- Seller: Michael P
- Location: Salinas, California
- Mileage: 47,475 Shown
- Chassis #: 19016
- Title Status: Clean
Over its nearly 20-year run, MG’s T-Type saw a number of updates and improvements. The TD was the fourth iteration and saw a number of changes that made it a more comfortable and easier-to-use car. While some didn’t like the changes made to the TD, clearly they were popular, with nearly 30,000 examples having been built. This example is a project that has been sitting since the ’90s and is being offered by the second owner as a No Reserve Barn Finds Auction!
The TD was larger and better appointed than the TC it replaced. The 1250cc XPAG 4-cylinder engine was unchanged but was paired to a new 4-speed transmission. Rather than using the TC’s chassis, the TD rode on the Y-Type chassis, bringing with it independent front suspension plus rack and pinion steering from the One and a Quarter liter saloon. Enthusiasts at the time felt the car was too soft, but its smoother ride and increased size proved to be quite popular, especially here in the States.
The engine is currently out of the car but is still with it. It looks to have quite a bit of corrosion on the exterior components, so hopefully, it can be rebuilt easily. Replacement internals are available, as well as upgrades to increase displacement and compression. This engine would have been good for around 54 horsepower, so an upgrade might be a welcome improvement to keep up with modern traffic. The transmission is also out of the car and appears to be in pieces.
It appears that the interior is still original and is in reasonably good condition. The red leather seats are still bright and don’t show any signs of damage. All the gauges, switches, and trim are present. The wooden dash is showing it’s age and will need to be refinished or replaced. Given how simple and popular these cars are, parts are still being manufactured to maintain and restore this one.
Based on the seller’s photos, this looks like it should be a very solid and fairly straightforward project. Rebuilding the original engine and transmission will require some work, but not an impossible task. It has a great look and could prove to be a great project. So if you’d love to have it, be sure to bid and leave any questions in the comments below.
Bid On This Auction
Pasternak bid $2,700.00 2023-10-10 09:59:32
Imad bid $2,600.00 2023-10-10 09:21:14
John Weidemann bid $2,500.00 2023-10-10 07:42:35- Imad bid $2,400.00 2023-10-10 07:16:33
Tbadz bid $2,200.00 2023-10-04 18:17:40
959910 bid $1,900.00 2023-10-04 10:41:16
renald bid $1,500.00 2023-10-04 09:36:49
Stuart bid $1,100.00 2023-10-03 17:36:57- Tbadz bid $950.00 2023-10-03 12:57:27
Randy1911a1 bid $820.00 2023-10-03 12:35:17
Really? bid $720.00 2023-10-03 11:45:25
Mo bid $601.00 2023-10-03 10:38:07
Faddah bid $500.00 2023-10-03 07:38:08
Cork bid $400.00 2023-10-03 06:43:51- Tbadz bid $200.00 2023-10-02 21:48:26
Mdouglas bid $100.00 2023-10-02 12:00:18
Solid looking MG. My preference would be to change the engine to a Volvo B-18, and the trans to a 5 speed, and have a relatively quick fun little cruiser.
The engine is not a “sleeved” design…you are confusing it with the TR engines. The XPAG can be safely bored out to increase displacement to about 1325 cc
Thanks for catching that! I was basing that off the workshop manual which discusses resleeving the engine when rebuilding, but perhaps it meant if the engine has already been rebuilt and is out of tolerances? Parts suppliers also sell kits with new pistons and sleeves, so I just assumed that backed up the manual that these are a sleeved engine.
HI Josh
thank you, car sold. now what ?
mike
At about .100 overbore you stop using MGTD pistons and start using Sprite/Midget pistons. ( readily available) but with thinner cylinder walls the cooling system needs to be in perfect shape to avoid overheating. The use of the optional heater can provide additional cooling. ( but not fun in the summer)
FYI for bidders. I bought this car in a package deal from the estate of the original owner. He drove the car for 47,000 mile and the transmission broke and his son decided to remove the engine and trans to repair the gear box and rebuild the engine in 1997. Shortly after starting the project the father passed away and the car was put in a storage unit along with three other cars i purchased. This car is the most rust/rot free 50’s car i have ever seen even the wood is in good shape. If you have any question please ask I will respond as soon as possible.
best regards
mike pierce
WEBER CARBURETOR RESTORATION.COM
Hey mike, cool comment. Hey, i used to own a 240mk 1960 jag. This had girling brakes, unknown to me and had to learn as i went, or roll past my mark, anyway, is that common with all brits? Thx
Where is this Beaty located?
salinas, california
Exactly like my first car! Paid $750 in 1956. Had a plaid top and tire cover. Downey, CA. Pal, opened passenger door at speed. Was not good! Bent hell out of it.
