1969 MG C GT

ManufacturerMG
ModelC GT coupé
Year1969
ColorBritish Racing Green
InteriorBlack leather
Engine3.0 liter inline six
Fuel system3 Weber twin-choke DCOE 45
Transmission4 speed mechanical + overdrive
Power175bhp
Weight950 kg
OptionsWesbato sunroof, stainless 6' wire wheels
Price32 000€
Other info The MG C was born with a lot going against it. The Triumph executives who had just become British Leyland employees relentlessly attacked the project and it wasn't surprising as the MG B was outperfoming the TR4 in build quality and sales volume. Triumph was determined to make up for it with the TR5 and its six-cylinder engine.

Had there not been so much ill-will against it, the MG C's development would have followed its course normally and the car wouldn't have been rushed to market as it was. It would have been the car that mine is today. Instead it was criticized for its flawed cornering, plagued by understeer, excessive weight, lack of power - 136hp vs 152hp for the TR5. Two years later the MG C was to meet its fate with just 4000 coupés and as many convertibles coming out of Abingdon. A Triumph victory by KO.

Enthusiasts then realised that, with a little preparation, the torsion bars on its front suspension worked miracles, that its 7-bearing engine - an improvement on the famous 3-litre Austin Healey - was indestructible and that it had a phenomenal potential for preparation. Proof is in the pudding, it raced all the way to Sebring - have you ever seen a TR5 or TR6 race? And over the years, the ill-born MG C had its own little circle of aficionados who gave it the attention it had not received at birth. People started to mention it as a little Aston, deservedly so! And that's from the owner of several Astons.

The MG C is a small car with a huge engine akin to a big heart, truck-like torque and power on tap. The noise will raise goosebumps on your skin, the gearbox needs to be grabbed by the scruff of the neck, but thanks to the overdrive it is long-legged like a modern car. Careful, the 200km/h mark is achieved at 4400rpm...

The large Webasto sunroof instantly turns it into something of a convertible, with no air turbulence even at high speeds.
I had an MG C cabriolet in 1980 and I kept fond memories of it. I bought this one by chance from a Morgan-enthusiast and notary by profession, whom I thought was a friend. The indelicate person had dismantled the engine with parts scattered all around the cabin, but he had "forgotten" to tell me that it no longer had its crankshaft... I had to ask an English specialist to source one in Australia and reassemble the engine. A year and a half and 15,000£ later, the result speaks for itself...