Newsletters 2020 – Arden MG Club

Newsletter December 2020

Hello All

As I’m sure you are all aware that with the Tier 3 level for Warwickshire the Golden Cross has not been open, so there are no meetings to report on. I was delaying writing this Newsletter in the forlorn hope that there might be a change in the Tier level but this was not to be, which means there will be no Club Night in January. However in Tier 3 we are still allowed to meet in open spaces with a maximum number of 6 people, so the Chilly Willy Run will go ahead, see below.

Many thanks to Graham for the cartoon above.

Future Events:

Chilly Willy Run – Friday 1^st January 2021: As stated above I have enough interest in this event to go ahead and the Tier 3 restrictions allow it, so unless something changes the Run will be on. I have planned a new route (using some of the previous stops) using only roads that are on the ‘ Gritting Routes’ just in case it is frosty the night before. The distance is less than 25 miles and includes 9 stops. The first rotation will be at 11.00am, however I will email the route instructions the day before with full details but if you are NOT going to be able to attend PLEASE LET ME KNOW so I can ensure each stop has 2 cars. As is always the case for the Chilly Willy Run your MGs are preferred, however your modern daily driver is acceptable.

Club Night – Tuesday 5^th January: It is unknown at this time if the Golden Cross (or any pub) will be open, so it is unlikely we will be able to have our normal meeting. This is also normally when we hold our AGM, which will need to be postponed until later in the year.

Until the situation is more stable it is difficult to plan future events but as soon as we can, we will be back!!

Other Events:

Coast to Coast – 30^th July to 1^st August 2021:

Norman Verona is again running this event (from Morecambe to Sunderland) next year and is advising anyone who would like to attend to book their hotels and for the event. If you are interested please contact him at: norman@frenchblat.com

Other Matters:

Arden MG Club Wall Calendar for 2021:

I have still got 1 Club Wall Calendar left, so this is your chance to get one!! They are £5 each plus £1.40 if it needs to be posted. Same format as previous years with photos from this year’s Club events (it’s surprising how many there have been).

What Have You Done in your MG:

Following the comments from David Waterhouse last month, he has sent an update (I have included one of last months photos as an aide memoire):

As promised an update/resume of a certain green MGB that has been seen at occasional club nights and a Chilly Willy.

OLA (part of the registration number) was purchased originally to run around on the road. I was then persuaded to use it in competitions in a relatively standard form ( Sprints and Hillclimbs). This led on to a few races with the CSCC in the Swinging Sixties series. This is for race cars and not anything else, knowing at least two members who might query this.

It was decided to have an engine built by a reputable engine builder on the basis of an endurance race engine but still about usable on the road. That engine was hopeless, producing only 111bhp, so another engine was cobbled together with bits from that engine with a different cam and we got to 115 bhp. There followed a series of happenings in 2019 , where a couple of engines were used and abused as well as a 3 syncro gearbox and an overdrive. Still we got to Spa and enjoyed the season overall but there is now a very large and bright red low pressure oil warning light on the dashboard (it was not me, honest, they are two driver races).

2020 saw a fresh start. Having missed the pre-season test day at Snetterton due to the new head being late to arrive back, CoronaVirus then arrived!! The new engine was a bit quicker than the previous ones showing 165bhp and 155 lbft torque. With the car still road legal a test run up the road resulted in a very hasty application of the brakes at the end of the road having arrived there somewhat quicker than usual!! As is usual with a car going quicker other issues started to appear with a limp rear shock and a tendency for the front end not wanting to go to the apex of a corner, which both manifested themselves at Thruxton (It didn’t help that it rained off and on). There are now adjustable valves in the shockers and an uprated front anti- roll bar which means the car is now stable and turns into corners quicker.

The current engine is being refreshed at the moment (this means it’s in bits all over the floor) as is the gearbox (It was slightly crunching going up through the gears (my problem with trying to change gear too quickly!). And there’s more but enough for now as those at the back have probably gone off to sleep.

Thanks again David, it’s always good to hear from someone, especially when they been able to use their MGs this year, keep us up to date with progress and look forward to seeing the finished car at a Club Night soon.

Norman has found an excellent way to make use of his ‘B’ at the end of this year (so worth getting the car repaired after the BMC Show at the BMM) and there was a special reason for the choice of day, read on:

Background – Because it is so difficult for children to see Santa this year with this Covid-19 mess I thought it would be a nice surprise for my grandchildren if Santa paid them a visit and it quickly grew. A member of our local community was looking for a Santa as a surprise for their children too so I volunteered – as word spread it grew again and became a ‘grand tour’ of 19 households and 40 plus children. So planning started with a list of family details, a route plan then creating a Naughty & Nice list with their names of all the children. Fortunately all the children I visited were on the “nice” list. Before leaving I asked one family adult to reach into my magic sack to take a chocolate Santa for each of the children. It started as a one off but ended up ‘large’

It was also FAV’s 55th birthday – first registered Dec 12th 1965.

Fantastic Norman, however I wonder if this will become an annual event even without COVID-19?

Trevor gave me an update on progress with the Duratec MGB but I think this needs a warning before you read on (like before scary programs on the TV), you have been warned:

The MGB-Tec 200 is not going well. It would take all night to detail all the of trials and tribulations I have experienced over the last four months. One thing that had never crossed my mind was how badly the MGB wiring loom had deteriorated from when it was new. After countless electrical failures, I installed all three new looms, and that was not without its problems. Even after speaking to the MGOC to get the correct loom, there were some faults with it that was very time consuming to correct. Then there was a massive learning curve about the differences between the Ford and the Mazda variants of this engine, and don’t even get me started on the variable valve timing. I posted on WhatsApp on 16^th September showing it at the rolling road, that was its first visit. We were unable to get it running properly on 4 cylinders, the indications were that it was a mechanical problem with the engine, even though it has had a total rebuild. I carried out compression tests, checked valve timing, disabled the VVT, substituted everything you can think of, swore at it and even hit it with a hammer (not really but very tempted). Disabling the VVT gave some improvement, and fitting new plug leads made an improvement, so back to the rolling road. Still they could not get it running properly on 4 cylinders. They even fitted a different ECU which they had taken from a car that was running OK using it. Then they tried a different make of ECU and new loom, new injectors, all to no avail. So after a lot of time and money, I have only driven the car 30 feet into my garage!!

I am taking the engine out and it is going back to the engine builder, as there is a problem on number 3 cylinder and to a lesser extent number 1 cylinder, for them to sort out. Because we can not say exactly what the problem is, I am fitting another engine from a car that we have heard running, to prove that there is no fault with my ECU and special wiring loom. I have to do this to prove the point to the engine builder, because there is always a blame game between rolling roads and engine builders.

So in a nutshell it has been a very frustrating costly and disappointing few months. As for a follow on write up for the News Letter, I think I would like to wait until I have better news. I could probably fill 20 News Letters with the number of highs and lows experienced. Unfortunately all of the problems I have encountered, has rather taken the shine off of this project.

Well good luck with progress, I’m sure it will be worth it in the end and let us know how you get on.

When I retired (10 years ago now!!) I thought that I would have time to remove the engine from my MGB and refurbish the engine bay. Well all those years have gone by without me getting round to this job, so last week, I finally took the plunge and the engine is out! Next will be to remove everything from the engine bay and I think I will also replace the wiring loom, which is looking not too good in some places. The big question is should I take the heater out and replace the core (I have read lots of horror stories of the difficulty in getting the heater out!!)?

Can I wish you all a Very Happy Christmas and a Safe & Sociable New Year.

Stay safe, stay well

Paul

Newsletter November 2020

Hello All

Reports:

There should have been 20 of us at the Club Night but two couples had to cancel at the last minute leaving Steve & Gaynor like ‘Billy No Mates’. No matter the rest of us had a very enjoyable meal and once the other diners had left the restaurant there was a bit of banter between the tables. The staff at the Golden Cross were quite correctly strictly enforcing the ‘No Movement Between Tables’ rule, all credit to them they are adhering to the COVID Restrictions making the environment as safe as possible.

Future Events:

Club Night – Tuesday 1^st December: As we will still be in the second ‘Lockdown’ there will be no meeting this month.

Xmas Dinner Dance/Party – Friday 4^th December: This event has been CANCELLED.

Xmas Meal – Tuesday 8^th December: We now know that Warwickshire is in Tier 3, so no pubs will be open before 16^th December, therefore the Xmas Meal will unfortunately not be able to go ahead

Chilly Willy Run – Friday 1^st January 2021: The state of restrictions after the festive period look very uncertain at the moment, so I’m doubtful that a ‘Normal’ run will be possible to start the year off with, so would anyone be interested in re-running of the ‘Social Distance Run’, even in Tier 3 up to 6 people are allowed to meet outdoors and 10 mins chat will be long enough in the cold (modern cars allowed)?

Other Events:

Coast to Coast – 30^th July to 1^st August 2021:

Other Matters:

Arden MG Club Wall Calendar for 2021: The calendar for next year is now finished and has been distributed to most people (I still have a few to hand deliver, don’t worry it will be soon), however there are a few spare copies, so if you missed out placing your order before the deadline now is the time to get hold of yours. They are £5 each plus £1.40 if it needs to be posted. Same format as previous years with photos from this year’s Club events (it’s surprising how many there have been), as ever ‘first come first served’.

In the December edition of Practical Classics magazine there is an interesting article in the ‘Opinion’ section by Nick Larkin and the photo is of the BMC & Leyland Show at BMM Gaydon showing the Arden MG Club display in the foreground. Thanks to David W for sending me this information. It is on page 46 if you want to check.

