MG XPower SV

2004 MG XPower SV

Offered by Historics Auctioneers | Datchet, U.K. | July 22, 2023

Photo – Historics Auctioneers

Here we go. The XPower SV was MG’s last sports car hurrah before being acquired by Nanjing Automobile. It was also completely out of the blue and unlike any other MG sports car before it. Just 82 were produced between 2003 and 2005.

Power is from a 4.6-liter Ford V8 that made 320 horsepower (a 5.0 making 385 horsepower was also offered in the SV-R). Body panels were constructed of carbon fiber, and other trim bits were lifted from other cars, including Fiats. All of this added up to a top speed of 165 mph and a 0-60 sprint of 5.3 seconds.

Sports cars built by a company that is struggling financially are always a risky proposition – MG had a hard time moving these, and some didn’t find owners until 2008. That said, they are pretty interesting and very fast. And they rarely change hands at auction. This one has an estimate of $43,000-$48,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $64,382.

MG ZT-T 260

2005 MG ZT-T 260

Offered by Historics Auctioneers | Ascot Racecourse, U.K. | May 27, 2023

Photo – Historics Auctioneers

We’ve featured a ZT-T before, the model being the wagon – or estate – version of MG’s last large car, the ZT. It was produced between 2001 and the end of MG production in 2005. They are great looking cars, although I cannot vouch for their reliability or ease of sourcing parts.

The big difference here compared to the other ZT wagon we featured is that this is the monster. No sub-200-horsepower V6 here. This car has a 4.6-liter V8 rated at 256 horsepower. It also has a manual transmission, making it possibly the rarest combo. Less than 200 were so equipped. Top speed was 155 mph, and 60 arrived in 6.3 seconds.

The V8 was also the only version of the ZT available in a rear-wheel-drive layout. This one has 63,000 miles and an estimate of $10,000-$13,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $13,708.

BRA P-Type

1984 BRA P-Type

Offered by Historics Auctioneers | Ascot Racecourse, U.K. | May 27, 2023

Photo – Historics Auctioneers

BRA (or Beribo Replica Automobiles) was founded by John Berry and Peter Ibbotson sometime around 1980. Their first product was this, the P-Type. They would later go on to build Cobra replicas and the Leighton, which was a Morgan 3-Wheeler replica. They are currently not active.

The P-Type was based around the MGB. This one uses the running gear from a 1964 model, including the 1.8-liter inline-four. The body work is very un-MGB, and is sort of vaguely immediate-post-war British in design.

This particular example was produced sometime around 1984, and in all, about 400 P-Types and Cobra replicas were built by the company before the end of that decade. This one has been in the same ownership for 17 years and has been used little in that time. It will now sell at no reserve. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $3,153.

Arnolt-MG Drophead Coupe

1954 Arnolt-MG Drophead Coupe

Offered by Mecum | Kissimmee, Florida | January 4-15, 2022

Photo – Mecum

Stanley H. “Wacky” Arnolt was a successful businessman before he got into selling cars under his own name. The first of those cars were MG TDs that had been rebodied by Bertone, with the styling itself penned by Giovanni and Nuccio Bertone in addition to Giovanni Michelotti.

He planned to sell 200 such cars, but only 103 were produced between 1953 and 1954. Arnolt would continue with his Bertone alliance through a few one-offs before the Arnolt-Bristol. The Arnolt-MG is powered by the stock TD 1.3-liter XPAG inline-four.

Only 36 of the 103 built were convertibles. And production only ended because MG told Arnolt they couldn’t spare any more chassis for him. This one has been restored, and you’ll have to check back to see if it sells. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $247,500.

MG ZT Wagon

2002 MG ZT-T 190

Offered by Oldtimer Galerie Toffen | Toffen, Switzerland | October 15, 2022

Photo – Oldtimer Galerie

This car? Big fan. The ZT was one of the last MGs before they were resurrected by a Chinese company. The ZT was the big car, offered as a sedan or wagon. The car was based on the Rover 75, but looks a lot better. V8-powered models received rear-wheel drive.

The wagons were called “ZT-T”, and this particular example is a “190” – meaning it’s powered by a 2.5-liter V6 that was rated at 187 horsepower when new. A manual transmission was the only option on this model. Top speed was 137 mph.

ZT and ZT-T production was not huge. Over five model years, a combined total of 27,000 cars were built. Apparently, only 1,756 of those were 190 wagons. This one is expected to fetch $3,500-$4,500. I’ll take it. Click here for more info.

MG ZT

2001 MG ZT160

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | December 4-9, 2021

Photo – Brightwells

Is this allowed to be my favorite MG? MG was sort of at the end of its rope when it introduced three new cars in 2001 after years of only producing a single sports car. The ZT was the largest of the three new models and was based on the Rover 75 that went on sale a few years earlier.

There were a couple of different ZT levels and quite a few engine choices. The 160 was the most basic, and it’s powered by a 2.5-liter V6 that, when paired with a five-speed manual gearbox, was rated at 187 horsepower. There was also a ZT-T version of the these, and that was the wagon. The ZT disappeared when MG Rover started failing 2005.

