MGA MGA/Miata

[NutmegCT]

This just popped up on BAT. Nice looking MGA (twin cam?) with a Miata engine. First thing I wondered about - working on the engine. Looks like even a tighter fit than the original MG engine. Exterior sure looks good tho'.

https://bringatrailer.com/2013/06/27/reliability-fast-miata-powered-1959-mga-twin-cam/

Tom

 

[DNK]

Saw that .
First thing came to mind was...
"Is it sacrilege to pull a twin cam out?"
Now if it was just a standard 4 banger I could see it.


And Tom- Aren't the plugs sticking up between the cams?

 

[NutmegCT]

Saw that .
First thing came to mind was...
"Is it sacrilege to pull a twin cam out?"
Now if it was just a standard 4 banger I could see it.


And Tom- Aren't the plugs sticking up between the cams?

Details, details. Actually I caught that right after I posted ...

And I agree with the sacrilege comment - but some folks might say the Miata engine could improve the MGA twin-cam reliability factor

 

[NutmegCT]

Another thought - if those are the original steel wheels, I sure hope they're straight and true. Great looking body with new engine, but bent steel wheels, can lead to a fast but wobbly ride.

T.

 

[DNK]

That's like stickin a Miata engine in a Ferrari and sayin the same thing.
I'm just sayin...

But think the comment is pretty funny ,though :congratulatory::eagerness:

 

[drooartz]

Wheels are the original twin cam Dunlop wheels, very cool.

I like the idea, not sure how much I like that they used an original twin cam MGA for it, though. However, it's surely a real hoot to drive.

 

[NutmegCT]

Of course, now I'll be on the lookout for a Miata with an old MG twin-cam engine ...

 

[PAUL161]

I think the Miata conversion looks great! The MG twin cam engines designed for racing was a disaster from the beginning for reliability in a street car. They look super, but I wouldn't want one for every day driving. For concourse showing, fine, but other than that, the engines are subject to break downs, way to expensive to not only buy, but also to rebuild, if you can get the parts. JMHO. PJ

 

[aeronca65t]

The MGA twin-cam engine had issues at the start, but later on, I think most of the problems were worked out (mostly by private firms and owners, I think).

Several of the guys I race with have twin-cams and they don't seem any more fussy or troublesome that normal MGAs.

One other point: they may not have pulled a twin-cam out of that car. When the final run of twin-cam engines ended, they had an excess of twin-cam cars remaining. These cars had the nice 4 wheel disk brakes and trick wheels but were fitted with a regular, pushrod MGA engine.

They were referred to as "MGA DeLuxe". I've heard more than one person say they were the nicest MGAs.

And obviously, the car above could have been a regular MGA fitted with twin-cam/DeLuxe wheels and brakes.

As for the swap; for the cost of all of that you could keep your MGA stock (probably more valuable) and just buy a nice NA Miata.

 

[pdplot]

Having outdoor breakfast in Scotts Corners, NY last weekend when an MGA came by running on 3 cylinders. A twin cam. I had a new one in 1959 and got it to run without fouling by running 3 different heat ranges - N3, N5 and N8 - in 4 cylinders. Owners were calling me from all over the country. I kept the car for 6 months, then traded it for a new VW sunroof because I was commuting to the railroad station.

 

[NutmegCT]

Probably opening a can of worms here, but what specifically caused the MGA twin cam engine problems?

Tom

 

[aeronca65t]

Everything I've read about them says that the twin-cams burned excess oil and were very fussy about requiring the best grade fuel. They suffered detonation problems if owners tried to run them on lower grade fuels. As a consequence, there were a lot of warrantee claims on these cars.
I think most of these problems were resolved eventually, but I guess it was too small of a niche market to keep selling them.

 

[billspohn]

Amazing that the ignorance of this model continues after such a long time. The issues that gave the engines a reputation for unreliability have indeed been solved and you can run and enjoy one today without fear.

The original engine probably got pulled out back in the bad old days when they had problems with it and something like a pushrod MG engine stuck in (which would have been my choice over the Miata). That was a fairly common thing to do. IMHO an MG pushrod engine would have preserved more value on this car. It could have been seen as a Deluxe even if it was really a de-engined Twin Cam.