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MG TD TF 1500 - TD and TF Things I Don't Like To See

I have just been reading the post about a chromed rocker cover and am pleased it is being replaced by an original, painted one. To lighten things up a little and to be controversial I list below modifications to TDs and TFs that I think spoil the cars. In ascending order of dislike :-

Chromed pancake filters
Chromed pancake filters and a chromed rocker cover
TD with wire wheels
TD and TF with chrome rather than painted wire wheels
And absolutely the worst of all a TD with chrome wire wheels that bolt onto the existing studs and have fake spinners.

I am sitting back awaiting the hate mail!

Cheers to all

Jan T
J Targosz

agreed, 5 speed ford box is also there for me.
mog

Yea.... well.....

I looked for a TD that had wire wheels and wouldn't own one without 'em. Every Brit-car I've owned has had them and in my mind wires on a small sports car is a typically British phenomenon and denotes a look of authenticity and the primitive nature of the beast. Wires = British sports car. Stamped dog dish = old Volvo.

Generically: Authentic British sports cars have authentic wire wheels. Stamped steel wheels look like MG cheaped out... because they did exactly that.

I know, I know... TD's and plenty of others didn't get them or they were only standard on Healeys and even some E-Types look OK with them, etc., etc. But - ask someone on the street to draw a British sports car and they will draw it with wire wheels, not Chrysler-style hub caps.

IMHO

....

'sides, we're not talking about vintage Duesenburgs here. The TD is an extremely cheap, entry-level 'drive it til it quits and throw another engine in it' easy to keep running car. I'm painting my rocker cover purple with green spots - I hope the judges don't notice.

....
MAndrus

I agree with most of what you say Jan. However, I did find my TD runs much better with the original oil bath air filter and manifold removed and a set of pancake filters installed. It breathes MUCH better. That being said, I don't have chrome pancakes - definitely too glitzy.
I'm not a fan of chroming, especially in places where there was no chrome! In America of course, there is a long standing love affair with hexavalent chromium and you see engines that have been almost entirely chromed!
My rocker cover needs redoing and I think I'll do it in the same dull silver color as the steel wheels.
Geoffrey M Baker

Two tone paint on a TD
Willem van der Veer

I guess all I can say is don't look my way :-)


MG LaVerne

I don't understand the hate for wires on a TD, either. They are OK on a TC and a TF, but not a TD? I guess that comes from thinking that they were perfect the way they came out of the factory and no modifications (even those offered by the dealers as options later, as were the wires) are acceptable.

I appreciate and understand that some folks think originality is king, but I also think there is plenty of room for people that want to mod their cars. Especially with TD's, there are plenty of pristine examples out there, and the cars are far from rare. Personally, I like to see folks doing some cool mods that really do improve the looks of the car.

I was recently at an event where a fellow had put wires on his TD and painted them a dark green to match the body color. Yeah, not original, but a cool looking car in its own right. The dark wires, along with a deleted windshield in favor of Brooklands screens, had the effect of lowering the car and making it look more like a 30's sports car.

Another fellow in our club has bobbed and trimmed his TD fenders to make them look more like TC fenders and has done a number of other mods. Some things on that car are not to my taste (I would have liked to see more period looking seats than the MGB seats he put in it, for example), but I still think it is a cool looking car and it has all been done to a high standard.

Original cars have been done to death. You see 10 or 20 and you've seen them all. I like seeing a bit of creativity.
David Littlefield

Its easy to dislike things that glitter from the modern perspective, where every car looks like a turtle and all interiors are grey or beige.

However in the late 40's and fifties, chrome was in. I would consider it period correct. Color was in and MG has some nifty colors. (Yes that green and yellow one is a bit much) It can be over done on a MG but you still need to look at it in the context of THEN.

Now engine turned trimming was very much in and I have seen several Pre-TD MG factory sports cars with SS dashes.

Jim B.





JA Benjamin

Personally I think the wires not being on a TD was a production/cost/profit thing for MG. Clearly they had a change of heart when they came up with the retro-fit kit in 1953.

My pet peeve is swapping the running gear (engine/transmission/rear end).

Note: changing the rear end ratio via a ring and pinion swap is OK with me as its hidden and probably does make more sense, at least to the 4.875 or 4.555.
Christopher Couper

I love my wire wheels. my motto if it aint got wires and a wooden dash it aint british, my clipper blue TD looks great with wires and looks lousy with steel wheels. IMHO
TRM Maine

I seem to remember a R&T test of the TD at the time where they believed the solid wheels improved handling.

