MGB Barnfind Rescue! Will they roll after 22 years?

‪@CambrianClassicsLtd‬ invited me along as they dug out two MGB Barnfinds. Can we get them rolling? Just how rotten are they? Plenty of rust here!
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#barnfind #mg #classiccars

[@klutchcustoms2428]

Mr HubNut doing barn finds... Jonny Smith has bought a 2CV. What's the world coming to?

[@groeacht8525]

Stepping on each others toes a bit, next Ian will be doing a #1 motoring podcast...

[@terryatkinson3182]

Both former journalists so it's not surprising they think alike 😊 Jonny has the money to finish his project's Would be better if they both just took a leaf from furious driving and get stuck in and do tinkering for themselves.... give it a go

[@klutchcustoms2428]

@@terryatkinson3182 I don't know. They both like a tinker. I know Jonny has built his own cars even before his max power magazine days! It's all said as a light poke! I'm personally grateful for the content from 'em all!

[@johnmiller4973]

It's called sharing the love

[@pit_stop77]

Never ceases to surprise me what is hidden away in British garages

[@caw25sha]

"If you can't fix it with a hammer you can't fix it at all." That's got to go on a t-shirt.

[@HowardLeVert]

I knew someone who used to say "If you can't fix it with a hammer it's probably an electrical fault."

[@BrisCapri]

@@HowardLeVert I once caused an electrical fault with a hammer.

[@cornishhh]

According to my old AA and RAC guides, W.L. Silcox and Son were at 17 Water St Pembroke Dock. They sold the whole range of BMC cars.

[@TonyCottrell-iv2qv]

Really interesting one! There is a decrepit house near me with a couple of MGBs rotting away. They look even worse than these two so probably beyond saving, but makes me sad every time I pass, so kudos to Hubnut and Cambrian Classics for setting these two on the path to rescue!

[@edmundabc1]

Ian, I so look forward to you putting out another video, especially when I've pointlessly watched some utter bollocks about the world we live in. Then you pop up and all is well and right with the world, talking about what's important life. Really life, and great old cars. Keep it up man ❤

[@UKBarnFinds]

Fantastic viewing. Loved the cars, but the added rummaging around made it even more fun to watch.

[@HubNut]

Cheers guys!

[@CambrianClassicsLtd]

Cheers!

[@scottishcarenthusiastsandtrain]

A great video and great to see Tim again. I do hope someone comes along to restore these two MGB's.

[@jfv65]

That GT fixed top would be my choice. And that color is sublime early 70's.

[@Jam3sA]

With the availability of parts, I reckon both are restorable (with deep enough pockets). Note the appropriate year for the black & silver licence plate!

[@tonys1636]

Fill the cylinders with diesel, leave to soak for a week or two and they should turn, worked for me with a 1949 series 1 Land Rover that had spent 30 years in a pond buried in the silt. Had less than 250 miles on the clock. According to the Farmers Grandson he had got out to shut a gate and forgot the handbrake, it rolled down the field into the pond where it remained until the Grandson decided to restore the pond.

[@ablestringer9063]

Pity the dog wasn't a Labrador...you could have combined your Cat Scan with a Lab Report

[@stephenhall3515]

This was classic Hubnut "carcheology" on a wet day here in Ireland. Yes, citron yellow was a dreadful colour but one gets used to it and my own MGBGT, which served me for years, is still alive and under wax with a friend in Cambs. My big idea was to store it for one of my daughters to drive eventually but they prefer comfort to adventure and want the gizmos and stuff. My particular one was tuned up a shade [don't ask] and somewhat fast. When lead free petrol ousted leaded I refused to spoil things and certainly would never change to a single 12V battery. When I left England and retired to Ireland my friend in Cambs used it in shows and even some special runs when petrol could be got and it has appeared in TV and films when a genuine period vehicle is needed. This pays for its keep and my friend has a steady retirement business with the film industry with the range of cars and military wheels he stores immaculately. The view of the Laycock overdrive switch brought back happy memories from 25+ years ago. Thank you.

