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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Frogeye front hinged bonnet

As a result of osteoporosis I can no longer lift the steel bonnet without damaging my back. I need it to be front hinged, and I do NOT want external catches. Can anyone suggest where I can get the modification done please? Needs to be within striking distance of Salisbury. I would of course do it myself if I were fit enough.
Les Rose

As per your request.
Alan






Alan Anstead

This article is in Mascot Magazine March 2016. Written by my late friend Mike Pearson it is about how he altered his midget bonnet to rear opening.
The method of holding the bonnet closed he then used on a front hinged rear opening Frogeye bonnet for another of our group.





Alan Anstead

Thanks Alan. I would of course normally do this myself, but I just don't think I'm going to be fit enough.
Les Rose

Les - just a thought-
Would leaving it rear hinged and fitting a decent pair of gas helper struts be worth considering
William Revit

Yesterday I was asked about struts by one of my group who is suffering from back problems. There will be a Frogeye equipped with gas struts at the NEC Practical Classics Show. I said to him that I will try to get some photo’s.
Providing I do I can post them here.
Alan Anstead

Les, sorry to hear of your health issues. As well as a front hinge, have you thought of a lighter weight grp front either a Frogeye shape or perhaps a Sebring Sprite one?

Best wishes
Mike
M Wood

Thanks for replies chaps.

I tried a pair of gas struts a few years ago, but found it impossible to get the bonnet to fit. When compressed, the struts have so much pressure that they force the bonnet forward and it will not fit against the scuttle. I'd be interested to see if somebody has solved this. I still have the struts.

I had a fibreglass bonnet for several years as a temporary measure until I got round to restoring the steel one. I really don't want to degrade the originality.
Les Rose

Doesn't the bonnet rotate about the rods that lock the bonnet down? Take off the hinges, place bonnet on the body, lock the rods then rotate from the back. I've never tried this so maybe it will hinge in the right place or maybe not.
Rob
MG Moneypit

Les,

Are your struts fixed rate or adjustable?
David Billington

Many of the modern quality cars have moved on from gas struts to assist boot opening, and now use a motorised system. Presumably someone smart enough could develop a motorised system for opening a frogeye bonnet.
GuyW

Rob, I suspect the bottom lip will bind on the chassis when opened. The pivot needs to be further forward.

Dave, my gas struts are adjustable, but of course only one way. When I tried to fit them I adjusted to get the best balance against the weight of the bonnet.

I see that Moss and some others sell a gas strut kit, but it doesn't look any different from what I did myself.
Les Rose

Guy's electric strut idea got me thinking and i found these--17" at rest and 12" stroke

BIG address but can't get it to open otherwise--sorry

https://www.temu.com/ul/kuiper/un9.html?subj=goods-un&_bg_fs=1&_p_jump_id=894&_x_vst_scene=adg&goods_id=601099657638305&sku_id=17592746121261&adg_ctx=a-4e8c3eab~c-91f27164~f-83e0e1ce&_x_ads_sub_channel=shopping&_p_rfs=1&_x_ns_prz_type=-1&_x_ns_sku_id=17592746121261&_x_ns_gid=601099657638305&mrk_rec=1&_x_ads_channel=google&_x_gmc_account=710728018&_x_login_type=Google&_x_ads_account=5483888441&_x_ads_set=22094791166&_x_ads_id=178774036771&_x_ads_creative_id=728033330622&_x_ns_source=g&_x_ns_gclid=EAIaIQobChMI47Snkb32iwMVdziDAx3YuSmsEAQYCCABEgK-yfD_BwE&_x_ns_placement=&_x_ns_match_type=&_x_ns_ad_position=&_x_ns_product_id=710728018-17592746121261&_x_ns_target=&_x_ns_devicemodel=&_x_ns_wbraid=Cj4KCAiAiaC-BhAdEi4A72S4iAoB0JK_DyaJw9jQmrKaJ2wY7zjs997EbQIBeJn83vMkvDKbKeedK7VkGgLaFg&_x_ns_gbraid=0AAAAAo4mICF_19FcdTEyqH4YiFSRHtrP0&_x_ns_targetid=pla-2366289393483&gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI47Snkb32iwMVdziDAx3YuSmsEAQYCCABEgK-yfD_BwE
William Revit

