Dry Stored Since 1960: 1951 MG TD
The effect that MGs had on getting the sportscar movement started in America cannot be overstated. Starting with American GIs discovering the virtues of a light car with good handling when stationed in Great Britain during World War II to the undignified end of sales in the US in 1980, the MG looms large in our motoring culture. Would you like to get a chance to see what all of the fuss was about? Reader T.J. has located a very interesting restoration project for you at a bargain price. This 1951 MG TD for sale on Craigslist in Sacramento, California has a freshly rebuilt engine after sitting in dry storage for 40 years. While it runs and drives, the seller has decided to pass this project along to the next enthusiast who shows up with $7,100 in their hand. Is that a good price for a TD in this condition?
It took a while for the sports car to establish roots in America. Most attribute the beginning of a market for these cars in the States to the experiences of American military personnel stationed in Great Britain during World War II. While not exactly enamored with lukewarm beer of heavy viscosity and English cuisine, they did manage to discover the virtues of cars that were light in weight, low to the ground, and were capable of spirited handling. After the war, they came back to very few options to pursue this new passion. Importers were slowly beginning to offer British sports cars such as the MG TC and the Allard, and only Crosley dared to produce a domestic sports car in 1949 called the Hot Shot. While a Hot Shot did manage to win the Index of Performance award at Sebring’s inaugural race, the brand was gone by 1952.
The good news was that MG finally recognized how lucrative the American market could be and updated the MG TC for American tastes. How? By putting the steering wheel on the left side as God had intended. Also jettisoned were the TC’s tall, narrow wire wheels. While the rest of the car was warmed over at best, these small changes made the new MG TD more palatable to Americans and sales soared. Introduced in 1950, production ran until 1953 when MG made the momentous technological leap of integrating the headlights into the front fenders and calling the new car the MG TF.
By 1953, American automakers began catching on to a potential market. Chevrolet entered the fray in 1953 with the Corvette, Kaiser in 1954 with the Kaiser Darrin, and Ford jumped in in 1955 with the Thunderbird. All of these were more sporty convertibles rather than sports cars, but Chevrolet started getting it right around 1956. Sadly, no American manufacturer produced a product similar to what MG and Triumph were offering in the fifties and sixties. One would think that a smaller, sportier car would appeal to younger buyers. One would also think that the economy of scale that Big Three automakers enjoyed would allow them to offer a competitive product at a price the British couldn’t match. It wasn’t long before the Corvette was the only true sportscar, but there was a night and day difference between the American brute and the diminutive British offerings.
Perhaps the most pivotal of all the early sports cars offered in America, the MG TD was also one of the most popular. It was the right car for the time. MG produced enough of them to guarantee that Americans everywhere at least knew what a sports car looked like. They were also very popular in sports car races that were popping up at the time. As time wore on, these full-fendered MGs and their TC and TF stablemates have become quite collectible. They have traditionally commanded a premium over later models on the secondary market. As they passed into antique status, they were often just out of reach of the average enthusiast. Lately, these quaint reminders of the sports car’s evolution in America have begun to trend downward in price.
The MG TD you see here may be one of the best bargains we have profiled lately at Barn Finds. While it looks rough, this car has been in dry storage for over 40 years. While the ad is not clear when the work happened, the seller tells us that the engine has been rebuilt and has just 15 minutes of total run time under its belt. From there, mechanical bits and pieces such as the carburetors, oil pump, starter, engine and transmission mounts, clutch assembly, and all the hoses and clamps have been replaced. The braking system has been completely refreshed as well. An electronic fuel pump has been added to draw fuel from the cleaned and refurbished fuel tank, and the car rides on a new set of tires.
The rough nature of the car is a bit deceptive. 98% of the parts and pieces are present. It is currently missing the interior panels, taillight lenses, and fender welting. Prospective buyers are also firmly warned that the car will need a new wiring harness due to the brittle condition of the original. Considering that the framework for the body is wood, doing whatever you can to prevent fires in this car is probably a wise investment in time and resources. As for the wood, the seller tells us that it is still in good shape. An area has been repaired, but this alleviates one of the more stressful parts of restoring an MG of this vintage.