[@allanfoster6965]

The chrome bumper ones are so pretty.

[@Mitch-Hendren]

The colour under the bonnet is limeflower. Ive a Morris 1100 the same colour .

[@HubNut]

Ah yes. Good call. Not quite so in your face as Citron.

[@Mrflash222006]

I see the sana has a new home minus a clutch - that 1st garage is marginally tidier than the Hubnut cattle shed lol

[@richardhunt809]

I hope they do get restored. MGBs are such pretty cars.

[@peterharness5192]

Great video, love the citron GT, do hope they get restored! Can’t help but think a GT would sit well in the Hubnut fleet 👍

[@andrewpreston4127]

Lovely, thank you. Very impressed with that flat tyre at 20.00.

[@robertsedgwick1629]

no Ian the door handles are not "just like an Allegro!" they are landcrab

[@kevinnye5132]

Words i thought I would never hear in my lifetime 😁 “ Hubnut the 5th emergency assistance service “ 😂😂

[@cardiffgiant9406]

The GT is a local registration too. Perfect candidate for a new Heritage shell.

[@robertngreen6]

I hope these do get restored - but if not, at least some spares have been saved. Very interesting video anyway!

[@micheltebraake7915]

These are great projects for someone who enjoys restoration and is not in a hurry. Good that they were saved.

[@alansmith1770]

A worthy find for a serious restorer. Well done

[@tristanpage6805]

Love the save. Great work

[@vwcoco]

Nice find, lucky garage roof didn’t cave in by the looks of it. Gone to good home. Thanks for filming Ian

[@davidking9707]

I do like the MGB GT. I wish them luck and I love the colour.

[@Idylla-le-schnouck]

Thanks to this channel and the cars you present, i got more confidence of finally become owner of a wonderful id19, a lifelong dream. A little more robust and repair friendly than a gs(a) i presume. I really hope to see future citroen content. Would consider buying giselle if i weren't separated from you by many miles and a very large pond..

[@alexwoods1094]

I’d love to buy that GT. Exactly like the one I used to own 20 years ago…… with more rust obviously!🤣

[@Nino500]

Looking at the state of that garage I'm seeing the possible aftermath of my own demise, if I don't extract the digit and get on with stuff!😐😬🙄🤣

[@HubNut]

I can't talk...

[@saxon-mt5by]

My thoughts exactly!

[@bentullett6068]

It always amazes me how many cars are abandoned in garages and barns. Always great to have a hotline to firms who buy and sell garages around flat complexes or housing estate's with separate garages as they tend to have garages that have car suprises inside them.

[@daniellee9015]

Absolutely brilliant video Ian ❤👍both beautiful cars in there time and will be again brilliant

[@StreakyP]

Ah yes I remember those wiper spindles... there is a trick when the teeth get worn on them & the wipers start to jitter... take the wiper arms off, pull the cable right out & the spindles turn round & round in situ as the helical cable comes right out... with the cable right out turn the wiper spindles 180 degrees then put the cable back in... the spindles then spinning round & round but they then come to rest against the unworn teeth on the previously unused side of wiper cog. Problem sorted (probably). The other trick if the helical cable is starting to get worn too is to blag one out of a bigger car in the scrappy & cut it to length on your original cable & re-insert it into your existing motor/tube. With the scrappy being a bigger car the spindles will be at different distances to the motor so again the cable mesh to your spindle cogs will be at an unworn part.

[@PaulUnderwood345]

Attaching a strap to a tow ball?! 😮 Never been around when one let's go? It's like artillery.

[@johnmoruzzi7236]

Potentially a perfect pair !

[@hadtopicausername]

While I'm more partial to the curves of the MGA myself, the exhaust note of the B truly is delightful.

