Sources of Technical Expertise
Are you wanting to know more about repairing or restoring your British sports car?
It's often hard to find knowledge and expertise regarding them long after they were manufactured.
It turns out there are a large number of very knowledgeable people who still restore and maintain their Classic British sports cars.
Here are just a few resources for restoration and maintenance. Most of these are for MGB's, but almost all the information is transportable to other cars. By doing an Internet Search you can find the ones for your vehicle. I found all of these during the past several years using the Google search engine, but others will work as well.
Click on any of the logos or pictures below to open a window for the appropriate website.
 It's helpful to know both the American and British words or spellings for car parts (i.e., "wing" = "fender," "hood" = "top," "drop head" = "convertible top," "bonnet" = "hood," "boot" = "trunk," "carburettor" = "carburetor," "petrol" = "gas/gasoline/fuel," "spanner" = "wrench," etc.). For a directory of British vs. American terms, go to: British-American or click the logo to the left.
 You Tube has a lot of helpful "how to" video clips. If your car isn't an MG, go to You Tube by clicking on the logo to the left, then do a YouTube search for your marque (brand) using the appropriate keywords (such as "brake" or "steering" or "suspension" or "carburetor" etc. - note that you'll need to know alternate British spellings to get also get videos posted by British authors). You'll almost certainly find some videos. If there are none, do a Google search for your car name with such words as "repair," "service," "maintenance," "help," etc.
 The MGB Experience LINKS Page has a helpful page listing dozens of websites that provide extensive information on MGB's. For the directory of MGB sites click the logo to the left. For other British marques (brands), do an Internet search for your marque (Austin, Jaguar, Morris, Triumph, etc.) and as many key words as you can think of until you come across the right site or sites.
The MGB Experience LIBRARY Pagesite is an excellent website full of charts and a complete library of information. Take the time to browse around it and you'll find lots of useful information and many answers to common problems. Click on the logo to the right.
John Twist does a series of 7-minute "how to" videos on You Tube that are excellent. John is also the "Tech Tips" editor of MGB Driver, the publication of the North American MGB Register (NAMGBR). He does these excellent instructionals on such subjects as brakes, carburetors, tuning, etc. For advice on working on MG's, go to You Tube - John Twist's MG Videos or you can go to You Tube by clicking on the logo to the right, then do a YouTube search for your marque (brand) using the appropriate keywords (such as "brake" or "steering" or "suspension" or "carburetor" etc. - note that you'll need to know alternate British spellings to get also get videos posted by British authors). If there are none, do a Google search for your car name with such words as "repair," "service," "maintenance," "help," etc.
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| Click to Go to the Yahoo MG-MGB Group |
Click the Yahoo Auto Groups buttom to the right, then, using their Search function, enter the type of Classic Car you're interested in (i.e., MGB, Spridget, Sprite, Midget, Austin Healey, Jaguar, Aston Martin, Morris Minor, etc.). You'll sometimes get some non-appropriate hits, but, in general, you'll find several Bulletin Boards that have information that will benefit you. The "Join" process is usually simple and quick... and then you can start posting your questions.
However, do the existing members a favor: First, buy a manual for your car. You can usually find them on eBay or other sources for anywhere from $20 to $50.
It can get tiring to already-existing members to have a new member suddenly asking dozen of questiions (like "where is the fuel pump") that are easily answered by opening a manual. Save the Bulletin Board for questions that are difficult to find even after reading the manual.
The North American MGB Register is the authoritative source for MGB's, primarily in the US and Canada. I strongly recommend you join it. Its approximately $32/year membership is a steal. It includes a subscription to the 11 times per year MGB Driver, full of articles of interest and about the best tech tips section around.
The Pages of Bee and Veeby Paul Hunt of England is also a frequent contributor to the Yahoo MG-MGB Group. He is exceptionally expert and seems to be willing to address any question at any level of difficulty. His site is loaded with useful information.
Moss Motors website page for Technical Specs has information on virtually all models and years for: MG's, Triumphs, Austin Healeys, Mini's, Jaguars, and Spridgets. Click on the logo to the left.
To see an additional website with lots of additional of information on taking a stored car back into operation, use Tony's checklist approach - it's quite thorough. Click this link: Awakening a Sleeping MG
The MGB Club has a series of blogs and articles covering many different aspects of restoration and performance.
 Tony Barnhill has an excellent site on selecting your "Little British Car" - it is more comprehensive than mine and is probably updated more often: http://www.theautoist.com/buying_an_mg1.htm. While it's specifically oriented to the MGB marque, virtually everything is transferrable to other "LBC's" - or any older car, for that matter.
Steve Simmons is knowledgeable and is a frequent helpful contributor on the Yahoo Auto Groups MG-MGB Group bullentin board. His MG Nuts Dot Com website has useful information; it also shows how many other MG enthusiasts organize their garages for work on their cars. Click on the picture to the left.
The British Car Forum is a "tech talk" bullentin board that has topics for many marques (brands) of British cars each with many "threads" that cover various sub-topics (i.e., brakes, engine tuning, high performance, racing, interior work, etc.). Click logo to the right to go to the forum.
British V8 covers the issues relevant to both V6 and V8 conversions. In addition to engine swapout concerns, it also addresses front and rear suspension systems, including a variety of total suspension replacement systems that better handle the higher torque of the bigger engines. It's a well-done online magazine with many useful articles.
The MG Site Ring below is a webring (a succession of linked websites) that covers the MGB. You can space through them and will find some to have useful information.
Mannheim Gold Book: Want to know the "best case" value of your car in various states of condition. Go to the Mannheim Gold Book website and enter the appropriate information. This is more oriented to what it could be sold for by professionals, but it will give you a good idea of its insurance value.
Do you have more information on buying & restoring a British?... please submit the website address and a short description of why you find it useful and what to do. Go to the Contact Us
page of this website to submit it.
See a variety of Classic Car and modeling WebRings & websites at the
Entry Portal - just click on the picture or the underlined link above.
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