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Looking at a '74 Midget

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urchin

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I'm looking at a '74 Midget here in Maine to replace my '80 TR-7. I've owned a Midget before [a '72 from 1979 - 1985] and have decided that it's time to return to the fold.


Midget 3.jpg

The owner has been quite upfront about its defects but it's been under the care of a well-known shop in Maine and I can get a professional assessment from the mechanic/shop owner. Structurally it avoids the worst of the Midget's monocoque rust issues while still having its share. Cosmetically it's "fair" although it's had suspension, engine maintenance (1275 "original engine"], ignition upgrades and brake caliper work in recent years. It now has 77,000 known miles; the current owner put on 1800 this past summer.

It has a second gear "crunch" when downshifting into second but it does not pop out of any gear. The gas gauge doesn't work [if it's not the ground is it easy to replace the sending unit?

Any advice for the unwary on this particular year's Midget?

Thanks,

Jeff
 
Rust, rust, and more rust. Midgets and Sprites are stout little cars, but rust is their bugaboo. Check the A-pillars, floors, sills, spring hangers. If the bodywork is solid, all else is pretty easy to manage.

Transmissions can be had fairly cheaply if you need to replace or rebuild due to that syncro going on second, but keep in mind that you have to pull the engine to get the transmission out (no other way). Also, make sure you fit. :grin:

That said, they're great little cars.
 
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From the description, sounds like a good car just to drive and enjoy and fix any issues as they arise. One of the hardest things to do is to resist the urge to try to fix everything and before you know it you're on the road to a full restoration and missing out on a lot of lovely summer evening drives around Mid-Coast Maine.

If you decide you can't stand that transmission graunch, these guys will sell you a rebuilt for about $1000 and have an excellent reputation: https://www.quantumechanics.com/qm-htm/sprite1.htm Throw in a new clutch, pressure plate and pilot bearing while you're at it. Could do the job in a long weekend.
 
Thanks, Drew, for the advice on buying a Midget. Yes, I know of the rust issues. I'll be asking the owner's preferred shop about the condition of the underbody as you indicated. Using my old Midget as a daily driver - all year - in Vermont was when I learned that rust could cause awkward moments, like the time an A-arm broke on the lane to my house. I had to confront sill and front bulkhead rust on that car, but I sold it with 90,000 miles and 7 years of fun ownership [I bought a Jeep CJ-5 soft top instead].

And yes, I haven't grown much since then so I'll fit in it :smile:. However, I won't forget what it was like to squeeze in all bundled up for a winter drive only to discover your keys were still in your pants pocket.

Jeff
 
Thanks for the advice, Rick. I'm pretty patient about my sports cars. In fact I'm usually chastised about why I haven't tackled the cosmetic side before the driving issues :smile:. For me owning a British sports car is all about driving them, not just looking at them.

Thanks for the recommendation on the transmission repair, if necessary. I have done clutch and transmission work on my Land Rover myself but I can live with a balky synchro any day.

Jeff
 
Very simple transmission. Clean up a spot on the workbench and have at it. With a good manual that is.

Kurt.
 
A telephone conversation with the mechanic who has worked on the Midget, John Campbell of Sport Cars, Harrison, ME, was helpful in reviewing the work he'd completed on the car, and also in assessing its structural condition. Fortunately, it's in rather good shape, not cosmetically but structurally. I've arranged with the owner to see the car next week. As always thanks for your guidance.

Jeff
Midget 4.jpg
 
Good luck, hope it turns out to be a good one for you. Let us know what you find out.
 
Will do, Drew. We've agreed that I'll come off the island and drive about 1.5 hrs to see the car. Meanwhile, I've been reading up online any test reports, blogs and searching out parts suppliers to get a sense of what's likely to be needed and what's still available. Maybe Santa will be delivering an MG Midget for Christmas? :smile:

Jeff
 
I took nearly two hours this morning looking at this '74 Midget with 77,000 miles. With the top down and no heater [removed from the car] it proved a brisk test drive in 40 degree temperatures but I found it pulled strongly, shifted with just a touch of clash into second gear, maintained high and steady oil pressure relative to rpm, went up to normal temperature and stayed there during the drive.

Most importantly, I took a body shop/mechanic friend along for an objective opinion on the structural condition of the car. The current owner was quite right in his assessment; it's in great shape for a New England car. The only rust we could find, even from underneath the car, was a hole in the left side front inner fender well.

I'm seriously considering purchasing this one. The current owner wants to sell so he can buy a '68 Javelin - to each his own :smile:.

Jeff
IMG_1158 (800x337).jpgIMG_1150 (800x464) (800x464).jpgIMG_1162 (800x668).jpg
 
Sounds like a good one. The round wheel arch Midgets are nice looking cars.
 
Hey another guy with an LBC sporting the same hair color. Go for it. You need this car. Honey we're on an island. It gets great mileage. I don't care make up an excuse to justify this purchase to yourself.
 
Jim, good advice. One advantage of being single is that I only have to convince my wallet :smile:. Rick, it is quite solid, and you're right - there are few in New England. I have 500,000 miles + on the Land Rover so it should be available for any tow :smile:.

Jeff
 
Buy it ! Looks like a great candidate for a rolling restoration. Plenty good enough to drive as is and fix things as they surface (when time and $$ allow). Bob
 
Thanks, everyone. I'm convinced it's the right one for me in my financial circumstances. If the car had enjoyed a recent paint job, I doubt I could even consider affording it.

I relish these cars to drive them, not to show them off, but this one is quite honest and the current owner is a genuine car guy. He was quite taken that my "expert" and I each came from separate directions in our Corvairs :smile:. I was also quite chuffed that I could get in and out of the Midget as "easily" as I could when I owned my last one in the early '80s. My only mistake was in wearing work boots; they fit in the footwell of the Corvair, but just barely in the Midget.

IMG_0995 (800x450).jpg

Jeff
 
Just an update on my purchase of this '74 Midget here in Maine. The perfectly awful weather has limited my income but the current owner's patience has proven helpful, so we're looking at the middle of the month to complete the sale. IMG_1150 (800x464) (800x464).jpg

The Moss Motors and Victoria British catalogues have arrived! Now to start planning how to get it to this island in the winter :smile:. I would hate to have to drive it on the snow, ice and salt covered roads.

Jeff
 
Yer a patient man, Jeff. I'd be dying by now! Still, it looks like a nice little car, worth the wait. Worse comes to worse, one little drive in the elements won't kill it.
 
No, Drew, you're right; one drive won't ruin anything. The car is located about 60 miles SW of where the ferry disembarks on the mainland. The current owner removed the heater unit on the car and does not have it around, so I'd like it to be on a warmer day than we're having right now :smile:. I remember reading Michael Cook's book "Triumph in America." In it he told of the first Spitfres to arrive in the US, during a dock strike in the US. So two cars were flown in, one from Hawaii. That one had no heater and the two cars had to be driven from Chicago for an auto show - in the winter. The drivers of the unheated car switched off with the heated car every 30 minutes or so :smile:. I can remember driving my '72 Midget year round in Vermont in the '80's and discovering that the blower motor was blowing fuses instead of heat, and driving down dirt roads in my 30 minute winter drives to work - quite bundled up.

Jeff
 
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