Now that is a good news story, sorry Im probably not the best to give any advice, but wish you the best of luck getting it back to drivable, am sure some of the boffins will be able to give you some excellent advice - have not been a member on here long but now feel qualified enough to post

:nopics: :woo:

 

Hi Owen, welcome to the forum.

Thats excellent - great find!

Thoughts:

* Tyres will probably need to be replaced as the sidewalls may well be damaged

* Drain as much petrol as you can, then replace with fresh. You can disconnect the fuel line at the fuel filter and use that to drain the tank via the fuel pump, and can also use clean petrol via a funnel to prime the engine.

* Battery will probably need to be replaced

* Possibly a good idea to drain the oil and see how it looks - it may need flushing before refilling so stock up on some flush and some inexpensive oil to use while testing

* Probably a good idea to take spark plugs out and dribble a little oil into each of the cylinders using a syringe and a bit of plastic pipe, then turn the engine over a few times by hand with plugs still out before attempting to fire it up.

* brake and clutch fluid should really be replaced.

* coolant should also be replaced and flushing through the system with a hose and water before refilling may be a good idea. Take note that there are 3 bleed points on the car. Correct bleeding is essential to avoid risk of HGF.

* check for signs of hose deterioration and leaks.

* Check the steel underfloor coolant pipes - these may well be corroded to the point where a leak is likely and again that can be a source of very rapid HGF if not spotted.

* Brakes - new pads, possibly new disks. handbrake cable may have stretched - you may need to adjust. Take it steady until braking system is known to be good!

* check for signs of mice and wasps nests, and other nasty squatters that may have taken up residence. I heard of someone who had a similar car find, got it trucked home only to discover a scorpion called it home and wasnt to impressed with the move!


I cant think of much else right now, fingers crossed it just fires up for you.

 

Shouldnt be too bad, had similar with a rover 25 not started for 3 years.

Just the usual precautions, top up tank with petrol, I added an octane booster just to help it along.
Just did checks of oil and coolant, topped the oil back up to level same with coolant and then started it up. Left it to warm up on its own without revving it so oil and coolant could get itself flowing round the engine again.
Was fine.

Took a few runs up and down the airfield with the breaks half on to get the disks and pads clean enough to give a decent efficiancy.

Good luck, and pictures please!

 

Hi Owen :welcome:

Yes, it is a K series engine :broon:

Sound points above ref oil and fuel, they need totally clearing and changing, along with brake fluid too as probably contaminated by now.

Tyres, would def recommmend changing as well due to age and potential damage.

Good luck with it...you'll love it when it's going and the roof is down

But......:nopics:

 

Even if the brakes gets free, I would check the rear solid brake lines an front to back pipe, they tend to rott first

Edit: O yeah when changing the oil before first starting, take the engine cover off and fill the oil through the filler on the cam cover not the remote one under the grill, just to get some oil in the top end and round the cams

 

Edit: O yeah when changing the oil before first starting, take the engine cover off and fill the oil through the filler on the cam cover not the remote one under the grill, just to get some oil in the top end and round the cams

yep good call Jon, easy to forget - most people will go via the other filler down the dipstick and leave the head as dry as a bone.

 

Check the two hood catches, located on the windscreen surround next to the sun visors. Hopefully they will not have seized.

Next, flip back the catches and unhook the hood locating bars from the strikers.

Now, carefully check the rear window. If in doubt, unzip the window to avoid cracking or ensure that it is warm enough to be pilable before attempting the next step.

Take the front of the hood and locate the second bar. Move the front of the hood and second bar back towards the rear of the car to avoid the hood locking up. Neatly fold the hood away and close the catches.

Doing this will ensure that your new MGTF will go much quicker and give you a much more pleasurable driving experience when you manage to get it started :broon:.

Enjoy


PS - The above steps assume that the car does not have a hard top fitted!

 

Welcome Owen!

 

Welcome Owen!

If it's any use to you I had something similar. My MGF had been sat at company's car park for 2 years before it was mine. Mine fired up first thing!

I have a few suggestions to make so feel free to PM me.

My car is running great now and I went all the way to UK with it last Feb. to meet a bunch of these crazy people over here.

 

Hi Owen and welcome!

Some people get all the luck don't they, what better way to own your first MG than to get it for free!

In terms of getting it running; assuming your confident with car mechanics and if it was me, I would be looking at a full filters, fluids and belt change (inc. water pump). New battery and checking all brake pads and discs - most of which you should be able to get done in a day (famous last words!!) although the cambelt may take you longer it's worth it.

Also if you have air-con I suspect it will need a regas.

To answer your question, yes you have the K series engine, but resist the temptation to change the head gasket just for the sake of it.

 

I'd take the spark plugs out, oil the bores and turn it over by hand to make sure it's not seized before trying to start it.

I had a similar thing with a bike I'm rebuilding (here, if you're interested). I oiled the camshafts and bores with an oil can, and turned it over by hand a good few times before attempting to start it and it fired up without too much trouble

 

If I had a choice I would also check the cam belt before starting too, ideally change it first or very soon after getting it running, these engine aren't a safe engine so if your belt in knackered you risk bending valves

 

:nopics:

Show us some pics

 

/me looks around carpark in case someone has left a ferrari and gone abroad.... nope... no such luck

 

Owen, mine was also 'free' as the old owner wanted to scrap it.

