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MG parts spares and accessories are available for MG T Series (TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, MG TF), Magnette, MGA, Twin cam, MGB, MGBGT, MGC, MGC GT, MG Midget, Sprite and other MG models from British car spares company LBCarCo.

MG TD TF 1500 - Parts - Too Expensive

I am just rebuilding the bonnet catches for the TF after having the internals zinc plated. Thought I would replace the plunger springs until I found out they are £5.50 each!


Jan T
J Targosz

Well, Jan, I share your pain... parts for everything have become more and more dear. For bespoke springs I often simply make my own using wire and heat tempering which I learned from a journeyman on your side of the pond. But I'd imagine such things are also on YouTube these days.

Now if you want to see truly scary prices, get involved in boats. I'm restoring a 1988 Volvo Penta motor for one of my boats and needed a simple rubber coolant hose from the heat exchanger box to the motor... about 6" of L-shaped 1.5" diameter hose... Volvo want.......... wait for it................ $96.00! For a bloody hose I could find at Halford's or Advance Auto for about $5.00. And they wanted $26.00 just for one damn 0.75" O-ring! In the marine restoration hobby we call $100 a "boat buck" because that's about the corresponding equivelent.
Kevin McLemore

AAh yes BOAT defn. Bring Out Another Thousand!!!
W. A. Chasser Jr

Let me tell you folks a story. The first time I went to my local NAPA (Malone, NY), I brought a hose that would approximately fit my heater connection, but not exactly.

The clerk asked me what model car it was for. I explained my need to him several times and several ways but he insisted he couldn't start without a part number. In desperation, I told him it was the power steering hose for a 1934 Buccialli 'Flêche d'Or'. He spent ½ an hour going through every book he had, and finally admitted defeat.

At that point I asked to see the manager who ushered me into the stock bins and where, in the space of about 2 minutes, I came up with exactly what I was looking for!

Now, when I come in with a hose, he knows to go into the stock and find something that can be adapted.

I now have the guy trained!

I have found over the years, that there are often alternatives to an OEM part and which can often be obtained at a fraction of the OEM cost. The internet allows me to do a heck of a lot of research and I can often save some big bucks.

I live on a very modest retirement income and like you Jan, want to get the best bang for the buck.

Gord Clark
Rockburn, Qué.
Gordon A Clark

Here's Gordon with it when new:


JE Carroll

We have a NAPPA dealer here who also repairs and sells farm tractors and equipment, new and used, horse trailers, you name it he'll find it! He, like all others likes part numbers, but if you carry anything to him, he'll try to match it by looking everywhere in the place. I needed special heater hoses for setting up the TF for a heater. I needed a 45 degree, 3 90s and he dug out everything I needed, no part numbers, just friendly service and aiming to please his customers. We need more business like that with that ole country boy attitude. And, when you walk in the door, they know your name like your part of the family! Just sayin. PJ
Paul S Jennings

Over the weekend I tried to move my John Deere garden tractor out of the garage. When I turned the key, it did not start, but rather made a noise that can only be compared to throwing a ferrel cat in to a wood chipper.
Long story short, it needs a starter. John Deere wants $887 for a new starter. I found on on Amazon for $70.
Would you believe the engine has to be removed to access the starter?? TSOs experience makes working on MGs a pleasure.
David
D. Sander

Would you believe the engine has to be removed to access the starter??

WOW, That's built into it at the factory! The dealer gets another $85.00 per hr shop fee to replace it plus the $887.00! Most people don't work on them themselves and have to pay the fiddler. PJ
Paul S Jennings

In the 60's a friend of mine had a 427 Corvette. To change the last spark plugs you had to pull the heads. Could not get them out with a socket as there was no room.
Christopher Couper

On my Sunbeam Tiger it was almost as bad as that 427. In order to get the rearmost left spark plug out you had to lay on your belly on the driver's floor, look up, remove a rubber bung and blindly try to find the plug so you could put a socket on it.

For my Toyota Sienna you only have to remove the entire wiper assembly and drainage tray as well as the nearly everything on top of the engine to get to the back 3 plugs.

Man, do I love my MG TD, Triumph Renown, Sunbeam Alpine, Morris Minor Traveler and even my Miata! So much more simple, and so much room to work.
Kevin McLemore

Have you seen the cost of a User smanual for a TD
From Moss:-

TD-TF Owners Manuals
Reprints of the factory publications as
included with every new TD and TF. Helpful
and interesting information. 75 pages. An
inexpensive must for all MG owners.
TD Owners Manual 210-600 $22.95

From Amazon
MG midget TD Owner Hndbk
by Brooklands Books Ltd (Paperback)
$10.76

Makes you think don't it.

