Maurice Chapman Maurice Chapman

The MG Shop

These days MGs are a collectors item for car enthusiast. We got the opportunity to photograph this pair of MGs recently. They both took him four years to restore and the results are fantastic.

 

The MGB roadster first started development in 1962. To many back then, this was the epitome of the British sports car. The car checked all the required boxes for things a sports car should have back then: a long hood, it was deliciously streamlined, low ride height, nice exhaust note and as a bonus it was affordable and also if you really tried you could fit 1.5 passengers in there.

 
 

These days, MGs are a collectors item for car enthusiasts. We got the opportunity to photograph this pair of MGs recently. The owner Ryan aka Woody was so enthused by the cars he restored two of them. It took him four years to restore the pair and the results are fantastic.

 
 

The blue MG is from 1972 and the red is from 1971. In a previous life, the blue car was an ... interesting mustard color (it's one of those colors you either hate or love).

 
 

He keeps them tucked away in his garage away from those nasty UV rays and liquid sunshine. The garage itself is a very eclectic place filled with some MG paraphernalia, family photos and racing trophies, you see, Woody is actually an extremely talented professional race car driver.

The garage was the kind of place all car lovers want to have, where you keep the things closest to you; your family, your legacy and definitely your cars. 

 
 

There's nothing like OEM parts. The attention to detail during this restoration is what I like the most about these cars, from the wooden gear knob to the dials and the overdrive switch to the right of the steering wheel, it's all really well done, and of course a single din pioneer head unit for only the freshest beats was added.

 

Woody is actually an extremely talented professional race car driver.

 

They really compliment each other.

 
 

Both of the cars are completely stock with the factory inline 4 1800cc SOHC, dual carbureted engines which made about 92bhp from factory, a few modern quality of life touches were added to the engine however because unfortunately, British sports cars weren't too reliable.

The parts added were a Lucas ignition coil, braided fuel lines, new wiring and hoses.

 
 

I just absolutely love old cars! The lack of computers basically means it's just you and the car interacting, the ultimate driver's experience...as long as you aren't to ambitious with your speed around a corner. It's all good fun!

 
 

Their styling is actually quite reminiscent of 1960s American muscle cars, mainly the Mustang. You can see the similarities when you look at the arches over the rear lights and the distinct round headlights, they're just placed a little higher on the MG roadster. It was a smart design choice as the cars were very popular in America when it was released. This was a change from the MGA.

 
Their styling is actually quite reminiscent of 1960s American muscle cars vs the MGA. 

Their styling is actually quite reminiscent of 1960s American muscle cars vs the MGA. 

 

Woody's MGs aren't driven that often, as you can tell by the condition they're in. They're probably only driven on weekends with the top down on a nice long road, dodging potholes.

 
 

There's something special about someone's love for their car, it doesn't matter what kind of car. You can really tell when someone puts a lot of work into a build and has a lot of love for it and for cars in general. If it's one thing you can say about Woody, he loves cars. As car lovers I think we can all respect that.

Maurice (fist bump)

 
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Maurice Chapman Maurice Chapman

Brothers

A friend of Y-Esuf Auto Clinic invited us over a while back to see a few of the cars they were working on. Among these cars were two little Ford Hatches. They called them "Brothers".

A friend of Y-Esuf Auto Clinic invited us over a while back to see a few of the cars they were working on. Among these cars were two little Ford Hatches. They called them "Brothers".

The Ford Focus RS, a common sight to many but strangely not to us in Barbados. They're actually only a few over here for whatever reason. Needless to say, they're pretty amazing. The white RS is a Mk2, it was the most modified.

The engine was the Volvo - engineered 2,522cc 5-cylinder engine but it was tuned and modified by Graham Goode Racing UK, we're not sure exactly what was done to it but it now makes around 430 hp, a big upgrade from the stock 301 hp.

Right next to it was the younger brother the Mk3. The Best Blue, the color was amazing.

That's a modified RALLIART Evo X way in the back by the way.

That's a modified RALLIART Evo X way in the back by the way.

I just fell in love with it. 

I don't even like modern cars that much, I actually recently just sold my car to buy another that's 4 years older(financial mistake?) but the styling was so streamlined...gorgeous. Anyway, It was completely stock with the 1.5-litre turbocharged 4 - cylinder engine making 345 hp or so. It was however soon to be modified, we're told awesome parts are being ordered, can't wait to see it finished. 

The guys at Y-Esuf Auto Clinic have a serious love for cars they put a lot of time and care in when modifying their cars.

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 Sign Guyz 246 seen in the pictures was actually vinyl wrapping the cars while we were there, he does really good work. So give him a shout if you need some styling mods done to your vehicle. 

Some Vinyl Work by our friend.

Some Vinyl Work by our friend.

When writing articles we actually try not to focus (no pun intended) too much on the numbers a car produces, we like to talk about the feelings they evoke, it was just hard not to talk about the numbers in this one(they're fast). They were a couple other cars that were there that we'll cover a bit later, one of which had a shade of the best yellow we ever saw. Until then, lata.

-Maurice

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