1973 MGB GT V8

Finished in Damask Red with a navy interior and chrome bumpers, you might be forgiven for thinking this is just another, albeit very tidy, MGB GT V8.

However, it’s anything but because it’s a pre-production, US-spec car whose first owner kept it for 45 years – and that man was none other than Cliff Humphries, the MG Competitions Department senior engineer at the time.

Cliff secured it from the factory as a glassed-in and trimmed bodyshell for the princely sum of £100 in December 1975 and set about rebuilding it, converting it to right-hand drive in the process. Although the body had been made, painted and trimmed in 1973 it sat outside the factory unfinished as the US Spec V8 production was shelved.

The following year saw him source a pre-production V8 engine and gearbox for £100, plus a rear axle for another £20, taking the project one step closer to completion.

Interestingly, the V8 engine and gearbox came from the development department, with the former only ever having been run on the dyno, where it made a healthy 148bhp.

The eagle-eyed will have noticed it has an unusual engine number. This is because it was produced by General Motors and then shipped to Rover where they were given a ‘2158’ number, meaning 215 cubic inches and eight cylinders. The engine’s got red rocker covers too, instead of the black ones fitted to the 2,500 production cars.

Cliff ran the MGB between the 1970s and 2008, at which point ill-health forced him to lay the car up. It was off the road for a decade before being sold to Mike Authers, the well-known MG Midget specialist, who asked one of his team, Geoff Clark, to recommission it.

Geoff was a great choice to do this because he used to work with Cliff, so knew him and the car well. In fact, the only reason Mike got to hear about the car was because Geoff knew Cliff needed to sell and asked Mike if he knew anyone who might be interested…

It’s been in Mike’s hands now for three years, during which time he and Geoff have trod the delicate line between restoration and conservation with infinite care.

Still having covered just 25,000 miles from new, we are thrilled to be able to offer this one-off MGB GT V8 as an unrepeatable part of MG folklore.

The original bodyshell had been sitting outside for two years by the time Cliff bought it, so it was a little weather-beaten. However, part of the £100 deal was for it to go through Rectification at the factory – and you can still see where they resprayed the body to bring it up to a satisfactory standard, especially underneath where there is some overspray.

Mike says it’s “still very presentable” but is keen for potential bidders to understand this isn’t a concours car. He left it as it is because a car is only original once and this is exactly how it left Cliff; it’s patinated and that patina is a crucial part of the car’s history, overspray and all.

Not that’s it’s a dog because everything still aligns beautifully and there’s no real rust to deal with, just some minor cracking and lifting to the paintwork here and there. Please come and take a look for yourself but we think its delightful and salute Mike on a job well done in preserving it.

The 14-inch alloy wheels, which are the correct ones for the V8 model and the set Cliff fitted in around 1978 shortly after finishing everything else, are wearing Michelin X tyres that’re at least 40 years old.

So, yes, despite the absence of cracks and perishing that saw them go through an MoT without comment, you’ll need to change them if you’re going to drive the car but if you’re just going to show them, they’re pukka.

It’s got great chromework too, plus excellent lamp lenses, glazing, and badges.

This all means that, tyres aside, there isn’t really anything to do. Of course, you could respray it but that would be an unwarranted act of vandalism that would destroy its history and probably harm its value.

The interior features the correct blue cloth seats that Cliff fitted back in the 1970s. The covers might be a little loose and rumpled now but – again – they’re original. Kangol Reflex seatbelts too, for the win.

There’s a simple bench seat in the rear, which means you can carry four people in total and while those in the back might be a little uncomfortable over long journeys the flexibility this arrangement offers lifted the MGB GT above the more usual two-seater British sportscars.

The door cards are in an even better condition than the seats. Blue to match the rest of the interior, they’re in fine fettle and look utterly lovely.

The floor covering comprises rubber mats, which are also original. The only thing Mike notes isn’t strictly correct are the carpeted inner sills, which would have been rubber originally, too. However, these perished, forcing Cliff to replace them with a different material. So, they are correct, but correct to Cliff’s specification rather than MG’s.

Lifting them shows nothing but solid metal underneath, and it’s the same story with the sills, door posts, and boot floor.

The dashboard and steering wheel are modest and simple. Finished in black, they’re as good-looking as they are effective. The MGB GT’s cabin really is a lovely place to be and shows that good design needn’t rely on wood and leather to give it gravitas.

There’s a period Radiomobile radio in the centre console plus a map light and an old school cigar lighter. Even the lettering on the switchgear is still bright and vivid. But then you could have guessed that by now, couldn’t you?

Like the exterior, you could find work to do but to do almost any of it would be to miss the point.

After he stopped building Monte Carlo winning Mini Coopers, Cliff went on to build the engines for the Group B Metro 6R4, so it’s fair to say he knew his way around an engine.

It won’t surprise you, therefore, to hear he stripped the V8 right down before checking it and rebuilding it – and this was, you’ll recall, an engine that hadn’t done anything more strenuous that run on a dyno in its life but it’s a mark of the man that he tore it down anyway.

Sitting unused for a decade from 2008 did the car no favours, so Mike asked Geoff to go through the MGB to recommission it, replacing rubber seals and hoses in areas like the cooling, braking, and fuel systems.

The condition of the engine bay is lovely. Obviously.

As is the underside. Cliff always intended to keep the car for a very long time, so he drilled holes throughout the MGB so he could inject it with Waxoyl. This foresightedness has left it remarkably free of corrosion and it must be one of the best unrestored MGBs in the country.

The history file is stuffed full of receipts, including ones for the trimmed bodyshell, engine and gearbox, and the back axle back in December 1975, July 1976, and March 1977 respectively.

There are plenty of old MoT certificates and tax discs, too plus a copy of MG Enthusiast from January 2021 in which this very car features.

The MGB’s MoT certificate is valid until October 2023 and it probably won’t surprise you to hear it was gained without a single advisory.

The V5 shows three keepers, but the first was the owner of the donor car that contributed its chassis number, first set of wheels and some minor parts. It’s actually only had two: Cliff, and the seller.

Everyone knows and loves the MGB and few models are as revered as the GT V8 - and if that’s what you’ve got your eye on then this has to be at the very top of your shortlist.

One of only nine pre-production cars, Mike thinks this one might be the elusive ‘missing’ car, the one that disappeared because no-one knew that Cliff and had bought it – and because Cliff wasn’t one for social events and MG Club meets, never really displayed it or showed it off.

Offered in largely original condition – the only changes have been to the sort of stuff you’d expect during a recommission – we aren’t sure how to value a car like this.

Because the stuff that would normally de-value a car like the 40-year-old tyres and minor imperfections in the paintwork, actually work in its favour; cars are only original once and they don’t get any more original than this, not if you want one with an MoT you can actually use.

Our best estimate is that the virtual hammer will fall somewhere between £23,000 and £28,000. Which, for a one-off piece of MGB history like this seems like fine value.

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and this lot is located in Abingdon, Oxfordshire. Viewings are strictly by appointment. To make a booking, 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, and read our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.