[@biker_dan]

Hey Ian . I think that yellow MG would be a good resto job, apart from rear arches the rest is not too bad.. I think you should buy it, strip it in your garage and take time to restore it, between you and the missus all you need to do is purchase a decent welder then the world is your lobster as Arthur Daily would say. Plus it would be a great weekly update on the restoration and time is of no importance, suppose it takes years to get it all done, at least you will have don't it, and young Hubnut could learn a lot on it, in fact he would love it,,, Biker Dan

[@HubNut]

Sadly we already have way too many projects and no space.

[@jwsoaresjones1560]

@@HubNut ...isn't there another dimension where there is too much space and not enough projects? THE IDEAL ZONE

[@gryfandjane]

It’s sad to see classics dying of neglect… 😢. Here’s hoping they can live again!

[@Farney-gy1qo]

This brings back Great memories from the beginning of 2000. I was a member of the Kursaal Flyers 2cv Club (Southend on sea). We had a Camp meeting in Saint-Mihiel in France with a Dutch club. My friend brought a trailer and his Xantia. He had bought an AMI 6 Break, by the time we got home it was a rust free shell 😅.

[@rhys_thomss7013]

Good job Ian!!! My grandma is a big mg fan she has a mg midget she bought it when her and her late husband got married then sold it but for her 60th birthday my dad bought it back for her! And it is in her garage!

[@hotsedan]

Thanks for the reminder that I really ought to get some work done on my MGB.... It's only been in storage for 10 years or so

[@fatlad5090]

looks like the MG collection from Bailiff Bridge west yorkshire on bradford road. The guy would buy mint MGs and leave them for years on the side of a busy main road. couple of winters go buy and poor old MGs would be starting to rot. They was loads of them in the garden drive garages and on main road

[@HubNut]

☹️

[@mickfoster7140]

A bit of a challenge but I expect those two MGs will be easier to fix than that Smart you have just aquired.

[@iainmacleod4007]

This brings back memories of my mother’s 1972 MG BGT in Harvest Gold. It was specified with the optional Laycock overdrive which gave more relaxed cruising. The MGB’s of this era should have Rostyle wheels and the original grilles were poverty spec on this era which have almost always been replaced as in this case. British Leyland malaise unfortunately.

[@craigmclean8260]

Fun to see these; they seemed to be all over the place in the '60s here in the States, and that rorty exhaust note made it easy to tell what sort of car/engine it was...the 1975s and on, of course, got lifted w/ rubber bumpers (US regulations), and only a single SU carby (many got replaced w/ Webers); the exhaust note on those (restricted by catalyst, I think) was kind of "constipated" sounding in comparison. This barn-find, like so many others I've seen, turns into an instructional video on Rodentia, entomological studies (spiders in brake drums, etc.), and yesterday I watched "Budget Buildz" rescue a 1976 Dodge dump truck, which ran much better after it backfired all the Mud Daubers out the carburetor! Good on ya, and Tim, for rescuing these!

[@nickyfield137]

For a moment at the beginning I thought you said "Edward the Compressor" !

[@CauliflowerMcPugg]

What a great caper, fun times indeed

[@AlfieTheHammer363]

Beautiful cars , I nearly bought a V8 MGBGT British Racing Green, but ended up going for the sensible option a 1.6 Capri instead, My Big Sister made Me see sense , But Fab cars all the same, Abingdon was treated very badly, With decent management they could still be making them today , I’m sure there is still a market for a low price sports that actually looks the part , Austin Healy’s the same , The yanks would still buy them but maybe replace the Lucus Electrics first 😁

[@peterpanx1]

The MGB GT is a cool car when I think of it. I've never driven one but they are supposed to be fun and with a grunty little four cylinder it had decent performance for its time. Like today's Mx5. Then add a hatchback to the mix and you get loads of practicality as well. A small practical sports car? 🤔🙂

[@rachelwhysall9169]

Good candidates for a heritage shell ! 👍

[@waynekerrgoodstyle]

Very brave! 👍

[@Mighty_Cat_Mods]

What a beautiful cat! Does it have a name? 🐈

[@chrisdayton9977]

Look at the size of that roses tin compared to the size of today’s. Can you see a date on it 😂

[@RWBHere]

'Collecting more rust.' 😁👍

[@gazp2194]

The sheerbolt bought back memories.i used to make them

[@gareththompson538]

I didn't know that about the aluminimum bonnets. I've got one hanging up in my garage that I'm using as a white board! That might end up going onto ebay.....

