–By Mark Tomlinson– In the summer of ’62 my work mate and I were working in the basement of the mail and supply department of an insurance company in Los Angeles, west of downtown, in the “Miracle Mile” of Wilshire Blvd. We were both teenage sons of company officers so this was our lucky summer job.
On one fine summer evening, my friend Tim Mathers invited me to circumnavigate the Angeles Crest Highway in his late MGA. It is about a 3 hour ride driving briskly on the serpentine roads that offered the viewer some fine vistas, but we were hell bent for leather to fully exercise that MGA. I was VERY impressed with its agility and the confidence inspiring precision of the chassis along with a lot of speed out of a 1,600cc engine. Wow, I set my sights on having one of these some day.
Well, I never forgot that ride, allowing the dream of having an MG slowly simmer while I went about college, lots of motorcycles, and graduate school leading to a career and family over the next 50 years or so. Then about 5 or 6 years ago I got a call from a motorcycle hobbyist who had gotten into trouble with the IRS and they seized all his bikes along with a car. He invited me to bid on the bikes and the car to satisfy the IRS.
The bikes were in weak to moderate condition and I appraised them realistically, all Japanese road bikes from the 1970s and all needing some repair. So, when I asked what the car was, I expected him to say a 1978 Ford Granada with a peeling vinyl roof, rusted quarters, and cracked seats. Suddenly the heavens opened when he said it was an MGB from Los Angeles that he and his wife bought while settling her father’s estate out there when they needed a car for a couple months. Oh, I said, I will be right over!
So, my obligation was to buy all the vehicles which I did, writing a check payable to the IRS for the inventory. I sold off the bikes and kept the car and over the last 5 years have slowly improved the B with repair/replacement of clutch, weber/intake/header, cooling system, electric system, brakes, top, carpets, windscreen, tires/rims, minor paint touchup, etc.
I love the brutal simplicity, feel, sound and just plain pure fun. I have an overdrive sitting in my shop that I plan on installing when the spring bug bites and look forward to longer rides at 3,200 rpm instead of 3,900 at 70. See you on the trail.
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Thanks for submitting, Mark! If you have a vintage foreign car story to share please submit it to InterMarque@gmail.com for consideration!