We celebrate the anniversary of the MG TD, the car that was the firm foundation of MG’s worldwide success.
Production of the MG TD started in late 1949, making the early cars now 75 years old, although the model was actually launched in January 1950. The MG TD, and its smoother, younger offspring, the TF, tend to get overlooked in the MG firmament because it already looked a little old-fashioned when it was announced. The humble TD, however, was far more than a warmed-over re-modeling of its predecessor, the TC in both mechanical and marketing terms, and deserves to be credited with what it achieved, namely keeping MG in business, expanding the company’s production capacity and cementing the name in America. Without the TD there would be no MGA, B, C, or even MGF.
MG TD Midget brochure
A war baby
When war was declared in 1939 Britain’s motor industry was one of the largest and, crucially, most varied in the world. Fortunately for the future of the free world, that mature industry was able to turn its hand to war work relatively quickly. Preparations had begun before war was declared because Hitler’s Germany had made their intentions obvious, and MG’s Abingdon factory was no exception, it spent World War II designing, manufacturing and maintaining military vehicles, tanks and aircraft. There was an influx of female workers as men were called up and MG even built accommodation specifically for the female munitions workers who’d moved to the area on what was effectively a government posting. When it became obvious that D-Day had been a success, as the German army retreated and it looked like the Allies would prevail, MG wasted no time in preparing to return to peace-time production. Resources were diverted to working on a new car, and MG were thus the first British manufacturer to announce a new model, the TC, after hostilities had ceased although it wasn’t really new of course, being a mildly modified version of the short-lived pre-war TB.
The TA had been announced in 1936 and was modified into the TB just before WWII started. This is author Deborah Bragg with her well-known MG TA, the subject of her book, ‘Watch Out! Two Old Ladies On The Road’.
MG TC
Aside from not being named after a killer disease, which must surely have been a marketing plus point, the new TC offered 102mm of extra width across it’s still quite narrow cockpit and did away with the famous sliding trunnion front suspension seen on both the TA and TB in favour of conventional leaf spring shackles under the front beam axle that were far easier to manufacture and maintain.
An MG TC taking part in the long-standing Ipswich to Felixstowe classic car run. Count the grips on the running board compared to the later TA above, there are only 2 because of the TC’s wider cockpit.
In spite of its very obvious shortcomings, that still very narrow and cramped cockpit, the lack of heater, its hard ride and the fact it was not offered in left-hand-drive, the TC was a massive success for MG, especially in America where it also started the career of many names that would become motorsport luminaries including 1961 F1 World Champion Phil Hill and Cobra / GT40 legend Carroll Shelby, who won the first race he entered aboard a friend’s TC. It was the first MG to sell in large numbers in the USA and in four years broke all the company’s production records as 10,000 had been produced by the time it ceased production in 1949.
Lord Nuffield’s plan
In the late 1930s, Nuffield’s masterplan had visualised a complete range of saloons with which to combat similar cars aimed at the more well-heeled motorist. By 1939 the SA, VA and WA types had already been put on sale, and if war had not intervened, they would have been joined by the smaller Y-type in 1940. It finally made its appearance in 1947 and, although its mildly detuned XPAG engine only produced 46bhp, and its origins within other Nuffield Group products saved MG development money, it was appealing to motorists who wanted a more comfortable and prestigious car that was economical in an era when petrol was still rationed. Like many MGs before or since that have borrowed components from other cars, it was far greater than the sum of its parts. The bodyshell aft of the scuttle was based on the Morris 8 Series E and Wolseley 8, although it was so subtle few noticed. It was the first MG fitted with independent front suspension and rack and pinion steering; a design actually drawn up by a young engineer called Alec Issigonis for the Morris 10 in the late 1930s, but which had been passed over by the management at the time on the grounds it was too expensive. His vision of horizontally mounted lever arm shock absorbers acting as a top wishbone set was a template that would last until the MGB ceased production in 1980. MG however were charging a premium price for the product so had more latitude in component costs to produce the best car they could. Morris had to build down to a price to compete with Austin and Ford.
MG YA influence
The YA prototype had put in huge mileage during the war as it had become the works hack transport vehicle, so putting it into production was the obvious next move and it was launched in 1947, costing £672 before tax. As well as setting a template with its front suspension, the YA was the first all-steel-bodied MG, and the first MG available in left-hand drive. It was successful in MG terms with 6,158 YAs and 1,301 of the mildly updated YBs being produced before it was replaced by the Z-type Magnette in 1953.
Once the TC and Y-type were in full production, MG had to look at their options. BMC was not even a glint in Leanord Lord’s eye (although it would suddenly happen in 1952 and delay what became the MGA) so using the Y-type as the template for a slightly larger, more market-friendly sports car to continue MG’s surprising success in the US market was a logical move. The MG TD would be developed from the Y-type and would be a huge success for the company, as we shall see in part 2.
Read on for part 2…
The MG TD would be developed from the Y-type and would be a huge success for the company. Find out more in our upcoming Part 2.
