MG-Cars.net

Welcome to our resource for MG Car Information.

Recommendations

Parts

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 TD TF 1500 - This is getting very frustrating

A month or so ago, I found that the rear rubber on the emergency brake was rotten. It is around 1 year since I rebuilt this part of my restoration, and the car has been in the shop under a cover all this time.

Today, I noted that the rubber boots on the king pin have all cracked and split. These do not move, they also have been in a closed garage under cover.

These will require that I unhook the shocks and A pan and take the top and bottom links off and replace the rubbers.

This is just not acceptable. What can we do about these terrible parts?

Bruce Cunha

The quality of rubber products has been discussed on several of the forums. It’s call planned obsolesence to the extreme. The rubber parts supplied today are all crap! You can readily expect them to deteriorate in a very short period of time. I’ve had rubber parts crack and split after but a few months. I’ve watched a peddle boot fall apart in an matter of several weeks.

How to correct the problem. Complain, return the defective products and refuse to buy junk parts. Things won’t change unless people demand a better product and are willing to pay for it.

Bill Chasser
TD/4834
W A Chasser

Bill,
I have never had any reported failures on any of my rubber products in the six years that I have been making them.
Regards
Declan
Declan Burns

Declan you obviously don't get them from China!!!
JK Mazgaj

Jan,
Made in Germany!
Declan Burns

Declan - am I right in remembering that Abingdon Spares sells your rubber parts in the US?

Many thanks.

Tom lange
MGT Repair
t lange

Declan. I’m sorry. You are quite right and my blanket statement wasn’t meant as a reflection toward your products. But sadly you don’t produce the entire gambit of rubber products and with the exception of those you do produce , the vast remainder are of a poor quality material.


Bill Chasser
TD-4834
W A Chasser

Tom,
No they don't. The did receive some a few years ago through my mate who owns the factory where we make them.
Regards
Declan
Declan Burns

Declan: Any progress on getting your stuff back into the states again? I know that shipping during the early pandemic was a show stopper. Has that gotten any better?

I wonder if Doug Pelton of From the Frame Up would be a better source for you to work with distributing to the US. He is totally focused on originality and quality to the max and is OK with small quantities.
Christopher Couper

Bruce, this rubber issue plagues all of us- I plan to contact Declan, as his products are clearly well regarded and I have no idea what he produces. I like the sound of European-produced products, and would be happy to pay twice the price of the pathetic so-called rubber stuff currently available
I'm sure reputable retailers such as those mentioned above would be only too happy to be able to offer a better alternative to those who are interested. Bill Chasser is right, we must complain loudly if we hope to achieve anything.
John.
J P Hall

I've been experiencing piss poor rubbish rubber parts for at least the last 16 years. All the sellers know about it but some of the bigger buyers must still have huge stocks remaining as the parts would have been so cheap to buy in the thousands or tens of thousands.

I's not just the cost of the parts it's the time effort and money of fitting these piss poor rubbish rubber (and other) parts and then the replacement cycle of them months, or even weeks later.

Much of the problem is caused by tight-fisted classic vehicle owners who even when they see listed a better quality, but higher priced, alternative insist on the cheap crap part, some of this may be due to not knowing the difference but often it's because the vehicle is hardly ever used, and then very lightly, and one in a small or larger fleet of classics. We all suffer from the lowest common dominators, we reap what they sow.

Below 6 months light use over winter, these appear to be made in Argentina, the replacements lasted 4 years.




Nigel Atkins

Isn't their liability to manufacturers and sellers relating to these products? We have complained enough that it is clear these products fail far earlier than would be expected.

As I stated. If the rubber I use in my master cylinder fails, wouldn't there be recourse? The Manufacturer? The retailer? I have to think that since they are aware of the issue, if they don't make an effort to correct it, they also hold some liability.

As I remember, a manufacturer of tires had to settle a number of large claims relating to their tires failing and causing fatalities.
Bruce Cunha

Maybe in America but in UK the manufacturer's and suppliers could point to the massive sales of cheap crap parts (that the majority of classic owners buy) compared to the tiny sales of the more 'expensive' better quality alternatives.

Plus as you'd see in the Archive posts over here the suppliers say to us things like "you're the first to return the product and we've sold x thousands this year" or things like "how are you installing it".

They would also say they offer a replacement part under warranty, We had things like wheel brake cylinders of short life because of the piss poor rubbish rubber seals but as long as the part (and any warranty replacement) makes it passed a year that's the end of the story, and to be fair they usually do last a few years at least. Things seem to have got better with these now.