What Have You Done in your MG:

David Whitehouse just managed to fit in a ‘Track Day’ with his ‘shared’ race prepared MGB and sent the following message with the photos:

“This is what happens when you get bored in the current Covid times. Totally socially distanced!
I hasten to add I am not driving, it’s the other driver in the “team”. I’m usually second driver and he had not mentioned it at the changeover.
I’m glad to see that there is at least some activity for the members.“

Thanks David, I hope you get the engine put back together in time for the New Season (assuming there is a New Season!!).

Andy Bourne has been finding places to go (before the latest lockdown I might add) and sent this little report and photo:

Very little to report here – but did have a run yesterday, with John and some pals – to The Hooky brewery café, for a last bacon sarnie yesterday! Great views en route. Car put to bed now – think lockdown might be more than 4 weeks though! Hope everyone is ok -all the best Andy.

Great Andy, I look forward to seeing the Midget again in 2021.

Dusty has reported that his MG TD imported from the USA has arrived, however he commented:

Started stripping the TD and finding various things like iffy wiring, some c++p restoration and tinworm so plenty to do over the winter!

Thanks Dusty, you won’t have any trouble keeping busy during the ‘Lockdowns’. I look forward to seeing it on the road again.

Under the “What I haven’t actually done with my MG yet” heading:

Further to the ‘little-boy-peeing’ leak from the 12mm pipe that’s part of the inlet manifold assembly:

I discovered it’s an irrevocable part. To get a replacement for the tube you buy the whole manifold for about £155.00 from Rimmer Bros. (MGOC haven’t got any – in fact they no longer have them identified on their exploded diagram)

Another quote was £165.00 . . . . so, fule that I am, I thought “eBay!”.

And there was one on there! Apparently off-the-shelf, with a part identification label on the aforementioned pipe. £175.00 . . . . and, when you go into close up . . . . you can see ALL THE RUST on the water pipe.

So, so far, I’ve purchased some plumber’s “quick leak repair putty”. I reckon if I put some of that on . . . AND buy a replacement inlet manifold assembly to go in the future, it means it will NEVER LEAK AGAIN.

Graham.

Good luck with that philosophy Graham but I understand the theory!!

Graham gets a double last word, he has drawn another cartoon for our enjoyment:

Thanks Graham, it was very strange, the day before I received this cartoon from Graham I had just finished painting the ceiling in our bedroom and we have a ‘Bay Window’ just like that!!

Stay safe, stay well

Paul

Newsletter October 2020

Hello All

Firstly many thanks to Graham for providing a selection of ‘topical’ cartoons for this months Newsletter, I hope you find them as amusing as I do.

Reports:

A couple of things to report on this month, firstly the Club Night which was cancelled as a Club event and although I was not there I have had a report that 2 tables were booked for meals (much enjoyed) with 6 people on one and a further 4 on another.

“Hi Paul, Quiet night last night but met some MG faithfuls 10 in total. The “ crew” were still the last to leave of course!! But before 10-0 clock !!
Cheers Alan & Julia”

This is in accordance with the Government guidelines and the staff at the Golden Cross are, correctly, most insistant that there is no mixing between tables. There were other diners in the restaurant but once they had left there was a ‘shouted’ conversation between the tables. Not ideal but the best we are allowed to do.

Later in the month we attended the Malvern Transport Show at the Three Counties Showground and would you believe it, there was NO rain, not only that there was sunshine, not super warm but we were able to sit having our picnics and good company with the correct social distancing. The organisers had advised everyone that the Show would be totally out doors but that didn’t stop a good number and variety of cars from turning up, along with lots of trade stands, so something for everyone. We had 6 MGs on display, well 7 if you include the Mike Green XK8 and everyone had an enjoyable day.

Future Events:

Club Night – Tuesday 3^rd November: Not much has changed regarding the Government restrictions for the Coronavirus, so there will again be no official Club Night, however anyone can book a table to dine at the Golden Cross but it needs to be groups of no more than 6 and I cannot be involved in the organising. As far as I know Matt is still offering his 2 courses for either £12 or £15 which is great value for good food. I have booked a table for 7.30pm, maybe I will see you there and be able to shout across the room to you!! If anyone would like to arrange a group for a table (there are 5 tables of four available) but has not got the contact details for someone they would like to invite let me know and I will put you in touch with each other.

Xmas Dinner Dance/Party – Friday 4^th December: This event has been CANCELLED.

Xmas Meal – Tuesday 8^th December:

Xmas Meal Sing-a-long to 12 ‘Days’ of Christmas

At the time of writing this event will take place (subject to Government restriction changes) and Matt has offered us the whole pub to allow us all to attend but with ‘Social Distance’ measures in place, which will include no movement between tables. It is too early to take bookings, however I have started a list of people who would like to attend (so far 32 people have expressed an interest) but please let me know if you would like to join us for the meal, so that I can let Matt know how many tables we will need, if you are not on the list it may be too late to book once I have told Matt how many tables he can sell to other guests.

Chilly Willy Run – Friday 1^st January 2021: I have an idea to be able to have a run out on New Year’s Day but I need to confirm the details but hopefully we might still be able to do something to welcome in the New Year. Watch this space.

Other Events:

Coast to Coast – 30^th July to 1^st August 2021:

Other Matters:

David W’s wife spotted these in the Age UK Charity Shop in Warwick. Look closely and you will see the items in the second photo. What we don’t know is if they were ever sold but it might be that there is value in all your old Rally Plates!!

With the prospect of further restrictions being imposed by the Government Graham has sent in a couple of suggestions:

“As the walk and tea room at Thrupp was so popular, perhaps we might canvass members for suggestions of places that they like to go to?

We would most certainly recommend a trip to Tewkesbury. It’s a destination that can also involve an appealing cross-country route and a lovely town to explore.”

Secondly:

”How about a Zoom night – although not on a Tuesday? I’m sure we could prevail upon Fiona to host it . . .“

What do you all think? Who would like to join in another Zoom meeting?

Has anyone got any suggestions of places to visit with a good journey to get there or a pleasant walk or good tea room, if so let’s have them and we can share with the group.

This one is titled ‘Masks & Spencer’, of course!

What Have You Done in your MG:

Before the weather broke Caroline and I thought we would have a ride out in the MGB and we decided to follow one of the ‘Stratford Festival of Motoring’ routes as it went through a Ford that even Lech was not familiar with. We stuck to the instructions, despite the road signs warning of ‘Unsuitable for Motor Vehicles’ and came across the ford in the photo which was a bit of a disappointment as it was totally dry!! I’m sure you will see it on a route in the future when we are allowed to go out together again.

Earlier in the Month I took the MGB to a couple of events at the British Motor Museum, the first of which I was reminded about after the last Newsletter as I had omitted to mention it but the MG Car Club celebrated their 90^th birthday with a gathering at the Museum. It was well attended and well organised, with both the Arenas in-front of the Museum full of MGs of all ages and several displays by some of the Registers (the MGB Register display was very good, with the Jean Denton London to Sydney Marathon car in pride of place). While I was there I took the time to visit the new Temporary Exhibition that opened that day which is titled “When Jaguar bought Daimler” and it is a history of Daimler Cars in the UK. I thought it was very good and well worth a visit to learn more about one of the earliest car makers in Britain.

A few days later the Museum managed to run their new ‘Gaydon Gathering’ event (cancelled at the last minute in September). It was fully sold out (although free to enter) with 500 tickets booked, including three other Arden MG Club people. Again it was very well organised with cars parked in ‘every other parking space’ to leave plenty of room for social distancing. The variety of cars attending with everything from a Renault 17 Coupe (have you ever seen one of those?) to a BMW i8 and McLaren Super Car. Refreshments were available to purchase and the MG theme was continued with the ‘Gaydon Garage’ feature (brought forward to 6.30pm as it would be getting dark) when the garage door was raised and the MG6R4 prototype 001 was driven out and around the site. This was filmed and shown as a live feed on the Museum Facebook feed, it’s still available to view and you can spot Andy B and myself in the background!! The Gaydon Gathering will be back next year starting 13^th April. Definitely recommended.

Stay safe, stay well

Paul

Newsletter September 2020

Hello All

There is actually something to report on this month.

Reports:

Heritage Run Revisited: There were 17 MGs (plus an MG Quashqi, David & Diane’s Lady B was still awaiting some new core plugs) lined up at the Golden Cross to celebrate the Heritage Run from 1998 and Matt did a great job providing Bacon Rolls and coffee ouside the Restaurant window. Our destination had changed a lot in the intervening years, as it is now a ‘Retail Opportunity’ & Cafe, I remember it being an old barn with equipment in and very few facilities, how time moves on!! A lovely route that Lech had mapped out back then, so I’m going to blame him for the mix-up on the mileages after Malvern (he checked the instructions on our recce) but I don’t think that detracted from anyone’s enjoyment of the run. I’m not sure the provisions at the Hop Pocket were as good as some previous runs but the salads looked OK and it was a shame the ‘Hop Museum’ was closed but despite getting soaked going round Ledbury on the way home we enjoyed the day out with good company. Where shall we go next year?

Club Night: I decided to have the Club Night as an ‘Outdoor’ evening and the weather was very kind to us, there was even a pleasant sunset. Matt had reserved half a dozen tables for us under large brolleys, which worked very well, just order and collect drinks from the table at the entrance to the bar. There was even a couple of new people included in the 27 people attending. I canvessed views on future Club Nights but I think events have overtaken that, see ‘Future Events’.