Rod
Rod Jones

On modern high performance cars it's the absolute worst. The only such car I've ever owned was a 2000 BMW Z3 2.8 liter. I loved that car but traded it for an SUV after too many speeding tickets. (A police car would see the car and whip around and come back to check, even if I was parked. It was painted "Pull Me Over and Arrest Me Now Fire Engine Red").
Anyway, the salesperson opened the hood to show me the marvels of the engine. You could see absolutely nothing; it was all covered in one shroud after another... I don't think you could even see the spark plugs. Work on it? You must be joking. You'd need to be a jet engine mechanic to work on one of those engines.
Geoffrey M Baker

1st Mitsubishi 3000GT decided to out some new pugs in.
Dealer wanted $450 to do the 6 plugs. No way ...bought a shop manual to do it myself. Flat rate 12 hour job. The front 3 are easy ....back 3 ...basically disassemble the engine to get to them. Made some special tools and now have it down to about 4 hours but still a PITA. I love my M.G.!
David Sheward 55 TF1500 # 7427

One of the wheel studs on my wife's X-Tyoe Jaguar broke. It did not strip it broke, in half.
The dealer charged $12.95 for just a nut.

TD parts are cheap.

Jim B.
JA Benjamin

And the crazy prices for simple things - the last oil change on my new Mini cost 112 Euros for the oil only (5 liters / 1.2 gals) + VAT (just the oil), which makes it 170 USD.

In a supply shop, I could get the most expensive oil with all the right specs for less than half the price, and finally, ordering if from amazon, I got it for about 1/4. So since the warranty is over, they wont see the car for an oil change ever again...

Rgds
Mike

Mike Fritsch

One of my grandsons went to work for a high line dealer in Tulsa after graduating from a tech school specializing in BMWs. After 2 years, he went an got a higher paying job. He told me that the only one who should own a BMW was one who was well off enough to be able to take it to the dealer and pay the fee any time there was a problem. He said their a trained mechanics nightmare and should be serviced at scheduled times by qualified dealers. Seems to be as much electronics in the new ones as in a modern light aircraft. Maintenance, $$$$$$$$$$! PJ
Paul S Jennings

I have a Porsche Cayman. The sales negotitation went something like this:-

Me: Can I see the engine?
Salesperson: Why do you want to see the engine?
Me: Is that a problem?
Answer: Yes we'll have to drive around the back to put it on a lift to get underneath. What do you want to see? We guarantee its there!

You cannot see the engine by lifting the hood or the tailgate. No dipstick, oil is checked by the computer and there's a small flap in the boot to access the water and oil fillers. That's it.

But it's the best car I've ever had!

AJ
A R Jones

Jan,
Getting back to your original subject, it's going cost me $125 to have all the TF bonnet latch pieces cad plated. I can hold them all in two hands. Unlike the photo, all pieces are now cleaned.I'm ready to just paint them.

Tyler


C.T. Irwin

P.S.: Getting ready to install wings.
Tyler


C.T. Irwin

Tyler: What about having them bead blasted and then paint them with a silver heat paint and then bake in the over for an hour at the hottest seeing you can make it do?

Send the significant other out for an long errand first though :-)
Christopher Couper

Another alternative would be a cadmium finish paint. Eastwood makes two reasonably good choices... I'd think the silver cad might be the most appropriate for the year of manufacture.

http://search.eastwood.com/search?w=cadmium




Kevin McLemore

Have any of you tried do-it-yourself plating? The intial cost is more than the $125 quoted to plate the TF bonnet latches, but it can be used for more items afterward.

I haven't used any of the methods, but am interested.

> Zinc Plating at Home with Common Materials
by Tom Gugliotta
http://home.comcast.net/~rt66tbird/website/zincplating.html

> Zinc Plating with Yellow Chromate Conversion - How to achieve that factory look
http://www.forbbodiesonly.com/moparforum/showthread.php?63715-Zinc-Plating-with-Yellow-Chromate-Conversion-How-to-achieve-that-factory-look&s=a01c6edf499fa5d068bfadce4d9b622b

> Caswell Inc. - Copy Cad & Zinc Plating Kits
http://www.caswellplating.com/electroplating-anodizing/zinc-plating-kits.html

Lonnie
TF7211
LM Cook

I have a spray can of Galvicon zink paint left over from a building job. We coated all the bolts with it to seal them from moisture and rust. Looks like they were zink plated, very dull. PJ
Paul S Jennings

Thanks for advice. The pdf files on home plating are pretty neat, though requiring a lot of time to do parts. I have a similar set up for removing rust from small parts in a 5-gallon bucket. I didn't know my plating guy started the job until he called me the next day, telling me the parts were done. I had decided to let him do the job anyway, despite what I thought was a high cost, but after seeing the work that goes into the job, I guess it was worth it. Here's he result (photo).Everything looks awesome.

thanks,
Tyler


C.T. Irwin

This thread was discussed between 06/11/2014 and 15/11/2014

MG TD TF 1500 index

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