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1978 MGB GT

Working Together – Fitting the New Sills on the 1978 MG B GT

May 27, 2022

The workshop team have been getting the new inner and outer sills fitted to the 1978 MG B GT which is in for restoration with Bridge Classic Cars.

The sills are being replaced by the team due to areas of corrosion and damage to the shell which had found their way into the sills of the classic sports car. The inner and outers were carefully cut out of the car before the high quality replacements were offered up and the area trimmed to accept them before being welded in.

Metalwork – Further Body Repairs to the 1978 MG B GT

May 24, 2022

The restoration teams in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop have been carrying on with the metal repairs to the bodyshell of the 1978 MG B GT.

The team have methodically been cutting out any form of corrosion from the classic sports car for it to be replaced with high-quality panels that we have sourced for the project. Each piece of the car is carefully inspected and assessed to see just how far the corrosion has gone into the bodyshell which is then removed and replaced.

From Front to Back – Repairing the Wheel Arch and Rear Valance on the 1978 MG B GT

April 25, 2022

The Bridge Classic Cars restoration workshop has been busy continuing the bodywork repairs on the 1978 MG B GT in with us for restoration.

The team have worked through the classic MG from front to back removing and replacing any corrosion in the body or sub-structure. Recently the team finished up work on the side sills and pillars before moving on to the rear of the car.

Rob, one of our restoration technicians who has been working on the project, removed the old passenger side rear wheel arch due to its condition. Using this as a rough template for the replacement piece, Rob has precisely cut and fit the new piece into the body of the car which allowed him to keep moving rearward on the car and complete the final fitment of the rear valance.

Like New – Continuing the Metal Work on the 1978 MG B GT

April 22, 2022

The workshop team at Bridge Classic Cars have been making good progress on the body shell of the 1978 MG B GT in with us for restoration at our Suffolk HQ.

Our restoration technician Rob has been working on cutting out any form of corroded metal from the car to make sure everything is structurally right and lining up properly. Firstly, he worked on getting the rear valance of the classic MG B sorted.

The old valance was heavily corroded and warped so our team sourced a replacement panel and began the process of carefully removing the old piece in such a way as to not damage any of the mounting surfaces behind it. All of the surfaces behind the valance were cleaned and prepared ahead of the new piece firmly welded into place.

Next, Rob finished the work needed to the bottoms of the A-pillars. This needed to be done before the team could begin fitting and placing the new sills. With the old sills cut out of the car and the new ones trimmed and clamped they could be welded into place taking into account the new A-Pillar and the mounted door to ensure there was no overlap or conflict between any of the pieces.

Finally, Rob could cut out the rear arch. This was heavily corroded and in need of replacement. So carefully the spot welds were cut out and the original piece taken out before offering up the replacement arch.

Piece by Piece – Metalwork Continues on the 1978 MG B GT

April 20, 2022

The bodyshell of the 1978 MG B GT in the Bridge Classic Cars in-house restoration workshop at our Suffolk HQ has had more metal work repairs.

Rob, one of our restoration technicians, has been working his way methodically through the repairs needed to the car. The team have been working their way from the bottom to the top to make sure that everything is square and secure to the chassis. The biggest job tackled recently was remaking and resecuring the bottom of the drivers-side A-pillar which was heavily corroded and was allowing a lot of flex through the inner wheel arch and many of the pickup points for the door.

Along with that, Rob has finished welding the new door skin to the repaired door frame for the passenger side of the car. And with that, could bolt the door up to the car to double-check fitment and alignment.

Solid Foundations – Further Metal Work on the 1978 MG B GT

April 14, 2022

The Bridge Classic Cars restoration teams have been continuing work on the metal repairs to the 1978 MG B GT.

Our technician, Rob, has been systematically carrying on with removal and repairs to the body shell and doors for the classic sports car. Rob has worked on remaking several key flanges and plates which had corroded away on the car and would be needed not only for the structure but also for the alignment of the panels once the MG B enters our in-house body shop.

Keep a look out on the Bridge Classic Cars news page for more updates on the 1978 MG B GT.

