1954 MG TF
Details
Oldtimer Australia is delighted to offer for sale an Australian delivered 1954 MG TF.
This particular example was part of a batch of cars which were imported into Australia in 1954 by P&R Williams. The car arrived on the ship Darro on the 3rd December 1954 and was sold to Clyde Donald Smythe, a draughtsman living in Pennant Hills, Sydney on the 12th January 1955. The car was first registered with the NSW registration ATC-319.
This car has the most extensive history with documentation going back to day one and it has lived in and around Sydney for its entire life.
In 1958 the car was sold to its next owner, Allen FP Corley, from West Ryde in Sydney. He owned the car for approximately seven years before selling it to Peter L Goggin from Beecroft in Sydney. Goggin used and enjoyed the car for approximately ten years before selling it to Frank Johnston from Eastlakes in Sydney in 1975. Back then Johnston was the president of the MG Car Club in Sydney. He was a very long term owner of the car and sold it after almost 30 years of ownership to Patrick Horn from Mittagong in 2002. Horn kept the car for about six years before he sold it to Christopher Wilks from Castlecrag, Sydney in 2008.
In 2002 Wilks engaged the services of Andy’s Restoration in Caringbah, Sydney to repaint the car. The car was stripped, the rear guards and the bonnet sides were repaired and then everything was painted in two pack paint. The car was repainted in its original MG TF colour of ‘red’, as confirmed by the chassis number prefix as well as photographs and information on file.
Once the car was painted he also had them repair and recover the front seats in leather and the backs in vinyl as per original. The steering wheel was also replaced but the original horn button was kept and painted to match the new steering wheel. The engine, gearbox, clutch and brakes were overhauled by Albert Johnson Restorations of Annangrove, north of Sydney.
In 2010 he gave the interior another refresh by replacing the door trim, fitting new carpets and he also had the rear section retrimmed including the wheel arches.
This was a very well-known and well-regarded car in MG circles during Johnston’s ownership. It was a consistent class winner at various MG Car Club of NSW concours during the 1970’s and 1980’s.
The current owner acquired this fabulous MG TF in 2013 and it joined an extensive and very eclectic collection of cars. The car has been used sparingly in the last ten years, most likely travelling less than 1,000 km, but it has been fastidiously maintained throughout.
Today the car still presents really well despite it now being considered an older restoration. The paint has held up exceptionally well and is still in excellent condition. It still retains a high gloss finish with a strong depth of colour. When you walk around the car it is hard to find any defects. All the chrome work on the car, including the trade mark MG grill is also still in excellent condition. All the glass, lights and lenses are in good condition with no evidence of any cracks or discoloration.
The painted wire wheels are in very good condition with no damage or kerb rash. The chrome wheel spinners present like new; so someone has been very careful when fitting the wheels, which is another sign the car has been cherished. The wheels are shod with Michelin XZX 165SR15 tyres which are date stamped 472 (week 47, 2002). Whilst these tyres still present very well and look ‘new’,if you are planning on using the car on a regular basis, they should be replaced based on age.
Open the suicide door and you are welcomed by a very good looking interior. It is hard to believe it has been over ten years since the interior was retrimmed. Everything presents like it was done yesterday. The seats are in excellent condition and are firm and provide ample support. The door cards and carpets are also in excellent condition. The iconic MG dash board is also similarly presented. It is clean, all the instruments present well and are in good working order.
For those rainy days there is a soft top and side screens, which also present like new and appear to have hardly been used. The rear window in the soft top has not been affected by the sun and is not showing any discoloration as is often the case. When not used the side screens can be stored in a small storage area behind the seats.
Open the bonnet and you can clearly tell this car has been well looked after. Everything is very clean and well presented.
We were curious to see if this car would drive as good as it looks and we were definitely not disappointed. The MG TF is not designed for big people but it is definitely more spacious than its predecessors. After making one’s self comfortable behind the steering wheel, you turn the ignition on, pull the choke out, allow the fuel pump a few seconds to fill the SU carburettors and then pull the starter knob. The engine fires up easily and very quickly settles into a smooth idle. The engine sounds very good. There are no tappet noises just a mechanical whir and raspy exhaust note. The car does require the use of the choke until the engine starts warming up, then you can slowly push it back until eventually its completely off. First impressions are good . . . really good!
Out on the road this MG TF is an absolute delight to drive. The car feels very solid on the road, the engine is responsive and the gearbox is smooth and direct. The car also easily keeps up with modern traffic. The brakes also work well, pulling the car up efficiently and in a straight line. On our test drive on a warm and sunny Brisbane day, the temperature gauge never even got close to the danger zone, another good sign of the health of the engine and its ancillaries.
Needless to say you do attract plenty of attention when you are out and about in this car. We always attract a crowd when we have our cars out for their test drive and photo shoot, but this little car attracted people like bees to a honey pot!
This car is very complete and in addition to the side screens which often go missing, it also has an original toolkit, jack and even the crank handle.
What we absolutely love about this car is its history file and maintenance records. This car would have to be somewhat of a unicorn in that it is accompanied by its original service log book, which shows everything done to the car up to the odometer reading 27,000 miles. There is then a subsequent note book in which previous owners kept track of every service up to the odometer reading 59,000 miles. The third notebook goes to 122,500 miles which was the odometer reading in August 2001. We can honestly say we have never come across an MG TF which service history was this well documented from new. Today the odometer reads 125,843 miles.
There is also an original MG Midget series “TF” operation manual with the car, a workshop manual and a service manual.
The MG car club scene in Australia is very active and they organise events all over the country. Every region in Australia has its own club and this car would be a very welcome addition.
Highlights:
- Beautifully presented example of a quintessential British sports car.
- Incredible history file with service log books from new!
- Original toolkit, jack and crank handle.
- An older restoration that presents like it was recently completed.
- Ready to be used and enjoyed.
Just a fabulous example of the iconic MG TF!
Background
MG is one of the world’s most iconic motoring brands. Founded in 1924 by Cecil Kimber, MG (which are the initials for Morris Garages) produced some fabulous cars pre-war and enjoyed much success in motoring racing. A milestone for the company occurred in 1933 when an MG Magnette K3 became the first non-Italian car to win its class at the Mile Miglia.
Today when someone mentions MG you immediately think of ‘the affordable, everyman’s sports car’, and particularly the MGB. It was, however, post-World War II that MG really brought the sports car to the people with the MG TC. The MG TA (built from 1936 – 1939) and MG TB (built from 1939 – 1940) were well regarded sports cars, but sold only in relatively small numbers. Introduced in 1945 the MG TC was in fact a very similar car to the MG TB, both visually and also mechanically sharing the same 1,250 cc engine but with a slightly higher compression ratio. Although only built as right hand drive, America fell in love with the MG TC and many cars were sold to American serviceman serving in the UK and Europe at the end of the war. In fact, everyone loved the TC and cars were sold to all points of the globe! Over six years of production MG sold 10,000 MG TC’s.
The MG TC was succeeded by the MG TD in 1950 and circa 30,000 cars were built before being replaced by the MG TF in 1953. Initially the MG TF was powered by the same engine as in the TD, but with an increased compression ratio and extra large valves with stronger valve springs and larger carburettors. Mid 1954 the engine size was increased to 1,466cc.
Just under 10,000 TF’s were built of which one third had the 1,466 cc engine. The T Series MG’s were replaced by the MGA in 1955.
Specification
- -
- MG TF
- 1954
- Convertible
- Manual
- 25,843 miles
- 1,250cc
SOLD
Register interest if a similar car becomes available
The Oldtimer Australia Website Make an Enquiry on a Car Form
"*" indicates required fields