MG MGB and MGB GT Tech Talk
Hello All,
I am a newbie to this great group and am close to purchasing my first MGB (site advice is very helpful). My question, and please forgive my ignorance is; what is the difference between an MGB "Tourer" and a "Roadster"?
Thanks,
As far as MGBs are concerned, nothing. There is a distinct difference in the definition of the two words, but most automotive marketing firms choose to assign their own meanings to otherwise established terminology. An MGB is not, by literal definition, a roadster. But the advertising states that it is, so there ya go. Or you can listen to the owner's manual and it's a tourer. :eyeroll:
Nothing! Officially the Austin Morris Group used the term tourer to depict the soft top, convertible model.
Welcome to the forum.
Do you have any pics of the proposed aquisition?
RS
Well, Michigan DMV thinks a roadster is a coupe because it has two doors. I gave up trying to explain "roadster" to the lady.:drinking:
A roadster doesn't have roll up windows. A tourer does. My '67 handbook shows both the convertible and fastback cars. The fastback is listed as a GT and the convertible as a Tourer. RAY
Thanks everyone. That answers that!. The car (the finalist) I am looking at is a '75 B convertable that if I can make a deal will be a renovation project. Stay tuned and thanks!
A roadster typically does NOT have roll-up windows.
A tourer does.
Potatoes/potahtoes, tomatoes/tomahtoes.
route/route, missile/missile, finance/finance..
(Canadian vs American pronunciation)
I always thought it was: Roadster = American, Tourer = British, Cabriolet = ???
Learn something new every day...
Roadster and tourer are not the same thing. A roadster does not have roll-up windows or a permanently attached top. The terms go all the way back to the brass era.
But can indeed go touring in a roadster....or even a GT, which is a grand tourer!
:beer:
Aluminum/aluminium, and some Bs have pack away tops but the roll-up windows. Would they then be toursters? Or roarers?
Unless a car meets all the criteria then it can't be a roadster. You can however build a tourer (or any other type of car) that does not have as many features as others in its class. I'm not sure where the term 'tourer' originated but I suspect it's a derivative of 'touring car' which are typically larger convertibles with two rows of seats. Most accurately, I think the MGB is simply a 'convertible'.
Tourer is simply the name that MG gave to the convertible. There is no car industry meaning for it.
A roadster is the name commonly used for an open sportscar that has a minimalist soft removable top and often side-screens instead of roll-up windows; a more spartan and sporting model than a "drophead coupé" (DHC) which is a British term for a convertible car whose top is thicker, often lined, more luxurious and more insulating, has frame rails for the roll-up windows, and produces more of a sealed coupé effect when the top is up. The European equivalent for a DHC is "cabriolet".
The MGB-GT is simply a "Fixed Head coupé, or FHC, with a tailgate or hatch -- like the Jaguar E-Type. The GT stands for "Gran Turismo", a term invented by the Italian carmakers to denote a fast sporting touring car, usually 2 seater, suitable for "Grand Touring" — which is just touring further and faster than regular touring! (And also refers back to the term "Grand Tour", which was the journey through Europe that an English gentleman would make to finish his education in manners, art, food & wine, etc.)
You guys are killin' me - but really glad I asked. Thanks very much. Dang! A lot of appreciated knowledge here. Very happy I joined your community. Made the deal today on the "Tourer" (I think it's a Tourer...:-). Renting a U-haul trailer tomorrow to get her home - and so it begins.....
<<Peter>> are we gonna have to disable the drinking smilie from you??? LOL!!!! :bouncing:
I have a "roadster" for three seasons of the year, but in the summer it becomes a "roaster"!
I saw this saying once in reference to a similar question about a Miata.
"A convertible is car where the top goes down on nice days. A roadster is a car where the top goes up in foul weather. The Miata is a roadster."
That would depend on the driver, not the car. I'm sure that quote came from a Miata fan.
While they are good cars, a Miata is most certainly not a roadster in the literal or traditional sense.