Jim B.
JA Benjamin

Please put an end it this thread. Civility has long been a mark of this BBS. Let us absorb our own feelings on the topic. I, for one, will not open this thread again. Bud
Bud Krueger

Steady on Bud. I see opinions expressed but not a sniff of incivility. I agree with Jan simply because bringing a car back to the way it was when it left the line is capturing a moment in time & reflecting the tastes & design aspirations of the late forties early fifties. The TD is of its era & when you see a car where originality is of paramount importance to the owner it just looks right. Gives me a warm fuzzy feeling at any rate. Cheers
Peter TD 5801
P Hehir

Re stamped engine tags and guarantee plates. Chrome where it does not belong, vinyl tops and side curtains, doors that close with one click, no seam where the front and rear quarter panels meet (under the door) undercoated fenders, wiper moters up some down, the "Auster" plate on the wrong side of the windscreen, SAE and Metric bolts, poor wiring, zip ties holding things together, tires without tubes in them, and greasy, dirty engine compartments and undercarriages. But that is just me, and this is the list that I would use to judge my cars. These cars are all unique and just perfect to their owners. To each his/her own.
-David
D. Sander

I agree with Peter. No incivility here, and everyone should feel free to do whatever pleases them with their cars, and should be proud of their work!
Geoffrey M Baker

I have to tell you a story. My parents had just completed the rebuild of their TF 50 years ago and they were out one evening bowling when it was announced over the intercom could the owner of their car contact reception. When they went to the reception there was a man there who had noticed the car in the car park and proceeded to give out about all the modifications they had made. He was disgusted and they were stunned. They thought he was going to compliment them on the lovely job they had done. From my memory the mods I can remember were a chrome rocker cover, chrome petrol tank ends, a mascot on the radiator (seen in the pic) and a leatherette dash. ☺


D Lamb

PS How easy is it to dethrone rocker covers and petrol tank ends. Both are rusty but salvageable.
D Lamb

I'm game for original and all points in between. I draw the line at engine transplants though. But that's just me.
MG LaVerne

I agree with transplants (but only in humans!) :-) Cheers
Peter TD 5801
P Hehir

Well, if your engine blows you may need a transplant!
Geoffrey M Baker

This is interesting. Everybody is entitled to their opinion of what they like or do not like. This is the car hobby. There is room for all and that would be, factory original perfect restored cars, modified cars, unrestored cars, and my personal dream car a TC with a flat head Ford V8 60. It matters little what each of us like except as it applies to our own cars.
F. Driver

Just gotta add another dislike - whitewalls to the tyres! Great on BIG cars but too strong on the smaller breeds.

Kev S TF6288
K Simonsen

Probably my nightmare is a green and yellow TD. Is that thing still floating around out there?

Saying that, I have a chrome tool box cover. and a polished steel cover band on my starter motor. Oh, yes, I also paint my tappet cover the same silver as my valve cover.


Bruce TD4139 Cunha

I like to see a strong running T in action. Five speed box is common sense in today's driving conditions .

Regards

Jan
Jan Emil Kristoffersen

IMHO invisible performance improvements such as a hotter cam, shaved head etc & a 4.3 diff will achieve very similar results to the 5 speed conversion without sacrificing originality.
Cheers
Peter TD 5801
P Hehir

I am sorry if I have upset Bud but I think that the responses show a little camaraderie goes a long way and even though most subscribers will never meet they enjoy the occasional banter at each others expense. By the way the bolt on wires I saw on the TD had three eared, fake spinners which were on bearings so you could spin them around.

Jan T
J Targosz

Oh my, Even though 99% of my car is correct, I don't like two tone paint either, reason I painted mine like this just to make it conversational. LOL. PJ




Paul S Jennings

Ok, So the wheels are chrome! I like them, makes the car look pretty. I still have the originals, but their stored in the shop where they will remain for quite a spell. PJ
Paul S Jennings

Paul, your car looks spectacular. I may steal your paint scheme some day.
MAndrus

Bruce,
I don't have the stomach to post the yellow and green one again,,,
.
Check the thread
"Engine color accents... for the fun of it!" Also see Davids reply !!!!!
Steve Wincze

My car, my choice. Your car, your choice.

I don't live in a monochromatic world...I love the differences!
Gene Gillam

I'm just thrilled that I can keep my sixty-two year old TD running well enough and dependably enough to enjoy drives up to and along the Blue Ridge Parkway. That's happening on Saturday and I hope I haven't jinxed it. I enjoy going to the local car shows and looking at all the shiny cars (and remarking on what's original and what's "owner just loves it") but, because I drive my TD as often as I can, I usually get the dirtiest car award at least in my class. Beauty, eye of the beholder and all that - I just love being with the beholders and learning what other eyes see as beauty. Jud
J K Chapin

Paul,

When you are ready to part with those original wires I know a guy who would like to buy them. Yes, me. The only thing I wish to change on my TF is the wheels. When my resurrection is complete the car will look just like it did when placed into storage some 41 years ago. Except for the wires. It just has to have wires.


Dan


Daniel Nordstrom

Dan, Send me an email. PJ
Paul S Jennings

Thanks Gene, you're right on target!

