[Spridgets] MG Axles

[Mike Eldred]

Yup.  It's a weak spot on a lot of MG models.  As someone else has already
noted, it's usually a twist-break, not a stress "snap."  I have two TF axle
stubs that demonstrate that nicely, if you'd like to see them.



In my experience, the number one way to snap an MG axle is to let out the
clutch in a forward gear while rolling backwards.  Don't do it.  And guess
what?  Even if it doesn't break at that moment, it might just break two days
later.  I've also heard of people breaking axles spinning their tires on
pavement or gravel, and generally horsing around.



Although I don't doubt that the guy you ran into broke a rear axle when he hit
a pothole or whatnot, I would bet that the actual damage was done sometime
before he hit the bump.  I bought a parts Midget from a guy that swore the
differential was broken.  All he did, he said, was drive down the road and
turn around in a dirt parking lot.  From experience, I knew right away it was
a broken axle.  The break was probably started days before it actually broke.



I suppose, if you hit a bump hard enough while accelerating, you might get
enough wheel hop to twist the axle.   I don't know.



At any rate, if you treat your MG like a 30++ year old classic car, you can
still have fun without breaking an axle.  Or drive like a maniac and buy axles
every few years.  As someone else noted, there is a thriving cottage industry
producing axles, some with "competition grade" (whatever that is) hardened
steel.



-Mike Eldred

'54 MG TF

'73 Midget



> > I ran into a guy today who used to have a 64 Sprite. He told me that he
> > would break his rear axles. I told him that I have never had that
problem.
> > He said that he was hard on his car and that if you hit the rear down at
an
> > angle they are likely to snap at the ends.
> >
> > Is this fairly common with our cars or was this guy a maniac of some sort
> > really pushing his car too hard on bumpy surfaces?
> >
> > I was not aware that this is a potential weak point?



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