BMC & Leyland Show at BMM, Gaydon: This was a very well attended show, both for us and for the Museum (by lunch time they had to close entry for non-booked visitors!!). It was a great display which also included the Mini & Metro Show, so lots to look at. I got there early to ensure we reserved our space between the Collections Centre and the Museum Entrance and just as well from the stories of queues to get in and to stop interlopers moving into our area. Lots of sunshine ensured everyone was able to enjoy a picnic and the whole day, with the exception of Norman & Christine. On the way down the Spine Road to get on site there was a big bang followed by difficulty selecting gear, so fearing a serious clutch problem, they left early to be sure of getting home if there was a problem, however by careful route planning the drive back was uneventful with only one gear change the whole way. The car is now awaiting minor surgery.

Arden MG Club Enjoying the Show in the Shadow of the Museum

Gaydon Gathering at BMM: It was a great shame the new ‘Rule of 6’ came in a week before this event, as the Museum had no choice but to cancel and it was a beautiful evening!! They have put a taster of ‘The Gaydon Garage’ feature on their facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/BritishMotorMuseum/posts/3394703297315247

Future Events:

Club Night – Tuesday 6^th October: Matt has been in contact with me and with the new Government legislation of the ‘Rule of 6’ he is unhappy about running a Club Night at the Golden Cross (he could be fined for hosting a ‘Group Meeting’, so I have relucantly agreed that the Club Night will be CANCELLED. What I have suggested to Matt and he is happy with, is that any members can arrange their own groups (max 6 people) and book a table in the restaurant to dine at 7.30pm and he will group Club members on adjacent tables (he will still be doing his 2 courses for £12 or £15 menu), however please remember that movement between tables is not allowed. I cannot be involved in the booking, however if anyone wants to contact another member to arrange a group and needs contact details send me an email and I will forward to them. As it happens I will not be able to attend this Club Night anyway, even before the restrictions but have a good evening. There are approx 7 tables in the restaurant most are for 4 persons with a few able to take 6, arrange your groups and check with the Cross.

Malvern Transport Show – Sunday 11^th October: Steve is still awaiting confirmation that this show will happen, the organisers are very hopeful it will be able to run, however it will not be confirmed until 2 weeks before the scheduled date. If it does happen Steve is going to arrange a display area for us but you will need to book your own tickets on-line. Fingers crossed and let’s hope there will be no rain this year.

Picnic Time at the Malvern Show October 2019, before the rain came.

Xmas Dinner Dance/Party – Friday 4^th December: I have received the following message from Nigel:

“I have heard from Stratford Oaks that the Arden MG club Christmas dinner/party booked for Dec 4th is unlikely to go ahead for obvious reasons.
They did say to me with social distancing they could have taken 70 people, 140 + people without. But I think we are still limited to 30 people ?”. This event is another that has been CANCELLED.

Xmas Meal – Tuesday 8^th December:

Xmas Meal 2019, Sing-A-Long – ‘The 12 Days of Christmas’

At the time of writing this event will take place (subject to Government restriction changes) and Matt has offered us the whole pub to allow us all to attend but with ‘Social Distance’ measures in place. It is too early to take bookings, however I have started a list of people who would like to attend (so far I have 20) but please let me know if you would like to join us for the meal, so that I can let Matt know how many tables we will need, if you are not on the list it may be too late to book once I have told Matt how many tables he can sell to other guests.

Other Events:

Autumn & Taster Trial – Sunday 27^th September:

As previously advised, the Midland Centre is pressing ahead with its Autumn Trial, incorporating a Taster Trial for newcomers to the sport, and will be held at East Lodge Farm, Bromsgrove, on 27^th September.

If anyone is interested in having a try at ‘Trialling’ this is a great way to start, check the Midland Centre website for full details and information on how to book. I suspect spectating will not be possible due to the COVID requirements, so why not have a go.

Gaydon Gathering – Tuesday 13^th October: This meeting is still scheduled to go ahead, however to allow for the new restrictions it will be necessary to pre-book on-line with Museum but the entry is still FREE OF CHARGE, just go to the British Motor Museum website and ‘buy’ tickets. I have already booked mine as there will be a restriction on numbers.

Classic Motor Show – 13^th to 15^th November:

I have just heard that this show is scheduled to go ahead at the NEC.

Coast to Coast – 30^th July to 1^st August 2021:

Other Matters:

It looks like the oldest driving member of our group is Phil Bawn (or is he the only one bothered to reply to me!!) but 84 years young and still driving his MG is a great achievement, well done Phil, we hope to see you for many more years.

I have received an update from Dusty regarding the Calor Grant Competition:

“Following my appeal for “likes” for our grant for Centenary Narrowboat, may I thank all those that voted for us. Despite being in sixth place- there were six awards in our category- we failed to get the £2500 we wanted for the new heater although as a finalist we were given £500. We did however manage to raise £2333 through Crowdfunding (less their commission and VAT) plus several other donations and a grant of £500 from Canal and River Trust so the heater will be fitted over this coming winter.

After a hull survey it was discovered that the bottom was down to 1mm thick in places, not ideal when up to 12 young are aboard, so we have taken this opportunity when scouting and guiding activities have been postponed to have a new 6mm bottom plate fitted and various other structural work done. For more information about Centenary google centenarynarrowboat.btck.co.uk“. Well done Dusty and good luck with the new ‘bottom’.

Another item from Dusty which might be of interest to those of you with new cars that use ‘Keyless Entry’:

“In March I bought a new MGHS, (still only done 1500 miles) and recently in Enjoying MG Roger Parker wrote an article about the security of keyless locking systems. He advised keeping the keys in a Faraday pouch when not in use as it is possible for thieves to download the information from outside your house enabling them to enter and drive away your car. I immediately purchased two pouches from the internet. A couple of days later my insurance company, ‘More than’ who insure both the HS and TF160 sent me two complimentary pouches. It made me wonder if then, if my car was still taken, would I have to prove that the keys were stored safely in the bags?“. Thanks Dusty, food for thought.

Items for Sale:

Fred has asked me to ask if anyone wants an MGB engine and overdrive gearbox. He tells me they are in good working order and are still in the car, so can be seen running. They are from a ‘Rubber Bumper’ car and the owner is hoping get a ‘grand’ for them. Please contact Andy Worton (07770 751 051) for more information if you are interested.

What Have You Done in your MG:

Caroline Opening Another Gate on Route to Thrupp

Not in the MG but Caroline and I decided to take a walk at Thrupp (recommended by several people), however we decided to take the ‘Spider’. Looking for an interesting route to get there we realise it was not far from Rousham House, which we visited on last year’s ‘Chairman’s Picnic’, so I printed of a copy of the route and again went down the gated road, poor Caroline had to getting in and out of the car for the gates!! I can confirm it is a lovely walk and can recommend ‘Annie’s Tea Rooms’.

Dusty has told me he is getting himself a new toy:

Dusty’s ‘New’ MG TD Midget, To be Repatriated

“Coming from the States. Winter project not too much of a restoration job – if as advertised! Maybe a respray in a correct factory colour. It’s a dry state car, Arizona and looks OK from the many photos. “

I hope that is not wishful thinking but should be great fun, good luck with the project and look forward to seeing the result next year!!

Stay safe, stay well

Paul

Newsletter August 2020 – 2

Hello All

As I’m sat here typing this, Storm Francis is raging outside and I have a bit of time as the Aunt Sally Evening has been postponed, what a ‘summer’ this has been, bring back the spring. Trevor is investigating the options of how and when to have another go at the Butcher’s Arms and I will let you know.

Future Events:

Club Night – Tuesday 1^st September:

The response to my questionaire was very disappointing with only 20% of you replying to me, I can only assume that very few people are interested in attending Club Nights in the near future, which makes the decision easier, that we will not need to have an additional night as the 27 people the restaurant can hold at the Golden Cross is more than sufficient for the demand. Several people did state that they would prefer to have the meeting out doors, which I understand and agree with, so weather permitting this meeting will be in the garden at the Cross unless the forecast is not looking suitable. I will keep an eye on the various weather apps and make a decision on Thursday or Friday on ‘In or Out’, this will be communicated by email before Friday evening at which point I will open the booking for the meeting, as stated before giving priority to anyone who had responded to the questionnaire, please don’t email me before receiving my message as it will not be included in the booking (which I need to do for Matt in line with the Track & Trace requirements). If we are going to be ‘Outside’ I will start the meeting earlier as well.

A suggestion I received was to have the meetings at lunch time, as this would be more suitable for holding outside, so I will be canvasing for your views as to doing this for the rest of the year.

BMC & Leyland Show, Gaydon – Sunday 6^th September:

I have booked us into this Show at the Museum and have received the entry passes and wrist bands. Those booked so far are: Chris Y, Fred B, Mick & Marg W, Rob W, Alan & Julia C, Norman & Christine L, and Trevor & Angela S. If you are on the list can you please let me know if you plan to be at the Club Night where you will be able to collect your pass, otherwise I will need to make alternative arrangements. I have a couple of spare entry passes if anyone else would like to join our group, first come…. The passes gain access to the Show, the Museum and The Collections Centre. I have requested the grass outside the Collections Centre as our display area, fingers crossed.