Les

Have you seen the gas struts and fittings SGS sell? https://www.sgs-engineering.com/gas-struts

Thanks
Mike
M Wood

Very suspect link that, Willy, it begins with temu! 😂
GuyW

Lol Guy - yeah i realised it was cheap as chips chinaman but just put it out there to show that aftermarket electric lifters are available.
I've been thinking of converting the rear hatch on my golf to electric, it already has an electric release that could be wired in and using a proximity sensor could go hands free,--- would be a bit special eh.
willy
William Revit

Thanks Willy, but Chrome can't open that link for me. If it opens for you you could try compressing it with Bitly or whatever. Electric lift would avoid the problem of the strut being compressed and pushing the bonnet forward. And it would look very cool!

Maybe I'm over thinking this. Perhaps I should adjust the struts down so that they only assist the bonnet opening rather than support all its weight. I could leave the telescopic struts in place to keep it locked open. Then the pressure in the struts may be low enough to enable the bonnet to fit properly. The problem is though, I am simply not fit enough to do all this work.
Les Rose

That won't open for me either now - strange

Try this ebay one hopefully will open for us.

I gues thee'd have to be a pair to get a straight lift

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/203575264028
William Revit

Thanks Willy

Actually there are lots of these available on eBay UK, at similar prices. I think it's worth looking into. Anyone know the force required to lift the bonnet, in Newtons?
Les Rose

I have weighed the bonnet and at initial lift it's 23 kg, which is about 230 N. Multiplied by 2.4 to allow for leverage (attachment point on 1200 mm bonnet is 500 mm from back) = 552 N, so I am considering two 1000 N struts with 8" lift.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/315481984671?var=613964336845

I have spent the afternoon measuring the car and I think it's doable, without knackering my back again. Front hinge would have been nicer but much more work to install.
Les Rose

Something to consider.
My ‘modern’ daily driver is a 1990 Ford Escort Mk4 XR3i.that I have owned from new. Because my two Sprites occupy the garage the Ford stands out in all weathers all year around. It has gas struts to assist with its heavy tailgate. The struts are currently from SGS.
During cold weather the struts often do not support the tailgate necessitating a broom-handle for support.
Alan Anstead

Les,

What are you going to use for the pick-up points for the linear actuator? I assume the standard bonnet pick-up but what for the body. I'm thinking the behaviour of a linear actuator means it won't work well if you just use the standard points as the strut, whether standard or gas, in the stowed position is close to horizontal which would mean the force the linear actuator would have to apply to raise the bonnet initially would be much higher. Also the angular change of the bonnet for actuator movement will be higher initially and when near closed than when fully open. I think the linear actuator would be better mounted nearer vertical so it's angular change in operation is minimised, whether it could be fitted between wing and footwell side I don't know, you'd have to check measurements on your car. Might also want to consider some sort of monitor system so that if one fails the other doesn't continue to operate.
David Billington

It would be quite cool to use a pair on a folding type hood. Even if you then did the final latching by hand.

Years ago, parked with my Mk4 Sprite in a car park a group of 8 - 9 year old lads turned up on their bikes to 'admire' the car. Then they wanted to see the hood go up. Obligingly, and feeling smug that I was pretty deft at this operation, I put the hood up as fast as I could. About 1 min 20 seconds I would say.
They weren't impressed at all. "Thought it was electric" muttered one of them as they wheelied off on their bikes. 😂😂
GuyW

Thanks Dave, but I have already worked out the geometry. You are right that the actuator will have to be vertical. There is 50 millimetres of space between the footwell side panel and the bonnet, which would just about accommodate the motor. Actually that has got me thinking about gas struts again. What I got wrong before was to mount them close to the positions of the telescopic struts. This is why they push the bonnet forward when closed. I think I needed longer struts that were mounted vertically down the side of the footwell. But I hadn't thought of Alan's point about cold weather, and I think the electric ones are likely to be better. I've also been thinking about reliability, because if one of them fails there's no way I can get the bonnet up at all. At a minimum I would route the wiring behind the dash with a separate inline fuse, so that if that fails at least I can get at it.

