Nick Baxter's 1967 MGB-GT with Buick 215 V8
as published in British V8 Newsletter, Volume XV Issue 1, April 2007Owner: Nick Baxter
City: Omaha, NE
Model: 1967 MGB-GT
Engine: Buick 215 V8
Conversion by: John Mangles
| Engine: | Buick V8 215cid, with Rover heads supplied by Peter Burgess in England. |
| Induction: | Carter AFB 400cfm carburetor. |
| Cam: | From D&D Fabrications. |
| Cooling: | D&D Fabrications radiator. Electric fans. |
| Exhaust: | Clive Wheatley headers into 3" single pipe exhaust. |
| Transmission: | Borg-Warner T5 5-speed. |
| Rear Axle: | Stock MGB. |
| Front Suspension: | Stock, lowered springs; HD shocks (rebuilt). |
| Rear Suspension: | Panhard Rod. Traction Bars. Composite leaf springs. HD Shocks (rebuilt). |
| Wheels/Tires: | 15" x 6" Minilite replicas (with knock-off hubs). Tires: Front 185/65/15,
Rear 195/65/15. |
| Instruments: | Rebuilt and hand painted gauges, iPod only sound. |
| Other: | Fiero seats. LED third brake light. |
Nick Wrote:
Before I moved from England to the US, I had been the very happy owner
of a 1969 Lotus Elan +2S. I used the car as a daily driver, and due to
regular maintenance and luck, it never let me down. On departing England
for the former colonies, the Lotus was sold and I moved into the realms
of normality. This was a shame. My father continued to own a range of
interesting vehicles, both modern and classic, but I had to look on
from a distance.
After marriage, three children, over 15 years in Omaha, and being the
proud owner of two Volvo V70 station wagons (one Cross Country and one
"R"), it was time for something a little "older". After several months
of searching and one failed attempt to buy a 1969 Lotus Elan +2S from
Minnesota, in exactly the same color as my old British one, I found my
current GT on eBay, not too far away.
As with many items for sale on eBay, it didn't sell, but I started
talking with the owner and we reached agreement on a fair price. He
had owned the MG since the early '90s and no longer had the time to
drive it.
The car is a 1967 MGB GT, converted to a Buick V8 215 with 5 speed
gearbox. Total mileage is unknown, but in the last 5 years it has
driven less than 2,500 miles on the new drivetrain. The conversion
had been completed between 1999 and 2003 by John Mangles of St. Louis.
Since I didn't do the work, can't take credit for the design or
craftsmanship. The following information is second-hand, but reflects
a truly superior project of which I am now the beneficiary. I'm not
sure how the previous owner chose John Mangles, but it was a great
choice. His execution was superb and I am really happy with the car.
On occasions when I've needed to call John, he has been very helpful.
Drivetrain
The engine came from D&D Fabrications in MN, I don't have details
of the build specs, but know that it came with heads which were
subsequently replaced with Rover SD1 heads from Peter Burgess in
England. (These were apparently his "EconoTune" heads.) The carburetor
is a Carter 400, sitting on a Buick barrel intake manifold. The
headers came from Clive Wheatley in the UK, who coincidentally
operates from a facility not 5 miles from where I grew up and less
than a stone's throw (long cricket throw) from the favorite public
house of my younger years. The previous owner sourced a T-5 gearbox
from a now defunct establishment in Chicago. The engine was capped
off with some nice MG valve covers.
John Mangles rewired the engine bay to remove all externally visible
wires and also fabricated beautiful "wells" for the through-the-fender
headers. He also modified the bulkheads and radiator mounting to make
it all fit. The oil filter was relocated to a remote location on the
passenger-side inner fender.
The rear axle is stock, although I'm planning to update this to MGC
ratio (3.07:1) and probably rear discs during 2007.
Electrical
When I purchased the car, it came with an air conditioning unit installed.
It wouldn't run, so I removed it. I have the parts and may re-install
it one day. The one area, that I really need to re-do is the dashboard
and under dash wiring. Although it works, it doesn't instill the same
level of confidence as the rest of the car.
The car has "tripod" replica headlamps which look cool, and combined
with the "modern" small driving lights" beneath the bumper, provide
adequate lighting. The coolest feature is the roof mounted LED third
brake light. It's a great idea that I have not often seen on MGBs.
Interior
The interior is pretty stock, I need to put in new carpets, and recover
the Fiero seats some time, but it is great for now and for general
driving.
Suspension
The suspension is fairly traditional. It has heavy-duty shocks, lowering
springs on the front, and MG Automotive composite leaf springs. The previous
owner also installed Ron Hopkinson front and rear sway bars, but the rear
one has now been removed. MG Automotive Panhard Rod and traction bar kit
were also installed on the rear.
Wheels & Tires
I'm running knock-off Minilite replica wheels (15 x 6) all around,
with different sized front (185/65/15) and rear tires (195/65/15) to
resolve the rubbing I suffered despite the rolled arches. The hubs were
renewed at the same time the rest of the work was done on the car.
Next Steps
The car is enormously fun to drive as is and could very easily be left
exactly as it is for many years. That being said, I know that I want to
fix the rear axle ratio for drivability and I would love to get the
under-dash wiring sorted out in the short term. Thinking long term, I
really like the lines of the MGC GT Sebring race cars. Even if I don't
fit the Sebring flares, the front and rear Sebring valances are a
definite possibility. With such great body work, it seems like a waste
to cut it all up again.
An Embarassing Story
While the car has always run smoothly, it really died when it hit 3750
rpm. I always put this down to a tight "newish" engine and didn't really
worry about it. I also noted that the plugs seemed to soil more than
normal with oil. A visit to my local British car mechanic, suggested
that running modern engine oils in a 40 yr old engines didn't make too
much sense so a change to a thicker oil would be appropriate. I made
that change, and it made a slight difference, but nothing incredible.
After reading several posts on the MG Experience message board, I decided
that maybe I had the wrong type of spark plugs. This research led me to
the slightly unnerving realization that I had little to no paperwork on the
heads on the engine, and that D&D had supplied a long block with Buick
heads. The previous owner had clearly told me that he had bought Rover
heads from the UK. After much research, telephone calls, and e-mails, it
became clear that I did indeed have Rover heads, not Buick ones, and that
the plugs from the Buick heads had been transferred into the Rover heads
at the time of the swap. And as everybody was kind enough to tell me, my
Buick heads needed plugs with a half inch reach. Rover heads require a
three-quarter inch reach. A quick trip to the local auto parts store for
plugs, and now my car runs like I added four more cylinders!
