From Morris Garages to the international market
The history of Morris Garages is a little convoluted, and perhaps as a result quite fascinating. The eponymous William Morris was not born a noble, but would eventually rise to one in the British Peerage as a reward for his work in automotive and philanthropic fields. First as Baron, and then elevated to Viscount of Nuffield, he would be the first and only person to hold the title, as he never had children or heirs.
Lord Morris founded his first automobile company, WRM Motors Limited, in 1912, though before that, he was already manufacturing and assembling bicycles. In 1919, he founded a new marque, Morris Motors Ltd., which absorbed WRM and grew so large that it was forced to work with others to set up service and retail garages to keep up with demand. One of these places, located in Oxford and run by race car enthusiast and engineer Cecil Kimber, began selling modified Morris automobiles that were upscaled, restyled, and given performance parts. In 1924, Mr. Kimber incorporated as Morris Garages Car Company Ltd., and it was from this offshoot that the sporty MG cars that dominated the British luxury market originated, including today’s feature, a 1960 MG MGA on Exotic Car Trader.
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A tiny, cozy machine with a big heart
A bright and cheery shade of red coats this MGA, a simple and classic coat with no frills and no apologies. But you need a color that pops on a car this small, as otherwise, such a diminutive vehicle might be too easy to miss in a blind spot. The entire car is quite small, after all, only 156 inches (396cm) long from bumper to bumper. It’s also narrow at 58 inches (147cm) wide and just 50 inches (127cm) tall at the cabin.
It’s no wonder, then, that a polished external rear luggage rack has been mounted to the back, as there’s very little space for anything inside the proportional and thus quite small trunk, or ‘boot’ in British parlance, especially once the spare tire has been accounted for. In addition to the normal round headlights in their raised places on the fenders, this particular MGA came with yellow driving lights as well. The grille is styled to flare out as it reaches the top, before curving steeply, with a lovely inset MG medallion placed at the top. The wire-spoke wheels are true to the era and come in at only 15 inches wide.
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A cabin that’s simple and clean
The entire interior is black, from the leather upholstery to the door paneling and dashboard to the carpeting underneath, with plenty of silver in the trim and controls. The gauges appear to be original and very elegant, with a large driver-side speedometer maxing out at 120mph and a 7,000 rpm tachometer, as well as smaller auxiliary gauges for oil, water, and battery amperage. A simple black shifter knob etched in white sits atop a short silver rod.
The steering wheel is a bit peculiar, with four distinct banjo-string-style spokes connecting the black rim to the center in an ‘X’ pattern, and a lovely MG medallion drawing it all together. There is also a small glove box trimmed in silver with a similar MG logo, this time with wings to the side to fill the space. For safety, lap belts have been added, and while there is no air conditioning, there is a heater that doubles as a windshield defroster as well.
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Good things come in small packages
Under the hood, a 1,588cc (1.6L) in-line four provides a solid powertrain. By this point in time, V8s were becoming more and more common across the pond, and they were powering much larger vehicles on average. On such a light chassis, what might be an anemic engine elsewhere is actually quite zippy, providing a credible driving experience with good pick-up and superb handling.
It’s all well and good to have the most powerful engine there is, but in this MGA, you can run full throttle much more responsibly, especially with the twin SU H4 side-draft carburetors and a Cannon air intake further enhancing efficiency. Power is sent to the rear wheels by way of a four-speed manual transmission in classic sports car configuration. The odometer reads 85,619 miles, though as the vehicle is exempted we cannot verify that as an accurate measure.
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Final thoughts: A fine chapter in British motor history
The MGA was a popular and widely exported sports car that challenged the hegemony of American Muscle in its era, proudly bucking the trend of the Pony Car and showing a leaner, if not exactly meaner, side of the automobile. Where its American cousins are loud and brash, the MGA cuts a cleaner tune, reflecting refinement and a proper upbringing. All its distinguished charm needs now is a new home.
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