AS SOMEBODY WHO enjoys driving classics at every opportunity, there is something rather appealing in the idea of wrapping modern mechanical components in a classic package. Of course, it is very easy to go too far and remove all trace of the classic you fell in love with it in the first place, but I think it is fair to say that Frontline have walked a very thin line with great care when making the LE50, their tribute to the MGB in this, its 50th year. Certainly Adam Sloman, who got to test the first of these £50,000 super Bs for us (from p22), was grinning from ear to ear when we finally prised him out of the cabin.

There’s another group of drivers in this issue who had nothing but smiles on their faces when we met up, even though a few were tinged with nerves. I’m talking, of course, about the trackday novices we met at Donington Park for a session with MGs on Track. Full credit should be given to MGoT for doing everything they could to make these drivers’ first taste of track action as memorable and yet as painless as possible. We talked with a many of those novices both before and after going out on track, and you can read what they had to say starting on p28. But if you have never been on a track before, should you also consider giving it a try? If the reactions of these drivers is anything to go by, the answer is a definite ‘Yes!’

Talking of beginners, I asked last month for teenage drivers to write in with their experiences of getting behind the wheel of an MG. Thank you to those who have already responded (see p74 for the first of them,) but if you fit that particular bill and have not yet got in touch, please do drop us a line. And if your teenage years are just a distant memory but featured MGs in some way, we’d love to hear from you as well. It would be fascinating to compare your experiences then with those of youngsters today.

Simon Goldsworthy
Editor

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WHEN I WAS NINETEEN years old, I saw an Austin-Healey Sprite for sale at £500 and wanted it so badly. Unfortunately, I didn’t have £500 to my name, and even if I could have scraped the purchase price together, I would never have been able to afford the insurance.

I suspect that the situation is even worse for youngsters today because, although cars have become cheaper to buy in real terms, ambulance-chasing lawyers and fraudulent claimants have conspired with increasing vehicle complexity to send insurance premiums through the roof. It is easy for us more, er, mature drivers paying under £100 for a year’s comprehensive insurance on our classic MG to forget that a young driver may well be paying £3000 for the same privilege.

It is undeniably true that new and young drivers are more likely to have an accident than experienced drivers – and I can well remember making major judgement errors behind the wheel myself and only getting away with it through a hefty slice of luck – so this isn’t going to turn into a dig at the insurance companies. Rather, my train of thought was inspired by a reader who asked us about featuring more young drivers in the magazine – the cars they drive and the problems they face.

It may well be that the pool of teenage drivers is smaller for MGs that it is for other marques, simply because no MG has been made for decades without a decent slice of sporting intent built into the design and that always makes insurers jittery. But enthusiasts are generally willing to sacrifice a lot for their passion and there must be plenty of young owners who are willing to hang the expense and spend every spare penny they have on their MGs. So how about it – are you still in your teens and driving an MG? If so, please do get in touch as we’d love to tell your story.

Simon Goldsworthy
Editor

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ONE OF THE PERKS that come with putting MGE together each month is that not only do I get to meet a lot of interesting people, but now and again I also get to ride in some truly remarkable cars. Some that spring to mind from recent years include Stuart Gunn’s 4WD V8 Midget, Andrew Coulson’s Y-Type pick-up, Darren Vaughan’s SuperSports 2 and even MG’s Old No1.

This month, there is another car I can add to that list – Adrian Bennett’s gas turbine/electric MGF. Yes, Adrian has converted an MGF to run on electric power, and fitted a gas turbine jet engine in the boot to supply the electricity. In doing this, he and his friends have created a fully-functioning, road legal car of a type that major manufacturers have conspicuously failed to do, despite many millions of R&D pounds being devoted to it worldwide.

I should point out, however, that despite having a jet engine in the boot, this is not a car for hurtling down the drag strip with flames pouring out of its tail. In fact, performance is rather modest, and certainly falls far short of that which would have been provided by the original K-series engine. But that is not the point. Instead, this car has proven a concept, one which can now be refined to realise the maximum potential of what is a very novel mechanical arrangement.

However, we did not need to go very fast on our test run to make me grin from ear to ear. Just picture strapping yourself into an apparently stock MGF, only to have a jet engine fire up within touching distance of where you are sitting, then build inexorably up to its cruising speed of 52,000rpm – and no, there is not an extra zero in that number, it really is
fifty-two thousand! It was a very surreal experience, and flying off on holiday will never feel quite the same again.

Simon Goldsworthy
Editor

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The leaves may be turning brown and the days getting shorter, but there is no danger of the MG stories going into hibernation and you'll find a bumper crop of them in the November issue of MG Enthusiast. And nor is it a case of quantity over quality, as we have some real crackers for you.

The headline car on the cover is Alastair Sinker's beautiful and highly modified Sprite. This is a car that has had plenty of money lavished on its transformation from roller skate to pocket rocket, and every penny shows in the quality of its finish. Contrasting nicely with this is an update on Jim Jupp's £100 MGF, now on the road once more and freshly returned from a highly enjoyable touring holiday to Switzerland. How much did it end up costing Jim to bring this car back from the brink? Well, you'll have to read the magazine to find out, but suffice it to say that the ultimate cost of a bargain bucket car is usually considerably higher than the purchase price you see in the window.

Many of our classic MGs burn the odd bit of oil now and again, but in the November issue we have an oil-burner of a different kind as Pete Cowlishaw introduces his ZS diesel. MGs don't have a long history of diesel power, but this modern motor provided Pete with a mixture of performance and economy. In the finest of MG traditions though, Pete was not content to simply take what he was given and he has since invested over £10,000 in developing the car. When last tested, its L-series engine was putting out 170bhp and 269lb.ft of torque.

Fuel is also a hot topic in another of November's features, the first in a series that sets out to demystify the modern MG engine bay. By the end of the series, we should all have a better understanding of what goes on under a modern MG's bonnet, how to diagnose problems and how to fix them. For this first installment though, it is back to basics with a look at the SU carburettor, the original 'engine management' device that dates back to the early 1900s and which powered MGs right through to the Metro, Maestro and Montego of the 1980s. It makes for fascinating reading. Not so much fascinating reading as pure eye candy, we also have the first winner of our new competition looking for your best MG photographs.