Looks like that might have happened with this one! My much later MG Midget (1974) used to have flyaway doors when going around a corner. That was before I learned out to reset the latches and hinges.
This looks like a solid car, but if you want to clean it up and show it, it needs too much. If you want a car that you can put together and have fun with, this looks like a decent start. It needs a lot, make no mistake: you can easily. spend $3,000 on engine parts alone, and presumably the cluster gear went bad in the transmission. Obviously brakes, tires, and lots of rubber and other parts – figure $5-6,000 to get it back together and running, on top of the purchase price. It looks solid, even though it has been re-painted, the Rexine dash has been changed for a burl one, .and it needs lots of elbow grease. Add $1,500 if the instruments need re-doing.
The replacement gears available for the transmission typically need a lot of fettling and careful fitting to allow the original transmission to shift.
A much more practical approach is to replace the whole gearbox with the Ford 5 speed overdrive Moss motors offers.
The advantage is the engine won’t be screaming at 4000+ RPM on the Freeways.
While it’s expensive it’s a much easier proposition than trying to get aftermarket gears to fit and work.
i was told by the original owners son who was there when the car was picked off the boat the car is 100% original as ordered. it shows no sign of ever being repainted. the only thing i can find that is no original it has a facet fuel pump.
The brakes on the TD have a nasty habit of corroding and locking up solid. While it may be possible to beat them apart and rebuild them. It is far better to just buy new replacement wheel cylinders. While you are at it deal with the master cylinder.
If the brake linings are still usable you are much better off using them than new linings. Replacement linings will require arching to the current drum diameter. Failing to do that will result in less than optimum braking.Since only the middle of the linings will be in contact with the drum.
In the 50’s and 60’s every corner gas station had the equipment but its use often resulted in lung cancer. Findings someone someone to do that sort of work now is rare.
The odometer numbers are all out of kilter, a sure sign it has been wound back at some stage.
i was told by the original owners son who was there when the car was picked off the boat the car is 100% original as ordered. it shows no sign of ever being repainted. the only thing i can find that is no original it has a facet fuel pump.
Mike – much as I would like to agree with you, I still think the car has been re-painted. First, I see painted cream undercoating under the fenders, – I’m pretty sure TD’s did not come with undercoating from the factory, so the only reason for it to be painted cream is if it was painted later. Second, the fender welting is black but should be body color, and the only reason to remove the fenders is to re-paint. Finally, the threshold plates should be plain, not lettered, are easy to bend on removal, and were usually replaced for a re-paint. Lettered threshold plates on a TD are not factory..
I suspect the car was refreshed in the 60’s, when they might not re-paint the engine compartment. A nice and basically solid car, but I don’t think original.
Tom I do not know! I was told by the original owners son that his dad a high ranking officer in the navy ordererd the MG while in England and the car was built for him and delivered to Oakland, CA where he took delivery from the boat.He told me the car is as built never wrecked and never painted, but really who cares. I look forward to your bid in the auction I do get confused as why some people make comments on cars they never bid on.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I comment for various reasons. I encourage the sale of good cars by commenting on how well a car is restored, how solid the bones are, how original or what potential the car has. I also comment when a description is incorrect or misleading, intentionally or unintentionally. If a car is categorically described as “original” or “unrestored” or having “low original miles” and isn’t, it could be helpful to a potential purchaser to know that there may be some question whether those statements are correct. Many purchasers of these cars are first-time buyers, and do not necessarily recognize the details of authenticity. One constantly hears of buyers who are disappointed when the condition of a car does not match the seller’s description.
I got my first MG in 1967, have owned, bought and sold many dozens, and worked on many hundreds more. People turn to me (and Chris Couper’s superb Original MG TD site) with questions of authenticity and correctness, which we are both glad to clarify, based on our knowledge of true, low-mileage cars, and our experience. There are many hundreds of photos documenting these cars on the Original MG TD site mentioned above, including details such as fender welting, undercoating, threshold plates, and dash coverings..
I am very seldom critical of a car, but do try to encourage accurate descriptions.
side curtains
not weber carbs side curtains
hope i got it this time
luggage rack
Went to a British car show today commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the MG. Fabulous selection of vehicles. Last show I went to had an MTD with a Ford flathead. Interesting what can be done with a little ingenuity! I have never subscribed to the everything original school of thought and if it were possible I would bid this and buy it-bring it home and then decide on a drivetrain. GLWTA