Other Events:

Gaydon Gathering – Tuesday 15^th September:

Just in case you have not had enough opportunities to go to the British Motor Museum, they are going to launch a new evening event, that will be monthly through the summer months (Sept & Oct in 2020, restarting on the 13^th April 2021, these are the details I have received:

“We are developing our Gaydon Gathering event, the first of which is scheduled for September 15th. This is a once a month midweek evening event for classic car and bike enthusiasts – 5:30pm – 8pm. Basically a casual gathering of all makes of British or Foreign car, commercial or military vehicle, bus, motorbike, scooter and any other interesting vehicle, which also includes modern classics. The event will be held outdoors on the Arenas and will be free to attend, it is a chance for petrol heads to indulge their passion with like minded people – whilst having a burger and a drink, be it tea, coffee or a beer!

This event format is becoming very popular and normally takes place on village greens and sports club fields, however at Gaydon there will be separate free parking, close by, for modern vehicles too, for those who just want to admire the classics. Apart from our much bigger venue we will add an extra dimension in the form of the ‘Gaydon Garage’ feature. At 7pm the Collections Centre workshop door will be lifted to reveal one of our (BMIHT or JDHT’s) spectacular (or not so spectacular) vehicles. These vehicles would not normally be seen out of the museum and running, the vehicle will be driven out onto the apron and introduced over the PA system by a knowledgeable person! We hope that this will appeal to you all and give you a nice early week alternative to sitting in and watching the television set.“

Sounds like a good idea, so I will be there and hope a few more of you will make the trip.

Autumn & Taster Trial – Sunday 27^th September:

Classic Motor Show – 13^th to 15^th November:

I have just heard that this show is scheduled to go ahead at the NEC.

Coast to Coast – 30^th July to 1^st August 2021:

Other Matters:

Following on from Richard W’s comment in the last Newsletter I have received one reply, from Phil B

“Member asked if there were any older than 80 year old MG drivers in the club, well two wonderful events happened in 1936. I was born! making me 84 still driving my TF and my xJ8 Jaguar and the Tickford drophead VA in the picture was Manufactured this belongs to my Swiss friends Ruedi and Christina.“

He also sent the photo of said VA, any advance on 84?

I have received another request, this one from John W:-

“Does anyone possess ‘spit’ or ‘rotisserie’ for turning an MGB body over that they would sell, rent or loan? I am rebuilding ’73 B that needs a bare metal up repaint and it would be so much easier to get at the underneath if it could be turned!!“

If anyone has such a thing that John can use please let me know and I will pass the message on.

Items for Sale:

Please would you let all members know that I have an original 1970’s MG Midget boot rack – still with Paddy Hopkirk label. This was given to me as the owner is moving house and he has no further use for it. He was a keen MG enthusiast and has had 5 MG Midgets in the past.
This is offered free charge but collection only. Call me on 07484645924 if you are interested.
The item is in very good condition and just needs a polish to the metal and a sand and staining of the wooden slats. Mick Batchelor.

Mick has told me the luggage Rack is still available!! You know what to do!!

What Have You Done in your MG:

Thanks to David P, who has sent me another photo of his BGT with a ‘Vintage Aircraft’.

Another MG and aircraft pic…which one is the oldest ?…..the BGT is 1972 and the Pietenpol Aircamper is “Brand New “. A homebuilt version of a 1927 design . It is just going through it’s test flights to receive a permit to fly.

David P.

David has offered us a visit to his workshop with other vintage aircraft undergoing work, which I’m actively pursuing, it looks to be very interesting.

Graham R, has also been busy with his Midget, I will let him explain:

“What I did with my MG

To answer the question grammatically, what I did with the MG was spot that there was a crack in the windscreen, looking for all the world as though the National Trust window sticker over it was holding it all together.

Being of a dynamic and “get-up-and-go” temperament, after a few months I thought it was time to do something about it. And also the stone chip in front of me. And the glass was grubby.

So . . . . on my Insurance Document it stated CLEARLY that I am covered for windscreen repair, with a not unreasonable excess. Everybody at the insurance Company was fine and efficient, unfazed by my warning of the age of the car. What they knew – and I didn’t – was that this process IS NOT QUICK.

Brief technical details: this is not a bonded screen like an F, or a profile-rubber “squeeze it into place” arrangement . . . no, this is involves taking the screen off the car and then separating it into its component parts, with subsequent renewal of whatever needs renewing.

The Lad they sent thumbed through the Haynes manual and rang a few mates and did a grand job getting the windscreen frame off the car. THEN we discover that all the screws are THERE FOR LIFE and a little beyond the remit of the poor devil from National Windscreens. He almost had tears in his eyes as he explained he couldn’t do any more, and did I have any ideas?

So off he went, leaving me with a car in two pieces, and I pondered briefly before picking up the phone and ringing the bloke who always advertises in the MG magazine. He and I hit it off immediately as we (although he’s now in Malvern) are both Brummies, with past industrial connections within a few miles of each other.

So – a trip to Worcester to pick up the glass, then a trip to Malvern to EB Engineering’s great workshop . . . then a cup of coffee and a walk on the Malvern Hills with a mate. Less than three hours later a call from Eddie at EB, part with a modest amount of lucre . . . and come home.

EB is also a stunning exhibition-class model-builder, so he and I spent almost as long talking about that as it took him to mend the windscreen. Meanwhile my mate’s sat in the car outside.

As I write the original chap from National Windscreens is back, out in the sunshine, trying to fathom the fact that the windscreen rubber along the base bears NO APPARENT RESEMBLANCE to the squashed-completely-out-of-shape one that was there before.

It’ll be all right in the end . . . . . I am expecting a call from him any moment to help by leaning on the window assembly to squash the rubber down while he lines up the bolts . . .

Or, of course, he may contact me to start one of those sentences that starts with tears in his eyes . . . “

Well Graham, now you can see why it took me 2 years to fit my original screen back into the car after the stone chip picked up on the first weekend away to St Audries Bay!!

To finish with a ‘topical’ cartoon from Graham:

Stay safe, stay well

Paul

Newsletter August 2020

Hello All

Reports:

We finally managed to have a Club Night in August after 5 months, I hope everyone enjoyed the evening. To make this an ‘outside only’ event I used it as our ‘Show Night’ and given the circumstances it was a good turnout. As this was going to be outside in the Orchard I set the start time at 6.30pm and folks were arriving long before I got myself set up, using a new disposable glove to put the prizes in place and voting slips were emailed out the evening before. Thanks to everyone for complying with the ‘Test & Trace’ regulations and providing your contact phone numbers. There was lots of social distancing going on and Matt was happy everyone was well behaved in getting their drinks. Even the raffle was self service, with Graham providing one of his cartoons with the instructions, thanks Graham & Helen. Many thanks also to David who was on Car Park Marshall duties all evening.

All the votes were cast by 8.15pm, so onto the Prize Giving, with this year’s awards being Certificates, kindly printed and written by Graham, what would we do without him, as he also became the photographer for the evening (in the absence of Norman) his photos have been put together in a ‘Youtube’ video, available at this link:

The winners were:

Best Early MG:

2^nd Runner Up: Helen – MG TC Midget 1^st Runner Up: Mike – MG TD Midget Winner: Caroline – MGA

Best Modern MG:

2^nd Runner Up: Chris – Maestro Turbo 1^st Runner Up: Peter – Maestro Turbo Winner: Mike – MGTF

Best MGC/C or Midget

2^nd Runner Up: John – MGB GT LE 1^st Runner Up: Richard – MGB Roadster Winner: Alan – MGB Roadster

I also did a ‘Pot Luck’, so every MG Registration Number was put in the pot and a winner drawn out:

The Draw The Winner: Angela (MG TD Midget)

Wilmcote Picnic:

Before the Show Night we got together for a run and picnic. Many thanks to Alan & Liz who allowed us to use their large Orchard for a picnic. There was lots of space for the cars to be parked in ‘bubbles’ of 3 (6 people) with plenty of social distance within and between the bubbles. The sun was out for us when we arrived at The Valley in Evesham, with some of us partaking of the facilities and lots of socially distanced chatting. The run was 26 miles through some lanes we have not used before and well appreciated. I think everyone had a great time walking along the canal wharf and around the rest of the grounds. A fantastic day out.

Future Events:

Heritage Run Revisited – 23^rd August: I can now confirm that this event will be going ahead. We will start from the Golden Cross (meet at 10am to be ready to leave around 10.30) Matt has agreed to offer Bacon Rolls (£2.50 each) and Tea/Coffee (£1.00). As the name suggests we will be using a past Heritage Run, which is from 1998, so maybe new to some of you. The run is 50 miles, hence the earlier start and refreshments at the Cross.

Lunch will be available to purchase when we get to the Hop Pocket and can be ordered on the day, however due to the current conditions they are not offering roast dinners but Salads, Quiches, Ploughman’s and Sandwiches will be available.

We will be using the outside area, so if the weather is going to be inclement I will be forced to cancel the event, however I will make that decision several days in advance and will let you know by email.

As we are in the garden there is a limit on numbers of 40 people and will be the usual first come first served principle, so book with me as soon as you can.

‘Aunt Sally’ Evening – 25^th August: Trevor has set this up at The Butchers Arms in Balscote (Shutford Road, Balscote, OX15 6JQ), with the date now being Tuesday 25^th August, however as it will be an ‘outside’ event he is going to be flexible with the event depending on the weather conditions (well summer might come sometime!!). Arrive from 6.30pm and the food will be served around 7.30pm. The choice of ‘Basket Meals’ is:

Quarter Chicken and Chips

3 Pork Saugages (Glutten Free) and Chips

Scampi and Chips

The cost will be £10 per person which will also include a drink (beer, wine or soft drink) and we can pay on the night with either cash or a card. They do need to have a pre-order for the food and as we will need to make a decission about the weather the deadline for booking will be Tuesday 18^th at 6pm.