[@GenialHarryGrout]

Ian, are you sure you didn't find these MG's at the back of your garage... lol. These restored MG's will be smeone's very own Triggers broom

[@user-rp5uu4td7y]

Now this is going to be a great video 🎉🎉

[@tonysargent7787]

another great video has always Ian and Carly miss/mrs hubnut and hublets and hubmutt 👍

[@Alenasup]

Wow ive never seen a car like this. 70s but mini. I like it

[@timhancock6626]

My bro got an MGB to restore in 1979 but family pressures and no money meant he sold it. Id have given my eye teeth for an MGB back then so its such a shame these were abandoned. I hope somebody is brave enough to get these in order again.

[@georgekaritzis2374]

13:50 George's long lost cousin ?🙃

[@MrButtonpresser]

Patsy Cline's greatest hits, featuring her big hit "I Fall To Pieces"...

[@Canalsman]

My 1970 MGB Tourer had an alloy bonnet so they were fitted beyond the 1968 date you suggested. I would quibble with the 'briefly popular' comment too! They were immensely popular for a very long time and the TR7 which was intended to quash the interest in the MGB failed spectacularly!

[@rogerleyster4306]

Silcox were based in Pembroke Dock. I worked for the coach company of the same name.

[@leebridge9187]

Red one has to be called Gwyn!

[@jaymatsell1219]

It brings me back to my childhood watching my neighbour tinker and the smell of his pipe on the go 😊

[@michaelgoode9555]

MGB with a removable hardtop would be a lovely all year car. A good resto with a lot of underbody protection and more sound deadening material would awesome. Unfortunatley I don't have a sizeable pot of spare dosh to throw at it.

[@knutarneaakra6013]

Back in 1980 my gs 1200 pallas was a great car puller. Even had 3 fullgrown pigs on the trailer. Pigs that sice are big but the small aircoled car did great all the way to the marked. The pigs were worth more than the whole car.😊

[@colsparky651]

Love it

[@davidhinkson8856]

It seems like the red one is in better shape than the GT and can possibly be restored more easily, but it's always good to see old cars being pulled out of storage after many years and hoping for the best with them.

[@MapleMarmite]

My stepdad had a ‘75 Austin 2200 HL (Wedge) in Citron. I remember seeing the little pot of touch up paint and thinking “Is it a Citroen colour? On an Austin? And they’ve left the ‘e’ out.” I think the penny dropped at school in double French… 👍🏻

[@michaelcoffey7362]

Nice 😊

[@andrewmalyon5699]

Great video on the MGB's, both definitely restorable,, please do a follow up video showing there assessment and look over,hopefully both will be back on the road, Hubnut briefly did an abandoned house video,love it .

[@BrisCapri]

From MGB grills, to retro cookers.

[@bellowsmain6762]

MGB.GT. 40 mph felt and sounded like 80. Road holding, interesting, lost it in the wet top of Holden hill going up, slept in it for a night whilst working away, not fond memories but it was good fun. Rust is not optional. Sold it, bought a van.

[@RikAindow]

Hello! My favourite car.

[@Rjhs001]

It does sadden me that people have these wonderful, iconic cars and just totally neglect them.

[@miked2662]

Pardon me, but is he saying collection caper? I genuinely can’t understand lol Great vid!

[@chrisford4009]

I like the mgb but its the gt for me nice restoration project if you have somewhere to do it great video as usual

[@Levenstone132]

I've always liked the GT shape. I had a lovely red one back in the sixties. Corgi or Dinky? Can't remember,Corgi I think.😂

[@emmajacobs5575]

Sad to see the Midget decayed to that state. Looks like it was a 64-66 model like mine.

