Fun
isn't
everything
or was it the other way around?
Spotting some differences!
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and a surplus boot-lamp bracket |
It is a great advantage to have the remains of the old body
lying about as the new Heritage body arrives. Careful checking of brackets, holes and studs
reveals how model changes has affected the MGB body through time. Not all brackets and holes are necessary. Other items are missing.
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and panel joints were showing |
| Some changes are clearly visible, some are hard to
spot and some doesn't really matter. The only annoying factor with the Mk1 Heritage bodies is the fact that one has to use an old gear box tunnel from an original car as these high narrow bodymembers of the erly MGB no longer are available . Good rust proofing |
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Something I'd like different There is no electroforetic protection to the old centre backbone. The Heritage has in between these two layers of preparations had someone generously apply with a coarse brush some white gooey to cover all seams and joints. I would have preferred this undone One should have hoped that by building a new car around
an old body member, Heritage should have taken a greater care to "integrate"
it...., |
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Underneath the white gooey and the primer,
the old 60's tar undercoating hadn't been removed. Sand blasting should not have been necessary at this stage! Flying sand enters into every possible accessible space of the body. And then getting the sand out again.... !!! |
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| Differences between 3-syncro and 4 syncro floor panels | Missing piece welded in and tar removed |
I tried
paint stripper, but the wells of the heater and ventilation system weren't
exactly accessible for the rubbing and brushing needed.Now I will have to cover
up the car and sandblast the wells underneath the heater to get rid of the rust
that was hidden with the white primer .
Shit this tunnel wasn't properly
cleaned before they built a car around it....
| Below, on the bottom side
of things, the routing of petrol lines, brake hydraulic pipes and the electrical
wiring is critical on this low rider, the welded-in bolts were misplaced. One had to be cut and another had to be made and fitted |
 |  | On my US 1966, the bracket for the fuel pump was fitted on bolts
outside of the battery box on the left side. New bolts had to be made and welded in. |
| Wrong attachments for cables and pipes | Measuring up for the bolts |
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| Old accellerator pedal would hang on a free end in the new body | In the old car there was a support bracket | So I had to made one like this | and plugweld it in from the outside |
Heritage Motors has done a very good job with lots of amperage on their spot welding. I tried drilling out the spots for the superfluous brackets, but the welding were just too good. Love that. I had to grind out the welds and chisel off the pieces. Underneath was the patented electroforetic coating... had crept in everywhere. Well done, but maybe too much
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| The original aluminium bonnet of the 1966 rests its support stay in a bracket on the right.I made it | The recess for the reverse lamp were excellent fits for welded in patches. | Leading is necessary where you want no seams to show | For covering panel
joints, leading is the only alternative |
I had kept the original aluminium bonnet and rear boot lid, to save a bit of the soul of the old car (and some money) The fit of the bonnet was excellent, but it appears there is a clear difference with the curving of the rear end on the 1966 and the new Heritage body. There is as much as 5 millimetre surplus rear corners on the old lid. Apparently there are more curves to the rear of the Heritage. I must find some means of bending in the rear boot lid corners.... - but first preparations for the paint!
| This is to be my last MGB, but for those contemplating a British Motor Heritage body; I would definately advise to go that way, but I would have checked: | |
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| Throughly clean the backbone and remove ALL rust | Saves lots of work later |
| Butt-weld in the missing floorpanels in beforehand | Saves gussetwelds in critical areas |
| Ask about leaving out the seam sealer | It is ugly and in the way of better methods of rust proofing |
| Ask about leaving out "silencing pads" in cabin | They are ugly and much better ways are at hand |
| Ask about brackets for hood stays and boot stays | - at least if you are going the original way |
| Car boot lamp switch/ surplus stay bracket in the rear | ask if they can be left out |
| Be sure to know about your electrics choices | Some brackets in the engine area can be left out |
| Consider buying the boot lid with the body | Old ones doesn't fit right up even if they are rust free |
| Ask about alternatives for the reverse lamps | Consider having the seams and reverse lamp-wells lead filled |
| Ask for some surplus 1/4" weld-in bolts and nuts | Saves a lot of time in making them |
| The Splash panels in the front wings are not included | Only panels missing- ask them included |
| Hanging of the accelerator pedal, | Must surely be a slip on mine? |
| Give Heritage lots of credit for their work | It really is a beautiful starting point for a nice car |
