With almost 500,000 copies on the ground, the MGB is an amenable restoration project for the amateur. Parts, clubs, and help are easy to find, and the cars are simple and cheap to begin with. If you’re ready to dive in, here on eBay is a 1968 MGB roadster, bid to $2750 with no reserve, and located in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In the range of production from 1963 to 1980, the ’67 and ’68 cars are fairly desirable – still decked with chrome bumpers, not yet bearing the full brunt of emissions regulations, the seats devoid of headrests. The car does run and drive but the seller indicates it needs TLC – without telling us why. But pictures tell the story here, so despite the deficient description, we can draw some conclusions. This photo shows off wire wheels, but also a bent front bumper and a bodge on the lip of the bonnet.
The factory engine is a 1798 cc pushrod inline four-cylinder mated to twin SU carburetors. This kit produces about 95 bhp, and while the MGB wasn’t slow, it wasn’t fast either, requiring 11 seconds to reach sixty miles an hour. Owners often install Webers, believing that’s an easy route to more power; someone has performed that operation on this example. Unfortunately, the motor was engineered to run with SUs, and a Weber conversion can be problematic. The more difficult route to better power is an intelligent rebuild, aiming for mild improvements everywhere. Over at the gearbox, we have a four-speed, all-synchro manual; overdrive was an option. This car has new tires and a new fuel pump.
The interior photos are hazy, but several issues are evident. First, the padding on the dash is not correct. I’m not sure what was done here, but we should be seeing something more like this. A stereo unit has been haphazardly installed under the passenger’s side of the dash, leaving an empty console in the center of the tunnel. Its speakers are installed in the rear bulwark between the cabin and the trunk, which means holes cut in the sheet metal. The factory made an accommodation for a speaker under the dash behind a fibreboard panel. A rat’s nest of wiring is hanging around looking dangerous. The seats are newly upholstered in velour and have headrests – these might be from a ’73 or later, but they are not ’68 seats. The carpet is said to be new – too bad the seller couldn’t vacuum the poor thing.
And while the seller says the floors are not rusty, we can see the tin-worm attacked at least the front quarter here, and the driver’s door fits poorly. The passenger’s side hasn’t fared much better. I don’t see evidence of the bows for the convertible top. So with further examination, we can understand the sluggish bidding here. What would you pay for this slightly derelict MGB?
You sure nailed this one Michelle. I wouldn’t give more than $4,000 for this one and that would be after I found no rust underneath. Your comment on the carb is right on also. Taking a Weber and just slapping it on the engine without any other modifications gets you nothing and maybe less. Example: Our 948 cc Sprite engines put out 37 hp stock with two SU carbs. With little modifications like higher compression, wilder cams, balanced everything, aluminum flywheel and clutch etc., the engines turned out a flat 100 hp on the dyno. Carbs are off 1275s being only slighter larger than stock and the only modification being taking out the hump where the jets fit. We’d lose at least 20 hp if we bolted on a Weber. Our ’66 MGB was a great car and we had a lot of fun with it. Even without overdrive it cruised easily at 65 mph.
100HP from the 948cc motor?!!? It’s a good thing I didn’t know about this HS! Scared myself silly as it was on a couple mountain twisties with just about a 1/3 of that HP.
Good eye, Michelle-you’re good in knowing your stuff and thank you bobhess for the tech tips you’ve learned. It’d of been a hoot to have raced and learned with you.
I learn something from you guys every time I log on to BF. Having covered a large spectrum of cars, trucks, and motorhomes over my life time insured that I didn’t know everything about what we had. Details about car history and especially the huge amount of data on engines over the years insures I walk away from this lap top smarter every time.
Thank you, oh, thank you. I didn’t think anyone felt like I did towards Webers on engines they weren’t really designed for. Italian V12 screaming monsters, yes, old pushrod Limeys from the 50s, not so much. Couple things, 1st, not a ’68 grill, and the knockoff nuts should be the winged kind. I read, ’68 was a big year for MG. I think these were unofficially called the “Mark 2”, and had several improvements like, 2 speed wipers, all synchro gearbox, automatic offered for the 1st time, an alternator and changed to negative ground. Some late ’68s had side marker lights, I believe. Since the heater ( cough) is bypassed and no wipers, it’s a southern car, for sure. The ad was pulled, but prices are coming down, and by golly, I might just have another British roadster before I kick the bucket.
’68’s didn’t have knockoffs.
I read, ’68 was the 1st year for the octagonal nuts. I pulled up 5 pictures of ’68 MGBs, and they all had the winged type. I suppose it took a while to use up old ones.
I had a ’68 new from the dealership that came with hex nuts. Also had the breakaway door “hardware” and pillow dash. All for the new safety requirements.
Hmmmm, 0 bids and the auction ended yesterday, Saturday.
Maybe the owner is looking for some SU.’s?
“Aha, that’s why it runs like crap!” : )
Thanks Michelle and MG people.
about 1200 miles or +/- 20 hours one way $570 for the Uhaul auto transport one way. The tow dolly is $286, Wonder how much snow there is still between me and them.. I have a 93 F150 with dual tanks its +/- $100 buck to fill both tanks at about half tank in each I need to quit before I talk myself into getting it.