Bill TD 24570
Bill Brown

AMEN to GENE! I guess a lot of people here will not be appreciative of my resurrection. My car would have been considered scrap 45 yrs ago when it sadly was taken apart and forgotten. Though I am painstakingly doing a nut and bolt restoration up to the point of the engine. I am building the car for its intended purpose, that of spirited driving. If you come across my car at a show, in a parking, lot, on the street, sitting in my driveway or on the track and you don't like it... then I suggest you keep your mouth shut and walk away quickly lest you want to back up those words. I'm not building the car for any ones amusement but my own. I have spent enough on this build to buy a trailer queen. My investment is real and was well thought out and nothing, and I mean nothing has been done to this car that modifies it to the extent that it would not make a quick and complete restoration of every visual aspect. This car at some point will be a special and be used for its intended purpose. If you had nothing complimentary to say I would rather you just go throw rocks somewhere else My Two Benjamin's worth

And I'm with Bud on this thread. It serves no practical purpose in promoting our cars or its members attempts to keep them on the road.

Respectfully

Bill Chasser Jr
TD4834
W. A. Chasser Jr

My attitude is MG's were cheap sports cars designed to be used for fun and perhaps competition use-whatever you do to a T type it can be fixed! Our TB has a hard life, but gets rebuilt every year.
Dave


DM Gibson

I know I said my dream car would have a Ford V8 60 in it but you can have more than one dream. If I were to come across a pile of TD parts in a barn find with a lot of missing parts but a good frame and some of the body it would be reborn with a 350 Chevy V8, 350 Turbo, electric cooling fan, Ford 8" rear end, no bonnet sides, and white wall tires. Don't anyone choke its just a dream and hold the nightmare comments.
F. Driver

Mr Driver, your dream car has arrived.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRx6LqWTE-I

Bill TD24570
Bill Brown

I'll bet Jay has a real hard time getting into that car if he is even able to. I've always thought a TD Rat Rod would be cool, two tone paint big engine MGA suspension and brakes, and tons of chrome.Or maybe no chrome at all.

That said in all seriousness but then I really liked the TF1500 which was very close to original except the chrome wires that I truly loved.
Dave


Dave Clark Arizona

Well, we've all agreed to disagree and we all respect everyone else even though we secretly know WE are right. Now it's time to discuss politics, right?
JUST KIDDING... let's NOT GO THERE! :)
Geoffrey M Baker

Dave, I assume the picture is of your TF 1500. If so do you have the paint code and if so would you share it. I really like the shade of red on the car. Fred
F. Driver

Growing up in the US Motor Cities (Detroit and Windsor) in the 50s & 60s and being heavily into hot rods and drag racing, a very common comment with respect to bright work was "If it don't go Chrome it"

Being converted to small english sports cars which rely on handling and driver skills not brute horsepower I think the saying still applies.

However, having said that, each car owner no matter make or model is entitled to treat his car as they desire, if it is not our car I do not think we have a right to criticize.

Cheers
Norm Peacey


Posted 09 April 2015 at 00:02:02 UK time
D Lamb, Ireland
PS How easy is it to dethrone rocker covers and petrol tank ends. Both are rusty but salvageable.

Just thought I would answer this. The first phase in rechroming is stripping the old chrome off. So if you have them stop there you can then paint it with rust preventer, then prime it and paint it to match.

Hope this helps.
JWP Policastro

I am now feeling sorry I raised this topic. I had hoped for a little good natured banter but it looks as though I have stirred some strong feelings - sorry!

However re the issue of painting over chrome. My petrol tank side panels have been plated all over but the centre sections have some scratches and rough plating and the PO's intention was obviously to paint them apart from the edges. I attempted to rough up the plating with emery paper but couldn't get into the corners really well. After masking and priming, some of the paint flaked off around the edges. The guy at the paint shop recommended Rustbuster Epoxy Primer and it so good we have sanded the entire body and recoated it with this stuff. The paint at the chrome edges of the tank sides are razor sharp and it has stuck like **** to a *******.

Jan T
J Targosz

Peter H,

I really enjoyed your comments on this one!! Spot on.

Dave Clark,very nice looking TF1500. As an aside,on January 16th 2015 at a UK based auction house,a TF1500 sold for 58,000 pounds. Yes! That was pounds!

Rob Grantham
TF3719("Aramis"),TF9177("Athos").
R GRANTHAM

Just for Info, as noone mentioned that:

when MG started with the TD , using independent front suspension from the MG Y, they just had problems with a spoke wheel design for this new front hub.
When later the TF was produced, the american market wanted spoke wheels and bought them on the aftermarket.

The TD himself was never delivered with spoke wheels. The TD disc wheels at this time were just a symbol for a new era.

And it is astonishing, that the disc wheels are now very hard to get. It is much easier to get new spoke wheels.

a word about chromed spoke wheels. It is not without sense, that these are forbidden in racing. chromed spokes are much more fragile than painted spokes.

michael
MT Trykowski

Thanks JWP good idea
D Lamb

This thread was discussed between 08/04/2015 and 23/04/2015

MG TD TF 1500 index

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