1950/1952 MG TD Right Hand Drive

1950 MG T-Series Description:

The recent buyer requested the sale be cancelled so I'm re-listing. Note I have added several more pictures. When I pulled the title after the prior sale i saw that it was listed as a 1952 model not as a 51 model as the original ad said. Pictures I include this time show the two bow top of an early 1950 TD plus condition of side curtains and the medallion on the motor with the engine number matching the brass plate. Also some ash wood parts from Abingdon Spares I did not install for some un-remembered reason, and some pictures of the car as purchased, stripped and being reassembled.

This would be a great start to a full restoration or just a fun driver with some mechanical work. Lots of new parts and work previously put into the car

I purchased the car from a local MG enthusiast. He told me the engine had been rebuilt by the previous owner. Never had a reason to doubt that but I can offer no proof. In the time I drove this I had no issues with the engine other than it running hot. More on that later.

Here is a list of the cars deficiencies as I remember them.

The listed mileage is what is on the odometer. I have no idea of the actual mileage.

The original air filter is gone. PO replaced with chrome side mounts. Those are not presently on the carbs and I'm not sure I can find them. But I never drove the car without the filters on. Those were removed for carb adjusting after rebuild and minutes before setting the car on fire!! 👨🏼‍🚒More on that in a bit

As mentioned, the engine ran hot. This was due to a repaired radiator that greatly reduced its capacity. I have a replacement original complete radiator assembly that I never installed. It will of course come with the car.

It has a Cherry Bomb muffler, not original style.

Windshield wiper motor does not work. I removed the cover and found a broken wire inside so assume it will need to be rewound. Never had it replaced or wound as I just drove it locally and never in the rain.

The title to the car says it's a 1952 model. I never had this corrected. The enthusiast I purchased it from assured me it was a 1950 Model. Indeed, many of the parts I bought (mostly from Abington Spares) for the rebuild had to be for an early TD. And it came with the original 2 bow top of the early models. The car number XPAG-TD-1024 would make it one of the first few hundred produced.

The two bow top (later td's had 3 bow tops)as well as the side curtains have not been recovered and have the original material. The actual metal and bows are okay. The side curtains are complete as original but the plastic need to be replaced. The fabric top is off the bows and really needs replacement.

The car has been stored for many years so it will take some work to get it on the road again.

with the exception of the running boards and a small area of the right rear fender the body is pretty solid. Also the gas tank side panels need work as shown. The car was yellow and brown when I got it. I stripped to the frame and repainted it BRG. Not a professional job but it was okay. I did invest in a professional Devilbiss Spray gun. There are chips along the edges from car doors while stored next to my wife's car in a garage over the years.

I had rebuilt both the master and slave cylinders but during storage the left rear wheel brake cylinder has leaked (draining the brake fluid) and swollen the brake pads locking that wheel. May or may not be able to back off the adjuster to remove the wheel without a puller.

When a PO worked on the transmission, or had it worked on, a single part was left off that keeps the car in first gear when driver takes his foot off the gas and takes their hand off the shifter. I learned about what causes this issue when reading something, possibly online or one of the old Sacred Octagon magazines. I can't remember exactly which part number or name it was but it is some kind of keeper and may have been the last part to go on the shaft. Not sure which part exactly but it was inconsequential in cost and to the transmissions operation. I found as long as I kept my hand on the shifter in first it stayed in gear. Again this was in first gear only. No other issues with the transmission.

There was nothing wrong with the charging system when I drove the car before I worked on it. Afterward the battery did not charge. I had both the regulator and generator tested at a local shop and both were found to be good. I assumed I made an error when rewiring but I just recently read that the old generators had to be polorized to operate and this is not something I did so it may just he that.

About the burned spot on the right bonnet panel. 😡 I had purchased carb overhaul kits and had just reinstalled them. When the car would not immediately start, I disconnected the carbs to reexamine them. In the second attempt I hopped in the car, turned on the key and waited a couple of seconds for the bowls to fill. Unfortunately, I had neglected to attach the fuel line from the pump to the carbs 🙄. When I pulled the starter, the engine cranked a couple of times and then backfired through the carbs setting a small puddle of gasoline on fire under the engine. I got it out fast with an extinguisher but not before it burned the paint in that one spot. The metal where the paint burned is undistorted. I still get embarrassed thinking about it. I never drove the car after this "incident".

In no way am I saying this is a complete list of negatives. There may be other issues I've forgotten. If I recall during the auction I will amend my comments.

Now some good points. With the exception of removing the engine and transmission, the car was totally disassembled. Frame was cleaned and sandblasted then primed and painted. During the rebuild a lot of new parts were purchased. Almost all from Abingdon Spares. I still have copies of many orders. There were lots of small parts like rebound rubbers, bushings, leaf spring rubber pads, door lock. Way too much stuff to list but notably including the following:

Front and rear bumpers and overriders

Complete new carpet set. (Moss Motors)

Wood, RH and LH latch pillars

Wood, RH and LH rocker rails

Wood, RH and LH bottom main sides

Wood, Rear floor board

Wood, tank back board

Wood, bottom back rail

Wood, RH and LH scuttle side rails

Wood, RH and LH floor boards

I have the orders for the above but I believe I replaced nearly all the wood with the exception of the wood inside the door panels, bow tops and dashboard.

A complete BRITISH CONLEY HIDE leather seat and leather interior panel set. Very expensive at the time. Looking on the Abingdon Spares website the panel set is no longer available in leather and the seat ads makes no mention of the leather being made of Conley hides. After it arrived I stored it under our bed. The seat cover was installed by a local shop. When I got the car it had some kind of bucket seats. I purchased an original bench seat and backrest in good condition from an individual that had the original ( horse hair I believe) padding. No receipt for that though.

I added a circuit under the dash that operates the brake lights as turn signals. I believe the circuit was published in Sacred Octogon.

This car came to the US mainland via Hawaii. It still has a partial Hawaiian State safety inspection sticker on the windshield.

This is long and I've tried to honestly describe condition good and bad as I remember it. I'll answer questions to the best of my ability and can take additional pictures if wanted.They include many receipts for purchased parts including the Conley Hide Leather from Abingdon.

Payment. I've never sold a car on eBay and I have been advised to only accept a bank to bank transfer or cash paid at a bank if picking the car up personally. I'm willing to work with the buyer on other payment options, but that would absolutely involve a safe clearing time determined by my bank before title transfer or car removal. A 400 dollar PayPal deposit is required within 24 hours after sale. Payment in full within 10 days.

Buyer will arrange for pickup. I will help however I can.

Another issue I just remembered is the hubcaps are not great. Some rust and bubbling of the chrome. There are replacement disks on eBay for very reasonable and the MG logo in the center of the old hubcaps is removable for use in the new disks.

And another. The speedometer reading jumps around when driving. I believe due to a rounded off drive shaft where it screws into the back. I was going to try and build that up with JB Weld but never did.