Start the Modern Midget Feb 10, 2003
Here are some shots of the MG Midget in its "before" condition. Our goal is to restore the Midget with an eye for updating its comfort, safety and performance to modern standards.
The pale primrose yellow paint is dulled, but there is very little rust. What rot the car has is mostly superficial in nature.
The bumpers and trim are in reasonably good shape. Details like these often make up the largest part of a restoration budget.
The interior is tatty, but all there.
A parts car makes any restoration project easier. This Midget was purchased for $100. It appears as though it is an abandoned restoration project itself. Don't worry, after we've taken any bits for our car, we'll send it to the crusher (just kidding...we'll sell it to another enthusiast).
Besides a selection of local fauna, the parts car has a set of bumpers and other bits inside. A complete inventory has yet to be made.
We will be converting our car to wire wheels. One large question looms, can you update the brakes and keep the wires?
Plans Feb 12, 2003
<i>Classic Motorsports's publisher, Tim Suddard, will be the project lead on the Midget. He reports, "I got Midget on me yesterday! In a further effort to prove to you guys that we really are British car people and not Miata people (I have never owned a Miata, but have owned 14 British cars over the years and still have three right now), I got started on our MG Midget project car yesterday. It is unbelievable how a car can be so foul, yet so straight and rust free. This 1971 Midget is a perfect candidate for restoration. We are trying to baseline the car against a Miata before the restoration begins."
"The Midget had a bad fuel leak which my nine-year-old son Tommy (yes, my son helps me on everything car related) and I quickly remedied with a new piece of fuel line," Tim said. We then lubed up the carb linkage, which was sticking badly, put the usual two quarts of oil in the thing and set the tire pressures. With the brake fluid and radiator levels up to snuff we are ready for some baselines. We are planning on testing both cars later this week."
After we get an idea of how both the Midget and a Miata perform, the great dismantling begins. As legendary A Series engine guru, David Vizard, will be a regular contributor of Classic Motorsports, we should be able to build an interesting engine in one of the early story installments. We are captivated by the idea of using TWM's SU fuel injection conversion and Mike Pierce's alloy A-series head. Not the cheapest route, but we figured we might need to employ some technology if we are going to kick a Miata's butt!
Baseline Mar 21, 2003
You've seen the pictures of what our little Midget looks like, but you're probably wondering what the heck we're going to do with this little British car. Here's a little background on the Midget to get you in the right frame of mind. First off, the premise for Project Midget was concocted over more than a few frosty beverages. Our drinking buddy/co-conspirator, Rennie Bryant, confessed that what he would like is a modified Midget that will show those Miata enthusisasts a thing or two. A tall order, perhaps, but with a decent restoration and some careful hot rodding and modernizing this could be obtainable.
But, before we get too far into what we are going to do with our little Project Midget, we need to discuss exactly what we have to start with. What we have is the world's worst 1971 Midget that still runs and drives. The only saving grace with this car is that it is not rusty. Somehow, some way, there is not one speck of rust on this East Coast car anywhere. Other than the fact that the engine smokes badly, every synchro in the gear box is junk, the left rear spring is broken, the tires are junk, the fuel pump leaks, the steering rack freezes up when you make a right turn, the seat, dash and entire interior are shot, only one of the gauges works, the chrome is rusted, the paint is faded, the wipers don't work, the exhaust leaks, the windshield is pitted, the shocks are shot, the throttle sticks open, and the brake pedal is soft, the car is absolutely perfect!
If we are going to do this thing right, we need to test it against a decent Miata both before and after the transformation. Last week, we tested our Midget against a bone stock 1992 Miata at Ocala Gran Prix, a racing kart track in west Central Florida. We had several staff members and friends drive each car around the mid-40 second course. Surprisingly, the Midget was not miles behind the Miata at the finish line. In fact, it was just a few seconds back from our benchmark.
