MGA 1600 MkII Roadster

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One of the prettiest sportscars ever produced on these shores, the delightful MGA was made from 1955 to 1962 and just got better as time went on (the specification being fully detailed in the description of the other MGA 1600 MkII elsewhere in this catalogue).

The only criticism that could truthfully be levelled at the car was that it wasn’t quite as fast as it looked, a short-coming that MG tried to address with the high performance Twin-Cam 108bhp version which was launched in 1958. Unfortunately this was not a great success as the engine was plagued with reliability issues which caused it to be dropped from the range in 1960 after just 2,211 had been sold.

The unique car you see here is a far more successful attempt to give the MGA the extra performance it always cried out for. The story begins in 1986 when the vendor (a graduate mechanical engineer who spent most of his career working for GEC and has numerous other rebuilds to his credit, including some very exotic competition cars), managed to acquire an original RHD 1960 1600 MkII Roadster in a completely dismantled state. A keen driver and hill climb competitor with a particular fondness for Alfa Romeos, he decided to perform an engine transplant on the MGA to give it the verve he felt it was lacking.

Some seven years later and the project was finally finished, a 122bhp Alfa 1.8-litre twin-cam now nestling under the bonnet, allied to an Alfa 5-speed gearbox, with numerous technical problems successfully overcome along the way. Other upgrades include Koni shock absorbers all round in place of the original lever-arm dampers, wider 6” wheel rims suitable for modern performance tyres and a stainless steel sports exhaust. The braking system has also been upgraded with stainless steel pistons in the front callipers and copper alloy pipes throughout.

Since the work was completed the car has been in regular light use, clocking up around 1,000 miles a year including the odd blast up the Prescott Hill Climb track. In 2004 the engine was fully rebuilt with new pistons, liners, bearings etc. and the gearbox also overhauled, the car having covered only 6,000 miles since. All the work carried out to the car over the last 29 years is amply documented in copious notes kept by the vendor, along with numerous photographs and invoices for parts used.

Believed to be the only such conversion ever carried out on an MGA, this car has to be driven to be fully appreciated. A close study of the car and the notes relating to its construction testify to the quality of the workmanship and the ingenuity of the conversion which was by no means a straightforward task and could not possibly be replicated at the modest guide price suggested today.

Supplied with the aforementioned history file, a Heritage Certificate and a full set of weather gear, this fantastic driving machine is only reluctantly for sale due to the advancing years of the vendor who now finds that various health problems mean that he can no longer enjoy the car as he once did. MOTd until November 2015 and ready for immediate action, it may not be the shiniest MGA on the planet but it is probably one of the quickest and most fun to drive!