We will have a designated parking area and they are very covid 19 savvy. We can play Aunt Sally or boules (petanc). Aunt Sally will require teams of 4. There will be a person to explain the game and keep score, plus gather the sticks and reset the Dolly. The sticks will be sanitized after each player, or latex gloves can be supplied.

There will be plenty of benches for people to sit at in groups of up to 6 people.

Please book with Trevor (ardenmgclubevents3@gmail.com ) before 6pm Tuesday 18^th Aug.

Club Night – September, Questionnaire:

I have been wondering what we can do about getting back to our usual Tuesday Club night but part of that is what you are all happy to do. The restaurant at the Golden Cross is set out for 27 people, so that becomes the limit for our future Club night (until the current regulations change), however if there is still sufficient demand we could run two Club nights (I would suggest 1^st & 3^rd Tuesday of the month) but what are you all prepared and want to do, so please let me know the following:

Do you want to attend a Club Night at the Golden Cross?
If the demand is more than 27 should we split the meetings?

Please reply before Tuesday 18^th so that I have time to make arrangements with Matt at the Cross and those who reply will have priority when booking future Club Nights.

Please note it will be necessary to book a place for Club Nights for the forseeable future (no booking, no entry to the meeting).

BMC & Leyland Show, Gaydon – Sunday 6^th September: We have been invited to have a display at this show and entry will get you access to the Show but also to the Museum and The Collections Centre. I will need to apply for the passes (free when pre-booked with me), so I do need bookings as soon as possible to give me time to receive the passes and distribute them. Not sure where we will be situated on site, I have asked for the space outside The Collections Centre but we will have to wait and see. Make your own way to the Museum to be there ideally before 10am.

Other Events:

I’m still not adding items to the events Calendar until there is more clarity on the future of such events. If you are joining any events not listed above please ensure with the organisers that they will be taking place.

Other Matters:

An interesting comment from Richard W:

I have driven the MG a few times this summer, I wonder if I am the oldest club member still driving his MG having just celebrated my 80th birthday.

Well are there any advances on 80 years old and still driving your MG?

A request from John W:

Does anyone possess ‘spit’ or ‘rotisserie’ for turning an MGB body over that they would sell, rent or loan? I am rebuilding ’73 B that needs a bare metal up repaint and it would be so much easier to get at the underneath if it could be turned!!

Let me know and I will forward any messages.

I have been sent this request to complete a survey, which is from the Federation of British Historic Vehicles (the organisation that champions the Drive-it-Day’ that we take part in each year), so a worthwhile organisation. Please complete the survey to help our hobby along.

“Please complete the National Historic Vehicle Survey to keep transport heritage on our roads.

The Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs are having to make the case for historic vehicles retaining their current access and freedoms on our roads more and more strongly in coming years, as we navigate the most challenging period in our history. In order to defend the future of historic vehicles, they need your help by completing this crucial survey.

The Yorkshire Post recently quoted Grant Shapps, Secretary of State for Transport as saying “I’m sorry internal combustion engine fans, I think its days are overall likely to be numbered.”

A local authority, in Wallingford, Oxfordshire, recently debated a motion, which was fortunately defeated, to cancel its historic vehicle rally and parade.

The historic vehicle community, its events, freedoms to use the roads and even the fuel we use, are under increasing threats and pressures amidst a changing landscape of political and environmental influences.

If we are to defend the use of historic vehicles, then we need to act and act now. The Federation needs your help.

The FBHVC is in the process of carrying out its 2020 National Historic Vehicle Survey, an update to a similar survey undertaken in 2016. If we are to represent the case for historic vehicles in the best possible way we need to have up to date information about the movement and how important the movement is to the economy, particularly in current COVID-19 circumstances.

The answers you give in this survey, will help shape the future for historic vehicles within the United Kingdom for the next 5 years.

The FBHVC aims to lobby Government against adverse legislation and restrictions that may affect the future for historic vehicles. But, in order to achieve a positive result, the organisation needs to have reliable data on the significance and size of the historic vehicle movement to hand.

The survey takes approximately 15-20 minutes to complete depending on the answers you give. Please complete the survey in one sitting.

On submission of your questionnaire, you will be given the opportunity to enter a prize draw to win one of the following prizes: A year’s Club Insurance policy to the value of £250 including IPT, courtesy of Peter James Insurance, one of three pairs of tickets for the 2020 Lancaster Insurance Classic Motor Show with Discovery, Courtesy of Clarion Events, or one of 15 display copies of the FBHVC’s historic vehicle wall chart.

Complete the survey here: https://www.fbhvc.co.uk/2020-enthusiast-survey “

Items for Sale:

Caption Competition:

Now, what you have all been waiting for the responses to the caption competition. If you were at the Show Night you will already know that Graham was awarded the prize, it no doubt helped that he sent in 3 possible answers, however I had given Caroline the full list of anonymous suggestions and her top 2 were both from Graham!!

Mick’s ignoring John. He’s just jealous because John’s got more hair.

“Pay attention, Mick . . . I’m telling you something interesting. I shall be asking questions later”

The other suggestions were:

“He didn’t clean that bit.”

” There’s that Pheasant we hit!”

“Mick! Pay attention! There’s a smear of grease just there . . . .”

“Well yes, Mr Bond this is the Air brake and you are quite correct……we do have a visibility problem.”

Stay safe, stay well

Paul

Newsletter July 2020 – 2

Hello All

We are starting to get some events together and August could be back to our usual busy time, fingers crossed.

I have had a message from Nigel: Hi Paul, just heard from Newlands and they have promised a pay out of deposits this coming week.

Regards Nigel [Sent 25^th July].

Fingers crossed Roger will soon be able to transfer the monies back to us all.

Future Events:

Wilmcote Picnic Run – Sunday 2^nd August: Everything is set for this run out and the forecast is looking acceptable. The Run will start from ‘The Valley’ in Evesham (formally Evesham Country Park) and the plan is to meet at the Valley in time to leave at 11.15am (park on the far right hand side of the main car park to keep away from the main visitors). The Valley looks to be open, so facilities and cafe may be available if you want to get there before 11, to meet up first (coffee, bacon rolls in the Apple Barn Restaurant, open from 10am). The 26 mile run will take us through country lanes to Alan & Liz’s house on the side of the canal in Wilmcote where our cars will be parked in groups of 3 (6 people) and we can enjoy a picnic. Please bring food & drinks for your own consumption. As you can see in the photos there is plenty of space for the cars and a beautiful area along the canal side for our picnic. Trevor has arranged everyone into ‘bubbles’ of 6 people and it would be helpful for us to arrive in our bubble groups, so I will try and arrange for you all to leave in order from The Valley and then you can stay together on the run. See end of Newsletter for Bubbles List.

Trevor has been taking the bookings via email (ardenmgclubevents3@gmail.com ) and may still be able to fit you in, however bookings will closed on Friday Night.

Club Night – Tuesday 4^th August: I have got a reluctant agreement with Matt for us to hold our ‘Show Night’ in the Orchard Parking Area on this evening. There are conditions attached to this agreement in order for us to conform to the COVID19 rules. The evening will be outside only, that is we stay in the Orchard Area or in the Beer Garden (where an area will be reserved for our use) and only enter the pub to access the beer garden (where drinks are ordered and collected from the tables outside) & the toilets, keeping to the ‘One Way’ system set up inside the pub building. The one exception to this is if you pre-book a table to dine, however please note there is a 2 hour maximum limit on all inside tables. The good news is Matt has signed up to the Government’s ‘Dine Out to Help Out’ scheme, so extra discounts are available, however tables to dine are only available when pre-booked.

For the Show Night I will be using a reduced number of catagories, so that I don’t need my usual lovely assistants and I can collate the score myself and reduce the number of people which should be kept below the 30 people limit. As we will be outside all evening the evening will start at the earlier time of 6.30pm, so that we are all finished by 9/9.30, as I write this the forecast is looking to be dry. I hope it goes without saying that we all need to strictly adher to the Social Distancing Guidelines. Everyone must register with me on arrival to conform with Track and Trace.

‘Aunt Sally’ Evening: Trevor has set this up at The Butchers Arms in Balscote, with the suggested dates of 18^th or 19^th August, however as it will be an ‘outside’ event he is going to be flexible with the date to suit the weather conditions (well summer might come sometime!!). Please let Trevor know of your interest in attending ( ardenmgclubevents3@gmail.com ). There will be ‘Basket Meals’ available to pre-order and I will advise about these soon.

Heritage Run Revisited – 23^rd August: Some of you will have noticed that this event is on the ‘Club Calendar’ (although the date has been changed). I’m in discussion with the Hop Pocket to see if it will be possible for us to finish there. I’m hopeful that it will be possible to run the event in some form, I will keep you posted on developments.

Other Events:

Other Matters:

Club Website: I have made some progress with the website and have started to set up the new pages, however I have not worked out how to change the Home page!! When you look up the site ignore the home page and click on the titles in the horizontal bar, where the Newsletters and some other pages are. I will make more progress when time allows!!

I received this from the MG Car Club scribe:

In case you don’t already know, Asda are selling an MG-themed t-shirt – see photo attached. It’s available in-store or on-line, price £10. Get in quick as they are selling out pretty quickly.

