This is my current MGB, the third one I have owned and I’m certain it will be my last as there has been a gap of 44 years since I drove the last one!
This car brings back many happy memories of a carefree life with good mates and their partners who enjoyed the freedom of sports cars in the 1960’s and 70’s. We spent many happy hours touring, playing sport and having a social life that many would envy.
My friend Barry Berkshire, (brother of John, the Austin Healey 100 – 6), also owned a ‘B’ that was the noisiest sports car in town. I reckoned that Barry’s saw had cut through the exhaust system before the muffler as being a ‘chippie’ he would to carry his tools around in the boot of the car. God know how he ever stored them as the MGB is not renowned for having a big boot!
My wife Lizzie was very unhappy when I traded the last one in for a Toyota Celica LT 1500 Coupe (pictured) which turned out to be a very comfortable and serviceable car. She loved driving the MGB and wanted to buy it back!
Another friend Terry Stabback would often join us for ‘outings’. Terry was a Triumph Motors man and originally owned a 4 cyl. TR4 before purchasing the very popular Triumph TR6 .
TR4 & TR6
Terry was very competitive and would always remind us that his Triumphs were a step above our MGB’s in power and finish!
From Wikipedia: The Triumph TR4 is a sports car produced by the Triumph Motor Company from 1961 to 1965. As the successor to the TR3A, the car was based on the chassis and drivetrain of the previous TR sports cars, but with a modern body designed by Michelotti. In spite of its modern styling, a total of only 40,253 cars were built during its 5-year production run. In comparison, the TR2 sold 8,635 units in its 3-year run from 1953-1955; 74,800 TR3s in an 8-year run from 1955 to 1962; 94,500 TR6s in an 9-year run from 1968-1976,; and 111,500 TR7s over a 7-year run from 1975-1981
From Wikipedia: The MGB is a two-door sports car manufactured and marketed from 1962 until 1980 by the British Motor Corporation (BMC), later the Austin-Morris division of British Leyland, as a four-cylinder, soft-top sports car. It was announced and its details first published on 19 September 1962.[3] Variants include the MGB GT three-door 2+2 coupé (1965–1980), the six-cylinder sports car and coupé MGC (1967–69), and the eight-cylinder 2+2 coupé, the MGB GT V8 (1973–76). Replacing the MGA in 1962, production of the MGB and its variants continued until 1980. Sales for the MGB, MGC and MGB GT V8 combined totaled 523,836 cars. After a 12-year hiatus, the MGB re-entered production as the heavily modified MG RV8 with a limited run of 2,000 cars before finally being replaced in 1995 by the MG F.
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