Safety Fast June 2019

WELCOME TO THE MGB REGISTER NEWSLETTER

PUBLISHED IN THE June 2019 SAFETY FAST

I am writing these notes mid May, having NOT just MOT tested my MGB GT. It was scheduled for 7.00am. As I went to start my car the starter motor made a rattling noise… nothing more. How, in the name of all that is good and beautiful, has it got a flat battery? It has a smart charger almost permanently attached, certainly all winter though not for the past couple of weeks. In that time it has been driven, perhaps, 40 miles. This goes to prove the old adage. They do need driving and I have been sadly remiss in that department and have been caught out. I checked the car out at the end of last week; everything worked fine except the screen washer. Investigation proved that the washer bottle had cracked and the jet spout on the back of the hand pump had snapped off! How? They reside in almost total darkness and were merely 52 years old! Tim Kelly provided both components and a length of new hose and after much contortion on my back in the nearside foot well (I’m getting too old to do that) the system sprang to life. It produces enough of a sample to prove its claim to fame and, therefore, enough to satisfy the examiner. Which thought brings me to my conclusion. The current MOT expires on May 10. I cannot get it examined now before the 14th. It is taxed, from May 1 for 12 months (£0), insured and no longer requires an MOT, being the age it is. What is my legal position? Can I just drive it willy-nilly? Personally, I am confident that it is perfectly sound and fit for purpose but I would still like the reassurance of an inspection to a known standard by a competent motor engineer. John Watson, our esteemed Chairman, considers that an MOT, to whatever the standard is or will be, for older vehicles is the sensible option and I agree.

Just before going to press, my MGB GT passed it’s MOT with no advisories.


Shelsley Walsh Hill Climb The MGB Register will be at Shelsley Walsh on June 15 with a reserved parking area and discounted entry of £18 per ticket. All MG Car Club members are welcome. For full details and to book your tickets direct with the organisers, visit www.classicnostalgia.co.uk

Bicester Super Scramble Sunday June 23 Bigger, better and more action-packed than the well-established tri-annual open days, the Super Scramble will see the beautiful former RAF Technical Site filled with a specially curated collection of historic vehicles, the test track brought to life with cars demonstrating for the crowds and visiting aircraft on the historic airfield.

Classic Car and MG Summer Picnic Sunday August 4 Millets Farm Centre and Frosts Garden Centre offer various attractions and restaurants, something for everyone.

Who built your MGB? Sunday August 18 Here is a chance to meet the workers who built your MGB. Ex-Factory employees and MGB owners Welcome. Kimber House 10.30am

There are still a couple of places left on the MGBRegister weekend in Woodbridge, Suffolk, Friday 13 to Monday September 16. See the website for details.

DAVID BROADHURST
newsletter-editor@mgb-register.org