The first precaution that I would give is to try to keep your head. MGA's
are, in my opinion, about the most beautiful cars ever made and they are a
lot of fun to drive. I bought the first car I looked and probably paid
more than I should have because of this. I am still extremely happy, just
poorer than I should be.
MGA bodies are not complicated but they are all slightly differant and the
replacement panels available don't fit real well. Check how straight the
fender beads are and how well the edges and seams line up. The fit of the
doors is the acid test of any bodywork. They should close without rubbing
and should have even gaps around the outside. My car has a replacement
right front fender and the door gap their is not good although they close
well. Rust is bad. Look expecially at the sill, the trunk floor, the tops
of the front fenders, and along body seams. A little rust showing at a
body seam means a lot of rust hiding underneath. All of this can be
repaired but it is expensive.
Because of their design, MGA's are susceptable to accident damage- their
bumbers are not overly effective. Look at the pan in front of the radiator
and at the very back of the car for damage or evidence of poor bondo work.
Again these are repairable but should be reflected in the price of the car.
Mechanically, the only true "look out" that I am aware of is the rear oil
gland. On cars with a lot of miles on them, the bearings can get loose
enough to allow the disk on the crankshaft that is supposed to slow down
the flow of oil out the back to rub against the groove in the block. This
results in a higher than normal amount of oil to escape out of the back of
the engine. In severe cases, the block can be cracked. This is a very
expensive problem to fit, especially in the 1500 and 1600 cars since
replacement cranks are quite expensive. Other than that, the cars are
pretty robust and if it runs OK and is fairly quiet, you really can't check
far beyond that. They all weep a little oil between the head and the
block. You may want to check for a blown head gasket but that is usually
pretty obvious. Other common problems like cracked cranks and cracked
heads really can't be checked out without taking the car apart so don't
worry about it. I would be concerned if a kind of ratty car was for sale
with a "fresh rebuild" since it may mean that someone found expensive
problems that he doesn't want to deal with.
One part that is important is the grill. The reproduction ones suck so if
the car has an original, good grill it is definately a bonus.
Electrically, the gauges are hard to find and expensive to repair. Also,
the turn signal switch is over 200.00 so it is nice if that works.
Other than that, Original Parts such as the right engine are important but
a replacement MGB engine is not bad, just don't pay a premium for the car.
I prefer the 1600's since they have more power and better brakes but are
not as expensive as the Mark II's which don't look as nice, in my opinion.
Good luck and happy hunting!
Bill Eastman
61 MGA
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