1974.5 MGBGT MGB GT Atlanta Car Runs Great Ready to drive and Enjoy Charming

1974.5 MGB GT-

This MGB GT, VIN GHD5UE340628G, built in January of 1974, is a particularly nice example with an interesting history. Following is an accounting of what we know of the car’s history, backed up by paperwork that will be included in the sale.

The last owner of this car purchased it on July 1st, 1980 when the car was just six years old. This car has always resided in the metro-Atlanta area. He owned the car up until his passing on December 9th, 2001. At the time of his passing he was a pilot and was apparently doing some freelance work for the US government in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. The details of his passing are interesting but I won’t go into that now. He had left his MGB GT in an enclosed garage, having been parked there, weeks earlier, with a bad head gasket. The owner’s daughter inherited the car, along with the home where it was located. The car sat in this location, untouched, for 18 years, when the daughter finally decided to sell the house. We at Speedwell caught wind of this car and its story and decided to purchase her and bring her back to life.

Please notice there are two videos posted to this auction. One is a driving video and the other is a slideshow with additional pictures. Simply scroll down to find them and then click-

The body of the car is amazingly solid with only the most minor traces of any rust. The paint cleaned up well and makes the car a very presentable “driver”. The seats were still nice but the carpets and interior door panels needed replacing, which we did.While we had the seats out for the new carpet we took note that all the captured nuts that hold the seats in were in perfect condition, atestamentto her lack of rust.Since the car had been sitting for so long with water in the #3 cylinder (from the bad head gasket), the combustion chamber had developed a nasty ring of pitted rust that rendered the engine unusable. We had a recently rebuilt engine available from an earlier car that had been wrecked just a few months prior. This made an excellent choice as the replacement engine is the high compression type rather than the more sluggish low compression type that the car came with. During this car’s resurrection we replaced everything thing on her necessary to make her ready to drive and enjoy once again.

Here is a partial list of operations performed and parts replaced:

Recently rebuilt high compression engine (18GF-WE-H-9119)(Oil used is 20W50 Valvoline VR1).

Clean fuel tank out, clean carburetors, replaced all rubber fuel lines and install new SU fuel pump.

New battery.

New water pump.

New clutch assembly, also replaced clutch master and slave cylinders along with clutch hose.

Replace gearbox seals and refill with new oil. Drain differential and refill with new gear oil. Change right rear axle bearing and seal.

Replace flexible brake hoses, replace rear wheel cylinders and brake shoes, repack front bearings and replace front brake pads and brake rotors. Flush and bleed brake hydraulic system with Castrol LMA.

Replace radiator and heater hoses.

Replace fan belt.

Replace headlamp switch, wiper switch, ignition switch, reverse lamp assemblies and hazard switch.

Cleaned, bead-blasted and painted original straight wheels and mount four brand new “H” rated steel radial tires.

Replaced carpeting complete, center console armrest, rubber door opening seals and interior door panels.

New wiper blades.

Refinished vintage Moto-Lita wooden steering wheel and coated in semi-gloss polyurethane.

Replaced original “Sabrina” style bumper over-riders with the more tasteful earlier over-riders (The original Sabrinas come with the car though).

This car starts right up, drives very smoothly, makes no unusual noises from any part of the drive train, has no shakes or wobbles and brakes properly (See video). It has excellent power and is quite responsive. The 4-speed gearbox shifts easily and precisely. The exhaust sounds just right as the car retains the Ansa exhaust system the previous owner had installed many years ago. The doors open and close easily. The windows roll up and down easily, all the lights, gauges and accessories work as they should and the interior light even works.

Oil pressure is 60 cold/ 50 warmed up at idle and 60 when driving down the road.

The glass is all good but the windshield has a small chip (can be seen in pictures). There is a small dent on the left front fender near the side marker lamp. The paint on the left side of the car and the right door is a little whiter than the rest of the car. The previous owner’s daughter said the car had received door dings and chips so her father had it partially repainted. There are no signs of any crashes or major mishaps. While this car is a VERY presentable driver, it would need to be repainted to be show quality. The only rust bubbles are very small and located in the rocker panel just behind the right front wheel and in the rocker panel just in front of the left rear wheel. This is the most solid unrestored MGB we have seen in years.

Here is a video of the car being driven:

Here is a slide show showing more pictures than Ebay would allow:

This car can be driven anywhere, no trailer required. Obviously, given the car has not been driven regularly for nearly 20 years, some things may pop up but we can’t imagine what. We have taken great care to do all repairs as thoroughly as possible with the goal being road readiness. The car does come with a clear Georgia title and some records. The mileage on the odometer (50,404) cannot be verified. Thanks for looking at our auction! Please let us know if you have any questions.