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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