MGB GT V8

The MGB GT V8 was first created by garage owner and tuner Ken Costello, who put a Rover V8 engine in his own MG in 1970. MG was so pleased with the car that they adopted the idea for themselves, contracting Costello to help in the development of the model which was launched in 1973. However, the powerful 180bhp engine used by Costello for his conversions was replaced for production by MG with a more modestly tuned version producing 137bhp at 5000 rpm. But 193lb/ft of torque helped it hit 60mph in around 8 seconds, and go on to a respectable 125mph top speed.

 

By virtue of its aluminium cylinder block and heads, the Rover V8 engine actually weighed around forty pounds less than MG's iron four-cylinder unit in the standard GT. So unlike the MGC, the V8's increased power and torque did not require significant chassis changes or detrimentally affect the handling. The car was very warmly received by the press, but British Leyland was concerned that it would overshadow their other products, including the more expensive and less powerful Stag, and it was quietly dropped from sale just three years after launch. Just 2,591 examples had been made when production ended in 1976, making good examples rare and sought after today.

 

This particular car is not just one of the good ones – it is the most correct, best preserved and lowest mileage example we have ever seen. Supplied new by Charles Clark of Wolverhampton in June 1974, the car was a gift from a company director to reward a female employee for her consistently sterling work. Pretending to be on some other business, he innocently got her into the showroom and then asked her to pick any car she wanted. This lovely Harvest Gold V8 was the one that caught her eye.

 

Clearly, such generous gestures do not happen often and are not likely to be forgotten. Thirty-five years later the company director, now retired, received a phone call from a firm of solicitors informing him that he was now himself the beneficiary of a gift. Not knowing quite what to expect, he was staggered to find that the car that eventually rolled up on his doorstep was still in almost exactly the same condition as it had been when he first saw it in the Charles Clark showroom all those years ago.

 

A quick check on the odometer revealed the reason why. Incredibly, the car had only covered 9,900 miles during the 35 years the lady had owned it. Apparently kept garaged and stored under blankets, it had barely ever been exposed to the elements. Apart from a new stainless steel exhaust fitted in 2003 and new batteries in 1999, the car appears to be wholly original and unrestored, though there is a slight colour mismatch on the front off-side wing which could either be down to a bad day at the BL paint shop or perhaps some later remedial work. There is insufficient documentation to verify the mileage but the condition of the car would seem to speak for itself.

 

In June of this year it was given a full service and granted a fresh MOT and the whole car was Supaguard treated inside and out. It is said to drive perfectly and certainly fired up instantly and sounded magnificent when we tried it on the occasion of our visit to take these photos.

 

It comes with all its original handbooks and three sets of keys. Surely the most original and low mileage example you could ever wish to find, this is another car worthy of the serious MG collector.