Les Rose

Les, looking at some of those units I couldnt see any that were long enough when extended to lift the bonnet adequately on a single straight stroke. Even fitted down the side of the wing cavity? Perhaps someone makes a two part version where the telescopic extends as 2 nested sections.

Actually it might work with the unit positioned a bit further back to be nearer to the hinge. That would shorten the required stroke.
GuyW

Les,

It's good you're thinking about failure modes. If the bottom mount is in the footwell side panel, probably a good idea to make sure the fasteners are accessible from one side so the strut can be disconnected in the event of electrical or mechanical failure so the bonnet can still be lifted.
David Billington

Guy, I calculated that I would need 170 mm of lift, based on measurements. So a 200 mm unit should be fine.

Good idea Dave. They come with brackets which could be fixed with screws from the inside.
Les Rose

Les,
Maybe have a look at this for some ideas!
Starting at 16:48
https://youtu.be/7v59dDxCk9w?feature=shared
Simon
S Holt

Ye gods Simon, that's fiendishly complicated. But it does look really cool.
Les Rose

I have now changed my mind again. I got some feedback from Bill Rawles Classic Cars, and Jack there is doubtful that electric actuators will be safe. If the bonnet sticks and the motors kick in they could bend the bonnet. They have fitted gas struts and think they can make them work. Same opinion from Charles Russell Classics who are near me in Larkhill. But I'm now told I have another vertebral fracture so I'm off driving until that heals. The only upside to all this is that I'm back on the opioid and getting a bit of a high. Not looking forward to going cold turkey.
Les Rose

Les, car electric windows have long had a safety feature whereby if the glass is obstructed, they switch off. Came about after several cases of children being trapped, injured, or even killed if I remember correctly. Presumably the same device would work, with adjustment, for an electric bonnet lifter. Come to think of it, automated boot tailgates must have a similar safeguard.

It does seem to me that even bending to lift a gas strut assisted bonnet might be something you would want to avoid. Bent forwards for frogeye bonnet opening is not the safest of postures for lifting at the best of times!
GuyW

Hi Les going back to the original front hinged bonnet idea . Have you seen the video on the Econobox You Tube channel where he does this using this kit ? Hope the link works , wouldn’t be a cheap solution with shipping I guess . https://www.q1classicengineering.com/shop-car-parts/p/front-flip-bonnet-hinge-kit-for-mk1-bugeye-sprites
Mike Fairclough

Thanks Mike, but I have gone off the front hinge idea because it's still going to be heavy to lift from the back. Also for that sort of money I would expect something quite clever to hold it down, but there doesn't seem to be anything. And then there's shipping from presumably the USA.
Les Rose

Les
Unfortunately age is creeping up on many of us. Have you considered standing / storing your steel bonnet and fitting GRP. It is all very good wanting originality but if it stops you from enjoying your car is it not time to tread another path.
Alan Anstead

Thanks Alan for the suggestion, but if you scroll up you will see that we have been round this loop before. If I change to a GRP bonnet I will have to get the old one off, no mean feat without damaging it, and I have no space to store it. I will then have to resource the GRP one and get it to fit. As I am not physically up to all this work I will have to pay somebody to do it. I've had offers from two classic car restorers who say they can get gas struts to work. I think that's going to be the easiest and cheapest option.
Les Rose

Les, I remember Alan Anstead writing an article on his one person method for removing a Frogeye bonnet using a winch and rope system to lift it up to the roof of his garage to facilitate engine changes. Maybe could be a way of removing the current one for storage and fitting a lighter grip front with a front hinge. Alan ,do you have any pictures of your bonnet winch and slings in operation please?

Cheers
Mike
M Wood

Mike, that's exactly what I have been doing for many years. When I am fit, I can get the bonnet off single handedly within the hour. The fact is, I just don't want to do it, and I don't want the hassle of finding a decent quality GRP one and getting it to fit.
Les Rose

This thread was discussed between 04/03/2025 and 16/03/2025

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

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