MG Midget

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The real MG Midget and a different driver to the T-types!

WHY BUY

The MG Midget pre-dates the more popular T-Type and while they look pretty similar they boast entirely different characters. What remains the same, however, is the superb owner back up that comes with the MG badge in terms of specialists and clubs.

WHAT’S AVAILABLE

The Midget came about after Morris took over Wolseley and MG founder Cecil Kimber discovered the unhidden potential of that corking overhead camshaft engine. Initially, the 847cc M-type Midget was produced but as a twoseater Sportsman’s Coupé (8/33) before the traditional 8/45 sports car came on stream in 1930, with a C-type (just 44 made) before subsequent D and J types took over in two and four-seater forms before the PA and PB versions, the latter now with a 939cc engine. Final Midget-badged MGs featured the much simpler 1292cc ohv Morris Ten engine. Don’t ignore the Magna, it’s a similar sports car sporting a smoother sixcylinder 1271cc Wolseley Hornet engine, or the K/N Series Magnettes, another forerunner to the T-Type. As you can see, it’s a bewildering mix of models so best speak to an expert first!

DRIVING

If you think that the Midget is just an older T-Type, then it’s time to adjust your hats, so says MG expert Barrie Carter. Yes, they look much the same and there’s that wonderful Dambusters’ sense of occasion, but Midgets feel much cruder than the later T-Type thanks to their more leisurely performance from the smaller engines and, on some models, a three-speed transmission. Also the brakes are cable not hydraulic on most, too. But if you still hanker for an earlier MG, he says the sixcylinder Magna and the K Series Magnettes perform the best.

WHAT TO PAY

A veritable alphabet soup of Midgets, but all seem to be roughly priced the same in the £40-£50,000 mark for top models with Magnas similarly valued – the exception being the ultra rare Q Type which can sell for an incredible £200K if it’s original and good! Average regular cars can be unearthed for around £30K thankfully but you get what you pay for and restorations, particularly on the overhead cam engines, can be as expensive as an Aston Martin DB5 engine to rebuild!

OWNING

It’s an MG which means sleep easy ownership thanks to a plethora of specialists dedicated to these pre-war MGs such as Barrie Carter, Barry Walker and Andy King. Like the T-Type, earlier Midgets relied a lot upon Morris Minor mechanicals and a lot of T-Type buying advice applies (go to classiccars4sale. net to find all the advice and info-ed). The overhead camshaft engines are known to leak oil plus the unusual dynamo/ camshaft drive can be problematic. Watch for twisted chassis, rust around suspension, gearbox and worn axle/spring bushes.