MG Sports Cars

So i just picked up a 1969 mg midget That has been sitting in a garage since 1979...

It ran when it was parked there. I am very new to this MG deal. The very little I know about anything british comes from having a 66 triumph 650 Bonneville once.

The car needs a little body work and I can handle that with ease. Made a dumb mistake hauling it home with a dolly and leaving the rear wheels on the ground I believe I may have shot the gear box. I guess not a huge deal even if I stay stock on the drivetrain which I still have not decided on... Everyone I know says keep it original, Its worth a pretty penny that way. I do not see that from ebay listings. Not looking like a big money bringer. Though that is not my intent on this project. I know some people with parts and what I see on ebay is really not that expensive.

I do not know all the specs for this car... From what I gather a 69 is a 1275 cc midget? mkiii? What is the MGA, B, C deal. How do I determine that?

I have scrolled through here and seen the big gm 60degree v6 posts and all and though I can handle the job I am not sure I want to.

How does this block handle beefiness??? Has anyone here really beefed up one. Just a good rebuild maybe. What would that do for it? Nice sized cam? Anyone done any boring and and compression changes?

Dont guess theres a stroker kit? LOL

Head work... is there a nice set of heads that would swap right out off another model or what? or would someone suggest a good intake/exhaust port level?

I know its a lot of questions but this is where I am at and what I am thinking.

Keep the stock motor and modify....
OOOHHHHH and whats the skinny on the rear???? what is the ratio and is there any opinions with size ratio and locking?

I do have some extra parts for this car too I would love to trade for some other stuff when I decide my direction...
Extra doors
trunk lid
seats
convertable rack
stock steering wheel (if i can find a hub conversion to a smaller wheel)
extra wire locking wheels

MAYBE more!

any help would be cool!

Welcome to the message board, and congratulations on your new acquisition!

One of the great things about Midgets is that they're not very expensive. Their price hasn't risen and fallen with the whims of investors, and it likely never will. Any friend that advises you to keep it "stock" for financial reasons must surely be confusing your Midget with a Jaguar or a big Healey. Keep it stock if you like it stock...

Have you started surfing through our article archive yet? Most questions about model differences and engine options can be answered there, if you have the patience to hunt around. Hint: use the "search" box at the top of the page. For example, you asked about different cylinder heads for the 60 degree GM V6... two generations of heads and manifolds can be compared in this article on Scott Costanzo's MGB-V6

I've got a couple awesome Midget articles about-ready to be added to our new sister site, www.BritishRaceCar.com, so keep an eye out for that. Midgets have been very actively raced in SCCA competition since before time, and a seemingly infinite variety of hop-up parts are available. Derek Chima's Midget (article coming soon) shows what the state of the art was circa 1978 when his brother Craig drove it to an SCCA G-Production national championship victory. John McCue's Midget (article coming soon) is an exceptional example of what a newly-built 1972 Midget racecar (for vintage racing) can look like. Lots of go-fast goodies and beautiful fabrication details!

Thanks buddy... Yeah Im good on the browsing deal. Ill check it all out. Ive got her in her spot for the year and am now doing some measuring to decide on an engine... Thanks again

Welcome Johnny. You do have a Midget MKIII. MG used the letter designations such as MGA, MGB, etc on all the larger size cars. They started back in the 30s and used the entire alphabet up to Z then started over with the MGA in 1955. The Midget was derived from the Austin Healey Sprite in 1961 and is just known as the MG Midget with the MK number.
The 1275cc engine is one of the best, plenty robust and strong for some serious mods. These have been used in many different types of race cars over the years and are well developed. Probably the best book on the engine is by David Vizard [www.amazon.com] and is available from Amazon and other sources. That will give you all the information on head work and upgrades. You can easily increase the power up to 50% and still have a great street engine.
The rear axle is a weak link, the differential is fine but the shafts are a bit on the weak side. If you plan on any racing I'd recommend getting some heavy duty racing axles but for the street the later 1500cc Midget axles are a bit stronger and inexpensive so use those and probably carry a spare when on any longer trips. Ratios range from down in the 4.55 range up to 3.7 in the later 1500s but the most common on all 1275s was the 3.9:1. Limited slip differentials are available, but the Quaiffe unit is around a thousand bucks. The other option is the Phantom Grip for just under $500. [phantomgrip.com]
If you are considering an engine swap the I highly recommend replacing the rear axle assembly with something both stronger as well as having a better selection of gear ratios available.