A Brief Time of History
I got my 1956 MGA when I was in junior high - 1968. It was "driveable"
- if you pushed a lot. My dad and I repaired and restored it for the
next 6 years, keeping me out of trouble in high school (the car never
was running...you know the drill). (An aside: my girlfriend then had a
Mercedes 190SL, so between us we were always pushing something home on
a date...) The restoration was completed in Kansas City with a
beautiful beige paint job.
I moved to California in late 1980 from Kansas City. The first few weeks I was living at my parent's home while apartment hunting. My sister arranged a date with one of her friends, and I borrowed the MG to go out on that date. The young lady, a girl by the name of Kathleen, was quite taken by the little sports car we used that evening. We cruised Whittier Boulevard (at the peak of the Low Rider phenomena) and were accorded a spot in the "show-off lane" as we circled back and forth through Whittier. We received many whistles and other complements from the other drivers. I guess the reception was good enough: that same girl and I have been married now for 21 years!
In 1981 I was driving by Macarthur
Park in L.A. and rear-ended a new Cadillac at 5 MPH. Ruined the front
grill, totaled the Cadillac (long story there), got me 57 stitches
where I hit the steering wheel, and I stopped driving the car - my dad
suspended my driving privileges! My dad and my sister repaired and
restored the car for the second time, restoring it to the original
white and black interior. They exhibited the car in Concourse events in
the L.A. area for the next few years. In 1995 my dad got tired of
fighting with the 1500 engine and slipped the 18GB into it for better
drivability and added front disc brakes.
Skip forward to July
2006. My dad had the MG in for brake repair, and told me "you pay for
it, it's yours". In October I flew to Dallas where the car was, paid
off the mechanic, and drove the car from Dallas to Jacksonville, FL.
Along the way I stopped at all the casinos in Louisiana, Mississippi,
Alabama and Georgia, and let the valet krew park it - which I mention
because it turned everyone that sat in the car into an instant "I want
one!" MG fan! (This also insured that the car was kept under close
observation in front of the casino and not parked in a dark corner...)
So
I now "own" my first car! It's a "10-footer": MGB motor, many Moss
replacement parts, but it runs well and is a hoot to drive. I call it a
"time machine": you get in, turn on the engine, and you're 17 years old
again!
The MG is dolly-towed behind a motorhome, and is our "dinghy" for warm-weather locales (a 2002 Saturn VUE is the alternate).
My
wife and I are data warehouse consultants, and we live full-time in two
motorhomes. We criss-cross the US, and the MG faithfully follows us
where ever we go!
Feel free to contact me about any topic,
especially full-timing in an RV or consulting...or even
knuckle-knocking an MG on the road...