New to the Spridget game... where do I start?

Hello all,

I am completely new to the Midget scene-- my brother and I just bought a '66 Midget a couple nights ago, and I figured since I'm brand new to this, finding a great forum would be a pretty wise idea. ...and it looks like I found just the forum!

Anyway, the car we bought is definitely in need of some serious work, but it has tons of potential. Besides a large indent on the back and a few other minor dings and scratches, the body is rock solid-- no rust whatsoever. So thats not going to be a huge problem. Unfortunately though, the car has been stored for the past 15 years or so as it was vandalized then sold as a parts car. And by vandalized, I mean someone threw a brick through the windshield, unlocked the doors and popped the hood, then proceeded to steal the carburetors and the hood. Thankfully, the seller included a spare engine/tranny/set of carbs in the deal.

I guess my first question is where should my brother and I start? What we'd like to do is get this car to the point where its drivable (since we don't have the money to fund a whole restore at this particular time (we're both recent college graduates)). We're thinking about tearing apart the brakes, cooling system, etc. and making sure everything is OK. Then once its going, we can further work on repairing body defects, brick-sized holes in the windshield, etc. but still have a fun car to drive during the summer. Is this a completely stupid way to go about it? Does anyone have any advice for a couple of MG newbies?

Also, if anyone has any advice on pulling the back end of the car back into shape, I'd appreciate that. I will upload pictures later so you can see what exactly the issue is...


Thanks so much! I'm super-excited to join the ranks of MG owners... and look forward to getting to know some of you and soaking in your knowledge. =)
-Seth

Welcome,Well pictures of the damage would be nice. Remember you might spend more on the body than the mechanical. Sit down with your brother and determine the damage and the expenses also your mechanical knowledge. MGs are very easy to work on even by a novice so this is a plus..

It sounds like you have a pretty good plan already. Work on the hydraulics and cooling systems as you'll need both when the engine is done so might as well be ready to go when it starts running. As for the body work, photos will help there a lot. I know that you'll be working on a budget so before ordering any parts check around with the various suppliers such a MOSS, Victoria British, and the others you'll see listed in the dirctory (tab at top of page). Get signed up online with both Moss and VB soon as their winter sale catalogs will be mailed out in a month or so and you'll want to be on the list for those. You can usually save a pretty good amount on a lot of maintenance type items such brake parts etc in those, so well worth the wait. There are plenty of guys around with used parts as well for those things that may be missing from the car, check and advertise in the trader section for those.
Get a good service manual for the car. A pretty good one is the Haynes, you can get them used from Amazon for around $10. http://www.amazon.com/Midget-Austin-Sprite-1958-80-Manuals/dp/085696588X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258146424&sr=1-1
That should get you started and of course as you have more questions you know where to turn. Good luck and have fun.

you could check this out: awakening a sleeping b it's a nice checklist for working with a car that's sat around for a while.

your manuals and wiring diagram are online here

we like pictures!

Holy cow! Thanks everyone for all the advice! Its a good thing you all like pictures-- I'm a photographer and love taking lots and lots and lots of pictures (you'd be surprised how many you can get in a hurry @ 8fps). :)

I got a few of the car last night. Here's what I've got:


The car:



The grille: (question about this: It doesn't seem to fit. This grille was stuffed in the car with the rest of the spares, and when I tried putting it on (or just placing it in the front, it seems too big. Is this possibly the grille from an MGB?)



The interior:



Another shot of the interior:



The dent in the rear:



I'll get more on here as we progress with it. Any advice on what to do with the rear end looking like that? I can get better close-ups to show the damage better.

Thanks so much for the warm welcome. I'm so glad to be a member of this forum.
-Diet

You didnt mention you had a pit!! Very slick!


Ongoing rebuild album:http://picasaweb.google.com/Minorsands/MGMidget1973#

Oh yeah... and we've got a pit. ;)

Yes that is an mgb grill.

Car looks like a good basis for a resto. Don't touch the body except for the bump in the back.

Make it stop and steer first and then make it go. Most of these cars need a complete front suspension rebuild. New shocks are almost a given.

One thing that I have advocated is to let people know where you are pitching from financially...if we know you are struggling to find 50 bucks, our advice will be very different from when we think you are well enough off to do as you want. While the easy and often correct way is to feed money to the beast until the problem goes away ( MG = Moneys Gone) We have all been on the shoestring budget.The trader on this board is your friend.

