This seller has been reliably listing barn finds from Florida for the past year, and this latest find is a right-hand drive 1950 MG TD. Of course, true to this seller’s form, he doesn’t spend much time telling us about the car other than it was a barn find and the engine spins freely by hand. That routine gets a bit tiresome, but I guess if you’ve got access to vehicles people want, you don’t have to work too hard. Find it here on eBay in a no-reserve listing with bidding under $1K.
As some of you know, I have a RHD 1980 BMW 320 in my garage, and the presence of the steering wheel on the wrong side always makes for good conversation. More than that, however, is digging into the history of how such a car got here. Fortunately, I didn’t have to dig too far as I bought it from the individual that got it here. This TD may have come back with a soldier, as given how long it’s been sitting, it isn’t likely a recent arrival.
The convertible top has all but vanished and the tattered remains offer little hope of providing a reliable template. The interior surfaces maintain a surprising amount of color considering the degree of exposure, but that seats do show signs of staining from above. The dash is fairly trashed and the floors are gone; this is a cabin that will need complete restoration.
There’s ample evidence of sloppy repaints in this MG’s past, with trace elements of British Racing Green still visible. There’s plenty of rust in the body, but there’s also lots of good trim still left – the windshield and frame look usable, and the engine crank is still bolted to the front. The tail lights, mirrors, and hubcaps are also all still attached, so there’s at least plenty of spares for another TD to pillage if restoration is out of the question.
I like the styling of this little MG but this one is on the verge of being to far gone. I’m not sure I’d want to take on somthing this rusty as your going to need to bring a lot of effort and cash to the table. Practically speaking this a parts car. Maybe it will provide some parts to finish a better one.
These are actually very easy cars to restore Mark, including this one, firstly because they are so simple in construction and secondly because of the easy availability of nearly every part and component in the car.
Good to know Dirk, I’ll admit they do look rather simple and the body tub has no compound corners to speek of. But you got to admit it needs a lot of luvin to get this one on the road.
I’m also thinking, ‘parts car’. This example is going to have some major chassis rust issues, along with what’s shown in the pics.
I’ve seen restorations start with a lot worse, but they’re usually vehicles that, when finished, are of stratospheric value.
The chassis in these things are like a tank chassis, I’ll bet the chassis in this car is as solid as a rock. In all my years, I’ve never seen one that was rusted out.
Actually from what I could see in the pic’s the chassie looked pretty solid.
This is the car I sat in when I was 12 years old and easily fit in it. At the time it was $3500, so I got a part time job as a kid as well as a paper route to collect the cash needed to eventually buy it or one like it.
When I was 17 and 6’7″ tall and had saved the needed funds (all be it, no budget for insurance, registration let alone fuel and maintenance), I went to the dealership, where one was in stock in beautiful British Racing Green. I took my saved cash, and spoke to a salesman who looked at me & my height and said to get in the MG to try it out.
I could not get in, I could never drive it. My dream was over for that car.
Al
It’s interesting you mentioned your height was a factor in determining your ownership of the MG. I once heard a story that during the pre-production of the movie Love Story one sticking point was that, at 6’1″, Ryan Oneal complained about not being able to fit into the MG they were using in the film. The compromise was that the seat was removed and relocated back as far as possible. I myself stand only six feet tall but, I like to relax when I drive so I don’t think this would be the car for me either.
Moving a seat in an older car is quite cautionary. I have looked into this, in depth. Most new car’s warranty is voided if the seat is moved to a different floor location, and I’m not talking about the seat control slider either.
In 1957 my dad had a ’52 MGTD. He was 6’2″ and a size 13 shoe. I came along in ’59. In 2001 I bought a ’52MGTD. I was just under 6′ and a size 9.5 shoe. To this day I cannot figure out how my dad drove that car.
Funniest part was that he would tell me stories about what issues he had with his car. It was only 5 years old and it had the same issue mine had 45 years later.
I was about to find plenty of catalogs that carried every part for MGTD’s. Problem was when I went to order the parts they were no longer available.
This same car was on Craigslist here in the Tampa Bay area last week for $1,500. Photos from that listing showed it in the driveway where it had clearly sat for years. I sent it into Barn Finds but they didn’t run it. Now it looks like after a powerwashing it is out on ebay.
Here is a pic
That does look like the same car.
The rust spots on the door are identical.
Very early car. Very restorable in the right hands.
As a Floridian who just got wiped out by hurricane Irma, along with everyone else on the west coast of Florida, I can say that this looks like one of the 5 or 6 thousand cars that got hauled our of our area. If I’m wrong, fine, but seeing is believing…..
I would call Dade City west Fla or more colloquially SunCoast (my 93 yo dad is in LongBoat Key) Karguy.
Irma wuz no fun! (1 yr ago @ this time)
These old TDs have always been my dream cars. They aren’t ideal for the very short either. I am 5 feet tall and just reach the pedals in mine if the seat is all the way ahead.
The frames in these are wood. I would expect if the rest of the car is this tough, the frame is probably rotted out as well. Restoring this car is an ambitious and expensive undertaking.
You would be upside down very quickly because even good ones don’t bring a lot of money.
Only the body is wood framed.