1978 MG MGB Orange

1978 MG MGB Additional Info:

This 1978 MGB is an original with updates to the interior. The owner has had it for 4 years. The vehicle runs great and is mainly used for weekend drives.

Vehicle Details

1978 MGB – Owned by one family since 1987. Low mileage: 72,528 original miles.

Features:

- New carpet (includes all weather floor mats),

- Reupholstered seats,

- Newer tires,

- Twin SU carburetors (replaced a a Weber it came with in 1987),

- Bluetooth AM/FM radio,

- New fuel tank, pump, and filter,

- New steering wheel,

- Upgraded horn (louder for better visibility,

- New top,

- New interior light bulb,

- All exterior bulbs replaced (not the headlights, but it does include LED headlights I purchased but didn’t put on)

- Original luggage rack,

- Monza exhaust (nice mellow tone),

- New seatbelts,

- New chrome gas cap,

- New armrest

My father bought the car in the summer of 1987. A little backstory: he was set on buying a Mustang GT, but one morning before church he announced that he didn’t think it was a wise financial decision. He said he would start looking at used cars instead. It was a great summer of test drives. That search led to this 1978 MGB.

Under my father’s ownership, the following had been done: new clutch in approx 1988, new top, Alpine cassette deck to replace 8 track, new top (they slashed it to get the Alpine), Kenwood cassette deck, headlights in 2021. (The features listed in the features section have all been done by me since 2020.)

It was a one car owner before that and was always in Texas until 2001. Here in Wisconsin, it has been garage stored and never driven when there’s salt on the ground. It typically isn’t brought out until May. My father signed over the car to me the summer of 2020. Before that time it did sit in the garage for about 2 years. A new fuel pump got it back on the road. The car is serviced annually by MG Limited and most of the work under my ownership has been completed there.

Let me tell you about Joy. First, I call her Joy because no matter where you go in the car, someone will stop you and share a fond memory they have of an MGB. What I began to notice is that she brings Joy and never envy, unlike other sports cars. She is a blast to drive. She answers the age old question of whether it's better to drive a slow car fast or a fast car fast. With the new carburetors, she really moves. I really love the idea that she had a Weber carburetor, but I’m now in camp SU. It was the best performance upgrade. Now I would describe the car as zippy and no longer sluggish. The car is very dependable and has never left me stranded. I drove it while I was in college in daily stop and go traffic in Austin, Texas and she performed wonderfully. They say one and two MGs were a lemon. I'm happy to say that she is not a lemon but one of the reliable and dependable MGs out there.

Things you’ll want to address down the road:

- Heater (it was disconnected after it got stuck in the on position)

- Radiator (it’s fine for cruising but if you want to do big city stop and go traffic, I would replace it. If it idles for long period of time, that needle starts to move. I’ve never had it overheat but I think it’s better to be safe than sorry.

- Radiator fan – only one of the two fans works

- Oil leak – there is an oil leak I noticed last summer. It’s not major but something to consider.

- Spare tire is the original it came with and the jack is broken so I tossed the jack last summer.

- Paint job and minor body work. The car is structurally rust free but there is a patch around the passenger headlight.

- Speedometer needs to be calibrated. It reads about double the speed you’re actually doing

Feel free to drop me a message about any questions you may have.

Here are two videos with the engine running:

https://youtube.com/shorts/YnnCCEph7gw?si=uZ6a3jIyt1N861Ka

https://youtu.be/eY2dLTXE0tM?si=EkBXgt13jwocvAJs