James Thacker bought his TF in 1966. He sold it in 1972, but always regretted that decision, tracked it down in 2001 and eventually bought it back in 2005.  

Words: Rod Ker  Pictures: Martyn Barnwell

Contrary to what Edith Piaff claimed, most of us have done things that we later regret, particularly with – or possibly in – cars. For instance, not long after passing my driving test I bought a wreck of a Sunbeam Alpine Series V (boo, hiss, etc), and then spent most of my waking hours restoring it to roadworthy condition. Probably because I needed the money, I then sold it almost immediately. All those months of effort, only to give someone else the enjoyment of driving it. I’ve regretted it ever since.

Stupidity obviously runs in the family, because my uncle must have kicked himself with gusto on a daily basis when he realised that the vintage Bentley he owned as a young whippersnapper would have been worth a few million quid if he’d just left it in his garage for 30 years. And while TFs like the one seen here sell for a lot less, an old car’s value can’t be measured in terms of mere money. Having first set eyes on JJB 693 almost 50 years ago, to owner James Thacker, it’s priceless.

We’ll return to the regret later, but let’s first travel back in time to 17 November, 1953 when the 648th out of 9600 TFs rolled out of the Abingdon factory. It’s perhaps difficult to imagine now, but the last of the T-Types was greeted with less than open arms. MG had an all-new sports car in the pipeline, destined to become the MGA. But under the control of the recently-formed British Motor Corporation, it was decided to launch an update of the TD instead. Called the TF, it was bigger and more comfortable – or perhaps ‘less uncomfortable’ is a more apt description! – than its predecessor, but remained a basically pre-war design. This did not impress a nation eager to forget the past and look to the future. Deliveries of the Austin-Healey 100 – which was hardly Dan Dare itself, maybe – had started in the spring (largely explaining why the MGA was held back), and the first Triumph TR2s were in showrooms a few months later. Even a dedicated octagonalist could see that the opposition offered more of most things than the TF.

Rather than go out to a dealer, JJB (pre-war Works competition MGs and the very successful Abingdon-based BL Special Tuning Dept Mini Coopers all had the local ‘JB’ registration numbers) stayed at the factory, where it was used as a police demonstration vehicle. MG already had a long history of supplying cars for the Boys in Blue that dated back to 1930, and the little TF was no exception, notwithstanding the fact that its 1250cc engine might have struggled with a villain in a speeding TR2 or Healey!

With the MGA launch finally looming, JJB was disposed of the following summer. Despite its antiquated looks, all cars were in demand at the time so there would have been no shortage of takers. Presumably the car soon went to a member of the paying public, but James has never been able to find out what became of it between 1954 and 1959, when Trevor and Norma Jackson of Solihull took ownership.

To read more about this MG see the October 2011 issue of MG Enthusiast on sale now  

Back issues available here.