The subject is an interesting one. You would first need to set
some sort of criteria and judge each car against that criteria.
Quoting Ray MacCray: "As much as I love the T type, the MGA was
the machine that kept MG in business,..." This statement could
be applied to many MG models: J, P, TA, TD, MGA, Midget, MGB. If
a company doesn't improve its product, that it stagnates.
Stagnation leads to obsolescence, and obsolescence leads to...
Each one of these cars revived MG and kept its products viable.
Then there is also the problem of the sub models within the MGA
and MGB line.
I would have used a different criteria, and as part of that
criteria included the definition of sports car, and each
individual models availability.
I would not have included Old Number One because it was a "one
off bastard". If it was that good, why did Kimber sell it not to
long after it was built, and why weren't others produced? Why
put in Old Number One, and leave out the Magic Midget, EX135,
EX179, and EX181 which were also one off specials?
I would also not have included the SA. Although it might have
been the best of the pre-war saloons, it doesn't fit "The MG was,
for years, best known as a sports car. Sports car is exactly
what Cecil Kimber had in mind." This car I definitely would leave
out.
I would also have to think long and hard about the C, R, NE, and
K3. Why was the racing J4 left out? To me it is more important
than the R as the R was never fully developed and died a borning.
Why leave out the standard K's and just put in the racing K3
while the standard J2 is listed, but not the racing J4? Why
include the racing models? Why not include the EX182's? If you
wanted to keep in some of the racing models, no record cars, I'd
probably use the double twelve midgets, C, J4, K3, unsupercharged
NE (maybe), and perhaps a few of the racing MGA's such as the
EX182's. and the LeMans twin cam.
My list is then down to the M, J2, P, and TC.
Although the TC is the first MG brought into the US in any kind
of numbers, it isn't the MG which really established the marque
in the US. That distinction really belongs to the TD. The number
of TC's sent to the US fell from 1948 to 1949 even when based on
the lower 1949 production. Why include the TC, when the TB is
really the same car? If there hadn't been a war, the TC probably
would have been the car we call the TD.
The MGF is out because to me it's not really an MG, yet. It has
absolutely no continuity to anything ever produced at Abingdon or
designed and built by any men who once had worked there. It also
isn't available world wide. I considered the MGB V8, but left it
out because it too was limited in its market place.
My list would then be the M, J2, P, TA, or TB for it's better
engine (The TB's limited production was due to the war and not a
lack of buyers), TD (for its better chassis), MGA 1500, MGA 1600,
MGA Twin Cam, Midget (pre 1975), MGB (pre 1975). This could
include all of the two seat coupes both fixed or drophead as
these aren't really different cars.
There's my list. Let the flame wars begin.
Blake
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