Speaking of swaps, the other night I had some stunning and not-so-
gratifying dreams. I dreamed of MGB's, and the day of reckoning.
The day that every belittled rubber-bumpered MGB dreams of - the day
the price of an RBB starts to climb.
No, I'm not saying that within the next year or two the RBB cars from
74.5 on are going to double or triple in value. Right now, they're
being bought up and made into better cars. The leaky Zenith carbs
are being replaced, the suspensions are being lowered, and the
strangled engines are being swapped out for 215 V-8's. But, one day,
these 'better' RBB cars will attract less money and attention than
the original car did.
Why, you might ask, will a car with obvious production flaws and 67
horsepower attract more attention than a well-done Rover V-8
conversion? Because everyone is changing these cars. In 10-20
years, a dead-stock '75 MGB will be hard to find. Collectors with
big pockets and heated garages will pay big bucks for an original RBB
car because there won't be many left! Most will have been de-smogged
since popular opinion right now says these cars need to be modified.
And that makes a stock RBB car worth something in the future.
You might be laughing right now. This could be a big joke. But, if
you'll think back and dredge up some information about the '63
corvette, I can make a point. '63 was the last year the hartop
Corvettes were made with a split rear window. The ensuing years used
a one piece window in the rear of the hardtops. Plenty of guys who
had fresh '63 vettes were bummed out in '64 when the new style
arrived. To give the impression of a newer, more attractive car, some
fellows cut the bar from the rear window of their '63s and used the
newer style of glass. Now, in the '90s, an original '63 split-window
vette fetches more money than a '64 because there aren't many
original '63s left with a split window.
So, to those of you with grand aspirations of modifying your RBB MG
to accept chrome bumpers and grille, remember the story of the '63
vette. And to anyone with a 'fresh' RBB car, please save your
original smog equipment, even if you decide to run a Weber or
whatnot. For those of you who have read this far and think I'm full
of it, please respond in a private e-mail as to the price you would
like for the smog equipment from your RBB car. I have a '77 that
_might_ be worth something someday.
Thank you for the forum, enjoy the rest of your day.
Mike Lishego
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