> Huh, interesting. Sounds like the fellow has a bit of an ax
> to grind. But if
> it really has a light alloy body shell, what else could it
> be? You can't buy
> that from Moss. Although I notice that in the actual car
> description it
> doesn't say anything about that, and the rear alloy flares
> appear to be
> riveted on.
First off. I am absolutely fascinated by the factory race cars. To the
point that I have built a copy (some would call it a fake) of a Sebring car
that I vintage raced in the eighties, and still own. I am also building
(slowly) a external visual replica of a GTS car.
My main problem with the e-bay listing is the way in which the
posting is worded. There is no reference as to whether the car is built
from an alloy panel shell. This to my mind is inexcusable as the assumption
is easily made from the reference to "Lightweight bodywork in fiberglass and
aluminum".
I have crawled all over this car, and spoken to it's owner at great
length. It is a most unique machine, with an associated mountain of
paperwork that is enough in itself to be worth the price of admission.
As far as it being one of the original alloy paneled shells, it is
not. Whether it can claim lineage with a scapped alloy shell that was a
backup car at Sebring is up to the lawyers. As most of us know, swapping
Vin, chassis and registration plates is as easy as pulling out a
screwdriver. The fate of the "original" six alloy shells is convoluted
enough that who knows the truth? I'd love to see the article on the six
verified cars. More, I would have loved to have been there and inspected
the shells. Somehow after my experience with "documented" chassis cars,
I'll lay odds that there are some interesting discrepancies.
(Sorry, I started to write some slurring comments about fenders and roofs
not matching. I don't want to cast aspersions, that I can't document. As
far as I know the 6 cars documented are the only original shells in
existence. My point is that it is very hard to document four cars that were
built up from scratch by a specialty company.) I'm still trying to find out
what the shells constituted. The outer sheet metal was alloy, but the inner
was steel. Where were the two mated, and were there any spare panels
produced for replacement parts?
Getting back to the listed car. Since this is a unique MG, and there
appears to be interest I can give a bit of a description of what the car is
like in person.
Steel shell that has been lightened substantially by drilling. Fiberglass
fenders, the rears modified by the addition of an aluminium panel (perhaps
to repair tire rubbing damage?) Alloy hood with an interesting reinforcing
cross brace that is not stock MGC (one of the points towards possible
history). The front hood shut panel has been modified to allow removal.
This is another interesting point, but I've seen no documentation. Snarly,
severely nasty cast iron lump with triple webers set way back in the
chassis. The heater platform has been totally removed to allow this set
back. Definitely not factory, more of a modsport modification. Four wheel
disc brakes (no idea of brand) and rear traction bars.
All in all, the car is as advertised. A ferocious, nasty looking car with a
serious attitude. The engine set back must allow the car to handle better
than the original factory cars. Hopefully this car will stay in the US and
get the whee driven out of it. It's uniqueness will I hope, allow it to be
eligible for vintage race inclusion despite the controversy of it's
creation.
The lineage of the car is very questionable. Some bits were found in a
California scrap yard and the world cheered that the missing GTS car had
been found. The cheers turned to jeers when the missing car turned up
intact in California following the publicity. The bits from California were
then combined with a steel shell and Chatham fiberglass fenders to produce
this competition car that incorporates many Modsport modifications.
Was there a backup car built for the 1967 Sebring race? Did pieces of an
alloy bodied MG show up in a California scrapyard? Does the featured car
have any heritage with the body panels stamped out for the GTS program? Did
aliens land at Roswell? This car has importance as being the heart of a
controversy.
The controversy continues as printed sources and recollection are not always
reliable. The perfect example of this is EX186, the Le Mans MGA that was
supposed to have been destroyed, only to show up complete in California a
number of years ago. EX186 has again gone underground. It won't be long
before there are arguments about it's existence.
I've got my own addition to the saga, as a GTS car was seen at the shop I
worked at in Colorado. It was supposed to be owned by a college student who
was using it as a daily driver. The story passed to me was that the brake
boosters failed, so the car was taken off the road.
So far as I know, neither of the documented Sebring cars spent any time in
Colorado, so unknowingly, I added another page to the GTS chapter.
I would love to learn more about the entire GTS sage, so if anyone has
further information I would love to get in touch.
Best regards.
Kelvin Dodd.
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