Mark McGee's 1951 TD with Ford Engine and Rear Suspension
Owner: Mark McGee
BritishV8 UserID: lyve55
City: Thousand Oaks, California
Model: 1951 MG TD
Engine: Ford 289cid V8
Built by: owner.
Features and Specifications
| Engine: | 1965 Ford Mustang 289cid (C code) V8. |
| Cooling: | |
| Exhaust: | |
| Transmission: | |
| Rear End: | |
| Front Susp.: | |
| Rear Susp.: | |
| Brakes: | (master) (front) (rear) |
| Wheels/Tires: |
|
| Instruments: | |
| Electrical: | Painless street rod wire harness.
|
| Interior: | |
| Exterior: | |
| Completed: |
Engine Installation
1974 Ford 350, with only minor modifications.
7" x 6 3/4" x 3 3/4" gel cell battery, mounted in the original tool box.
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How It Was Done
In 1968, Thom Gingher of Buffalo, New York transplanted a small block Chevy engine, a Corvair
front suspension and a Ford rear suspension into this MG TD. Thom drove the car around the
Buffalo area and reportedly occassionally raced the car in an SCCA modified class from about
1968 through sometime in 1971 when the engine blew up. It sat derelict in a garage for ~35 years.
In 2006, Rich Almeter found and purchased the TD as it looked in the previous photo. The engine
was toast and the passenger door and seat bottom were missing. There were a lot of parts in boxes,
but most were junk. In July 2009, Mark McGee purchased the MG TD in the slightly cleaned up
condition shown here. The MG was trailered to his home in south central New York, near Watkins Glen.
Dave started taking the car apart and he test-fit a 350 Chevy from a 1974 Ford to the frame many
times before it and a T5 transmission were bolted down.
Trying out spoke wheels. They leaked at the spokes, and were discarded becaue they're too expensive to repair.
A Scarebird conversion kit was used to upgrade the Corvair drum brakes to Chevy S10 calipers and
vented rotors. New shocks and a steering shaft with a rubber isolation joint were installed.
1964 Chevy Ford differential housing.
Interior
Stock seats and trim panels were recovered by Capabilities Inc. of Elmira NY.
The dashboard covering is, however, original. A set of new TPI gauges has been installed.
Exterior
Final cosmetic body work and custom blue PPG paint by Fenders & Flames of Corning NY.
New headlights, with integral turn signals.
Chevy 15x7 Rally wheels, with three winged spinners added for looks.
