1968 MG B ROADSTER - Heritage Rebuild

The included V5 document shows a total of 11 owners have enjoyed this MGB. However, those in possession post-1991 have certainly enjoyed a far better example than those immediately prior to that date. That’s because it underwent a full restoration utilising a Heritage body shell.

The then owner stated that the ‘body was shot and required £1700 in welding’ so it was either scrap or restore. Thankfully she chose the latter and employed a local garage, Hampton Motors in East London, to complete the work. Unfortunately the paperwork for the body rebuild is no longer with the car, as it disappeared at some time during that owner’s five house moves.

After passing through the hands of several dealers, the car was bought from Sussex Sports Cars by John Brown in February 2011 for the sum of £9000. This was after seeing a Case History report in Classic & Sports Car magazine.

The immediate previous owner bought it from Philip Welch Sports Cars in Dunnington, with our man Robert purchasing the car directly from him last year after searching ‘the length and breadth of the UK looking for the best MGB Roadster I could find’. That of course, means it looks and runs very sweet indeed.

He’s selling as he’s now found an original Irish registered car, built and registered in Ireland, and as a man of that fine Isle it’s the perfect fit. ‘If the Irish car hadn’t turned up then I’d definitely be keeping this car.’

As our video demonstrates it fires first time and the B-Series lump spins freely without a hint of lumpiness. On our test drives, it has impressed much more than many of the more expensive cars we have; it’s a dextrous little thing, with the suspension feeling nicely taut, the engine starts instantly and cleanly, warms up well with good oil pressure, and continues to spin over really smoothly for a B. The brakes are good and the gear changes (and working overdrive) have a pleasant and issue-free action. Best of all is that fruity little exhaust note always in accompaniment just behind your shell-like.

What’s the biggest concern for any owner of a steel-bodied classic car in this most moist and salty island of ours? It’s a rhetorical question, of course.

Here’s another: what’s the largest assurance any potential buyer of a steel-bodied classic car in this most moist and salty island of ours can have? Yep, it’s a rebuild using a Heritage body shell.

Even if you soda blast or have a car dipped there’s no guarantee every last bit of rust from every nook, cranny and seam will be removed. However, with a brand new body shell it’s a completely different matter.

Yes, it is an older restoration. However, since its completion the car has been garaged and well looked after. In correspondence between two of its last four owners, and in history file receipts there’s also repeated mention of the substance Waxoyl.

With this in mind the body remains in extremely good condition. Lifting the carpets reveals solid floor pans, although the passenger side has the beginnings of some very minor surface rust – a quick wire brush and repaint will do the trick here. Similarly the boot floor has no issues whatsoever. Panel fit on the Heritage body is excellent (not always guaranteed), with perfectly aligned upper body chrome trim and the sills are wonderfully clean. The only other minor issue we can find is a couple of small bubbles on the boot lid around the MG badge; it looks as if someone has made an attempt to fit it, but had to redo the job. It must be stressed though that this is a very minor beef indeed.

As the most desirable of the breed there’s a profusion of chrome and it’s all in very good nick too. The wire wheels are painted silver – the preference of the current, and prior to current owner – but could be chromed should the next owner so wish. The Firestone F580 tyres have loads of tread remaining.

Up top the soft-top roof material is as good as new, and there’s also a fairly unused looking tonneau cover provided.

The black interior stands up to scrutiny and matches the exterior condition. As vendor Robert states ‘the interior and engine bay are in show condition’. We can confirm that is definitely the case. There are very few signs of use, with nice unworn carpets and seats (re-finished in leather at some point) on the cusp of developing a pleasing patina. The original three-spoke MG steering wheel is in very good condition, as are the dashboard (although there’s the slightest nick in it just behind the steering wheel) and all chrome-rimmed dials.

The car has completed a total of just 6000 miles since it’s top end engine, and gearbox, rebuild in 2010/11. Pop the bonnet and again it remains ‘in show condition’, as per Robert’s opinion. There’s no grime or other road debris, just clean metal (with the minor exception of a tiny rust bubble appearing under the paint on the front edge of each sill).

Underneath the car presents as well as it does above, with nice clean wheel arches and solid, well-protected floors. Again it’s testament to regular use only on dry and sunny days.

Mechanically there appears nothing to report - as mentioned, the test drive was also very impressive.

Please feel free to pop round and sample it for yourself, use the Contact Seller button to arrange a viewing.

The most important inclusions in this car’s history file are the comprehensive photographs of the body rebuild using a Heritage body shell. These demonstrate the full extent of the car’s restoration and should provide manna from heaven for any potential bidders.

Also included are other invoices from around the same time in 2010/11, which show that the engine cylinder head was re-profiled, skimmed and had the valve seats reset. Fresh engine mountings were used when the power plant was fitted and it was mated to a rebuilt gearbox.

More recent invoices are also present and show that, in the last three years, the present owner has continued to improve the car. This has included replacing many clips, gaskets and fittings, as well as shock absorbers and having the braking system rebuilt.

There are also a number of previous MOTs included.

Please visit the documents section of the gallery of this listing where you will find photos of this and other paperwork to support our claim that this car has been maintained to the very highest standard.

Bodily restored in the early Nineties and continually fettled and improved since, we think that this is a superb example of this much-loved model. As such we think it’ll sell for between £13,000 (07/06: revised) and £20,000, which is a realistic price for a really well sorted example.

There’s room for some minor tweaking by the new owner, but that Heritage body ensures peace of mind and ensures that this is definitely one to put in your garage and bring out to enjoy on any sunny-, high- or holi-day. Or equally pop it on a show stand and you won’t be disappointed.

MGB values are like an ocean liner in the high seas, in that they fluctuate very little and maintain a slow, but steady upward trend. Buying one in this condition means that frugal, top-down motoring awaits, but best of all, on sale, you should at least return your original investment.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located at The Market's HQ, here in Abingdon, South Oxfordshire; to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.

If needed, please remember we have a network of trusted suppliers we work with regularly and can recommend: Classic & Sportscar Finance for purchase-financing, Thames Valley Car Storage for storing your car, AnyVan for transporting it, and Footman James for classic car insurance.

BORING, but IMPORTANT: Please note that whilst we at The Market always aim to offer the most descriptive and transparent auction listings available, we cannot claim they are perfect analyses of any of the vehicles for sale. We offer far greater opportunity for bidders to view, or arrange inspections for each vehicle thoroughly prior to bidding than traditional auctions, and we never stop encouraging bidders to take advantage of this. We do take a good look at the vehicles delivered to our premises for sale, but this only results in our unbiased personal observations, not those of a qualified inspector or other professional, or the result of a long test drive.

Additionally, please note that most of the videos on our site have been recorded using simple cameras which often result in 'average' sound quality; in particular, engines and exhausts notes can sound a little different to how they are in reality.