Progress – Body Repairs to the 1978 MGB GT Continue

April 13, 2022

The restoration team at Bridge Classic Cars have made good progress on the body repairs to the 1978 MGB GT which is in for restoration.

The team have been systematically and methodically working through the classic sports car to get the shell into the best shape possible before it is taken into our body team to be refinished further.

Rob, one of our technicians, has been carefully removing any areas of the car which hold any current or questionable corrosion and replacing them with replacement panels or hand fabricated patch panels to ensure that the whole car is back to being in solid metal.

Included in that, is reskinning the doors. The outer skin on one particular door had become heavily corroded but the frame it was attached to was in solid condition. So, Rob carefully removed the old skin and fit up the new replacement stamping which will be welded in and finished.

Piece by Piece – Body Repairs on the 1978 MGB GT

March 22, 2022

The bodywork on the 1978 MGB GT which is in for restoration with Bridge Classic Cars continues while the rest of the car is being worked on by the various other restoration departments.

The bodywork on the car has been worked on piece by piece, with any remnants of corrosion or rust completely removed from the shell of the classic sports car.

Using replacement patch panels, the areas were carefully cut out and the metal replaced piece by piece.

Refinished – Painting and Refinishing the Block and Parts of the 1978 MGB GT Engine

March 22, 2022

Once the engine and parts had been thoroughly cleaned by our restoration workshop for the 1978 MGB GT in with Bridge Classic Cars for restoration, they could be transferred over to the paint shop to be refinished.

Chris and the paint team worked on getting each piece cleaned and prepared before being taken into the paint booth. Each piece was individually painted whether in the maroon heavy-duty paint or the deep, silky black for some of the accessories.

Once everything had correctly cured, they were taken back into the restoration workshop for the engine to be reassembled ready for when the time comes to be reinstalled into the restored body.

Rebuilt – Rebuilding the Distributor and Carburettors of the 1978 MGB GT

March 22, 2022

The restoration technicians in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop at our Suffolk HQ have been busy rebuilding and cleaning up the distributor and carburettors of the 1978 MGB GT.

Rob began by carefully disassembling the distributor on the classic MGB. The internals of the distributor was assessed and inspected, with the decision being to entirely rebuild the whole component and clean up the casing.

The next job was to work on stripping down the SU carburettors and manifolds to assess them. Once the assessment was complete, our technician Rob cleaned up each and every piece of the carburettors before beginning the process of rebuilding and recommissioning the vital intake components.

With these jobs complete, Rob could begin to prepare the engine block for refurbishment and paint.

Checking Over – Inspecting the Pieces Removed from the 1978 MGB GT

March 16, 2022

The Bridge Classic Cars workshop team have been working on inspecting pieces from the 1978 MGB GT which were removed before it entered the body shop.

Our restoration technician Rob has been going through each of the parts to decide if new parts will be required or if they can be refurbished for use in the restoration of the classic sports car.

Finished Up – Refoaming and Recovering the Rear Seat of the 1978 MGB GT

March 16, 2022

The rear seat of the 1978 MGB GT in for restoration at Bridge Classic Cars has been refoamed and recovered by our in-house trim shop to match the rest of the car.

Whilst the body is in with our body shop, the interior is being revamped by the team in the trim shop. Lydia has completely remade the foam for the rear seat of the classic MGB. This was all for recovering the rear seat in black leather to match the front seats of the car.

Each piece has been finished by hand to make sure the best fit and finish for the piece is achieved.

Now with this piece finished, it will be wrapped and put into storage for when the car is ready for reassembly.

From Scratch – Making the New Rear Seat Coverings for the 1978 MGB GT

March 15, 2022

The trim team at Bridge Classic Cars have been working on handmaking the new rear seat cover for the 1978 MGB GT in for restoration.

The rear seat is being refinished in black leather to match the rest of the car. For this, Lydia used the original cover as a template to work from to get the best fit for the seat. Along with the new covering is new leather straps and a felt/carpet base piece to cover the wooden base board of the seat.

Unpicked – Deconstructing the Rear Seat of the 1978 MGB GT

March 14, 2022

The trim team at Bridge Classic Cars have been working on very carefully unpicking and deconstructing the rear seat of the 1978 MGB GT.

