KEEPERS
John’s 60-year ownership of his MG VA has taken him across Europe and spread a trail of goodwill
JOHN BATES WORCESTERSHIRE
'I owned an MG VA saloon in the early 1960s and kept seeing this lovely tourer being driven around Acocks Green in Birmingham. Eighteen months after taking my number, the owner rang to say that his wife was sick of driving around in a draughty old car and that they were buying a Volkswagen Beetle.
‘The MG was £90, no offers, which was a lot in 1963 (approximately £2500 today), but I’ve never regretted buying the car. The previous owner kept a personal log of everything spent since 1951 and concluded: ‘Parted after wonderful friendship.’
‘The next day, being 21 at the time, I had to see how fast the MG would go. I was doing 80mph on the A38 and the big end went. I knew nothing about maintenance or repair, the only tools I owned were a hammer, a pair of pliers and a small screwdriver and my only garage was the street, so I embarked upon on a steep learning curve.
‘Once I’d paid for new kingpins to be fitted (removing and replacing the front axle myself ) I realised how important lubrication was; that was the best lesson that the car taught me. I was beginning to think that I might keep this car because, despite my misuse (poor servicing), it was proving to be reliable.
‘The car was looking tired after I’d had it for nine years so I took it off the road for a re-build. Coventry Boring and Metalling Co. Limited re-built the engine and the MG looked much better following a re-spray using a vacuum cleaner (cylinder model, for air supply), though it wasn’t finished until 1985.
‘Total mileage in my hands is an estimated 250,000 – the speedometer read 80,000 when I bought it. Fascinatingly, the MG’s chassis appeared at the Geneva Motor Show in 1938, painted white; the car wasn’t bodied and sold until 1940. We don’t know to whom it was registered.
‘We have been to many events across Europe. I’m a member of the MG Car Club’s SWV register, which looks after all of the SA, VA and WA
Type MGs. We had an event hosted by members in Mönchengladbach, during which my car’s fuel pump went. One of the German guys went home and returned within 20 minutes carrying a new pump. He didn’t want any money, either, just a replacement when I got home. If you’re taking an old car abroad go with a club!
‘I took the car to restorer Jack Castle to look at the chrome in 2000 and he ended up re-upholstering and painting it, too; the metallic grey was actually a pre-war MG colour.
‘The car has also been on TV, being driven by Jim Al-Kahlili in a tribute to radar pioneer Robert Watson-Watt as part of t