68 was the first year of minimal engine pollution controls, the padded dash and octagonal wheels nuts. This dash looks like it had the padding removed and had a vinyl cover installed over the existing steel. I have removed the padding from an expendable padded dash to see what it looked like underneath. I removed all the excess foam, sanded it down, sprayed a stone guard bumpy finish and painted it matte black and it came out looking very nice. It’s not the original look but I think it looks better than the pillow dash. Of course I am partial to a steel dash because my first car was a 67 BGT with the last year of the original steel dash. I also don’t need to restore my cars to the original look. I prefer a modification that I like rather than what the factory made. ( personal preference only!)
Also.. The Weber side draft carb is not a good choice for this stock motor. While they look great, they do not perform good for street use. Side drafts were basically built as a platform for racing to have the motor run at it high end constantly. I like Webers but not this application. The stock SU’s were better for this motor as stock motor. ( once again my personal preference!)
B’s are still plentiful, but values for the nicer ones (especially the pre-1975’s) are rising.
I had a 1979 Midget, one of the last ones built. It was unreliable, with that Lucas electrical system. On a warm night with the top down, driving it was pure bliss, though. I regret selling it.
I got to see the MG Works in Abingdon, after it closed but before it was demolished.
If this car is essentially rust-free, it might be a great deal for someone. Bs are utterly straightforward and easy to work on, and parts are everywhere and cheap. Once sorted, an early-ish B like this is reliable and great fun to drive on a warm, sunny day. They’re probably never going to be super valuable, simply due to the sheer number built, but they’re not losing value, either.
Funnily enough I was the $2750 bid on this car and decided to contact the seller. First question was “why are you selling it? To which he replied ” I buy and sell muscle cars”. Holding back a chuckle I then asked “what can you tell me about the car?”. Apparently it had been an estate sale vehicle and he wants 6500 for it. He apparently only uses Ebay for advertising and usually cancels the bidding a day before closing. Apparently the last time he did it the bidding reached 5500 (I looked it up and this was also a lie). I told him best of luck and waited for it to be canceled and was last night.
Funny, I just looked at one of these for sale yesterday, except it was a right hand drive version. I thought it was very interesting that the hand and foot controls are offset from the driver position. The floor pedals are slightly to the right of the driver, and the steering wheel is slightly to the left of the driver. So you’re kind of sitting diagonally in the car when driving.
Regarding the top, this is likely the stow-away design, that was removed from the car (along with the bows) and stored in the trunk when not in use. My 70 had one, and it was overall a super clean look with the top down. You did learn to plan your trips and pay attention to the weather as you had to assemble the two halves of the frame before inserting them into the sleeves at the top end of the quarters. Then you install the actual top material. Convoluted, but it wasn’t too bad, especially at my young age. You gotta love the steering wheel…
If you will permit me a bit of a rant… This B appears to be a very good example of all that is wrong with the MGB market today. DPO bodges everywhere you look, from the obvious carburetter swap, to the poor heater bypass, to the amateurish dash modification, and on and on. In the 70’s and 80’s these were just used cars, and many folks, not understanding the basic differences between American and British cars, used shade tree practices to keep them on the road. Two or three owners down the road, and it’s hard to tell what’s right and what’s wrong. Correct seats need recovering? I’ll just replace with later seats with the head rests and make it look newer. Smacked it on the nose? I’ll just replace the grille with the later one, even if I don’t have the proper finishing strip. Don’t like the Pillow Dash? Here, hold my beer! Now some clueless flipper gets the car because it was too cheap at the impound auction, and we have another example of a rusty – incorrect – hacked B that just makes the rest of the market look bad. The carburetter/dashboard/knock-off debates are all valid, and unfortunately they are all here on this example, complete with rust and (I’ll bet you a dollar) the wrong fuel pump. Why is it easier to whine about Lucas electrics and SU carburetters than it is to simply fix it right?
OK, thanks. Rant over (for now).
Have fun
Rufus
I wonder why the yellow headlights. French version? They were left on for a reason. Wonder what it was.
I don’t think headrests were some awful safety imposition on classic sports cars…especially if they were designed tastefully to fit in with the car and its seats. Actor Dick Van Dyke went down a steep ravine in 1970, some three days into the ownership of his Series II E Type Jaguar. He unfortunately had not fully acquainted himself yet with the high-performance characteristics of his new toy. After being unconscious for many hours, he woke up and walked away from the wreck unscathed. Later, once the police and the insurance company had examined the site, he was informed that the new stronger door locks, the new collapsible steering column, and especially the new steel-reinforced headrests, had saved his life. The same accident in a Series I roadster and he probably would not have survived.
So it is a 2 wiper model, looks like the narrow transmission tunnel, and no rubber on the overriders. So earlier model body. But non-winged knock offs. The dash is a bad attempt to look like a pillow dash, and no center console or heater controls. A 71-72 grill. Inverted oil filter so a 70-74 engine. A steering wheel from Manny, Moe, and Jack.
It’s a cobbled together mess of spare parts.