to Country and Western!

Pete
Pete

Pete. It sounds like you understand what you want. My experience with the B, although I was some 20 years younger than when I made the trip with the Miata, was that I did not experience the type of problems you describe. My only "endurance" driving was with a 61 Sprite Mark II, which I believe, had the quarter eliptic springs also, when I drove 21 straight hours from Orlando, Fla. to Beeville, Texas. There was, of course, a young lady in Beeville. I still had sufficient energy to go out partying that evening. Now, I take some things easier and 500 miles in a B is a fairly easy day's drive.

I would suggest that you post on the Sprite/midget board. (You may already have, but I have been gone for several days and am going throught the posts and have not reached there yet.) They are a very good source of information, a great group of people to deal with and are very open to such discussions. They can, most probably, provide some significant input. Les
Les Bengtson

HUH?
Pete Hillmann

Four link suspension in an MG B, using Rover rear axle:
http://www.vord.net/cars/mgb_mods/rear_susp/4_link_rear_suspension.htm
I remember Andrew Harrison talking about some kind of setup like this, but he saved his SD1, if I am correct.

Frank
Frank de Groot

This thread was discussed between 16/02/2004 and 19/02/2004

MG MGB Technical index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG MGB Technical BBS is active now.