I will give credit to an employee of Rimmer Bros. over here who replied when I asked how good the steering rack gaiters they sold were and if they were made in the Far East - no they were made in South America and probably not the best quality (those were the ones that lasted 4 years).

I can't understand how you've got this far without encountering this before now.
Nigel Atkins

Abingdon Spares is always looking to improve the quality of the MG products they sell, and have been in touch with Declan about the availability of his rubber super-parts.

Doug Pelton is surely the best source of original TC parts, but the TD things he carries happen to be interchangeable with his TC parts, like engine parts.

Tom Lange
MGT Repair
t lange

The sellers of parts for classic cars have no way to tell if a part is good or bad, other than from feedback from customers or their own use if they are similar enthusiasts. They have no ability to test and do not employ rubber technologists or any other materials experts. This did not matter when once upon a time the parts came from well established suppliers, who knew the requirements, tested their products and were bona fide. These days those suppliers have mainly gone and these parts come from ultra low cost sources who churn them out at lowest cost, often using unsatisfactory materials. Considering the size of the market I guess we are lucky we get anything at all. The only alternative is small volume specialist suppliers, and likely much higher prices. I worked in the polymer industry all of my working life.
Dave H

Dave Hill

That's the thing Dave the suppliers and the purchasers don't want to pay higher prices, the suppliers especially so on slow moving stock.

You are right that often the suppliers don't know the quality of stock until it arrives with them and I suspect that the batch quality can be well below what was expected or provided as samples or first deliveries. I also know that suppliers have other costs often much higher than the part cost to take into consideration for their profit and price they can volume sell at within the expected period. Remember their customers are the tight-fisted classic vehicle owners that whinge about prices (other than on bling items) and most are (like myself) moaning old men, some who still think of fags, a pint and fish 'n' chips for a few florins, yet they can afford one or a fleet of old over-priced and over-valued cars called "classics".

I've been at the NEC classic car shows for 20+ years and mostly all I've heard is moaning about prices of everything except the value of the vehicles they own (which are usually considered at nearer concours than true values) yet they still want cheap crap parts for them.

Hopefully those below the age of 60 with more "modern, they're not classic" cars from the 80s and 90s on will come through more and demand higher parts quality as they're prepared to pay for the quality.
Nigel Atkins

That is only the start of it. I've said it before, but I 'll repeat it again - automotive rubber components used to be fully vulcanised and made mainly by compression moulding, using a sulphur cure or other means. This produced a strong three dimensional network of polymer chains. These days products that look very similar and superficially have similar properties can be made by injection moulding thermoplastic rubber. In addition a host of extenders and modifiers can be added to speed up the moulding cycle time and lower the material cost. Long term properties inevitably suffer.
Cost of small volume complex parts is not just dependent on the material cost and cycle time, but especially on the cost of tooling. Technology changes and very much lower labour costs elsewhere, drove the traditional suppliers out of business or to focus on large volume business where they could recover their costs.
Dave H
Dave Hill

Bruce, Search the archives "swivel pin seals". Many threads going back years, you are even in some of them. One of my notes- the seals with ACG 4030 LIFETIME molded in last years. That may be a factory part number and actual NOS parts? I think I got some of the ones from Declan's mate through Abingdon a few years ago and those are still perfect. They have a bit more square edge/lip than the others. This crappy seal rubber has been a thing for 20 years now. No excuse for that. Hope Declan produces the split seals, as that avoids pulling the entire swivel assembly and brake back plate. I got some not exactly original bellows from Abingdon that are 2-3 years old now, with no cracks at all. George
George Butz III

I ordered 4 from Declan. Now I just have to tear the whole suspension abart. Woooppeeee
Bruce Cunha

George,
I have just received notification from the 3D printing service that my next batch of split seals are almost ready. I should have them here next week.

Christopher-no problem posting to USA.

Bruce,
Your rubber seals are in the post.

Regards
Declan


Declan Burns

My new gators that were installed on my R&P for dads car during restoration failed before I even got the tub reinstalled. The car was only rolled from my backyard to a covered enclosure. I then replaced them again several
months ago with gators from a supplier specializing in NOS and aftermarket foreign parts. Thinking I would get a better product than what I had gotten in the past from Moss. Silly me. Those too, have also failed miserably after less than 200 mi and three months time

Bill Chasser
TD/c-8151
W A Chasser

This thread was discussed between 07/10/2021 and 17/10/2021

MG TD TF 1500 index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG TD TF 1500 BBS is active now.