And it’s the purple Western. Personally, I kinda dig that Yamaha, but I can see the appeal of the Western too. All right then. It’s getting too cold out for golf carts anyway. It’s time to start making indoor plans. Garages count as indoors, right? If your garage is looking a little empty, here we have a pair of cheap projects to keep you busy. Let’s see which one you prefer.
1968 MGB GT – $1,275
Engine/drivetrain: 1.8 liter OHV inline 4, 4 speed manual, RWD Location: Placerville, CA Odometer reading: 80,000 miles Runs/drives? Nope In 1965, the British Motor Coropration wanted to create a hardtop version of the popular MGB. Several design houses were approached, but in the end it was Pininfarina of Italy who created the winning formula. Instead of sticking to the MGB’s low windshield, Pininfarina made it 4 inches taller, and gave the car a long roof ending in a fastback hatch. BMC executives were so taken by Pininfarina’s design that they put the car into production with virtually no changes.
This is a car that I am intimately familiar with, and I can tell you a few things about this one. First, it’s not as rusty as it looks. The little spot on the dogleg just in front of the rear wheel is a little concerning, but the one door sill we can see looks clean. I’d want to check the firewall and cowl carefully, and it might need floors, but structurally it’s probably solid.
The 1.8 liter BMC B-series engine is simple and easy to work on, and as long as it spins freely, it shouldn’t be too hard to revive. The carbs are off, but the sale includes both the original twin SUs as well as the popular Weber DGV aftermarket setup. My advice: Rebuild the SUs. They’re simple, reliable, and they belong. There’s no mention of an overdrive on the 4 speed manual; if it is there, it’s a desirable option. An MBG GT without overdrive on the freeway is a noisy little monster.
Inside, it’s, well, trashed. But that’s all fixable – it just takes money. In fact, that’s true of pretty much everything that might be wrong with this car. That’s the advantage of restoring a well-liked mass-production car; parts are not hard to find. Really, this doesn’t look like too bad of a starting point at all. Yes, it needs a little bit of everything, but everything is available. And it will be a hoot to drive when it’s done.
1979 BMW 733i – $1,000
Engine/drivetrain: 3.2 liter SOHC inline 6, 3 speed automatic, RWD Location: Sacramento, CA Odometer reading: 179,000 miles Runs/drives? Not for almost 30 years Is a small British sports car with a little Italian flair not your style? Then how about this old German autobahn bomber? The E23 chassis & 7 series was BMW’s biggest and baddest in 1979, an executive saloon if there ever was one. It’s powered by a 3.2 liter version of the venerable M30 inline six, backed by a US-friendly automatic transmission (sorry).
This 7er hasn’t been on the road since Reality Bites was in theaters, so it will take some work to bring it back to life. You can probably assume every gasket and hose is suspect. But the good news is that it’s all there, and the body looks fine. The interior, however… It’s actually almost impressive what 30 years of sitting around in the California sun will do to leather. I’ll bet it cracks and flakes if you so much as touch it, like a mummy.
This isn’t a particularly valuable BMW, and while it was a nice car in its day, it’s nothing to write home about now. But it could be a rewarding project if you like to wrench and are willing to spend some time ripping stuff apart. As has been said many times, there is no such thing as a cheap BMW, but maybe it’s cheaper if you start with one that needs everything?
Obviously, either of these cars will probably keep you busy for longer than one winter. But it’s as good a time to start as any, right? Who ya got?
(Image credits: Craigslist sellers) Dated a girl in high school who had one. Lots of good memories. She was a really good driver, too. They both need a nut and bolt frame-off at this point, so go with the one that’s fun to drive. The MGB on the other hand…I like them, I had a ’67 GT and a later rubber bumper roadster too. You could get the motor running in a weekend, more time to work on electrics and brakes, but cosmetics are all well past the point of “live with the patina” which I am perfectly happy to do on a presentable car. Thing is, to make this one presentable you have to do everything. Just too much stuff, buy a running or near running ratty for a few dollars more. You might not even get penalty laps. Or you might. Who cares? You weren’t going to win anyway. People talk about how cheap and simple the BGT is to work on, but it still needs a shit load of work, and even getting one painted today is super expensive. I was quoted $500 (online with shipping) for two quarts of white paint! Yes, custom mix – but…………white paint! And while parts are relatively easy to get from Moss or even English sellers, it will need ALL of them……it adds up. BTW, if I were going to do an engine swap into one of these, the 4 cyl 2.3L turbo used in the Mustang is lighter than the B motor or the Ford V-8, and makes over 300 hp – stock.