All and all, the $7,100 price is fair for a car that has been sorted out mechanically and is largely intact. There is still bodywork, paint, and upholstery to tend to, but the car itself is solid enough to make the investment worthwhile. If you are willing to invest in finishing this TD, then you will definitely get your money’s worth when you take it down that first windy road. Only then will you see why cars like this became so popular way back then?
Do you think this MG TD is a good deal at $7,100? Would you like to be a caretaker for an early sports car? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
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Comments
Considering the sloppy engine compartment I’d want to know who exactly did the mechanical work. If it was done by a shop that knew what they were doing I’d go along with the asking price. What catches my eye is the fuel pump. Unless it’s adjustable it’s putting out way too much pressure for the carbs and all we can hope is there is a filter somewhere between the pump and the tank. Also, the paint overspray on the rocker cover does nothing to support a comfort factor.
That fuel pump is a pusher, not a puller.
If that pump is not a puller then this car does not run because the fuel tank is clear back under the spare tire carrier.
Every MG TD built had the Lucas fuel pump pictured. Some like the MK2 TD had two. When they work they are just fine. Been driving mine since 1968.
Thanks for the update. Our ’53 had a different pump than that pictured and that’s what I based my comment on. Whatever it was worked all the time. What pressure does the pump put out?
According to a PDF from Dave Dubois. The lower pressure pump of the TC, TD, and most TF are 1.5 psi and 1.3 pint per minute. Presumably, US pint. The MGA and early MGB is 2.7psi and 1.1ppm.
May be sacrilegious, but, could the MG engine parts, here, be stored? And….. replaced with a small electric powertrain??? I have a ’54 MGTF Lenza replicar, made, I believe at the Mexico City VW factory? It was made to duplicate the Rock Hudson/Doris Day “Pillow Talk” (1959)car! Aircooled VW parts and service, here, in Hollywood, and across the U S. seem relegated to vintage, po$h Por$che $peciali$t$! If you can even find those? Will an affordable electric “crate” motor ever become a reality???
Hi Gavin. I think the bigger question is “can I source a battery..and fit it?”
Right now electric cars, and e-conversions are for mostly rich, quasi-liberal people on the two coasts, and manufactured by at least one tone-deaf billionaire that you figure James Bond would have shut-down by now? Most U S. working class neighborhoods don’t even have access to charging ports, or e-car service and repair. Our California legislature and Governor are red-hot to ban ALL gas powered vehicles!
Of course it can be done. But, why?
Not “may be sacrilegious”… definitely sacrilegious. (no, I have nothing against EVs… but an electric motor does not belong in a real TD)
My buddy and I slipped his dad’s turquoise 51 TD out of the garage while his mom and dad were in Florida. A half hour later we got our first speeding ticket. Needles to say we got busted when the ticket came in the mail. We were 16 and 17.
Congratulations, getting a speeding ticket in an MGTD is not an easy feat.
I used to get them in an early 60’s VW Van by cops waiting at the bottom of the hill …..
It certainly wasn’t from a standing start. Are they even 900 cc?
This appears to be a VERY good platform, with all the heavy lifting already done – probably $5,000 in engine work alone, not to mention brakes and carbs. What the car really needs is to be stripped and re-painted, and a new interior. This particular car is a very affordable entry into sports car ownership, and could be made into a very nice driver with a good deal of elbow grease but relatively little cost. Wiring, instrument rebuilding, chrome, etc. are all doable, some by experts.
The SU (not Lucas) fuel pump shown is the AUA25 low-pressure pump, correct for ALL TD cars.