I have received a request from a prospective new member, please let me know if you can help with any recommendations (he lives in Long Itchington) and I will forward to Michael:

I am currently rebuilding the engine of my recently acquired 1969 MGC GT, following a head gasket failure and am looking for any recommendations for engine shops to carry out some cleaning/machining on the block, crank and flywheel. I wondered if you or any of the club members have had good experiences with any local engineering companies?

‘For Sale’ Items:

I have had a couple of offers as follows:

Graham Robson suggested I email you as I asked him if he wanted a dedicated Epsom photo printer which is surplus to requirements in the Maxwell household and too good to just put in a skip! His suggestion was to contact you with a view to putting it perhaps in the monthly newsletter. Is anybody interested in a good photo printer? I will forward any enquiries to Peter.

Graham followed this up with his own ‘tale’:

After Lockdown . . . then a spate of meeting the MG folk, and now a brief lull before we meet again, I’m really missing everyone!

Under the heading of “What I’ve done with my MG” . . . . but perhaps better titled “What I shouldn’t have done with my MG”: This is a comedy story about the drip tray we have for our MG. I say “comedy” because it was El Burko here who, all enthusiastic about a newly acquired Classic car, and a new-build garage, decided to go for a DRIP TRAY.

So I measured the space under the car, and had one made at the place I work in in Aston Cantlow. Duly delivered and pressed into service.

Gosh, I was accurate. Slightly TOO accurate, really.

It’s really a bit too wide for a Midget. Hence I never drive in or out of the garage. I get out and gingerly push the car into the garage. Actually, there’s a certain pleasure in that; a bit like pushing your Cooper Climax to the start line before a club event in the 50s or 60s.

It also reduced the risk of clouting the door on the breeze block wall, although that now has carpet nailed to it as a damage preventative.

But the whole exercise is a bit like docking a spacecraft in a Sci-Fi movie.

So, having found a really useful plastic tray that does the same job but without requiring feeler gauges for parking to prevent filing off the inside wall of the tyres I have now decided to LET IT GO.

A drip tray, 3ft x 9ft, is available free of charge to any Club member. All they have to do is collect it. It isn’t pristine . . . bit of rust on the front face of the upturns. No MOT advisories.

Again, I will forward enquiries this time to Graham.

The Best Car I’ve Owned:

Was a 1960 Austin Healey 3000 in Red with hard and soft tops. Our neighbour at the time was Geoff Price, Service Manager at Healey’s of Warwick. My cousin was at the time pit crew for Healey’s at the Mille Miglia, Le Mans, Tulip Rally, RAC Rally and various race tracks around Europe. My brother also worked for Donald Healey, as well as Tom Buckingham who I later worked with in [Horse] Racing with his brother John who won the Grand National on Foinavon. When I once sent the car in for service Geoff Price would take it in and bring it back – washed and polished as they did in those days. He came to see me one night and said we are robbing the Timo Makinen Tulip Rally car, is there any parts you would like from it to compete in clubman’s events? I ended up with the long range fuel tank (even in those days it was expensive to fill up), the “Red Racing crankshaft”, The Top End Gear and various other goodies but did not have a speedometer to match, hence I broke the existing one coming out of Newton Abbot on the downhill run trying to compete with my friend in his Daimler Dart! I was single at the time and went everywhere in her, but what a girl puller that car was. My friends could not believe I sold her and bought a new Iris Blue MGB, they thought I was crazy! Would I like her back of course I would! Many happy memories from this car. If only!!!

I forgot to mention my other cousin was in comp’s at ‘The Triumph’ when my father was plant Director at Canley. The rivalry was always on the agenda with Le Mans Spitfires, GT6 and TR’s against the Sprites and Big Healeys. Also included were the MGBs but could not compete with them!

Nigel Hook

Thanks Nigel, life was great in the 60’s!!

Caption Competition:

I have not received a vast amount of entries for the caption competition, you have until Friday to send me your suggestions. There will be a prize!!

To close, no cartoon from Graham but he has sent me this little item to help Gaynor in showing Steve how to use the new ‘On Your Drive’ Tea Towel.

About 6 o’clock this morning I was thinking of this one:

“Recent conversations revealed that not all members are immediately familiar with the concept of a tea towel – so here are Instructions.”

Arden MG Tea Towel

Instructions for use

Exit garage, involving turning off the light and locking the door.

Ensure light is turned off at correct point in this leaving sequence, otherwise you will walk into a wall.

Enter house – wash hands. (You call that CLEAN??)

Wash hands again.

Find kitchen, asking directions of necessary.

Washing up is divided into three areas:

“Waiting to be washed”, “Being washed” and “Draining”.

Pick up tea towel and start drying items from the “Draining” area. (You call that DRIED??)

Do NOT put dried items into the “Waiting to be washed” area or we shall be here all day.

If the tea towel becomes too wet, DO NOT PANIC . . . . there are other ones.

You may never have seen them before.

They are in the kitchen.

You are in the kitchen – so they shouldn’t be hard to find.

When there are no more items to be dried hang the tea towel up to dry off.

Do not put it in the fridge, or the dining room, or your pocket.

You have now completed the maneouvre.

This is HELPFUL

It will make you POPULAR.

Stay safe, stay well

Paul

The list of runners and riders for the Wilmcote Picnic Run:

Bubble A

Roger and Caroline P

Dave and Tracy N

Peter and Julia G

Bubble B

Richard and Fiona A

Mick and Marge W

Graham and Fiona R

Bubble C

David and Jane H

Phil W

Mark B

Bubble D

Alan and Julia C

Steve and G

Mike and Jane G

Bubble E

John and Sonia H

Lex and Dawn B

David and Diane R

Bubble F

Tony and Glynis B

Nigel and Stephanie H

Peter and Lisa M

Bubble G

Paul and Caroline D

Lech and Pam Z

Fred and Jane G

Newsletter July 2020

Hello All

I hope you are all enjoying these cartoons from Graham, he is being very prolific, so several in this Newsletter. Enjoy.

This one is titled “Toilet Rolls Revisited”

Reports:

Social Distance Run Mark 2: I tried to be clever and add an additional stop into the original route, whilst changing another stop to even up the drive distances but what I failed to take into account is that when we rotated round we effectively move 2 places with the people we see from the opposite direction, however this does not work with an even number of stop points, so you only see half of the group!! The ‘Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men’ to quote the Scottish Bard. I will remember that if we ever need to do this again. Anyway, it didn’t rain and the sun shone for a while, so a good day was had.

British Motor Museum Re-Opening Run: 19 cars arrived at the Golden Cross to join in the run over to the Museum and yet again we had some sunshine, although it was blowing a gale at Gaydon. We were therefore able to keep our tradition of visiting with the Arden MG Club on the second day of opening, this is now the third time. Most of us took a picnic and sat around our cars (socially distanced of course) on the plateau overlooking the Museum Building. Some of us walked down to the Museum for a look round, it was great to be able to visit again after so long (well I enjoyed it despite the number of times I have walk through the collection). John was able to show off his new acquisition, the Iris Blue MGB Roadster, he had only had it a few weeks and looks really good (it must be popular at a future Show Night).

July Club Night: This was a Zoom meeting again, as Matt was not yet ready to host our large group. The numbers get less each month but there were still a dozen of us. Fiona was kind enough to host the meeting with her account, so we were not limited by time and she found a new feature to allow a ‘sub-meeting’ putting us all into small groups for a chat, which worked well. Thanks Fiona.

Future Events:

Wilmcote Picnic Run – Sunday 2^nd August: Alan has offered to host a picnic in his Canal Side garden, which has plenty of space to park all the cars we might bring, so he and Trevor are coordinating to arrange our visit. I have been out to set a run to finish at Alan’s house in Wilmcote, with the start at ‘The Valley’ in Evesham (formally Evesham Country Park). The plan is to meet at the Valley in time to leave at 11.15am (park on the far right hand side of the main car park to keep away from the main visitors). The Valley looks to be open, so facilities and cafe may be available if you want to get there before 11, to meet up first. The run is 26 miles through country lanes and will take about an hour. After parking at Wilmcote, which will be in social groups of 6 (3 cars), we can enjoy a picnic. Please bring food for your own consumption, Alan may be able to offer some treats but more information nearer the time. At some stage we can move around to socialise with others whilst maintaining the clusters of 6.

If you would like to join in the fun please book with Trevor via email (ardenmgclubevents3@gmail.com ).

Club Night – Tuesday 4^th August: I will talk to Matt in the near future to get his views on us having a meeting and will let you all know.

‘Aunt Sally’ Evening: Trevor is working on this to see if it will be possible to hold. Suggested dates are 18^th or 19^th August and will be in a pub near Shutford. I will confirm the details when we are sure the event can take place.

Other Events:

Other Matters:

Norman’s Photos:

If you would like to see any of the photos Norman takes on our events the current list for the events from this year is as follows:

http://normanlarge.com/ArdenMGCSocRun2/

http://normanlarge.com/ArdenMGCBMMRun20/

What Have You Done With Your MG This Month:

David has sent me this photo of his BGT along side a friend’s Piper Cub, he was trying to emulate the Publicity Department at MG, with the photos used to sell them in the 60’s & 70’s. Looks like good fun to me.

This is my ‘B’ after returning from the recce of the Wilmcote Picnic Run Route, really enjoyed the drive on this sunny Sunday afternoon.

I received another photo recently from someone we know, who has joined the ranks of MG ownership, does anyone recognise her?

The Best Car I’ve Owned:

Has nobody owned a car they have enjoyed? No one has sent me their story!!! So here are a few more Coronavirus cartoons from Graham, the first 3 are Socially Distanced BBQs:

This is how we have all been on the Social Distance Runs:

Caption Competition:

The best caption received before 31^st July gets the prize.

