MG T-ABC

Interesting observation I’d like to share. I’ve a 47 TC that I took on after my dad passed. I took the car to a community show today and here’s what I noticed. Older folk - 60-plus, go nuts for the car. Nuts!

But teens, twents and thirty somethings? Meh… I get a “nice car” from them, but that’s about it. They move on to the next.

But here’s the odd thing:. Young kids - 10 and under - go bananas! “Can I sit inside?” They just love it. No other cars got this sort of attention from the youngsters.

On a previous outing, one kid pointed and screamed, ‘Nazi car!” I had to redirect them to the British flag on the side. What brought that about? Who knows. Chitty-Chitty Bang Bang? Big fenders?

Anyway. Love my TC and everyone who does as well.

Wow, I've had a lot of comments about my TCs but never the Nazi comment! I do get a lot of kids staring and pointing when I'm in the TC. Far more than when I'm in any of the others, perhaps even more than the SA.

I think kids appreciate how different, fun and flamboyant these cars are compared to contemporary vehicles, but as the teenage years come on they're more interested in the latest tech and power than history or nostalgia. Then as we get older and wiser, we realize the "old days" were better, and we try to experience a piece of them through our old machines.

I'm a bit of an anomaly, always been into these cars despite not growing up with them around outside of car shows or museums. It wasn't until my early 30s that I could finally afford one.

Here in the U.K,. auction houses are reporting that there is very little interest in cars from our period. It would seem that the older generation who once flew the flag for the pre 1960 era are passing away or simply getting too old. The younger buyers are, it would seem, more interested minis and fast Fords from the 'eighties and later.

It is encouraging that school age kids are attracted to the older cars but I fear the anti combustion engine mantra will win the day before the popularity of our cars can be restored.

One exception to the trend are so called "restomod' cars. I am building a modified TC which hopefully will stay true to the original idea. Perhaps it will be appreciated by someone younger when my time is up.?

Ray.

For me who bought his 1st MG just before I was 16 (78 now) it`s not about the cars value but me driving rather than more and more the car driving for me. One thought perhaps, that the necessity to actually drive the car is today substituted by the need to speed. 70 in a modern car is like sitting in an armchair especially on cruise control. Try doing that in a "T" series and not feel alive. Perhaps those "youngsters" need to be given the opportunity to actually sit in one and drive it.