I wonder how many “lookers” realize that MG’s are bolted together with Whitworth scale nuts and bolts. Not USA standard or fine, not metric, but Whitworth threads, bolt and nut wrench sizes, including machine threaded screws. This requires special end wrenches, socket wrenches, etc.. I imagine somewhere replacement nuts and bolt and screws can be had. I can only think that most people have never heard of this, or simply think a run to the hardware store will solve the problem of missing connectors. Just thought I’d mention it. For those of you who doubt me, look it up.
Last comment. Generally speaking, I believe that to bring this car to a decent restoration, that is driver quality that could stand a 6 foot inspection and become a reliable driver, would cost somewhere between $15,000.00 and $20,000.00. Assuming the restorer has the ability to machine, repair, replace, and some skill with wood framed autos. Then the value might be somewhere between $15,000.00 and $20,000.00. Considering the current market one can buy a finished driver style for the above stated value. For show quality, add $10,000.00 to $15,000.00 to the cost, and $5000.00 to the sale value. The asking price for this car is way too high. Buyers beware.
If it were mine, I’d refresh the mechanicals and drive it just like that…
This car’s pic will be in Webster’s under the definition for “patina”. I wouldn’t touch it, just drive it.
I always wonder when someone invests lots of time and money on mechanical restoration and then abandons the project. Was it that the engine rebuild didn’t turn out quite as planned or some other big problem came up. I would be very careful.
As someone that has a dormant project (or two) that has been gathering dust in the barn for years, I can relate to this situation… As Little Feet once sang… “When your mind makes a promise that your body can’t fill”…
I believe I know the seller, and he is the kind of person who has multiple MG T-series cars that work as intended – he bought this as a project because he felt it was an extremely solid and worthy project with more potential than most. He has therefore done a LOT of work to re-assemble, repair and get this car running, driving and stopping as it should. Knowing him, I can assure you this is not just a cobbled-together bucket of bolts, but a mechanically-restored TD that now needs cosmetics – which is how it is being offered. For the work he has already done, his price is not just VERY fair, but I think low.
A good set of Whitworth wrenches and sockets is little more than a hundred dollars, and are readily available from a number of tool suppliers. The threads on a Whitworth bolt are metric, so a hardware store bolt will fit just fine as a temporary but incorrect repair.
I had a 52 TD, in the early 60’s. I have no fond memories that would make me want another. Slow, is what I remember. Fragile, is what I remember (transmission and rear end). Other than that, a fun, great car. A lousy road car, but very fun, near the beach (which is where I lived). A little off the subject, but I was at a car show a few weeks ago. There was a TD there with a SBC in it. Beautifully done, very professional, and looked like a lot of fun. (The SBC looked like a very early one, equipped as a 56 would have been.)
bobH. Everything you just said?
Yuck.
Put a small block anywhere but there.
Sorry if I was rude earlier
I’m afraid I don’t understand the desire to significantly modify. A TD is a nimble, comfortable, satisfactory sports car, and with either a 5-speed or a 4.3 differential gearset from an MGA, will cruise happily at highway speeds. If you fit into it, it’s a fun car to drive, even long distances.
IMHO, to install a SBC or even a V-8 flattie, as was done in the 50’s, so completely and unsatisfactorily changes the nature of the car, as to make it unrecognizably an MG. I drove a nicely-V8’ed TD once, and it was a dog – it overheated, plowed into corners and was severely nose-heavy, and the tires were ready to break free at any second. The owner had spent more than $24,000 in the conversion, and the car was no fun at all to drive – he sold it after less than a year!
The only one that is the exception to the rule is Jay Leno’s car, on which much professional time, engineering and money was spent (there’s an episode of Jay Leno’s Garage on it) If you want that get an Allard, or build a Cobra, or some other car with overwhelming power, go ahead. I’m fine with what an MG can do.
It certainly wasn’t from a standing start. Are they even 900 cc?
From 1939 to 1954, an XPAG engine was 1248cc. In 1955, with the TF1500, an XPEG engine became 1,466cc.
so then . . . beware of bugs: If not the Tin Worm, then Termites!