[@StevensPaul]

LOTS of these in the Yards @work. I've must've crushed hundreds of these over the past 20 years. Ours don't rust though but, that doesn't mean we won't crush them....or anything else the Boss deams "unworthy".....We have 14 in stock at our #2 Yard. We do have lots of parts that have been in storage for decades. This might change as it's time for the Yard to get a clean out and refresh. I've never owned one but, I do have a bunch of Panels including some NOS rear Quarters and rear Taillights. Wanna buy them 😮😅??

[@welshtony1]

I've always been a huge fan of the MGB's. just a shame most of them have rotten away. Please try and document the progression of these cars :) (ok just got to the part where he said he won't be restoring it just selling them) - Id love the GT but got no chance of restoring it myself.

[@01jvb]

Actually, according to the How Many Left website, there are still 25,000 MGB's on the road in the UK, which is quite remarkable for the age of the cars I think.

[@welshtony1]

They don't need a MOT. That's just means there is 25,000 cars still around but how many of them 25k are actually on the road. I bet these 2 in this video was 2 of them 25k cars and look at them, locked up for many years yet are counted in how many left as being on the road. But still at least there is 25k around somewhere.

[@01jvb]

​@@welshtony1 according to How Many Left there are 25,000 taxed and another 12,000 SORN.

[@michaeltutty1540]

The red one looks like it may just be savable. With that engine, fill the cylinders with Ford Type F automatic transmission fluid. Leave it sit, and you might be surprised how well it works. The Volvo should be able to move that. Our 81 240 with the single carb 2.1 and 3 speed auto gearbox moved a mature walnut tree off a garage.

[@kimba381]

A bonnet! I want one.

[@MrGaryRoberton]

Hubnut channelling Vice Grip Garage

[@HubNut]

He would have had them driving 800 miles!

[@Invisibleman7]

Hopefully someone can save them

[@LesterLovesWatches]

I’ve christened them Hinge and Bracket. Crusty, but quite fun.

[@Grimwriggler]

realling nice seeing these classics Ian but the red one is surely too far gone

[@HubNut]

No such thing, if you've got deep enough pockets...

[@TrevorBuick]

Strange place to build a single garage for the yellow one, made it hard work for you guys

[@TheAllyMor]

My mate has MGB's a Midget, 60's Land Rovers, a 2002 Rangerover and other things to sell off from his late father's estate. Some in a similar state to these 2 cars I think. I hope he can find sympathetic professionals like Tim to take them off his hands.

[@disleyade5470]

I once heard these described as 'Morris Oxford convertibles!'

[@andysalter4473]

Not a fan of the B, GT or the Midget but it's such a shame that they get left to fester to almost beyond resto. My a neighbour a while back, with an Austin 1300 in his garage which he never used. It become quite a state and he thought it was worth a fortune and laughed at several offers. When he died his family paid for it to be taken away.

[@thomasalbrecht5914]

I thought it was Morris Garage, but Mouldy Garage is more likely after this.

[@timleech]

I imagine that gt was quite a looker once…my favourite model…

[@chazw1964]

Minilites get put on because (in my case) the rostyles never ran true and vibrated me and the car to bits over 60mph. No-one can much agree what alloy should go on instead of the rostyles so the minilite is the easy non-controversial option. There is a current fetish toward plain steel wheels (and sometimes even those with hubcaps) on MGBs but I expect that idea will go full circle(!) in the future. I can see the roadster living again just because it is an open car and has more 'play value', but the GT probably not.

[@chrisowen738]

Like you i think mgbs are really pretty cars.i also think the also farina designed abo16 is also a pretty car.

[@HubNut]

Pininfarina only styled the GT. The B was the work of Syd Enever at MG.

[@graemew7001]

The hard top on the Vermillion roadster looks to be in fair condition and period correct so could be worth selling and re-furbished, seals and headling etc. These could be used fairly well as parts cars unless someone is feeling brave!!

[@olik136]

you know it is bad when the British person starts with a "blimey!"