Unfortunately, we need to readdress the money situation one more time. Despite its deploarable condition, this Midget is rust free, runs and drives (if you use those terms loosely). The going price for a car in this condition is right about the $1600 we paid for it. Sad as it may seem, the laws of supply and demand have relegated early Miatas to nearly the same price range. Clapped out early Miatas sell for as little as $2500 and a real nice example costs barely twice that figure. So, the math just isn't going to work on this one. There is no way you can buy and even partially restore an MG for less than $5000, never mind upgrade and modify it. So, without getting to crazy in the money department (let's face it, not many people want to have Jaguar XKE money tied up in an MG Midget) we need to fix this thing up and make it run better than a Miata.
Some of you by this time are thinking, "What would happen if you spent the same money hot-rodding the Miata, instead of messing with the Midget?" To be fair, that's a viable concern, but, if you are reading a magazine like this one, we need to assume some leap of faith and an incomplete grasp of reality on your part to get this far with us. To be fair, we will compare our finished Midget with not only the same stock Miata, but with our red hot Project Miata from our sister magazine, Grassroots Motorsports.
Enter Carl Heideman and Eclectic Motorworks. Apr 28, 2003
We've enlisted the help of Carl Heideman, one of our contributing editors for this project. The lion's share of work will happen at Eclectic Motorworks in Holland, Michigan. He'll be giving us Web updates from this date forward.
Getting the Midget to Michigan Apr 29, 2003
Carl said, "It's funny how things happen. A little over a month ago, Tim Suddard called me to sell me an ad that I didn't need for the first issue of Classic Motorsports. Ten minutes later, I'd bought a larger ad that I didn't need for longer than I didn't need it and I somehow agreed to take on the Project Midget."
"Now, my shop is in Michigan and the Midget was at the GRM World Headquarters in Florida," he continues. "Next thing I know, Tim calls again and says 'let's meet halfway--Atlanta.' Okay, so now I've bought a larger ad than I didn't need, for longer than I didn't need it, I've agreed to restore/update this Midget, and I've committed to towing my trailer to Atlanta to pick it up."
"It turns out Atlanta is not halfway between Michigan and Florida," Carl mentioned. "It's much closer to Florida."
"Tim's a cool guy, but I'm not sure I should talk with him on the phone anymore."
"About four hours after my friend Ted and I arrived in Atlanta with the truck and trailer," Carl said," the tornado warnings started, quickly followed by a violent thunderstorm and hail. We spent the night and waited to meet Tim, the Ro-Spit (stored at MazCare), and the Midget the next day."
"Our luck was changing," he mentioned. "Tim rolled into the parking lot within minutes of our arrival, we got the Ro-Spit onto my trailer (the Midget was on his), and headed off to Balanced Performance to dyno both cars. "Follow me," said Tim. Our luck changed back, as we slalomed through Atlanta traffic trying to keep our truck and trailer within sight of Tim's van and trailer."
"When we got to Balanced Performance, we met up with Ed Senf who was there to help dial-in the new engine management system on the Ro-Spit. For a little comedy relief, we let him dyno the Midget first. It fired on the first try, came off the trailer and onto the dyno where it pulled a respectable 42hp at the rear wheels. Considering MGAs often make only high 40's and some MGBs barely make 50hp, that's pretty good for a worn out Midget."
"Tim was right that this car is a great restoration project. It may end up having a small rust hole here and there (we found one below the driver's door hinge), but it's one of the most solid Midgets around. It's been repainted once, and it has not been messed up by previous owners. It's pretty much a survivor."
"We made it back to Michigan effortlessly and pulled the car off the trailer. We'll be driving it 50-100 miles in the next few weeks to get a good feel for it. We'll put it through one of our standard four-hour inspections, then it's coming apart for a complete, shell-up rebuild."
The plan is still evolving, but we're planning this as an updated Midget: The nimble and fun car developed in the last millenium combined with the technologies developed in this millenium. A significantly more powerful engine (likely fuel injected as Tim has suggested), five-speed gearbox, confident brakes, and creature comforts like nice seats, audio, maybe even cruise control. We'll put a nice set of wheels on it and clean up the exterior a bit by removing some of the bumps like the ugly factory side marker lights. Color? We're thinking British Racing Green.
By the way, it won't be going back to Florida on a trailer. This car is being built to drive.
"All this after a 10-minute phone call for an ad I didn't need," Carl quipped. "Now I've got Midget all over me."