Stay safe, stay well

Paul

Newsletter June 2020 – 2

Hello All

Graham is really enjoying Lockdown, it has given him chance to draw lots of cartoons, so we have another one for us all to smile at.

Reports:

Social Distance run: As I said in my email to everyone, if the response to this run is anything to go by it was enjoyed by everyone who took part (and some that didn’t, with David & Diane in isolation pending an op, they saw us all passing by their house!!). It was no doubt helped that the weather was kind to us but I think it was the chance to get the MGs out and say hello in person to our MG friends. What was really amazing was how you all followed the instructions and kept to the timetable, so the chaos I was fearing didn’t materialise. A great day out, so we will do it again, see below.

Future Events:

Social Distance Run – Sunday 28^th June – FULLY BOOKED:

This worked so well first time and lots of you wanted to do it again, so by popular demand I will run it again on Sunday (it needs to be this soon as the lockdown is slowly getting lifted and other events will start to happen). I have made some changes to the route to even up the driving distances and have added an additional stop. I am half way through redoing the route instructions and should be able to email them before the weekend, to those who have booked.

British Motor Museum Re-Opening Run – Sunday 5^th July:

After the Governments announcement yesterday it looks like the Museum will be reopening on the 4^th July, so I will organise the run to be on the Sunday 5^th. Entry tickets to the Museum can only be purchased online and with a specific entry time, so if you want to join me you will need to go to the BMM website ( https://www.britishmotormuseum.co.uk/ ) and click on the Blue rectangle labelled ‘Museum Tickets’ and follow the instructions to make your purchase. I’m told there will also be a button to book a timed slot for your entry, I have booked for the latest time which is 12.00 midday. If you are not able to book a timed slot you will need to follow the link to email them to set the entry time. If anyone wants to join the day but is not comfortable booking online please let me know and I will try and help.

When you have purchased your tickets please let me know and I will have the correct number of route sheets available at the start. The start will be from the Golden Cross and I’m trying to see if they will be open for coffee etc.

Club Night – Tuesday 7^th July: Pubs will now be allowed to open from the 4^th July but as yet I don’t know if the Cross will be open by then, however if it is and if the weather forecast continues to be favourable I would propose that we attend for the Club Night but stay in the Orchard Car Park. I will let you know what is going to happen nearer the time.

March Madness Picnic: Trevor is in negotiation with Walton Hall and it may be possible to hold the run proposed for March and finish at the Hall but have a Picnic down by the Lake. Timing is to be decided but maybe before the end of July, again I will let you know.

Other Events:

Other Matters:

Club Website: There has been some progress with the website, which has now been migrated to a new host system and is available to view again. I have not yet had time to look at what is required to make changes, another job for the next few days.

I think most of you will know ‘Dusty’, he has sent me a request as follows:

“As well as being an MG enthusiast, I am the Chairman of the Trustees of a charity that runs the narrowboat Centenary that offers affordable time afloat for young people. You may have heard of us or even experienced time on board. The lock-down and stop on all Scouting and Guiding activities has enabled us to carry out much needed work on the boat. Among the work is an application to Calor for a grant for funding for a new heating system. The success of the grant depends on how many LIKES we get on line.

Please go to Calor Rural Community Fund. Register (using a password that you won’t use again – they will only send you an acknowledgement)

Click project.

Click Category scroll and choose Environment

go to Search and type in The Stratford upon Avon Narrow Boat Trust.

Click on the pic of Centenary then you can LIKE or even if you wish, DONATE.

We get one vote for a LIKE, 2 votes if you SHARE and 10 votes for a DONATE. We need all the likes we can get to be successful. Please share this with all your contacts. If you have two or more computers you can split your donation between them, this will give us 10 Likes for each.

Thank you for your likes,

Dusty Miller“

This is obviously a very good cause and would urge you all to at least give ‘Dusty’ a LIKE on the Calor site and help this cause forward.

What Have You Done With Your MG This Month:

Andy has been busy with his Midget and sent me this piece:

Just a wee update on the MG front! After several years thinking about it, I finally replaced the door and boot locks, on the Midget (old ones kept spinning around, on those horrible spring clips) I got the ones with sturdy backnuts, to keep them in place, from MGOC, several years ago! Just means having to do the boot one as well, to keep keys alike! In hindsight it was a job to be done by an escape artist, not a clumsy old git with a dodgy knee!! But got there in the end and can actually lock my car again! (For what that’s worth as a security measure on a roadster!) Pic of old lock attached !

Afterwards went for a socially distanced car run, with pals in our old cars, on some lovely lanes thanks to John D Oyly`s skilful route planning! Ended up at the Monkey Bean atop Sunrising Hill, for socially distanced takeaway coffee. Just great to get the car out of its den!

All the best Andy

Thanks Andy, at least you will think it is secure now!! I like the car on your run out, I should ask if you can do a swop!!

The Best Car I’ve Owned:

In the last Newsletter I said I had no more ‘My MG’ stories to us, so lets see if this will encourage some of you to ‘put pen to paper’. Let us know what the best car you have ever owned is, company cars accepted. If you want to expand to the best 3, then even better. I will start us off with my favourite car:

Porsche 911 Carrera Type 997, Model Year 2005:

This goes back to the late 2000s, I had owned a 1983 911 SC for several years and rebuilt the engine (great fun but another story). The kids had left home, money was not as tight as it was and I mused ‘What would it be like to own a modern 911’? It would need to live in the garage, so the SC would need to be sold and after several months, when someone had suggested advertising on Pistonheads website, it was gone. The space was available but what would be the best car to fill it, I drove all sorts (BMW Z4, SLK, AUDI TT, Boxster) but nothing matched up to the 911. I eventually found one in Leeds at the right price and I was the proud owner of a Silver 911, 3 years old. I loved that car, went on a road trip to Germany (150mph down the Autobahn) but too much snow to go into the Alps (still unfinished business), we went on another road trip through France & Germany. I even took it onto a few tracks (only Sprint circuits, Curborough & Prescott) and loved driving it. Then I retired and foolishly thought it would be better to have a classic car that I could do the work on, bad mistake and I sold the car and bought a 911 3.2 Carrera from 1987, a good car but I never gelled with it. I still miss that 997, the only car I regretted selling and still do.

What is your favourite car, drop me a few lines and ideally with a photo.

Stay safe, stay well

Paul

Newsletter June 2020

Hello All

Reports:

The Zoom Club Night Meeting went a little better this time, as my computer is working OK at the moment (touch wood) and 14 of us enjoyed a chat, however I was in full flow about a couple of events I’m planning when we timed out!! Fiona has offered to set up the next meeting with her account, which will allow us to continue beyond the 45 minute mark, assuming we still need to meet virtually. The latest thinking is that pubs may be allowed to open in July but I’m not sure 40 of us in the Golden Cross restaurant will be adequately socially distanced, so lets see what happens before we decide.

Future Events:

Weekend Away 2020 – Dorset – Friday 12^th June to Monday 15^th June: Newlands is still closed and have now cancelled our visit. Nigel has successfully negotiated a refund of our deposit monies and when this has been received in the Club account I’m sure Nigel will contact us all with arrangements for the refunds. The easiest way would be to provide Roger with your bank account details and he can make a transfer but I will leave this to Nigel to decide.

Social Distance Run – Saturday 13^th or Sunday 14^th June:

As we are not going to Newlands and it is time we had an ‘allowable’ Club Run, I’m devising a circular route with stopping places for two groups. The route will be run clockwise by one group and

anti-clockwise by the other group. The idea is to all start from a different point, at a set time you all move on in the appropriate direction to the next stopping point where you can spend some time chatting to the occupants of the MG going the opposite way. Again at the allotted time you move on to the next stop point and so on back to the original start point. OK you will only get to talk to the people going in the opposite group but that is better than doing nothing. I will provide route sheets, your allotted start point and time (probably 2.30pm) by email. I’m leaving the day until nearer the time to asses the best weather day, the forecast keeps changing at the moment.

There will only be a limited number of stopping points and the run will be approx 40 miles (circular tour with Stratford at the centre, however not visiting the Town). I will need to set a maximum number of entrants probably 20 cars but in order to have the correct number of stops (which must correspond to the number of entrants) I need to have bookings. Please let me know by email if you would like to book (stating if you are OK for Sat and/or Sun) and I will finalise the route. If I get to the maximum number it will be on the usual first received basis.

British Motor Museum Re-Opening Run:

To keep the tradition of visiting the Museum on their opening’s (The first Heritage Run, Re-opening after the last refurbishment), I’m planning to hold a scenic run to the Museum. To keep things simple I will use a previous run, probably the first Heritage Run modified to start from the Golden Cross.

At present the Museum is planning to reopen on Saturday 4^th July, however this is subject to Government Guidance and may change but let’s work on that date at the moment, so we could go on either Saturday 4^th or Sunday 5^th, which would you prefer? If you would like to join that run let me know. I’m not sure of the time yet but will decide soon. The Museum have put in place new procedures to mitigate the Coronavirus spreading and we will need to maintain social distancing at our start point and on arrival at the Museum.

Club Night – Tuesday 7^th July: As stated earlier the pubs may start to reopen in July, I think we will still be having the Club Night in a virtual way but I will monitor what is happening and look at the options nearer the time. If we need to Zoom, I will advise the weekend before and send the invitation on the Tuesday afternoon.

