1957 MGA Roadster - Frame Off Restoration

1957 MG MGA Description

I’ve been down this road before. However, this time I’m serious! I have too many cars. I don’t get to drive them as much as they need to be driven and it’s time I really reduce my collection. I have two MGA’s (this car and a coupe) and I’ll be selling them both as well a few more cars that I'll be listing this week

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I bought this car from in 2014 out of Iowa. The PO had purchased the car out of Lexington, Kentucky in 2008 and performed a body off restoration over two years. He did a very good job and, while it’s not concours level, it looks great and is an even better driver! I have a link at the bottom of the page showing the car during resoration

In my ownership I put about 1000 miles on the car. It is an awesome driver and has no known issues. Everything works and the engine is, dare I say, about as close to perfect as a stock 1500 can be.

As I usually do, I’ll detail all the systems. First, the background per the PO:

Purchased vehicle in Lexington, KY via eBay.
Brought it home July 4th, 2008.
Put about 40 miles on it and then pulled engine and transmission.
Repaired rotted sills and removed body.
Frame has been repaired and POR'd.
Started on body 10 Oct. 2008
Engine rebuilt and installed in frame 1 Nov 08..

8 Aug 2009- Body painted and assembled.

Car on road summer 2010

Current status as of 14 May 2016

Engine: The 1500 engine was rebuilt when the car was restored and starts quickly every time. Absolutely no smoke, rattles or strange noises. Distributor was rebuilt by Advanced Distributor. Excellent oil pressure hot or cold. This car does not run hot. Still has the original cell core radiator which are known for their excellent cooling qualities. Correct SU H4 carburetors were rebuilt two weeks ago. Barney Gaylord (MGA guru) personally synchronized the carbs and tuned the engine. It doesn’t get any better than that!

The car has been updated with an alternator in place of the original generator

The exhaust system is new and appears to me to be stainless steel

The transmission shifts great with no grinding, popping out of gear, etc. Remember the MGA does not have synchromesh on first gear.

Hydraulics: Barney Gaylord adjusted the brakes while here. The clutch is good and there are no leaks in the system

Suspension: Polyurethane bushings were used in the rebuild so the handling is very good. Rebuilt lever arm shock absorbers work great.

Electrical: New wiring harness front to back. Lights, horn, wipers, turn signal and even gas gauge work perfectly. A new gas tank sender was installed last week.

Interior: Beautiful Moss Motors red leather seats and red vinyl trim. Black carpet. The dash was covered in red vinyl as well and looks very nice. The interior is in excellent condition. The top is in good condition and the side curtains are rebuilt with new rubber and felt. They are in excellent condition. The car has black MG rubber floor mats (not shown in the pictures) that are included. They are in excellent condition as well.

Tires: The car has five matching Nexen tires (date coded 2010) and are in excellent condition.

Body: The black paint looks good. There are some very small dimples and door dings here and there. The doors close well and they stay shut. The aluminum boot (trunk) lid, bonnet (hood) and doors are in very good condition. The bumpers are fair with the rear bumper having a crack on top. If it bothers you, many sources sell new bumpers for a little over $100 each. There is bubbling (see picture) on a small strip below the trunk. You can reach that area through the trunk and there is no rust or any damage inside. It may be the result of poor paint prep. The frame was treated with POR and all the wood (including bulkhead) is new. The car has always been garaged since being restored so the frame and wood floors are excellent.

Pictures showing bubbles and cracked bumper

Go to this link to see pictures of the car before and during restoration: http://s268.photobucket.com/user/billh1963/library/1957%20MGA?sort=3&page=1

Summary: I don’t say this lightly but I believe this is a car you could fly in and drive home cross country. The car runs and drives great…no kidding. It was built as a driver’s car and fulfills that role admirably. It looks great and gets looks wherever you go. The car also comes with a tonneau cover that fits. I had a new zipper installed a couple of weeks ago.

Buyer is responsible for shipping. No warranty expressed or implied. I am happy to work with the shipper of your choice or you are welcome to pick up the car in person. The car is in Orangeburg, SC (29115). Payment via wire, cash in person, or check with ample time to clear.