AlphaCars & Ural of New England Official Blog
MG MGB MK1 Roadster
By alphacars | Posted in Unique Vehicles on Tuesday, January 30th, 2018 at 10:11 pmThe MGB is and was one of the most iconic British sport vehicles ever made. Manufactured first by British Motor Corporation (BMC) and then by British Leyland as a soft top Roadster. It remained in production with 18 years with hardly any alterations made. Most modern day sport vehicles are based off this classic design. The Roadster was the first MG to be made in the famous Abingdon factory in Oxfordshire, England and continued from 1929 to 1980, when the factory shut down.
MGB Roadster Profile:
Early ad for MGB
ENGINE:
Number of cylinders: 4
Capacity: 1798cc
Max Power: 94bhp @ 5,500rmp (from 1964 95bhp @ 5,400rpm)
Max Torque: 107lb/ft @ 3,500rpm (from 1964 110lb/ft@3000rpm)
Classic Ride
The design for the MGB was innovative and modern for its time. It had a lightweight design that reduced manufacturing costs and yet didn’t take away from how the vehicle performed. The suspension was soft for a smooth ride and the engine was large, giving it that extra speed the sporting motorists wanted and surpassing its predecessor the MGA. The MGB Roadster became a major rival for another British sports car series, the Triumph TR.
Popularity for the MG brand grew to other countries and the need to export became apparent. The problem came when the US wanted the car. They had a lot of safety measures that needed to be met. The dashboard had to be altered from solid steel to plastic, the bumpers had to be changed for impact safety. The headlights were too low, emissions were too dangerous and instead of redesigning the car for the US, British Leyland just replaced what needed to be replaced. They even raised the car up an inch so that the headlights weren’t too low. The problem with their “solution” made the steering problematic and frankly, the car didn’t perform as well as it could have.
While originally, the MGB Roadster had minor problems in the US, it eventually became known as a classic. Even today, after the factory is shut down and no more are being produced the drivers of the MG brand have come together to preserve their history by forming a club called the MG Owner’s Club. Passing down history and the love of classic sport cars is a great way to build community and belonging.
Check out AlphaCars’ MGB Roadster on our website by clicking the link below.
Fun Facts:
Since the MG is an iconic British sports car it makes sense that the cars would be used in movies. Here’s a small list of films the MGB has been in:
- Six Days, Seven Nights
- Magical Mystery Tour
- The Client
- Austin Powers (MGB CT model)
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Tags: British Sport Cars, MG, MGB, unique cars