1978 MGB GT

Clean Look – Parts of the 1978 MG B GT Refinished

August 9, 2022

Some of the pieces of the 1978 MG B GT have been refurbished by the team before being handed over to our paint team at the Bridge Classic Cars Suffolk HQ.

The paint team have refinished the parts in hard-wearing and durable black as part of the restoration.

Replaced – Metal Work on the 1978 MG B GT

June 8, 2022

The restoration workshop at Bridge Classic Cars has been continuing with the metal repairs to the 1978 MG B GT in with us for restoration.

The team have been working on the right-hand side of the car to remove the areas of corrosion to key parts of the bodyshell. This begun with cutting out the corrosion at the rear of the car in the valance. These were cut out of the car to create new templates for replacements, so the team could make the new pieces as close as possible to the originals.

Then the team could move on the car’s windshield pillars which had areas of corrosion at their base. This was peeled back to expose just how in-depth it had gone into the piece before the team replaced it.

Along with this, some pieces at the top of the inner wing was also replaced due to corrosion and to allow for the best fitment of the new wings which have been test fitted to the body to check alignment.

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.

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.

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.