MG MGB GT: Pininfarina looks and a hatchback, for roadster money (1965-1980)

Take the open MGB, add a sleek fastback roof styled by Pininfarina, a pair of occasional rear seats and a hatchback tailgate, and you have the MGB GT: a car that is prettier than it has any right to be, more practical than a roadster, and just as cheap to run. It is the sensible enthusiast’s MGB and one of the most underrated classics there is, and it has been called the poor man’s Aston Martin, a comparison that on looks alone is not absurd.

The MGB GT is part of the classic MG range, the closed companion to the roadster, and the body style that has quietly become a favourite of people who actually use their classics.

A fastback on the MGB

The GT arrived in 1965, three years after the roadster, and the transformation is all in the roof. The closed steel fastback, with its elegant sloping rear glass and opening tailgate, was styled by the Italian house Pininfarina and grafted onto the existing MGB bodyshell. It turned a simple roadster into an early example of the sporting hatchback: a 2+2 with a genuine luggage platform behind the front seats and small occasional rear seats suitable for children or extra bags.

Underneath, the GT is pure MGB: the same 1798cc B-series four, the same gearbox and overdrive option, the same chrome-bumper cars to 1974 and rubber-bumper cars from late 1974 to 1980. It is about 114 kg heavier than the roadster, which blunts acceleration a fraction, but the closed roof makes it slightly more slippery, so the GT is actually marginally faster at the top end, and noticeably quieter and more comfortable on a long run. The roadster wins on open-air feel; the GT wins on everything practical.

The MGB GT V8

The most desirable GT of all is the MGB GT V8, built from 1973 to 1976. It used the light Rover 3528cc aluminium V8, the ex-Buick engine that became a British performance staple, producing 137 bhp. Because the alloy V8 weighs little more than the iron four, it added pace without spoiling the balance: 0 to 60 mph in around 7.7 seconds and a top speed near 125 mph, a transformation over the four-cylinder car.

It was a GT only; the factory never built a roadster V8, so every genuine factory V8 is a coupe. Just 2,591 were made before the 1973 oil crisis killed demand for thirsty engines and the model was dropped. The chrome-bumper cars, built in larger numbers early on, are the most sought-after. The V8 is the MGB to have for performance, and its rarity gives it a clear price premium over the four-cylinder GT.

What it is like to own

The GT is the MGB you can use all year. The closed cabin keeps the weather out, the hatchback swallows luggage, and the refinement at speed makes it a far better long-distance car than the roadster. It drives much like the open car, light and friendly, with the same simple mechanicals and the same superb parts support. The four-cylinder GT is no sports car for outright pace, but it is a handsome, practical and genuinely affordable classic; the V8 adds the performance that turns it into a real grand tourer.

Buying guide: what to look for

The GT shares the MGB roadster’s structural rust traps and adds a few of its own. As on every monocoque MGB, the sills are the priority, a complex multi-layer structure that carries much of the car’s strength, so check for a smart outer sill hiding a rotten inner one. Inspect the floors, jacking points, front wing lower rear corners, front chassis legs and the battery boxes behind the seats.

The GT-specific areas are at the back. The tailgate rusts along its lower lip if water is trapped inside, and the base of the rear screen surround rots, a serious point because there are no repair sections made for it, so look hard for bubbling around the rear glass. Water also collects between the boot floor and the fuel tank and rots both, so check the boot floor, the spare-wheel well and the rear spring mountings. On a V8, confirm the car is a genuine factory V8 rather than a later conversion, which is worth far less.

Current value and where it sits

The four-cylinder GT is one of the great classic-car bargains: good cars sit around £5,000 to £8,000, with the best restored examples reaching £12,000 to £16,000 or so. It is usually a little cheaper than the equivalent roadster, which keeps it firmly in affordable territory. The GT V8 is the exception, commanding a strong premium, with good cars from £13,000 to £18,000 and the best chrome-bumper cars well beyond £24,000.

In the wider story the MGB GT is the practical, handsome face of the MGB, the closed fastback that rivalled Triumph’s GT6 for affordable coupe appeal. For a six-cylinder take on the same idea, MG offered the MGC GT, while the V8 gave the GT the performance the four-cylinder car always lacked.

Owners’ clubs and parts

The MG Owners’ Club and the MG Car Club both cover the GT, with spares, technical support, dating and events. Parts supply is the best of any British classic, with body panels, trim, mechanical and electrical parts all available, and complete Heritage bodyshells made on the original tooling, though some GT-specific items such as the rear screen surround remain hard to source. The V8 has its own dedicated following and a good specialist support network.

Related

The MGB GT is one of the classic MGs, the fastback version of the MGB roadster, styled by Pininfarina. For the wider period it belongs to, see British classic cars of the 1960s and 1970s.

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