Phil Royle meets the one-off, 160mph, 500Ps, 380lb.ft, £250,000 MG Sport and Racing Development Department factory-built MG TF500 Extreme – by name, and by nature.

Word and pictures: www.roylemedia.co.uk

The dictionary describes the adjective ‘extreme’ primarily as ‘being of a high or the highest degree or intensity,’ and there can be no doubt that the MG TF500 Extreme is certainly that – three times more powerful than even the hottest TF, and yet still road legal. Looking solely at peak power, the standard K-series 1.8-litre (1.8i and Steptronic) started at 120Ps, while the more powerful VVC came in at 145Ps. Even the special Trophy Edition only pushed the K-series envelop to 160Ps thanks to a large bore exhaust and ECU re-map, while the most powerful MGFs, like the MGF Super Sports special edition built for the Geneva Motor Show, topped out at 200bhp from a supercharged 1.8-litre K-series. In contrast, the MG TF500 Extreme – or MG TF XPower 500, or MG TF XPower Extreme as it is also known – produces a spine-tingling 500Ps from its Le Mans race bred (XP20) turbocharged Cosworth two-litre engine. And rumour has it that this was a de-tuned figure on a small turbo at low boost pressure and that an easy 600+Ps was achievable.

But let’s not consider just peak power. The more you observe the TF500, the more the incredibly radical modifications leap out at you from every facet of the car. This MG has been engineered to its absolute peak, and the technical specification and partner names involved read like a tuner’s wish list; which, of course, it was, given its huge £250,000 budget – Cosworth engine, X-Trac sequential transmission, AP Racing brakes/pedal box, Cobra race seats, OMP, TRS… the list goes on and on, and that’s even before you consider the amount of bespoke workmanship. It’s an almost unbelievable MG – the stuff of dreams, amazingly brought to reality.

Alan Reid, an engineer who worked at MG on motorsport special projects including the TF500, Bonneville cars and Tomcat rally cars recalls: ‘It seemed like a bottomless pit of money was available for it at the time. The car was built for fun and as a promotional tool around the Le Mans engine which never ended up actually being used in that car, so they thought they’d stick one in this MG TF.

‘It was a lot of hard work and long hours, travelling all over the UK to get all the parts built and on the car successfully at Longbridge. When it was finally built, Warren Hughes drove it and it was re-developed some more in its first year. Many of the parts, like the banana rear wing were a nightmare to get right. I drove it a few times and it was mental. It was stupidly over-powered, but did put a massive smile on your face. I remember lapping MIRA testing in it and thinking after two laps: that’s enough. It was a dangerous display toy.’

MG TF500 Extreme auction
This incredible MG TF500 Extreme slice of MG XPower motorsport history is up for sale again and is all set to be included in the forthcoming Classic Car, Race Car, Motorcycle & Automobilia sale, being held at the Race Retro international Historic Motorsports Show 2012 at Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire on 25 February. The guide price is £25,000-£30,000, and you can contact the auctioneers on 01926 691 141 for more information on the sale, or visit: www.silverstoneauctions.com. Alternatively, to buy before the sale, contact the author via www.roylemedia.co.uk.

To read more about this MG see the March 2012 issue of MG Enthusiast on sale now - available here.