1964 MkII Midget

[tony barnhill]

Thanks to Trevor's sharp eye on craigslist, I just finalized the deal on a '64 MkII Midget....I now have them all ('63 MkI, '64 MkII, '74 MkIII, & '76 1500 Midget)....going to pick it up Monday so all those extra parts I had left over from the '63 restoration now have a use!!

Remember, I don't like to buy restored cars...I like solid, original, or not molested cars that are complete & tell the story of their life.

 

[drooartz]

Hope it turns out well for you, Tony. The MKII Midget (and MK II Sprite) are my favorite of the square cars. Nice lines plus the removable top. A full set for you!

 

[Trevor Jessie]

I got the listing off of the spridgets autox list. I wasn't sure of the year, but I thought you might be interested in it since it was cheap and not too far away. I hope it works out for you.

 

[Trevor Jessie]

Just went and looked at the email. It was Peter Caldwell that posted it.

 

[tony barnhill]

Yeah, but you sent it to me in the "Pulled the Trigger...Now I Need Advice!" thread.

 

[Baz]

Nice one Tony!
Need to update that sig box again, huh?

 

[Rik]

Just what you need Tony, another project. At least you now have Midget experience from doing the 63.
Rik

 

[tony barnhill]

Yep - hey, Rik, we need to put my used top on this one when I get back...I'm not sure of the condition of the top rolled up in the trunk.

 

[Rik]

Tony,
You want to put the "old" 63 top on the 64? Does the 64 have the same windshield frame as a 63? Noticed in the above pics that the 64 has door vent windows.
Rik

 

[tony barnhill]

It has different header bow (like yours) but attaches at the rear like my '63.....bows separate & store in trunk like my '63.....I'm hoping there's enough material in the old top that it'll fit....I'm guessing the old top is hard from sitting in trunk 30 years!

 

[mccalebr]

Congrats, Tony...looks like you did good!

Other than the grille, is most of the car original?

Ray

 

[Pythias]

I just got to looking at the pictures.. Are my eyes deceiving me, or are those front fenders the ones with the HIGH turn signals instead of the lower ones? After having mismatched ones on one of the cars that "WON" (we were ALL winners just for going) at LoTO, and the same thing happening at the PDX-ABFM last Labor day, its one of the things I "LOOK" for. If the are the HIGH ones (aren't lower ones correct for this year of car?) at least they freaking MATCH!

 

[jvandyke]

Isn't it really a '65? I don't have the reference books to check when a GAN3L28xxx (whatever the number was) was actually bolted together but even if made in the '64 calendar year (heck, even if sold in the '64 calendar year) it would still be a '65 model year, no? Not that I care really, the whole history side of it is intriguing though.

 

[Trevor Jessie]

High ones are correct for fat bumpers.

 

[walshja]

hey Tony

how about a picture of them all together?

 

[vagt6]

It's really exciting to find a solid, rust-free car that mainly needs sprucing up and just mostly cosmetic stuff. It's not all that easy to find them.

I found a Spitfire like that back in the nineties that was a real jewel, paid practically nothing for it and drove it for years with nary a problem.

Looks like Tony has struck LBC "gold" again!

Keep us posted, Tony. It will be interesting to learn what kind of shape the drive train and electrics are in . . .

 

[tony barnhill]

Well, I'm home - its sitting outside on my trailer.....bill of sale says '64.....VIN is GAN3L28109.

<span style="text-decoration: underline">Original Sprite & Midget</span> says, "BMC and Healey addressed this in March 1964 with the Sprite MkIII (HAN8) and Midget MkII (GAN3)." And in the Table of Contents listing of the various iterations of the car, they say, "Sprite MkIII and Midget MkII (1964-1966)".

<span style="text-decoration: underline">MG Sports Cars</span> says, "True modernity came to Midgetdom in 1964 with the Midget Mark II (GAN3)."

So, did the Midget change from MkI to MkII mid-year?

Found a few bubbles along the bottom of the A-posts & at the passenger rear wheelwell - nothing serious but we will take the body down to correct them....interior is amazingly in good shape.

Last time it was licensed was '94 & it was used as an RV dingy (towed behind an RV)...it has brackets under bumper to hook a tow bar & a plug next to the driver-side headlight for RV running/brake lights.....engine turns over by hand....so, I'll just have to get into it to see what I actually have.....its a keeper though!

Midget collection complete!

Oh, Ray, yep - other than the grille & that later year radio console that houses an old CB radio, it appears completely stock & unmolested.

 

[jlaird]

Wonderful news. a keeper it is.

 

[jvandyke]

Original Sprite & Midget[/u] says, "BMC and Healey addressed this in March 1964 with the Sprite MkIII (HAN8) and Midget MkII (GAN3)." And in the Table of Contents listing of the various iterations of the car, they say, "Sprite MkIII and Midget MkII (1964-1966)".

<span style="text-decoration: underline">MG Sports Cars</span> says, "True modernity came to Midgetdom in 1964 with the Midget Mark II (GAN3)."

So, did the Midget change from MkI to MkII mid-year?

That explains it. What little I have as reference books just list MKII starting in '65. I need to get a library going. Very cool.

 

[glemon]

"Midget collection complete!"

But the Mark III comes in so many flavors, from the '67 with metal dash, to the mid-years with padded dash, then side lights, then different bumpers and wheels, then round rear wheel arches. Surely you can come up with an excuse for buying more!

Just kidding--sort of

But sincere congratulations on adding the the collection. Greg