Hi all,
I am a lurker for the most part here and bought a 59 MGA a few months
back as some may or may not remember. I have a silver Kenneth Cole
watch black face and also my grandfathers railroad pocketwatch, this is
my only MG to date and I am 33 years old.
Well the PO's daughter (he is deceased) has finally cleaned out the
garage enough for me to get to it and I have finally moved the MGA from
its 25+ year resting spot to it's new resting spot in my garage. I put
new tires on it and it rolled right out. I was surprised that nothing
was seized up. The tires rolled freely and the steering was relatively
easy to turn. It only took two of us to push it up on the trailer and
haul it off. Of coarse it took a long bed pick up to haul all the
pieces that the PO had accumulated over the years. I am in the process
of taking inventory right now and trying to organize things. A single
car garage is not the best working environment but I will make due and
keep you posted on progress....however slow that might be.
Here is what I would like advise on.....
I am "ok" as a mechanic and willing to learn. I have contacted a local
shop about a possible rebuild of the motor and he is telling me I am in
the $3500-4000 price range with a 1 year guarantee on the motor. Is
this a decent price? Would I be better off reading a bunch of books,
finding a good machine shop and doing it myself? What are the gotcha's
in that department?
Should I even try to crank it over with an oil/spark plug change? The
engine is complete and all the gears on the transmission
engage/disengage easily. It is tempting but I am afraid I will do more
damage which means more $$$$.
Thanks for reading this far and any opinions/advise offered.
Bobby
59MGA (happy to have seen some sunshine)
98 Jeep.
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