Brian carefully unpicked all the stitching of the rear seat in order to assess and inspect the piece.

He also has been making new straps for the car out of handpicked leather to suit the rest of the cars interior.

Clean Down – Cleaning Up the Engine and Gearbox from the 1978 MGB GT

March 11, 2022

With the bodywork on the 1978 MGB GT currently happening in the Bridge Classic Cars body shop, the restoration technicians in the workshop have taken the opportunity to clean up the engine and gearbox in preparation to go back in the car at a later date.

Our technician Rob has completely steam cleaned both the engine block, cylinder head and gearbox of the classic MGB. After plugging up any oil galleys and vital ports (as well as the exposed valvetrain), he could use our high pressured steam clean to knock the years of dirt and road grime off the 4 cylinder powertrain from the car.

Once thoroughly cleaned and dried, the engine and gearbox were put back together and stored ready for when the restoration calls for the drivetrain and the body to meet again.

Assess and Repair – Removing and Repairing the Interior of the 1978 MGB GT

March 9, 2022

The trim shop at Bridge Classic Cars worked on removing the interior of the 1978 MGB GT before it headed to our body shop to begin its rust repairs.

With the interior of the classic MGB removed and safely upstairs into our in-house trim shop, the team could begin working through the interior for the car.

The front seats of the sports car are in incredible condition, all that was needed was to tighten up the clips to pull the covers a touch tighter and regrease the mechanisms to avoid any unpleasant squeaking.

The rear seat of the MGB GT had slightly more wear, however. The ends of the foam panel underneath had deteriorated away so the trim team removed the cover and carefully cut and sectioned in new pieces to the ends of the base.

The next job was to strip back and inspect the rear squab panel. This involved the removal of all hardware, covers and foam from the panel.

Looking Deeper – Bodywork on the 1978 MGB GT Begins

March 3, 2022

The 1978 MGB GT in with Bridge Classic Cars for restoration has been completely stripped back to bare metal to get a better look at the condition of the body shell.

As you can see, the car is going to need some repairs in several places. This will be done with the various brand new reproduction body panels, then this classic sports car will be back together and ready for its bodywork and paintwork by the Bridge Classic Cars paint shop.

Blackout – Refinishing Trim Pieces for the 1978 MGB GT

February 18, 2022

The paint team at Bridge Classic Cars have some of the trims and pieces from the 1978 MGB GT in the paint booth to be refinished.

Whilst the body of the MGB is having its metalwork completed, the paint team took the opportunity to refinish several of the trims and fixings in a new heavy-duty black finish for the classic sports car. This not only is aesthetic but also will help protect the pieces, which were taken back to bare metal, while they’re in storage until reassembly begins.

From Scratch – Refurbishing the Soft Top on the 1978 MGB GT

February 16, 2022

The sunroof for the 1978 MGB GT is on the workbench of the trim shop here at the Bridge Classic Cars Suffolk HQ and it needs more work than first thought.

Lydia had been working on entirely refurbishing the soft top for the Blaze Orange MGB. As she began to disassemble the piece, the metal railings literally started to crumble in her hands. So, with that, she worked on getting everything broken down into its components and went to our fabrication department to make new rails for the soft top.

Once these had been made and given back to Lydia, she could start to put the refurbished soft top back together and safely put into storage for when our body team have finished the metal repairs on the sports car.

Moving Forward – Fabrication Work on the 1978 MGB GT Begins

February 15, 2022

The metalwork on the 1978 Blaze Orange MGB GT has begun!

All of the new panels and pieces have arrived at the Bridge Classic Cars workshop for the team to begin work on the classic 1970s sports car. Once all of the welding is complete on the car, it will then be turned over to our body shop to make sure every line and curve on the car is absolutely perfect.

There will be more updates on the 1978 Blaze Orange MGB GT very soon

Special Delivery – New Panels for the 1978 MGB GT

February 14, 2022

The new panels for the 1978 MGB GT have arrived at the Bridge Classic Cars workshop. These pieces were ordered for the restoration of the sports car being done by our workshop.

All of these pieces are being checked and catalogued for the car by the team for when bodywork begins as part of the restoration project.