This one is front-wheel drive, and rear-driver V8 versions were also produced. Those are the best of the bunch. This three-owner example has 47,000 miles and is expected to bring between $4,000-$5,300. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $2,541.

MG RV8

1995 MG RV8

Offered by Brightwells | Leominster, U.K. | May 8, 2021

Photo – Brightwells

As time went on, MG became more and more of a shadow of its former self. By the time the 1990s rolled around, there wasn’t much gas left in the tank. The MGB had ceased production in 1980. After that, the company only sold badge-engineered versions of cars like the Austin Metro.

MG had started building MGB bodies again in the late 1980s to serve the restoration market. Then the Mazda Miata launched and gave MG the idea that light two-seat sports cars were still viable. In late 1992, they launched the RV8, which was basically an MGB with a 3.9-liter Rover V8, a revised front end, a limited-slip differential, and a slightly tweaked suspension.

Please recall that the original MGB launched in 1962. The RV8 still has rear drum brakes. Between late 1992 and 1995, MG churned out 1,938 examples of the 190-horsepower roadster. Most of them went to Japan, including this one. I like this car because it is interesting. It’s a footnote in the history of British sports cars, but it’s also the last hurrah of the MG sports car. It should sell for between $25,000-$30,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $25,489.

MGC Roadster

1968 MG C Roadster

Offered by Brightwells | Online | December 7-10, 2020

Photo – Brightwells

The MGC was a short-lived relative of the long-running MGB, the latter of which went on sale in 1962 and was produced through 1980. The B lost its chrome bumpers in 1975 and gained big rubber units, which made the earlier cars seem a lot prettier. This 1968 C is pretty much indistinguishable from the chrome-bumper MGB, with the exception of a subtle hood bulge.

Why the bulge? Well, the C was powered by a 145-horsepower, 2.9-liter inline-six. That’s two cylinders and 50 horsepower more than the B. The MGC was only produced between 1967 and 1969. It’s just a blip on the map of MGB production.

The car was supposed to be a replacement for the Austin-Healey 3000 (but it really wasn’t), and the heavier six-cylinder engine threw off the car’s handling. It was not a success, and only about 4,500 roadster variants ended up being built. This one was restored 30 years ago and is now expected to bring between $28,000-$31,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $22,560.

MG Midget Mk III

1970 MG Midget Mk III

Offered by Brightwells | Online | December 7-10, 2020

Photo – Brightwells

The MG Midget was produced between 1961 and 1980, and it is a car I have become quite smitten with as of late (though, to be honest, I am much more smitten with its earlier Austin-Healey corporate cousin, the Sprite Mk III). That said, this is about as perfect a spec of a Midget as you can find.

The Mk III was produced between 1966 and 1974. Changes from earlier versions included a larger engine – a 1,275cc inline-four rated at 65 horsepower. It was updated during the course of the model run, and 1970 cars received black rocker panels and a recessed black grille. This car has body-color rockers and Minilite-style wheels. Both big improvements.

It also had an engine rebuild in the 1980s and has just 43,000 miles. Midgets are a great entry point into collector car ownership, and this pretty nice example should command between $6,600-$9,300. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $8,340.

DAM/TPR 4100

1987 DAM 4100

Offered by Silverstone Auctions | Online | November 13-14, 2020

Photo – Silverstone Auctions

Group B rallying was one of the best classes of motorsport since… well, since motorsports. In the 1980s, there were some outrageous rally cars, and one such example was the MG Metro 6R4. Badged as a derivative of the frumpy Austin/MG Metro front-wheel-drive hatchback, the 6R4 was a rear-mid-engined four-wheel-drive monster powered by a naturally aspirated 3.0-liter V6 capable of over 400 horsepower.

There were 220 examples of the 6R4 built, 20 of which were high-level competition cars. The other 200 were Clubman cars, which were sold to the public. Many of them ended up in the hands of privateer rally drivers. So what is this car then?

Well, Tony Pond was a works Austin-Rover rally driver. One of the team engineers was a man named David Appleby. When Austin-Rover (MG) pulled out of rallying in 1987, Pond and Appleby set up shop updating Clubman cars. Thus, the DAM/TPR 4100 was born.

This is the prototype. Pond and Appleby parted ways shortly after this car was built, but Appleby soldiered on without Pond and ended up producing 5-10 examples. Power is from a Cosworth-derived 2.5-liter V6 rated at 295 horsepower at an impressive 10,250 rpm. It’s got four-wheel drive, too.

This is like a cottage industry British supercar from the 90s (even though it was built in the late 1980s). It’s a car that never appears at public sales (or in public generally). The estimated price reflects it. The estimate is $190,000-$215,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Not sold. Silverstone actually says sold for an “undisclosed amount,” which is about the sketchiest thing I’ve ever seen on an online auction.

Update II: Sold, Silverstone Auctions, March 2021, $124,501.