**** Owning both a `55 TR2 and a `58 MGA, I feel uniquely qualified to comment
on this. Compare & Contrast, here we go. Just a moment while I put on my
Nomex suit....
* The `2 is faster than the `A, with a 2.1 liter engine to the `A,s
1488CC. I've ``done the ton'' in this car, even before I even rebuilt
the engine, going uphill. And the engine had more where that came
from. I was just reluctant to rev it past redline. The `A buzzes
along at 4500 rpm just keeping up with freeway traffic. The `2's
engine makes a beautiful roar, and it keeps up with freeway
traffic at a considerably more relaxed 3250 rpm.
* The `2's seats and suspension are plusher than the `A,s. You don't
sit as low in it. It's easier to get in and out.
* This `2 stops better, because it has TR3 front disks, and I've
rebuilt all the hydraulics. I still remember the day after I did
that: my wife taking off down the street, hitting the brakes and
yelling ``WOW!''
* The `A handles better than the `2; it has rack & pinion steering, it
goes where you point it. When you push it too hard, and the rear end
breaks loose, it still feels ``healthy''. If there's nothing around
to bang into, it's even fun. Mine originally came to me with bias-ply
tires. I used to play with it in empty parking lots. :-) You sit
really low in the `A. The seat bottom is actually level with the
*bottom* of the chassis. So it has a low center of gravity, too.
* The `2 doesn't handle as well as the `A. It has a loosy-goosy worm-gear
steering box. Even through I rebuilt it, there's still significant
free play in the straight-ahead position. This is because the worm
track is deeper in the center than at the ends. So if you were to
adjust it for zero free play at the center, you wouldn't be able to
turn the wheel lock to lock.
It goes more or less where you want, if you keep
correcting. The front end has zero caster, and when you finish your
turn, the only thing making the steering wheel return is the silly
silentblock in the idler arm. Oh, and your hands on the steering
wheel.
When you push it too hard, it feels like the car is going to
flip over the front wheel. No fun at all! On balance, I would put
the `2,s handling a notch or so above my old `60 Falcon.
* The `A feels like it's all one solid piece. The `2, on the other hand,
feels ( and sounds! ) like a collection of fairly casually bolted-
together parts. I call mine the Clankster. One reason that the `A
feels so tight, is that the floorboards are bolted directly to the
chassis, and that's what you sit on, not on the body. Whereas with
the `2, the seat is bolted to the (thin, sheetmetal) body, which is
separately bolted to the chassis.
* Styling: This is subjective, of course. But I've always felt that the
`A seemed to be a single unified flowing design, whereas the `2 is
more a collection of styling ``features''. As if the word came from
Marketing: ``Its got to have cut-down doors, big swoopy fenders, a
long hood, and bugeye headlights''.
On balance, I have to say that I love both of these cars. The `A is
probably more at home on a mountain road, where you can push the
handling and chassis, and the `2 is better in city traffic, with that
big motor to blast you off when the light changes.
- Jerry Kaidor
|