These are the type of sports cars you don't need to drive fast to have fun. English, classic, beautiful and timeless.
Roadster or GT?
The MGB is based on a classic British sports car concept. The original Roadster weighs just 871 kg without driver. It is powered by a 1,8 liter BMC engine that was improved several times during its production years. The standard gearbox was a 4-speed manual which could be ordered with an electrically controlled overdrive (Laycock de Normanville). There was also a 3-speed automatic from Borg-Warner.
From 1965 the model range was expanded with the GT model – a 2+2 seater with a fixed roof designed by Pininfarina. The roof solution gave a combi-coupé shape that became very popular in the USA. The MGB GT could be supplied with BMC's Rover 3.5 litre V8 engine.
Chrome or rubber
For the 1975 model year, something happened to the MGB that would make fans shudder. The beautiful front with chrome-plated grille and bumper was replaced with a "one-piece" of rubber - like a black rubber beak. It was of course the US market that demanded bumpers that could absorb impacts at low speeds. In retrospect, cars with chrome-plated fronts are the most sought after. They were picked up early as vintage cars. For this reason, maybe you can still get good deals on cars with rubber fronts?
Watch out for rust
This of course applies to all vintage cars. The rust appears in the usual places. The inner fenders at the front, in the channels and below. With self-supporting bodies, rust in the ducts is serious, especially for cars without a fixed roof.
MGB on the road
This is a type of sports car that you don't need to drive fast to have fun. Very easy to drive, responsive engine with a great engine sound and rack and pinion steering contribute to driving pleasure. You get a road feel that modern cars don't give and drive quite briskly without breaking the speed limits. Still, it can be used for long drives. Many customers chose cars with overdrive.
MGB Roadster
MGB Coupe GT
MGB "Rubber Bumper"
MG RVX NUMX
In 1986, British Leyland taken over by Rover Group which further developed the MGB into a new model with Rover's 3,9 liter V8 engine. The RV8 could do 0-100 in 6,3 seconds and a top speed of 217 km/h. The model was launched in 1992 and production ended in 1995 when the company was sold to BMW.
About the pictures
MGB Roadster
The main photo was taken on the occasion of the Norwegian Sports Car Club's annual spring mustering 2019 at Øvrevoll gallop. The red roadster with the hood up was photographed in Sandvika outside Oslo. The green car with Minilite rims was parked at Gulskogen farm in Drammen. The blue Roadster also participated in one of the Norwegian Sports Car Club's spring musterings. The green roadster with oak rims was photographed at the old air traffic control tower at Fornebu. The white street-parked car with Spanish veteran plates was photographed in the South of France. The street photo shows how a car like the MGB beautifies the surroundings. The white car with Belgian plates and tonneau cover is also pictured in the South of France. The two MGB roadsters were photographed on the occasion of the Fête d'auto 2024 in Palau del Vidre, Roussillon.
MGB Coupe GT
The red car with black French plates participated in a car day in the French city of Perpignan in 2023. The lemon yellow MGB GT participated in another car meeting in the same city. The green Coupé GT on cobblestones is photographed at Frogner in Oslo. The green and white MGB GT on grass, participated in one of the Norwegian Sports Car Club's spring musterings at the Oslo gallop track. The red car in profile and the GT V8 both participated in the Brooklands Summer Classic Gathering in 2023.
MGB "Rubber Bumper"
The red car with French registration number participated in a car show in Perpignan, France in 2023. The green car with rubber front was photographed in Skøyen/Lysaker in 2018. The yellow car with vinyl roof and rubber front participated in a car show in Sawbridgeworth, UK in 2026.
MG RVX NUMX
The green MG RV8 was photographed in Weybridge, UK, 2023. The image from the engine compartment was taken on a later occasion in Enfield Town.
The bonus pictures
The green car with the hood up was parked at the old air traffic control tower at Fornebu in 2020. The blue car was parked with other MGs at one of the Norwegian Sports Car Club's spring meetings. The car in close-up attended a car show in Brooklands, UK, 2024. The red car with the sunroof was photographed in a car park in Hertfordshire, UK, 2022.
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