Don Bonar's Ferrari-Inspired Customized 1971 MGB V6
Owner: Don BonarBritishV8 UserID: DonB
City: Prairie Village, Kansas
Model: 1971 MG MGB
Engine: GM 3.4L V6
Conversion by: owner
Inspiration and Execution
Having spent nine years restoring my
1935 MG P-type,
I had pretty much burnt out on the absolute full restoration process. Yes, I had a car
which was as absolutely original and correct as I could make it. I won some recognition
and met terrific people from all over the globe. However, at almost 80 years old vehicle,
37 HP, mechanical brakes, non-synchronized transmission, almost impossible parts
availability, etc. I guess the hot rodder in me wasn't satisfied.
Part way through that restoration, I had purchased a really tired 1971 MGB which had sat
abandoned for twelve years in a garage near me. With Bill Davidson's guidance and skills,
we made it safe and roadworthy while I hammered away on the P-Type. Just something fun
to drive like the TR-3 and the Sunbeam Alpine I'd enjoyed previously.
After finishing the P-type, I kept looking at the MGB and wishing it were an early 1960s
Ferrari. Steak appetite and hamburger income! I wondered if I could build my own.
When Bill decided to build his MGB-GT V6, I said "I'm in too."
Actually, three people made it possible for me to attempt such a project, given I'd
spent my adult life working in an office and had VERY limited skills for this attempt.
First, and most critical was my wife Sandy. Her car had set outside for nine years in the
Kansas heat and snows and was to get a second dose of five more years. Never complained,
never looked in the checkbook and supported my screwy passion without wavering. Secondly,
Bill Davidson,
whom I blame for this entire mess! Actually, Bill's fingerprints are all over this car and
it simply wouldn't be rolling today without his help. Third, is the late
Bill Young, our lumberjack.
Bill showed up with many of the serious metalworking tools after retrieving them from the
RoadMaster effort. All I had to do was figure out how a shrinker/stretcher, bead-roller
and planishing hammer worked! I added an English wheel, blast cabinet and a dozen funny
looking hammers to a small MIG welder and I was off! A week long metalworking seminar at
McPherson College was a big help as well.
The design is influenced from studying hundreds of photos of early to mid 1960s Ferraris,
particularly ones designed by Scaglietti and Farina. Having already stripped the MGB down
to the unibody and placed on a rotisserie, I began to model possible changes with
2" thick foam insulation (purchased in 4X8 sheets). This material is cheap, lightweight,
and easily rough formed with a course grinder and a surform "cheese grater". I modeled
five or six rear ends before I got a shape I liked. Then, all I had to do was figure out
how to replicate it in steel. No plastic parts!
My hood scoop was inspired by the ones on early Ford Thunderbirds, but obviously
completed without the little V-shaped chrome grille. I liked the shape, and my
hood wouldn't close without it.
Then I began to play. I fitted side port fender vents from a Factory 5 Cobra kit.
Stretched the nose about 1.5" in the middle and made the badge bulge go away.
(I really wish I'd done much more here: think shark-nosed 1961 F1 Ferrari!)
I reworked the front grille opening and built an "egg crate grille" from 6061 T6
aluminum. Specifically, I used a CNC water jet to get precise curves and clean cut
edges. Front turn signal lamps were fabbed from exhaust pipe scraps, reverse-frenched
into the fenders. I installed a flush fuel filler lid, shortened the boot lid, and wired
an electric "popper" boot lid release. Rear lights were sourced from an early
1970s Opel Manta Rally.
This car is the result of five years of hanging with the guys and gals of BritishV8.
When Bill Davidson took me to the BritishV8 meet at Indy, I found what I was looking for.
I asked lots of really dumb questions, took tons of pictures, and got great tips from
virtually everyone. Thank you!
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Features and Specifications
| Engine: | GM 3.4L 60-degree V6 engine, bored 0.030" over.
ARI Phase II camshaft and lifter kit.
Comp Cams Magnum roller rocker arms.
Classic Conversions Engineering motor mounts.
Edelbrock lower intake manifold.
Classic Conversions Engineering upper intake manifold.
Holley 390cfm carburetor.
Mr Gasket fuel pressure regulator.
Mr Gasket fuel pressure gage.
Edelbrock air filter.
MSD Blaster 2 ignition coil.
Accel Hi-Temp 8mm spark plug wires.
Classic Conversions Engineering accessory drive system.
|
| Cooling: | aluminum down-flow radiator.
Volkswagen Scirocco dual electric fans mounted on plastic fan shroud.
Oil cooler, with its own Spal electric fan. |
| Exhaust: | Classic Conversions Engineering headers.
Dual side pipes with black ceramic coating over original chrome. |
| Transmission: | Borg-Warner "World Class" T5 5-speed.
Chevrolet S10 bellhousing.
Wilwood master cylinder with remote reservoir.
McLoed hydraulic throwout bearing (sourced from BMC). |
| Rear End: | stock MGB Salisbury axle (open differential and 3.909:1 ring and pinion.) |
| Front Susp.: | Blackwood Engineering airbag suspension in lieu of springs.
