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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - Recommended service/repair place

Can anyone recommend a service and repair place for my midget in the South Essex/East London area?

Ideally a specialist that knows Midgets backwards rather than a general garage.

I can always travel further if necessary.

As well as standard service I have gearbox & wheel vibration issues. I'd rather an expert correctly diagnosed rather than throwing money blindly at things.

Ideally they could report on the out of the ordinary changes as I have already stumbled upon a few and don't want to get caught out.

Eg I discovered my GAN1 should have had a fuel pump by the petrol tank rather than in the engine bay where it is now.

Thanks

P Peters

The only mg specialists I know of in Essex are Classic and Sports Cars in Braintree and Colne Classics in Clacton. Never had any dealings with either but I think they are probably on the expensive side. If you are in south Essex it may be nearer to go across the water to Kent. No doubt our friends there will be along with suggestions soon.

Trev
T Mason

Hi

GAN1 Midget - how lovely (I am biased as I have a 1961 948cc MKII Sprite).

Check the tyre pressures and that the wheel nuts are torqued up correctly as well as that none of the balance weights have fallen off. When you have done that does it drive straight or pull to one side? Does it brake and stop OK? I would want to check the front steering ball joints , plus make sure the various bits that need oiling are all OK and while you are at it check engine oil, and hydraulic fluid (DOT3 or DOT4) clutch and brake reservoir. Useful info in the Drivers Handbook https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/404341801318?hash=item5e24a64166:g:hg0AAOSwqo9iLK-L&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA0N6IjlFHWqO7H%2F%2BGhr9Tdfa%2FcgWIQFAVuo7wYnF3ruHTilatw%2FL7j0q51O4h14izrKEoa%2FxIrK5Jv5VgXPs1cfOcHOFtNyDiNM2njg%2BovfKh3q78%2FrmlhQLu9C4JWXD6bwZaRM7%2B0yy9j%2BDq5J6DMKllZVfq7DFjsekLQEQjcvD1dKzgrZYb%2BPOjsIz1gPHuH5LhNMdzCOIs98uike1pISc0DtFNaYNiSQVQprepOQS%2Fo%2F53mtSJHgWYcavUJdSVn6gj7IG%2FGBhhSk%2FpxctQ0HQ%3D%7Ctkp%3ABk9SR7yVlvikYg and Haynes Manual.

Worth joining the Midget and Sprite Club and asking at a local group. The Kent group is very active so should have top tips - Alan Anstead sometimes posts on here.

Gary Lazarus (Frogeye owner long term) IIRC is in London and sometimes is on here as as someone who has found suitable garages in West London (when he is not rebuilding his house and doing stuff himself on his Midget).

Cheers
Mike
M Wood

A GAN1 midget should have a 948cc engine which would have had an engine mounted mechanical fuel pump. The fuel pump could have been changed to an electric one by a previous owner (usually when the 948 was replaced by a 1275) which could have been a Morris Minor pump mounted in the engine bay or a later Spridget one mounted near the fuel tank.
No GAN1 Midget ever had an electric pump fitted near the tank when new.
Rob
MG Moneypit

P Peters,

Is it wire wheels or steel wheels, if wire it may be that the tyre place didn't use the proper cones to mount the wheel for balancing, it seems a common issue these days as wires aren't very common and the cones are a machine option not often required.
David Billington

Wire wheels. At speed, say 60mph if I take my hands off the steering wheel it turns back and forth maybe 7mm rapidly as a vibration while steering dead straight.

So maybe wheel balance. All wheels are tight on their splines. Brakes and stops fine, no pulling left or right.
P Peters

P Peters,

The problem is that the wire wheel centres have a female cone on the inside which fits onto a cone next to the spline and the outer end is held similarly. Most tyre balancing places don't have suitable cone adapters so just put the inner face of the hub against the plate and clamp it up but the inner face isn't accurately made for that so the wheel isn't run true on the balancing machine so gets balance weights added where they're not needed. My neighbour has had this issue before with his Morgan wires and fortunately the local club branch invested in a set of cone adapters which fit the majority of balancer makes one just has to arrange to borrow them before going to get the wheels balanced. In your case I expect you'll have to ask around to find a place which has them or buy a set, IIRC they were around £100 a few years ago. If you have machining facilities I could ask my neighbour for the dimensions of the set as he measured them up while he had them, mostly machined from plastic with a couple of steel adapter sleeves to make the bores fit different balancer shaft diameters.
David Billington

This is the type of thing, I searched for "wire wheel balance cone adapters". An item here https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/253826694876 .
David Billington

Or for under £50 buy yourself a bubble balancer and some weights and do it yourself.

Trev
T Mason

Mike
After founding Kent Masc and being its Rep since 2006, I have stood down as Rep for Kent Masc. Kent area Masc really no longer exists although a few of us, with swelling numbers, have reformed as a non-Masc , Fb based, group.

Sanspeed at Standard Road, Bexleyheath, Kent, are not that far from the Essex border and Dartford Tunnel / QE2 Bridge, & deal with many classics and offer general repairs / servicing, MOT, static tuning and rolling road. I have been using their services since 1977, for various things and have introduced many Spridget owners to them. They do not do bodywork.
Alan
Alan Anstead

Alan

Excellent tips. Sorry to hear Kent MASC is a shadow of its former self, but glad you and like minded souls are still doing stuff.

Cedric might have some recommendations in London.

Cheers
Mike


M Wood

Thanks all
P Peters

This thread was discussed between 05/07/2023 and 10/07/2023

MG Midget and Sprite Technical index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG Midget and Sprite Technical BBS is active now.