If the previous owner had only known that used tailight lenses are cheaper than what you have on there now, he would have made your life easier. I used to buy them up thinking I was finding bargains until I realized they were always cheap at every swap meet!

That rear damage is inteesting. Can you take a closer picture? I am trying to figure what caused it. As to repair, you either figure how it got there and push it out backwards (can be tricky) or buy the new panel. Moss sells it for about 150 bucks. Can you weld?

Pete

Personally, my order of business if I intend to drive it is:

Brakes - At least inspect and flush. Count on new flex-lines and (likely) MC and wheel cylinders. If you are lucky, you may get away with "rebuilding" them.
Bearings - Clean, inspect and repack/replace depending on what you see. Bearings can be pretty awful and still work with plenty of grease but I would drive VERY gingerly.
Suspension - Look for broken stuff and count on replacing the old rubber bushes. Money well spent to get urethane replacements. Likely to require new lower trunnion pins at a minimum and (likely) at least one new or rebuilt a-arm. Later models have a reinforcement and most rebuilders include this.
Fluids - Diff, Tranny, engine oils and coolant, fuel.
Fuel delivery system - this can be a heartbreaker if there is significant rust in the gas tank and (possibly) hard-lines. Count on at a minimum having to thoroughly clean carbs (dis-assemble, clean, reassemble and adjust). If you have the money, and the carb bodies are OK (not too much throttle shaft wear) get new throttle shafts, jets and needles in addition to the couple of gaskets required.
Get motor running.
Tackle the electricals.
Seatbelts.

I'd leave body work to the very last unless you have skills and are itching to use them.

Ditto the interior, nice aftermarket steering wheel, by the way.

Just remove the windscreen for now and wear motorcycle helmets with visors. Some states even let you drive with "eye protection" i.e. glasses on!

Wow, thanks again for all the suggestions. I like the "Make it stop and steer first and then make it go" advice a lot. :)

1275midget, I took a look through all of your pictures on picasa last night.That car is going to be amazing! ...and the pictures are going to serve as a great reference for me. Thanks!

Thanks again everyone for the suggestions and stuff. I'll try to get better pictures of the damaged spot today.


Thanks,
Seth

I replaced that panel on my 72, due to rust. It was easier than I thought it would be, and it allowed great acces to clean up the trunk. You will need to weld it though.

I'll post some pics of that later.

This car has had some front body work done at one point. Note that the right turn signal is lower that the left: i.e. look at the distance between the headlights and turn signals. I'm not sure when the changes occurred but front fenders were stamped differently and occasionally a replacement fender was incorrectly installed. It's not a big deal, but is evidence of front end damage.

On the front end on turn signals. You have 2 differant era's of fender. The early Midgets and later before 75 had 2 differant fenders and differences is in the height signal is mounted. Like already mentioned check for damage from collisions. Maybe the reason for fender swap. Or maybe fender only was damaged and was replaced. What year is car? Reason I ask it has the older bumpers, dash, seats, and radiator. I had a 65 Sprite that was like that. Maurice

Maurice and Colin,

Yeah, I found that the passenger-side quarter panel had been replaced. I noticed because the passenger side had a hole for a turning signal on the side, and there wasn't one on the driver's side. The car is a '66, and as far as I know, they did not have side-mounted turning signals during that year.

I have also checked for more front-end damage, and don't really see any indications of anything significant.


Thanks,
Seth

Where are you located?

Upstate NY.

I have a '66 Sprite, similar to your Midget which has NO side marker lights. They were added a year or two later and may vary between home market cars and US export cars. Be sure to check your VIN number to correctly identify your vehicle. The model year is 'created' at the time the vehicle was first titled so it's possible to have a car identified as a '67 but really be an earlier model that sat on a lot for a time before selling. In your case it's probably not likely since 1966 was the last year for the MKIII Sprite/MKII Midget.