Red polyurethane bushings.
SPAX CK 12 adjustable shock absorbers. |
| Rear Susp.: | telescoping shock absorbers.
Red polyurethane bushes and pads. |
| Brakes: | late model MGB pedal assembly with power brake booster. |
| Wheels/Tires: | Dunlop 15" wire spoke wheels.
General Altimax HP P185/65R15 tires. |
| Interior: | MGB MkI (steel) dashboard.
Custom fabricated center console.
Nardi steering wheel.
Flaming River tilting steering column.
Pontiac Fiero seats with Mr Mikes brand upholstery.
Sony stereo.
Nostalgic Air air conditioning system. |
| Instruments: | (left to right) TPI Tech fuel level (E-F),
tachometer (0-8000rpm),
speedometer (0-140mph),
oil pressure (0-100psi),
water temperature (100-250F),
analog clock,
and voltmeter (10-16V).
|
| Body: | MG "Saratoga Red" rendered in PPG basecoat/clearcoat. |
| Electrical: | Delphi alternator.
Trunk mounted jump start studs.
E-Z Wiring 20-fuse wire harness kit. |
| Completed: | just in time for the roadtrip to BritishV8 2014! |
| Comments: | Fixes need after 1200 miles at 80 MPH at 95+ degrees: (1) resolve small oil leak, (2) resolve engine heat issues, (3) re-fit new cloth top and snaps to eliminate flapping noise, (4) better secure the floormats in place, (5) rebuild the fuel filler pipe, (6) complete the fabrication of transparent headlamp covers, (7) finish restoration of my removable hard top, (8) tidy up wiring in boot and under car, and (9) install quieter side pipes, because the ones I have now are way too loud! |
Engine Installation
GM 3.4L 60-degree V6 engine.
Classic Conversions Engineering motor mounts.
Late model MGB pedal assembly with power brake booster.
Borgeson steering universal joint, purchased from BMC British Automotive, provides clearance to headers.
Holley 390cfm carburetor. Edelbrock air filter.
Aluminum down-flow radiator.
Air conditioning condenser and receiver/drier.
Oil cooler, with its own Spal electric fan.
Dual electric fans mounted on plastic fan shroud.
Classic Conversions Engineering headers.
Sanden air conditioning compressor.
Header wrap.
Mr Gasket fuel pressure regulator and fuel pressure gage.
E-Z Wiring 20-fuse fuse block.
Suspension and Brakes
Blackwood Engineering airbag suspension, in lieu of coil springs, to facilitate taller stance.
"Cutting the original headlamp buckets out and fabricating deeper pockets for an XKE/Maserati/Ferrari
inspired look caused an unfortunate consequence: inadequate tire clearance! I didn't discover the
problem until after I took the bodyshell off the rotisserie. At that point, the only thing to do
was to crank up the ride height. If I had it to do over, I'd buy complete headlight bucket
assemblies off a Datsun 280ZX. Doing so would save so many hours and dollars."
Telescoping shock absorbers. Red polyurethane bushes and pads.
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Interior
Pontiac Fiero seats with Mr Mikes brand upholstery.
Instruments, left to right: TPI Tech fuel level, tachometer, speedometer,
oil pressure, water temperature, analog clock, and voltmeter.
"The center console is made from two to three different MGB styles: chopped, sectioned,
and glassed. I needed something to completely fill the space between dashboard and
transmission tunnel. By the way, when I replaced the pillow dash with the older all-steel
type, the cowling had to be extended about 1.5 inches in the middle and re-arced to fit.
Incidentally, it provides a bit more room for fat fingers under the dash/instruments."
Nardi steering wheel.
Pedal box appears essentially stock.
Inspired by Triumph TR-4, MGB boot lid cleverly sectioned and grafted back together.
Pneumatic pump for air bag front suspension.
Jump start studs.
Exterior
Influenced by early to mid 1960s designs by Scaglietti and Farina.
Completed just in time for the roadtrip to BritishV8 2014!
MG "Saratoga Red" rendered in PPG basecoat/clearcoat.
Nose stretched ~1.5" forward in the middle. Shaved badge bulge. Front turn signal
lamps were fabbed from exhaust pipe scraps, reverse-frenched into the fenders.
Egg crate grille fabricated from CNC water-jet cut 6061-T6 aluminum.
"My hood scoop was inspired by the ones on early Ford Thunderbirds,
but obviously completed without the little V-shaped chrome grille."
Mike Moor conceived this wind deflector, made from the header of an old convertible top.
Dual side pipes with black ceramic coating over original chrome.
Side port fender vents from a Factory Five Cobra kit.
"I modeled five or six rear ends before I got a shape I liked."
Kammback rear styling treatment reflects Ferrari 250 GTO inspiration.
Opel Manta Rallye taillamps.
Dunlop 15" wire spoke wheels.
General Altimax HP P185/65R15 tires.
Photos of the completed conversion by Curtis Jacobson for BritishV8.org.
Copyright 2014. All rights reserved.
Use by written permission only.
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