Topic

John and Sue wrote: wrote:

I think it does have soul. Just not the soul of the sixties. Which was 'will it start?' 'Will it keep going?'

Steve wrote: wrote:

Cobber wrote: wrote:

The Honda Jizz and the like are nothing more than automotive white goods, as exciting as a washing machine but nowhere near as exciting as a fridge..........at least the fridge keeps the beer cold!

I have to disagree, Honda are extremely well made,<<<snip>>>And it went down hill from there (I saw it all ) Their bombs missed it the war but they kill it in the end (Not that I'm bitter )
John.

I couldn't agree more . Sadly we shall never know what could have been . As long as MG/Rover didn't follow too closely to Honda's heels as we own a Jizz ( look you've got me at it now! ) Jazz and I have to say it's about as exciting as EastEnders . The brakes are like mustard and are far too keen for my liking . The single cam 1.3 engine has to have the nuts revved out of it, cos once it sees a hill it gives up ! The only thing it is more than capable of doing is carrying 16 bags of manure for the garden .

Opinion
I don’t believe cars have souls, spirits, animas or other life forces despite the names that some are given but that is a theological debate rather than an automotive one.
I suggest that inanimate objects especially complex ones have the power to generate emotions within those who interact with them. Many car manufacturers believe this too as evidenced by their advertising. I might propose this as ‘aesthetics’ - what it feels like to interact with the object - to own and drive the car. There are undoubtedly cars whose aesthetics are more favourable than others and it is likely that self professed MG owners might agree more with each other about that than with others.
As an example consider the new Alpine a110. Beautiful external lines & design harking back strongly to a pretty and pretty successful 1970s sports car that took part in genuine sports. Recognisable French features inside and out. Engineering detail for lightness without compromise. According to reviews light precise sensing steering, suspension with grip but transmitting feeling to the driver, a revvy light turbo 4 engine with a long torque range and making a great sound. Minimum electrical interference with the driving experience by modern standards. A classic before it’s even launched. Wonderful aesthetics but it will never have a soul.

My MGs all seem to have moods, one day they'll drive really well, the next day not and then again well....strange but true.

Aesthetics - TF vs BM
I reflected a bit more on the idea of the aesthetics of owning cars. By that I mean not only the appearance inside and out, stationary and in motion, but also the experience of owning and driving a particular car day to day.
For some people who care most, or perhaps only, about absolute reliability, functionality and comfort, (probably in that order) the Honda Jazz is an optimum driving experience because it’s aesthetic appeals to them as I’ve mentioned already.
From my perspective the car that my MGF effectively replaced was a E93 BM 330d M sport cabriolet. I bought it as I thought it could excel at all things. A cabriolet, sporting & fun to drive being a BM, 4 seater, economical easy long distance cruiser, great looking & stylish inside and out.
It is indeed very stylish and the metal roof mechanism is impressive enough to put a Transformer to shame. The front seats are very comfortable and nothing ever went wrong. 37mpg. However everything else about it was a great disappointment especially the driving experience. Basically it was just too heavy and felt it. The underbody reinforcements, the folding roof, the 6 cylinder engine and the heavy controls contrived together to give no feedback whatsoever. There was no excitement in the exhaust note only an aggressive snarl. A narrow torque band with a heavy gear change made enthusiastic progress along winding roads tedious. It was quite fast and had plenty of grip but there was no fun in any of it except posing which wouldn’t work for this particular driver. The back seat was also uncomfortable and embarrassing to access. Added to this my wife hated it (because it had none of the attributes of a Jazz).
Fortunately my son came up with a MGTF. On this site we all appreciate its virtues so no more needs to be written here about them. (But don’t let me stop any of you). It needed a couple of little jobs but was v cheap as a consequence. It is infinitely more fun to drive and own every day than the BM, if not so fast. Roads Down South are too busy for fast anyway. Top up and down are each 4-5 second jobs compared to 22 seconds in the BM so I can access the open air while the lights turn green. I have changed aspects of the car here and there to make it suit my particular needs. It has a slightly bigger and more practical shaped boot than the BM and I don’t need to worry that a hydraulic roof mechanism will crush something in the boot, distort itself and cost a goldmine to replace. A MG needs a bit more low level care and attention than a modern BM but that is one of its pleasures. For me this 15 year old car is aesthetically wonderful.

Back in 2009 my Motorman
son got us a MGBGT which was offered on the scrappage scheme against - I won’t say what. We thought that to scrap it was a travesty so bought it with a small premium for the seller. I thought I could turn it into an everyday driver. Here is a description of our efforts together - the difficult bits done by Motorman himself.
MGBGT 1971 - 109k genuine miles, Tax free, 12m MOT Full service 2m ago + carb balance, burned no oil & no drips, pressure 60+, -O/D, 123 electronic ignition, S/S exhaust, Kenlowe fan, didn't overheat,
New parabolic rear springs and spax,
New W/W and new spinners, new kingpins and polyurethane bushes, front bearings, discs, calipers, tracking.
halogen headlights,
Motolita S/W, new leather seats, doors cards & replaced main carpets. Motorola radio converted for ipod/iphone.
Respray and new windscreen.
Rebuilt window winding mechanisms.
It looked lovely and was reliable but it wouldn’t make a daily driver.


It was too noisy - tho mostly a good noise - and rattled too much. The heating, ventilation and lighting was inadequate. The seats were not that comfortable. The security was feeble. I sorely missed things that one takes for granted like internally lit switches. Also the handling wasn’t that good.
Since I’m not a collector I sold it and luckily didn’t lose too much.
Modern cars have come too far since MG’s 1960s designs, for me at least, but a 1990s design TF still cuts it easily.