Looking for a fun car to work on: MGB? Others?

This is my MGB/GT. Pay no attention to the TR and Esprit in the background.
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I love my Alpine. Cheaper than an MGB and built to higher standards.
I get comments all the time from strangers. It's very easy to work and and
dependable. It's my daily driver!
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Go with a Pontiac Fiero GT.

You can do a ton of things to them besides replicating another vehicle. Grab a V-8 and drop it in there for some real power and play. There's a ton of suff you could do aftermarketwise to one and also not many people have them anymore let alone modding them.

Second car I would suggest is the 84-96 Corvettes, they are realitey avaleble, cheap, and the aftermarket possibltlys are endless.

 

I was interested to see the Triumph GT6 posted above. Those are neat cars, easy to work on anything in the front when you tilt the entire nose section out of the way, simple design, reasonably easy and inexpensive to get parts, but quite cramped inside and somewhat "crude", shall we say?

Years ago I had a Triumph Vitesse convertible, totally different body style, but the same GT6 engine.

 

You're right about the noise, but I think with the O/D gearbox you have to remove the engine to replace the clutch. With the standard gearbox you don't have to.

OTOH, having lived in Ferrari-land for a while, removing the engine doesn't sound as extreme it as it used to...

The MGB was my only Brit car, but you really have to like tinkering with it pretty much all the time. Also, as 2NA posted, anything much beyond 65mph gets pretty deafening and knuckle-whitening (the brakes are crap).

I'd lean toward the old German stuff, just because it runs and you could take it on the track. The drawback is rust, but frankly all these cars are old enough that you'll have to keep a keen eye out for corrosion.

Fiat seems to have been the worst for corrosion. I remember my '81 X1/9 having major rust bubbles under the windshield and on the rocker panels by 1985. God, but it was a pretty car...

 

Pulling the engine is about a 2 hour job and If you drive it as much as I do you'll never have to do it again. The clutch is a pretty durable item, you're not going to burn it up from excess horsepower.

Better brakes and suspension are some of the upgrades that you can do. There are also things like exhaust, ignition and carburetion stuff available if you like to tinker. If you really want to pump more horsepower out of the little 4-popper there is an aluminum cross-flow head that cleans up the air flow.

Lots of interior and trim choices including some nice leather kits available.

I'd avoid a Fiat if you can. The parts are nearly as expensive as Ferrari but the end result isn't quite so satisfying. If you listen carefully, you can hear it rust.

 

The parts really aren't that bad. In fact, I've never had a problem finding the parts I need for a reasonable price. Nor have I had a hard time finding a mechanic. However, I live in SoCal, and this market is probably not representative of parts availability elsewhere.

As for the rust issue...just make sure it's a California car and you'll be ok. But yes, Fiat did a terrible job of rust-proofing their cars.

Oh yeah...I only spent $955 on the car as you see it, so I even if parts were expensive, the entry fee is so little that it balances out.

 

Actually it was quite roomy. The seats were situated that you could stretch out comfortably. It wasnt any more crude than other cars of its era. The leather and wood dash was quite cool too.

 

TR6
Alfa Romeo Spider Veloce
Austin Healy 3000

 

OK, I know a lot of you will call me a *****, but a used Miata provides all the fun of an old British car, with none of the pain. I bought a '97 with 40K miles for $7K.

EDIT:

Oh, you're looking for a car to work on, not to drive. A British car will be perfect!

(Or, for not much money, you can work on a Miata and improve it- I put a supercharger, gauges, shocks and sway bars on my last one.......)

 

Actually a Miata has similarities with the old Lotus Elan, for a lot less money.

 

Alfa Spider
Class, old world class.
Can get to everything to work on it, good parts availability.
Fun, fun, fun.
If you can sneak into a Alfa coupe, grab it.

Same for a 912 or 912e. Can't go wrong - just check for corrosion. The 78 912e's had galvanized bodies, so that helps.

 

I know everybody says that, but I've had both, and they are not alike in any way, other than a vague similarity in styling. Compared to an Elan, a Miata is a Crown Victoria.
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Enjoy sitting on the frame?
On the Elan your body is the "Crumple zone".

Try an old rx7

They're a hoot.

 

Yeah, you do not want to get hit in an Elan...

 

Well, you get to practice your body shop skills .

Great chance to buy some toys:

Couple of spray guns, welder, grinder...could be a fun summer . Might be a fun/cheap track car.

Or, take it to Maaco, and see what 200$ actually buys you. Of course, thats >50% of the value of the car .

Sounds like fun!

 

Try again, your Ferrari buddies will never stop laughing.