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MG vs Triumph

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Bret

Bret

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From time to time I like stop over & visit the Classic Motorsports forum just to say hi and see what our friends are up to over there.

Well it seems that there is a rather heated debate going on in a thread titled “MG vs. Triumph”. The basic question posed by the originator asked if there was still any love lost between our two camps. Well once I started reading it I was quite taken back, because the majority of the replies to the question bashed “both” MGs and Triumphs. All in good fun (mostly) but the mood seemed generally anti-British. Opting to spout off about how much better their Italian & Japanese cars are.

Anyway throwing more gas (ahh? err? I mean petrol) on the fire, I found myself replying to one post by a Datsun 2000 fan that bashed our two marques as well as some of the others who’d given their two cents. Not that I have anything bad to say about Triumphs in the first place but I was surprised to find that I was defending both of our marquis.

What can I say, I even surprise myself sometimes.

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[ 11-14-2003: Message edited by: Bret ]</p>
 
That sort of garbage gets thrown around at miatanet from time to time, basically any time someone says anything about old cars in general. A lot of "oh, my MG/Triumph/Alfa/Fiat/etc. was fun when it ran. But it never ran" etc. sorts of horror story posts. Whatever, I usually just ignore them.
-William
 
While driving my '74 roadster the other day I waved at a passing TR6 and the guy gave me a THUMPS UP!!!

Earlier this summer I had a chrome bumper Spitfire, a TR3, and 2 other TR6 owners wave at me!!

So I would say there is still love here in Memphis!
 
Even though I like and drive a Triumph, I find myself waving at all LBCs and the rarely seen Fiat. The Alfa folks don't seem to respond as often. I figure anyone that puts the time and effort into keeping a 30 to 40 year old roadster on the road deserves a thumbs up!! By the way, now that the TR4 is running good, I'll be starting the restoration of a 69 MGC soon.
 
When I started looking for an LBC I looked at a few TR6's, (loved the wood dash and 6 cyc) but found myself drawn to the MG. My Father and myself had owned Midgets in the past. Beyond the asthetic reasons, it seems like there is a ton of parts, and I really like the MG comminity I've found online and at shows.
 
I'm an MG guy myself but occassionally will buy a GT6 & am drawn to a little Spitfire near my house that's been sitting for several years....&, if I could find a Stag, ho-boy!
 
<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by tony barnhill:
I'm an MG guy myself but occassionally will buy a GT6 & am drawn to a little Spitfire near my house that's been sitting for several years....&, if I could find a Stag, ho-boy!<hr></blockquote>

Always been a fan of the GT6 & the Stag. Looked at several over the years. I was in some hot & heavy haggling on a Stag 2+2. I had actually doubled my original project car budget because I really wanted this car, but alas the owner & I could never get even close to agreeing on a price – so it never happened. But of all the Triumphs out there (not counting Bikes), I’d love to get my hands on it would have to be the TR6. Not a show-room restoration – just not some old beater.

Oh well, as my grandpa always told me – “just because someone gives you a horse, doesn’t mean it’s free”. Roughly translated - you get what you pay for.
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<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by tony barnhill:
I'm an MG guy myself but . . . if I could find a Stag, ho-boy!<hr></blockquote>

Tony,

Even though my only LBC is an MGA, I love any LBC from the '60s or '70s that came with an American V-8--Tiger, MGB V8, Stag, TR8, TVR, Jensen Interceptor (and Cobra when I am really day-dreaming). Must have something to do with growing up in the '50s and '60s when the Big Three were battling it out with ever larger V-8s. And maybe watching a senior smoke the tires for a block through 3 gears in his brand-new 289 Cobra when I was a lowly freshman in college.

If I ever won PowerBall, I'd just have to get one of each! Maybe you could design a garage for me to keep them all in.

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Steve
 
My feeling is that you should wave at anyone driving any old car. We're all car crazy, and that is the important bond.

As for the MG vs. Triumph thing, I think that has died for the most part, mostly because a large percentage of MG guys have owned Triumphs and vice versa.

We're all brothers, or at least step brothers, since British Leyland brought everyone (except Rolls/Bentley, TVR and Morgan) together like the Brady Bunch.
 
Sammy, I think you are probably right. Over the years, I've owned 'em all, and they all have their idiosyncrasies, but that's what makes them loveable. There's still a lot of good natured bantering among the different groups, but that's to be expected. Kind of a "My dad can whip your dad" deal.
I was driving one of the Spridgets this summer, and pulled up beside a guy in a '38 Packard, and we were both grinning like idiots!
BTW, mighty nice looking TR3. It's the spitting image of the one that I had in '66, that started me on this "Golden Road to Unlimited Devotion".
Jeff
 
Sammy...don't know wshich is cuter - daughter or TR3 - but gotta give it to daughter....girl's got her own fashion parade going....love it...that's definitely a keeper photo!
 
<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr> Opting to spout off about how much better their Italian & Japanese cars are. <hr></blockquote>

Better? I used to own an Alfa Romeo GTV6, I still own my Triumph GT6Mk3. I have proved to myself which is "better."
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Tony - agree with you...while I loved my Lancia HPE, it would not even attempt to leave the garage on a morning when there was frost on ground...unfortunately, about the same time the Army transferred me to Alaska & I kknew it'd never start once it got up there so I parted with it....
 
I too am a Brit car nut, but I also own some old Alfa's including an ALFA GTV6. When the GTV-6 was introduced Road&Track said the engine was an absolute gift to the enthusist. I love my Brit stuff but a GTV-6 engine at 6000 rpm's is a symphony.
 
Aloha All,

I drive a both a MG and a Triumph, '54 TF and '58 TR3A and I rarely get into a conflict with myself over the cars. I agree with Sammy that anyone who maintains and or drives older cars deserves a wave. As Jeff points out, each car has a unique character. My MG to me has a classic look, it may not go the fastest, but I get there in style. The TR3A looks more muscular and aggressive, has good acceleration and speed combined with nimble handling (considering it's age). Both cars are red and my boss suggest I name the MG "red flash" and the Triumph "red shark". The names seem appropriate so that how I refer to them and I enjoy both.

Getting back to the question, if you own a British car then you may gently rib a fellow British car owner, but if you don't your opinion might be suspect.

Safety Fast,
Dave
 
I recently bought my first british car, a 1976 MGB. My father has owned two british cars, a TR7 and MGB. Both with chrome bumpers. When I decided to buy my first I looked at Triumphs and MGs. I was more partial to MGs due to the fact that they cheapier to maintain. I wanted to buy a car that I would be able to work on and after discussing it with multiple people they all told me that MGs were the better choice. Because they had the most extensive material. In the realm of British cars I would have to say that the MGB is my favorite car, but that doesnt mean that I wouldnt own a Triumph or any other British car for that matter.
 
Welcome to the forum 76mgb.

I always wave or give the thumbs up to any interesting old or rare car. I just want them to know I appreciate seeing different and beautiful cars. The first week I had spitty a gentleman in a new Bmw convertible gave me the thumbs up. The experience struck me as odd seeing as how the cars were very different but we both were car guys.
 
Reminds me of the eternal Ford/Chevy debate. For me it's different, though. I remember my high school days in the sixties, and being infatuated with both MG's and TR's. Started out wanting a TD, then a TR3, then an MGB, then a Spitfire, then a GT6...and on and on.

Now I have the TR3, and am building an MGB, so will have both to enjoy. Like some of you have said, I like 'em all.
 
Still say this is the best photo I've seen on the net in a bit...showed it to my wife last night & she totally agrees!

beccatr3small.jpg
 
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