Tanked – Removing the Fuel Tank of the 1978 MGB GT

February 9, 2022

The final pieces for the restoration of the 1978 MGB GT are out of the car! Our in-house restoration teams have worked on getting the entire car stripped down to a bare shell over the past couple of weeks.

One of the last bits to be removed is some of the most crucial. After our technician Paul removed the fuel pump and fuel lines from the car, Mauro took over the task of getting the fuel tank and filler out of the car. Although this had been completely drained, we always remove the fuel tanks of cars that require any bodywork doing to them for safety reasons.

With this all removed, the team can now get the beautiful bright orange sports car around to our in-house body shop for them to begin working on the car.

Safety First – Removing the Fuel System on the 1978 MGB GT

February 8, 2022

The Bridge Classic Cars in-house restoration team have worked on removing the entire fuel system out of the 1978 MGB GT that is in our Suffolk HQ workshop.

Paul, one of our technicians, worked on removing everything from the fuel tank, fuel pump and all the fuel lines to be carefully drained, inspected and assessed for this project. This is a critical part of the project as it is very high up on the safety list of each restoration project undertaken in our workshop.

Now with the whole system out of the car, the team can move forward on this amazing 1970s sportscar.

Laid Bare – Dismantling the 1978 MGB GT

February 4, 2022

The in-house restoration technicians at Bridge Classic Cars have been busy dismantling the blaze orange 1978 MGB GT.

Mauro and Tom have stripped the entire car back to a bare shell for its assessment by the other in-house restoration teams. As part of this process, the technicians have carefully been taking photos of each individual component that comes off of the car and cataloguing them separately as assemblies.

This will help not only with the assessment of the car (in terms of what can be refurbished) but also if any new parts/pieces need to be sourced for the project. With the car this far stripped back, crucial parts of the car can be fully inspected by the team.

Expect to see a lot more on the 1978 MGB GT in at Bridge Classic Cars here on the news page.

If you would like to see the full gallery of the teardown, have a look at the gallery below!

Remove and Inspect – Teardown of the Blaze Orange MGB GT

January 31, 2022

Mauro, one of the Bridge Classic Cars in-house restoration technicians, has been working on getting the Blaze Orange MGB GT stripped down for assessment by the team.

The MGB GT has been stripped back piece by piece for the in-house restorations teams to inspect and assess for the project moving forward. Each piece that came off the car has been catalogued and put into storage for when it is needed as with all of our restoration projects.

The bare shell will also be looked at by our paint and body experts to begin the list of jobs that will need to be done to this wonderfully characterful car.

Expect to see a lot more on the Blaze Orange MGB GT here on the Bridge Classic Cars news page very soon.

Love and Support – Strengthening the Sunroof of the Blaze Orange MGB GT

January 28, 2022

Brian, our lead in-house trimmer, has been working on retrimming and strengthening the sunroof surround of the Blaze Orange MGB GT.

Brian has completely stripped the piece back to its wooden frame and began to add some rigidity back into the piece using calico. This will help the sunroof opening to keep its shape and is a good process to perform on sunroofs when they’re being refurbished.

Now that this process is complete, the team can begin to look at retrimming it.

From Top to Bottom – Inspecting the Blaze Orange MGB GT before Teardown

January 28, 2022

The Blaze Orange MGB GT is in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop to begin its teardown for assessment.

The car is in remarkably good shape from what our technicians can see however, we take a full gallery of images for each project to use for cataloguing any parts or pieces that come off the car.

This also helps during the cars reassembly as we have reference photos to refer back to and ensure all the right pieces are back where they should be.

Taking Care – Teardown of the Blaze Orange MGB GT

January 27, 2022

The in-house restoration team at Bridge Classic Cars have been busy carefully dismantling this beautiful Blaze Orange MGB GT.

Mauro, has been put in charge of removing all the trim, glass and panels from the MGB GT for it to be inspected by our other in-house teams to find out what the future holds for this iconic fastback.

Expect to see more on this bright orange sports car soon on the Bridge Classic Cars news page.

Bridge Classic Cars are award winning Classic Car Restoration and Maintenance specialists. Your pride and joy is in safe hands with our expert Classic Car Technicians. Take a look at our awards here.

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