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MG TD


How did the MG TD come about?
Well, first there was the MG TC. Produced from 1945 to 1949 it looked every inch the classic British sports car with its upright grille, slab fuel tank and exposed spare wheel on top. Indeed, during the War American GI's had experienced and grown to love the T-Series MG's. Many were exported, including the TC although these models were not ideal for that important and profitable market hence the TD.

So how is the TD different from other MG sports cars?
Launched in January 1950 it was a mixture of modified MG YA running gear and the styling of the TC and has been described as a late 1930s sports car built for the 1950s. Designed in a great hurry during 1949 the chassis of the YA saloon was shortened whilst the body may have looked similar to the TC but was wider and lower. The TD still used the 1250cc engine, which had been in production since 1939, but it was the first MG sports car to have independent suspension and rack and pinion steering, donated by the YA. At the back was another first, a hypoid-bevel rear axle, all this meant a smoother ride and better handling MG. Oh yes and with exports in mind the TD was the first MG ever to be built in left hand drive.

Did the TD do well and did it change much?
It became the fastest selling MG ever, 10,000 were made in 1952 alone and in all there were 29,664 TDs. The MG TD Mark II in 1950 was essentially a factory tuned model, which had a more powerful 60bhp engine, up from 54bhp and different gear ratios. Otherwise there were only subtle changes over the years.

Why has the TD got steel rather than wire wheels?
Cost cutting. Certainly enthusiasts were very disappointed. MG constantly made excuses suggesting implausible technical reasons why wire wheels would not work. In fact wire wheels were one of the most popular aftermarket accessories at the time. MG itself had to offer an upgrade kit to wire wheels during 1953 because it's successor, the essentially identical MGTF had wire wheels as an option.

Vehicle statistics

Body type: saloon

Colour: blue

Engine size: 1250 cc

Year: 1955

Registration: 5399 DG

Chassis: TD26054

Engine number: TD26485