Mechanicals first. Body second. Interior last.
Expect to rebuild most of the hydraulic system. Check the king pins and spring pans...two trouble prone areas to your car. I don't think pulling the rear out will be needed to get it running and nothing I can think of other than detailing requires the rear end out...unless you've got serious issues and still axles and pinions can be done in situ. I'd tackle the engine first or second. Pull the plugs and spray or spoon in a teaspoon of oil before turning the motor. I suggest turning by hand first. Target an issue and tackle it. Takeing it all on at once can be over whelming. Each project completed will point to others needing attention. Lets say an engine pull to rebuild or simply to swap the clutch...that might be a good opportunity to detail and paint the engine bay. As I suggest getting one job done kinda leads to other obvious distractions/areas of needed attention.

For me getting the car on the road and a first drive is very inspirational. Taking it down and doing cosmetics...keeps the car mostly static until done. FWIW.
Whether its engine or brakes first makes no difference but that would be my starting point. Steering suspension next, and so on.

a great looking car to start with. The guys have chimed in with some great advice.
Your car looks like a MkII from '64-66
Vin should start with GAN3 and engine # with 10CC if its a '66. The earlier 1098cc motor was a 10CG and had smaller main bearings.

That steering wheel looks like it does not have facility for a horn button even if you could find the proper one for it. As most jurisdictions require a working horn you'll have to add a separate switch of some sort or look to replace the wheel with a more correct one.

The bodywork issue may require welding in a repair panel as it looks to be badly kinked. A skilled panel beater may be able to resurrect what you have, but at considerable expense I'm sure. A ton of bondo, tho' not desirable, would certainly help it look a little better perhaps if that is a concern.
No one has mentioned tires, but they should not be overlooked and if they are very old be replaced regardless of remaining tread. Wire wheels look nice, and should also be inspected closely before the car is driven on the road.

You were bang on in your initial post that thi9s car has a ton of potential.
Good luck with it,and welcome to MGdom

Thanks again for more advice!

Andy, there is actually a small horn button in the middle of the steering wheel. Its nothing fancy and has no emblem on it or anything, but it does seem to be a functioning button. Thanks for pointing out the tires, too. They seem to be holding air and stuff, but I think they're probably past their expiration date. =P

Thanks again for all the great input. I never thought I'd get so much useful advice on here!

Great thread, I just bought a '68 Midget last monday. I had a '62 Sprite 12 years ago and have been pining for another Spridget for a couple of years now.

I just got it home today and I'm already looking it over, trying to choose my battles carefully. I like the suggestion to make it stop and steer first. This poor old girl has been outside under a tattered car cover so the interior is gone, the disks are rusty and the master cylinders are both covered in dirty hydraulic fluid. I was pleasantly surprised to only find a couple of cancer spots in the front fenders and a dent in the front drivers side and looks like something simple for a body shop could take out.




Congrats to you Diet, on your project! This must have been a good week to start a restoration.
Alan

If that's all the rust you have, you have a great basis for a restoration.

No kidding. Congrats Alan on picking up what seems to be a pretty nice Midget! Thanks for posting the pictures. =)


Diet

Great buy!

Also, I love your pictures. They remind me of one of my all-time favorite car photos named "Broken dreams". It was of a shed/barn somewhere in deepest, darkest post WWII Europe with four or five of the most remarkable, priceless classic '30s luxury cars of all time, lined up side by side, the barn door obviously just opened after some years of forgotten decay, broken windshields, flat tires, coated with dust and pigeon droppings, bits of caved in roof. The cars that today compete at Pebble Beach and are worth millions, just sitting there as worn out, forgotten pieces of junk. And Beautiful.

I only saw the photo once or twice about 25 years ago (one of the bosses at my first job had it on his wall and I've never seen it since).


Norm

Thanks Diet.

"I'm in the Ithaca area, so Albany is unfortunately a pretty long drive."

oh, but WHAT a nice drive that is, if you stay on 13 -> 26 -> 20

I miss those Upstate back roads, stuck way out here in "flatland" (AKA Michigan / midwest, where almost all roads follow a map grid and have no spirit at all, I have to search out nice places to drive that you guys can take for granted!)

Thanks again everyone for all the suggestions. I thought this was going to be a helpful forum, but I didn't expect the overwhelming number of responses I've received. You guys have me completely stoked about this project!

Anyway, last night, we (my brother (who paid for half of the car) and I) started tearing out the cooling system. I had heard that these cars were easy to work on, and really found out for myself that its true (at least so far it is). Anyway, thanks again for all the help. I'm really excited about working on this car, posting updates, and receiving more advice. You guys are the best!


Diet