mgb or midget

Short legs & arms = Midget

Long legs & arms = MGB

MGB = Midget = FUN

Cheers Ian F

i love my midget but alas she is now wrapped up for winter cant way till spring next year

The Midget has a relatively tall windscreen, which you sit close to. The B has a shallower one, which you sit further away from. Result: the B is drafty. (I'm talking about hood down, of course). I've had both, and the Midget, with a tonneau over the pax side, was perfectly viable even in February. Not the B. However if you knees are less than perfect, the B is easier to get into. By modern standards the Midget is under geared, whereas the B might have an overdrive.

Gordon.

I hadn't considered this but had noticed the difference between the screens, very noticable with the hood up. I'm after a 'dry days' car but will certainly expect to drive it on odd days over the winter. I've heard that the Midget heater is not that efficient.

I always thought the heater in my Frog-eye was brilliant, especially with the tonneau over the pax side. You can shut off the vent into the pax footwell so all the heat comes into your side. Admittedly it is a digital heater, i.e. all or nothing, but you can shut off the air from inside the car. The one in the B I had (rubber bumper) was never as good even with the tonneau over the pax side. However on the rubber bumper Midget I had the heater air intake was right behind the bumper, so even with the fan on, there was next to no airflow. Maybe the B had the same problem; never having had a "proper" B I can't say.

Gordon

The heater on my 1970 AH Sprite is excellent in terms of heat - only problem is having to open the bonnet to switch it on or off! Not having driven a B I can't really comment on the relative merits, but my AH Sprite is reasonably practical (I'm 6'2") and arguably has more room inside than my Mazda MX-5. Its very chuckable and great fun.

Regards

Neil

Regards

Neil

Try dropping a nice used Rover V-8 into the ³B²; it won¹t be your ³family car with no roof² anymore. Twice the hp, less weight (improving the weight distribution). What¹s not to like?

I have owned both the Sprite, was as you have said, and was faster point to point driving on a fixed road 80Km twice a week.

MGB overall was 10 minutes slower but much more comfortable to do the journey. This did have the overdrive box. Longer trips of 400km the MGB was much better, longer legs, not as stressful to drive. Now I still have a B with the OD box and its good Sunday cruise car and I would not like to go back to a Sprite/Midget.

One thing I have noticed that they don't get better with age neither does myself.

rm

I've had several of each, from a Sprog-Eyed Fright to a rubber-bumpered

1500 Midget, and Bs from '65 through 72, including the current ' 70 GT ( which I love). All were great fun, but the B is far more useful in the 'real world'. Older Bs may be tired, and later ones asthmatic due to clogged primitive emissions junk etc. A good cam, good compression and good carburetion can make them quite lively.

I'm only about 5'9" but found the Spridgets a little awkward to get in and out of. My troubles in that regard pale into insignificance in comparison with any and all of the women who rode in the offside seat. I also don't like driving with the steering wheel up my nose. That's bearable for short runs, but after 100 miles it gets tedious.

The Midgets are very busy on major highways, and overdrive was never an option for them, unlike the B. Best solution for that is probably the switch to a nice 5-speed box from an old Datsun 210.