Should I try it?

[hoodrat]

Hey guys I am as green as you can get with British Cars. My father asked if I wanted his project car, an 71 B Chrome bumper wire wheel car. He has completly rebuilt the motor, trans, radiator, hubs, wheels, new clutch, hood and many other parts. I think he has found that he is a little old to craw on a cold floor. Anyway I will need to do some body work and generally reassemble the car. Is a B a good car to cut my restoration teeth on. I have worked on cars and motorcycles my entire life so I have some knowledge. Can a nice B car be made on a limited budget with a complete new/rebuilt drive line already completed? The car is complete, just some minimal rust/neglect.

 

[Mickey Richaud]

Welcome, Hoodrat. You've found nirvana for little British car fans. Keep us posted on your progress.

Oh, and as for limited budget?

/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/lol.gif HA-HA-HA-HA! That's a good one!

Jes' pulling your chain (standard operating procedure here!). Actually, you couldn't have picked a more economical car to work with than the B. Fire away with the questions; it's a good group here.

/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/cheers.gif Mickey

 

[rick_ingram]

Welcome aboard...and remember...there are NO stupid questions here! We can all learn!

 

[vping]

Welcome to the BCF! 71 B is a nice car. Pics & questions are what we are here for.

 

[vagt6]

Sounds like a good project car. However, unless you're a pretty good wrencher with a decent set of tools and a place to store & work on the car, there's no such thing as an inexpensive restoration project. I know folks who have up to $30,000 in an MG restoration: it's not hard to do if you have to pay someone else to perform the heavy lifting.

Your budget is key, unless the money is not an object. If possible, your restoration budget should be comparable to the retail value of the finished project car.

I'm sure that no one here has ever gone over such a budget on their MG (not me, no way! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/angel.gif), but if your funds are limited it's best to keep an eyeball on your expenses.

Just be sure you can afford the project. I hate to say it, but there are more important things to spend money on than antique auto restoration, especially if you're not rich.

If you don't have the extra funds, sometimes it's best to wait awhile until you have the cash.

My tuppence worth. Good luck, let us know what you decide!

 

[hoodrat]

I know that it can be expensive. I just want to make a nice driver. No hundred point car here... yet anyway. I have a complete set of automotive tools from working at a shop for a few years. My garage has space. My father will help out with parts... he likes flee markets and wants to see the car run. Other than paint and upholstery I want to try to tackle it myself. You got to learn somewhere. My concern is how complected are they. I have built a few Jeeps for offroading. Are parts readily available at a fair price. A few hundred here and there I can easily do.

 

[tony barnhill]

Sounds like most of the inexpensive, easy stuff has been done...bodywork, depending on rust, is the most expensive part of an MGB restoration...sounds, however, like it oculd be a good project & also sounds like, though dad is too old to climb underr & around it, he still wants to see it finished...might be a good project to recoonnect with one another & build some good memories.

 

[DrEntropy]

Great car for a "starter" intro to LBC's, hoodrat! There's NOTHING in there you can't/won't grasp in an eyeblink if you've done that kind of stuff to a Jeep. You're onto a great path with this. The things are nearly bomb proof when done right, can be counted on for many, many miles of FUN! Only thing I might say you need to consider is not becoming over-anxious to get it on it's feet. If you rush a part of the job it WILL come around to bite ya inna keester down the road. Usually JUST far enuff down the road to need a tow truck. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/jester.gif

Be methodical and you'll have an MGB to be proud of as long as you care to own it.

And welcome to the enclave. Thick skin (particularly on yer knuckles) will keep ya safe here. We're really just a bunch of *sweeties*... /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/wink.gif

 

[davester]

Sounds like the ideal project car to me. I can't think of anything that would be cheaper to restore and be as much fun when it got back together. That said, the word "rust" scares me. See if you can take some photos and get a bodywork estimate since that will probably be your biggest cost.

 

[19_again]

Welcome aboard, since your initial buy in costs are very low, I think you're starting out way ahead of most of us. Moss Motors has all the parts and our supporting vendors (on your left)here can offer a discount on those prices. A few hours on a crawler with a flashlight and camera and then another hour with the Moss catalog or website and you'll have a beginning budget for the necessities. Double it and you'll be near the real number for the finished product. Read through the last few weeks to get a flavor for our forum, use the search feature to get answers. If you like it here, send Basil (our fearless leader)a few bucks to help defray his costs. Be sure to put new poly bushings on your front end ( a recent improvemnt that I am proud to have invented) and lastly as someone here said a while ago"If you think of the bmoney spent on the rebuild as MG points rather than dollars, it's more fun."
Mike

 

[DrEntropy]

...Be sure to put new poly bushings on your front end ( a recent improvemnt that I am proud to have invented) ...

INVENTED?!?!

'k Mikey, next you're gonna have a court injunction against Al Gore for internet patent infringement, I s'pose?!?! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/jester.gif /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/devilgrin.gif

 

[Steve_S]

Parts for MGBs are inexpensive compared to many other classics. If you do the work yourself, it shouldn't cost an arm and a leg.

 

[kcbugeye1275]

First, welcome aboard. This is the site that will give you answers and a little pat on the back to keep things going. I have a 22 yr old son that he and I rebuilt a TR6 that is sitting in my garage while he finishes college. We have enjoyed quite a few good times in his car restoration. Sounds like you and your dad can travel the same road. Enjoy...

 

[19_again]

...Be sure to put new poly bushings on your front end ( a recent improvemnt that I am proud to have invented) ...

INVENTED?!?!

'k Mikey, next you're gonna have a court injunction against Al Gore for internet patent infringement, I s'pose?!?! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/jester.gif /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/devilgrin.gif

Just checking to see who's paying attention. I didn't really invent poly bushings. /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/nonod.gif /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/yesnod.gif