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Re: MGA vs MGB, Driving nowadays, list limits

To: Bill Eastman <william.eastman@medtronic.com>
Subject: Re: MGA vs MGB, Driving nowadays, list limits
From: mmcewen@gpu.srv.ualberta.ca (John McEwen)
Date: Fri, 5 Dec 1997 14:37:35 -0500
Hear, hear!

John



><<<<Keith Wheeler wrote:
>
>Well, one of my 'Bs has no windows at all.  And I'll admit the 'A has some
>nice flowing lines...but, how does that make it a better *sports* car?   ;)
>
>Care to compare some autocross times?>>>>
>
>I am afraid that my poor autocross times are more a function of my own
>limitations than those of my trusty steed.  Suspension wise, the A and B
>are so close under today's regulations (any front anti roll bar you want)
>that any difference would be car to car or driver to driver, not A to B.
>The A that I drive is bone stock (no front AR bar) and has snow tires on
>it.  I am not fast but I have a lot of fun with trailing throttle oversteer
>;-)
>
>Since I kind of started this thread I feel that I have to clarify my
>thoughts to those who have written the "why can't we all just get along"
>messages.  First, I look at this list as a virtual car club where you can
>get tech information, swap stories, and occasionally razz your fellow
>enthusiast for their obviously inferior choice in automotive companionship
>compared to your own.  I would never just walk up to someone that I had
>never met at a car show  who had just finished a three year restoration on
>a TR-7 and say, "What a piece of crap.  Ugly, too.  You should have done an
>MGA."  On the other hand, I have no trouble pointing out Bob Allen's
>obvious lack of character for driving that pickup truck he and Triumph
>called a sports car.  The first case would be rude beyond belief.  The
>second is gently pulling the chain of someone that, although you have never
>met him, you consider a friend.
>
>If some of you have taken me seriously and assume that I am an automotive
>bigot because I place the MGA at the pinnacle of automotive development,
>then you are missing the point.  We just had an entertaining thread that
>lasted several days where no-one told us to take it off the list and no
>small animals were hurt (darn ;-).  That has to be some kind of modern
>record.  I would love to have more sports cars in my garage but, given my
>present circumstance, I limit myself to one and, for me, the MGA best fits
>what I want out of my "fun car."  The B may be a better car but it doesn't
>push my buttons as hard as the A.
>
>Winter is here in Minnesota.  I don't drive the A in the winter for a
>variety of reasons.  First and foremost is the salt on the roads.  Second
>is the fact that it is cold and dark out whenever I am not at work and that
>discourages fun drives.  Driving the A to work in the winter is not worth
>the risk of salt and crazy drivers.  I would just follow some "bivouac BMW"
>(SUV) or "Cul De Sac Conestoga"  (minivan) along some clogged freeway where
>everyone slows down for fear that their might be a square centimeter of ice
>within ten miles of their front tires.  This isn't driving.  I look at it
>as the penance that I must do in order to enjoy Summer.
>
>And finally, I think that limiting this list to technical information only
>would greatly diminish its worth.  Through this list, I have been able to
>correspond with many and meet a few people who are wonderful beyond their
>ability to find a bad ground with their eyes closed or tune SU's by smell.
>The people on this list have experiences and stories that are every bit as
>valuable as the cars we drive and I for one, am glad that I have had the
>opportunity to hear a few of them.
>
>Regards,
>Bill Eastman
>61 MGA
>Yes, I am careful about spelling but that has nothing to do with my
>preference for MGA's ;-)



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