Perhaps it’s because of my recent MGB purchase or the coming of summer, but for whatever reason we have been featuring a lot of Bs around here lately. Hopefully that doesn’t bother anyone too much. Even if it does, the fact remains that the quintessential British roadster still presents one of the best classic sports car bargains around. Take this 1973 MGB for example. It’s not perfect, but it looks decent, drives well, and even has a few sensible upgrades – all for just $3,500. The driver’s side sheet metal and the seat covers need attention, but the Motolita steering wheel and Minilite style rims sweeten the deal. Find it here on eBay out of Trenton, New Jersey. It should provide the next owner with plenty of opportunities to get their hands dirty in between regular blasts down country B roads. Gotta love all those acronyms!
On the Friday of Labor Day Weekend 1973, I drove away from Bob Owen’s British car dealership (in Westland, MI) with a brand new MGB Tourer; only thirty-one (31) miles on the odometer.
Including tax. title & license, it was $3949.00 out the door.
For $450.00 less, makes the LH side bodywork in that eBay ad look pretty dismal…
For Christmas that year, my girlfriend bought me a Racemark leather steering wheel__they still had Mark Donahue’s signature on them back then__and the following spring, I followed up with a LCB header and Abarth exhaust. IIRC, all the above were sourced from (Kenne?) Bell’s shop out on Woodward, maybe around Ferndale?
That ’73 MGB started me on a lifelong journey in sportscars__another 15 or so MGBs, BGTs, a lone MGCGT and a couple Healeys would follow__and I didn’t buy another new car (of any kind) until the Thursday before Labor Day weekend in 2001.
I’ve been without an MGB for close to fifteen (<15) years now, but I just celebrated thirty-seven (37) years with my 1957 Healey 2-seater.
What did I buy in 2001 you ask, that could lead me astray…?
http://spcarsplus.com/gallery3/index.php/BMW-Projects/01mpdc1a
More on those later!
Randy –
Read your post with warm self-recognition. I, too, went down a similar path. In 1999, I bought a “garage find” 77 MGB with 67k on the odometer. The car was from Arizona (i.e. .minimal rust) but baked nearly to dust. The car was owned by a woman working for the Peace Corps and based in Peru. It had been sitting for almost 3 years with gas in tank. I was able to jump it and it started (on Lucas electrics and 3 y.o. gas, no less). Drove it around for 10 minutes and bought for $1900. Gradually made a driver out of it over next 2 years. Great fun and semi-reliable, and HOT on summer days.
Made the move to BMW next spring of 2002- 1990 E30 cabrio, then an 1997 E36 cabrio, 1985 E24 Euro 635CSi, and now an 2004 E46 cabrio (daily driver). Still miss the MG the most.
BTW – We have met through Motor City CCA – see you at an event this year.
Jeremy Eckhous
Thanks Jeremy,
Yes, MGBs are great little starter cars__simple and relatively easy to maintain__and with so many produced, clearly a lot of other people thought so too!
I’m glad we’ve met, and though I still maintain my Motor City club affiliation (and roots__I was born/raised there) my wife and I now live on the outskirts of a small town about halfway between Tampa & Sarasota. Please give my best to the members, and if you’re ever down this way…
Got to love the winters here, and the summers aren’t much worse than Michigan or Ohio. And get this: they drive sportscars ALL YEAR ‘ROUND down here ;)
Say, if you liked MGBGTs, then you’d probably like one of these (five were here for work, but the one in the foreground is mine, and fitted with a Eurosport twinscrew supercharger…):
Here we go, forgot what forum protocol to use loading a picture (I can usually just hot link them…)…
yes that would lead a lot of people astray. great car. thanks for sharing.
Sweet deal and it is sold already….
That was quick! I wonder if someone here picked it up?
someone got a good deal on a B. nice find.
Good deal… I hope so. Clearly a significant amount of bondo/returning rust on the driver’s side at least.
And Randy, I’d sure we met along the way as well. Noting the National Tour photos from ’03 in Toledo in your gallery. Nearly certain I was there, and running one of those annoying F125’s. ;-)