MG T-ABC

…and so I don’t go down the rabbit hole again of discovering incorrect parts have been fitted, have a glance at these photos and a good scrutiny of the car will be much appreciated as I’d like to make the deal this week. It’s a ‘37 TA. Hopefully the link works..

https://vmp.ebay.com/ebay/viewAllPhotos ... d=88994023

Aaron

I'm not an expert on pre war cars, but the driving lamp is incorrect, and the trafficators, and it appears to have a later xpag engine. TA owners will have to chime in.

I don’t see anything that is glaringly incorrect.
Does the engine number match ?
My engine is an XPAG so I would not know if the engine installation is kosher.
My 1937 TA is a former Police car with 10 known previous owners so my car is hardly a pristine spec example !
I don’t see anything that is obviously wrong anyway.

Appreciate it so far. I’ll inquire about the engine #.

Looking again, I missed the obvious.
The car has MG TC wheels.
The TA wheels are sidelaced, the TC wheels are center laced.

Picture of TA spoke location attached.

The center lace wheels are correct for this TA. The change from side lace to center lace took place about a 25 cars before this one rolled off the line!

I'm not an expert on TA minutia but it looks really nice. Correct wings and tank for late TA. I agree the driving lamp is aftermarket, although still appropriate. Carpet is not original, steering wheel is aftermarket, and I'm not sure about the interior trim panels. The TC engine comes with a TC charging system (with TA control box) which changes a few things. From a practicality standpoint, this isn't a bad thing. The XPAG is obviously a far superior engine, and the 2-pole generator is far more simple to deal with. A lot of little details seem to be correct, like the valve cover nuts. The side cover is a rare Arnolt. Extra gauge in the dash (H2O which is a good idea IMO). Lots of little oddities like the giant wiper power wire but I don't see anything major wrong with it. I don't recall external trafficators so I assume those are add-ons.

All great information, thank you guys.

Wouldn't an XPAG engine have a ribbed sump?

I would need to re do the dashboard. I am not sure about the timber used but the piping looks like a hurried job. I would think it should have chrome beading to the perimeter.. Also the exhaust looks a bit home made.

Are the TA and TC exhausts the same? I ask because I have a brand new Bell stainless TC exhaust still in the box. Bought it for my TC and then decided I liked the sound of the one on it. Go figure.

The exhaust on my XPAG engined TA was beyond redemption.
So I fitted a stainless TC system with no issues whatsoever.

Thanks Ian, good to know my $450 or whatever it cost wasn’t totally in vain

Good catch on the sump. I don't see a TD clutch thing on the side so it may be from a Morris. Not a big deal I suppose, and could be changed later. I can't tell if the engine is TC or TD/TF. The drain spicket isn't in the front so that suggests TC. The plate on the side is odd though. Perhaps a factory replacement tag but usually they go where the original tag was.

Not sure if the exhausts are the same, but I suspect they are. Generally speaking, I like the sound of mild steel better than stainless. The mild steel is thicker and has a more mellow tone. Just personal preference of course. I have a NOS TC muffler but I can't bring myself to install it. The exhaust on this car looks stock to me, just a bit banged up and rusty.

The trick on fitting the new exhaust was to mount the muffler first in the correct location (I used stainless fasteners as I did not want to do it ever again!).
Then install the front & rear pipes from there.
My front pipe has a flexible section built in & it was straightforward to adjust it to fit with the muffler & manifold locations fixed.

My old TA2841 had similar semaphore type indicators fitted when it arrived in Australia from the UK circa 1980. Clearly not factory installed but perhaps a popular fitment back in the day. The round shock absorbers, black hood and reserve fuel plumbing appear to be correct however my car also had the central lubrication system plumbed to the spring trunions and hand brake cables.

A minor detail perhaps but I think the petrol tank end plates should be painted body colour with just the perimeter rib chrome plated. ON the plus side, I do like the seats which look nice and original.

Ultimately it comes down to what incorrect parts you are willing to accept on a vehicle like this. The engine is a fairly important piece, is that a deal breaker or is the improvement worth it?
The FT576 lamp didn't come out till the mid 50's, is it "appropriate" or just incorrect for the vehicle? Yes some of this stuff can be changed if desired.
Is there some wiggle room for acceptability on a car this old? Only the buyer can answer that....

Appreciate all of the great information guys, Grand Rapids is not terribly far from where I’m at so I’ll probably try to see if I can make a run up there so I can give the car a good look over in person. Generally speaking, all I am really after is for the car to be in good overall condition and to be reasonably correct as far as major body and mechanical components go, I realize that after this many years and owners, things get changed, and that’s ok as long as they’re things I can revert back to original if I decide.

Correct about the end panels They should be same as TC - painted with chrome on the trim parts. The most important thing in my opinion is that the body panels are correct.

I don't think I have seen brake drums silver painted before. They would originally have been black but I quite like the look.

To cap off this thread, the car now belongs to me

There will be questions for the trust I’m sure but I’m quite excited to have a prewar car in my collection. Thanks again to all for your input!

Cheers,
Aaron