Other Events:

No changes to the calendar, however some organisers are rescheduling events for later in the year, however until we know these will be able to proceed I will not be updating our calendar.

Sunday 7^thJune: ‘Classics for Carers’. Apparently this was held on the first Sunday of May and is planned again for the first Sunday in June. See the website for details: https://www.classicsforcarers.com/

The info is as follows:

Joining Instructions

Put that tinkering & polishing to a good cause!

● On the day of the event, you are invited to share your classic car or bike either online (via social media using #classicsforcarers) or on your driveway, to give those on their daily exercise, a different view on the day!

(Following social distancing requirements of course)

This is a non-driving event and please observe social distancing requirements.

● Please visit our JustGiving page to make a donation (perhaps equivalent to a ticket price, or whatever you can) to support NHS carers.

● You can buy an event rally plate or stickers for your vehicle (where all profits go to the NHS charity), or save and print a copy of the Classics for Carers poster for display.

Send me a photo if you take part.

Other Matters:

‘On Your Drive’ photo tea towels, I have orders for over 10 tea towels, so it is viable, if you would like to add your name to the order please let me know by Monday 1pm. Details:

Product: White linen/cotton Tea Towel 48x78cm hemmed 4 sides Hanging loop (TT-4878-LCWH)
Design Info: One design on one side

Side One Print Method: Embellished
Estimated Despatch Time: 10 Working days from digital proof approval to date of despatch
Price Each: £9.00

Club Website: I have been advised by the website hosting company that they will no longer be supporting the website system we use and will be switched off at the end of this month!! They have offered to host us in a different way and I have signed up for a transfer to using WordPress. They will be migrating the original site to the new hosting in the next few weeks, so this may make the website unobtainable for a short time and may take me some time to learn how to operate the website using WordPress (well they say you need to learn new skills to maintain your mental agility!!!) but hopefully the new system will be better to use in the long run. I will keep you posted.

What Have You Done With Your MG This Month:

Phil B has sent me details of his trials & tribulations with his TF:

Paul, not much to report, so struggling to find you something. I enclose two pictures for What have I been doing with my MG well the black thumbnail means I was cursing it since I shut the door with my thumb still inside.

The other showing a grill, was lashing out just a few pounds for that item to go under the two vents on the top of the boot, the previous owner had put similar grills around the car and it certainly looks good.

Best wishes and thanks for keeping it going.

One joke you could perhaps add: “a person who had been on lockdown for several weeks stood on their scales and instead of the scales giving the weight it said only one person at a time please”.

Thanks Phil, hope the thumb nail is getting better.

We finally went out in the MG last Monday, as a mode of transport to take us for our daily allowed walk, so we took a picnic. As you can see we found another MG in the car park (is it anyone we know?). Any guesses where we went for our walk?

My MG

Trevor has found time during the Lockdown to write the next instalment about his Duratec MGB conversion:

Restoration of and installation of a ford 2l Duratec into our MG – Part 5

The Light at the end of the Tunnel and Tales of the Unexpected

Or one could say the beginning of the end of my love hate relationship with LKV 4##P.

I became the Registered Keeper of LKV 4##P on the 29^th September 2015. Hard to believe that four and a half years have passed since our excitement of becoming owners of a classic car. When I say excitement, that was short lived and replaced by despair, disbelief, mental breakdown and bankruptcy. If I knew then what I know now, I would have set fire to it and claimed on the insurance.

The morning of January 19^th2020 PL (pre lockdown) dawned and this was the day I could collect our prodigal MG from the “make it all shiny and new man”. My excitement was quelled when I saw it and noted that all the outside surfaces were perfectly finished in blue, not a blemish. I was frightened to even go near it, let alone put it onto the trailer. I suddenly realised that I would have to have tools and scratchy things next to this beautiful unmarked body to finish it. After my panic attack, and with the help of my Son we loaded it onto the trailer. If I asked once, have we got enough straps on it, I must have asked a hundred times.

So, before I knew it this perfect MG was on my drive and into the garage, great relief came upon me. This did not last long as I now had a multitude of fettling trimming and final assembly jobs to do.

Every time I went into the garage to start work, I found that there was a force field around the car that kept pushing me away (fear of marking the unblemished paintwork). A week passed, during which time I had learnt to have only my hands in contact with the car and the rest of my body at least six feet away. I think I may have invented a few new Yoga positions.

First job was to set the gaps around the doors to the new front and rear wings that had been fitted. This was a nerve-jangling operation that was more complex and took far longer than ever expected. You do have some adjustment on the front wings and doors, but always you must consider how the doors fit to the windscreen and cill. I found you cannot concentrate on just one gap. The quarterlight that bolts into the door, has oodles of adjustment, but I found that it is very easy to have a knock on effect, where gaps look OK but the glass looks wrong and the moulding detail for the chrome strip does not line up. It can take hours just to make a 1mm difference. Every time you make an adjustment you must check fit to the windscreen, glass position, gap around front grill and gap around door. I took 4 days to get to a position where it was not going to get any better. I have since found out that professionals build up the door edges with weld, or remove metal before final spraying, when new items have been fitted.

Talking of windscreens, Paul has mentioned in a previous Newsletter how tricky it is to fit the main seal to the windscreen and then the windscreen to the car. Do not underestimate this task, without some tuition from Paul and a special hockey stick tool supplied by Paul, my car would have had aero screens. I must also say a thank you to Angie because it is a two-person job, and she worked wonders with her wooden spatula.

Next job was to fit the dashboard, like most jobs on an MGB, not straightforward, and there are many sharp edges behind there, I think I found everyone. Luckily, all the labels I had fitted to the cables were still there. Before fitting the dashboard, you should fit the demister vents and tubes together with the fresh air vents and more tubes. What a job that was, in fact the heater and everything connected to it is hard work. And whatever you do, do not forget to fit the bonnet hinges, because two of the bolts are behind the dashboard.

When I offered up the switches, gauges and other controls you realize how tatty they look against the new dashboard. During the rebuild it has been a continuing theme, everything looks naff against a pristine background. All you can do is spend more money on new parts.

One problem I knew I would have to address is how to make the standard MGB speedometer work. The Mazda gearbox has no take off for a speedometer cable (modern cars have the speedo working off one of the ABS sensors or elsewhere). After much head scratching and calculations I choose the prop shaft as the only reliable source for making the speedometer work. Knowing the diff ratio and the diameter of wheel it was easy to work out how far you go up the road for one revolution of the road wheel. If you ever get asked in a pub quiz how many revolutions of the speedometer cable makes the speedometer read 75MPH, the answer is 1500.

To mate the Mazda prop shaft to the MGB back axle, I manufactured a solid billet of aluminium as an adaptor, great I could use this to drive a wheel incorporating a square hole to drive the cable. Only problem I had to join two standard MGB speedometer cables together, simple yes? No, have you ever tried drilling a square hole? And the thread on the cable, where it goes into the gearbox is a bike thread, British Cycle Thread 3/4 by 26 tpi, never heard of it in all my years of engineering. I manufactured the required parts to link a vee belt (bit special) driven wheel to give the correct ratio between prop shaft and driven wheel to the speedometer up front. I can fine tune by changing the diameter of the driven wheel.

I could not wait to see if it would work, so attached a bit of kit to the rear hub nut, to turn the rear wheel at a known RPM. The only thing I had with a known RPM was my battery-operated drill. On low speed, 450 RPM, I hoped it would turn the rear wheel so that I could see the speedometer work. I connected it up and pulled the trigger, there was a strong electrical smell, followed by the drive gears giving up the ghost soon after. Low and behold, it had lasted long enough for me to see that the speedometer had reached the correct speed. Anyone want to buy a single speed drill, one careful owner?

If you look at the car when I got it back from the paint shop, you may notice the rear sits rather high. I first fitted standard multi leaf rear springs, and then decided upon parabolic springs. I have had real problems with these springs, and MGOC from where they were purchased have not been able to help. I know the car is lighter than standard, but to have a ride height 3 inches over standard, makes it look like an off roader. In the photograph you will see that I am trying to “retrain” the parabolic spring. I used a scissor jack to try and take some of the curve out of the spring. I moved the spring eyelet 15 inches from where it wanted to be and held it there for a week. None of this worked, I also put in a half inch spacer, moved the spring spacers from the bottom to the top and it still sits too high.

I am going to re-engineer the parabolic springs and make them behave themselves.

We have entered lock down, and enjoying the best weather this century, so Angie thought this would be a good time to complete many outside projects that we have been putting off for years. This has resulted in less progress on the B and means I will have to continue my waffle in another Newsletter.

One thing did strike me, putting a Ford engine into an MGB is probably the worst thing you can do to an MG. If I did this in the 70s, I would probably been stoned to death by the MGOC. However, what it does mean is that because you cannot be stoned to death twice, you can do whatever you want to make the car how you want it. When we get the chance to socialise once again, this car will be a real “Quiz on Wheels” trying to identify where it strays from the norm.

Stay Safe

Trevor & Angie

Thanks Trevor, I hope the ‘outside projects’ are now all completed and you can get back to working on the MG again.

As I said in the last Newsletter I have no more articles for the next Newsletter, so if you go anywhere in your MG take a photo and tell us about it or if have anything else to say drop me an email.

With the continuing saga of Graham’s starter motor which is fixed with a nice shiny new one, not from China this time (it took Welford Garage about 5 minutes to diagnose the problem and replace it), he has celebrated the event with another cartoon “Just when Bumble’s ready to Rumble . . .”

Thanks Graham, enjoy the drive!!

Stay safe, stay well

Paul