I wouldn't get my hopes up until you have the keys in your hands and paperwork sorted out.Before you get any spares make sure you can change owners and accept full responsibility for it.

You don't mention if you're in UK or Italy. I'm in Spain and over here paperwork takes ages to sort out. 6 months I had mine in the garage until I was able to drive it legally.

So get the legal aspects going first before you start to lose money. Don't get ahead of yourself either, so concentrate on the jobs you can do 'for free'.

That is start to make a list of what needs fixing/replacing/servicing.

You could do with oil change, oil filter, air filter, fuel filter, coolant renewal, brake fluid renewal, new discs (mine were rotted over) new pads, possibly new break lines (hoses - go for upgraded metal hoses). Also cambelt, alternator belt and water pump.

Checl the state of the suspension bushes and the engine mounts.

You need to ensure the alternator is charging the battery too.

You could do with new tyres too. Tyres have an expiry date of 5 years. After that, the manufacturer cannot guarantee the safety of the tyre. Plus, they'll be bent and buckled and will make the car wobble.

Check all electrics are working and I bet you will need a new battery fitted. If not all electrics are working, prepare what you'll need swapping over. Anything from fuses to stuck relays.

Hope that no rodents have nested in the car as they do chew over cables and other parts and make a right mess of the place.

Get a second key cut and also get a fob (optional - I got a spare fob too). Get yourself the EKA code too, good to keep handy. And check inside the car you have the user manual too.


I think that's pretty much it!

 

if its like mine ...

hi , best of luck with it , my 420 gsi hadnt been started for over a year , fresh battery , oiled bores , turned over by hand , it seemed tight , oiled bores again left for two days , seemed tight , turned over on key , very very slowly , took advice from "expert" , tried his advice no different , went down the pub and thought stupid things , then in a moment of genius , i thought it couldnt possibly be the same as my old mazda mx5 , just a seized alternator , sobered up , went to car following day with hangover , removed belt , alternator seized solid , spun it over without belt on , fast as .... , got secondhand alternator off a range rover ! fitted it up , started first time , went down pub !!!!
worth checking !
good luck

 

Hi Owen, welcome to the .org forums.

Superb find mate, hope you get keys and paperwork through OK.

Think all has been mentioned that needs mentioning in previous posts! You will probably have to spend a good few hundred Euro's to make roadworthy, tyres, brake discs/pads, possibly coolant pipes etc, but still a bargain if no other problems other than what will amount to a mega service!

 

I should know all about that! Just on paperwork I spent 800€ getting it 'legally' roadworthy sorting all them papers.

 

Let us know what happens.
Can you work on it where it is? I'd get it up on four stands. Get the wheels off and reinflate the tyres without the weight at a garage. See if the rear brakes will be presuaded gently to release. Check the oil and coolant levels. Put a little oil in the bores and turn over by hand. Gravity feed clean petrol from a small tank into the filter (will that work with injection? I am used to twin SU carbs) or as above disconnect the fuel line and use the pump with more line to pump the old fuel elsewhere and pump thriough fresh. The old fuel will be fine mixed into another motor's tank. (I think MGF fuel pumps get touchy if the tank runs dry?) Take the cover off the cam belt and see if there are any obvious cracks while turning by hand. Check alternator belt. Start her up on jump leads. Let it run and see what happens. Get it home cautiously. Change belts, water pump, oil, coolant, brake fluid. Drive it cautiously again. Recheck brakes and engine, scrubb it up inside with hair shampoo and Rock and Roll! Perhaps discs and pads and probably four tyres.

 

Hello Owen, I know very little about enginey things (still a learner), so instead I offer congratulatiosn and the occassional morale boost if you feel you need it

Welcome to .org, I'm looking forward to seeing how your project develops! Posting photos is probably the best way to do that ...

All the best, Jamie

 

Wow!

Well firstly thank you everyone for your replies!

I've had a quick skim over them this evening and they seem spot on!

I'll end up printing them all off once i've got the car on the drive.

I've also just realised (after a couple of prompts ) that i haven't put any photos up.

So here she is in the only photo i've taken:

Tomorrow is "MG-D-Day" it turns out that he's back in the country and never posted the keys... but he's going to come over to my desk tomorrow with all the paperwork and the keys, at which point i can have a proper look around!

i'll grab as many photos as i can for you all, so expect an update tomorrow afternoon.

Oh, and I'm based in Reading (in England) for those who were interested.

Take Care!

Owen

 

Wow!

Well firstly thank you everyone for your replies!

I've had a quick skim over them this evening and they seem spot on!

I'll end up printing them all off once i've got the car on the drive.

I've also just realised (after a couple of prompts ) that i haven't put any photos up.

So here she is in the only photo i've taken:

Tomorrow is "MG-D-Day" it turns out that he's back in the country and never posted the keys... but he's going to come over to my desk tomorrow with all the paperwork and the keys, at which point i can have a proper look around!

i'll grab as many photos as i can for you all, so expect an update tomorrow afternoon.

Oh, and I'm based in Reading (in England) for those who were interested.

Take Care!

Owen

Looks really nice Owen....plenty of help advice here for you :broon:

 

Fantastic find Owen, and considering the length if time its been sat it is looking very nice!

Plenty of pointers been made so none to add myself!

But good luck in getting it all running, should only be a weekends work to get it going! If you need any help im sure someone local would be happy to help.

 

Well, the keys turned up today at 12:00

The battery was totally dead, so my little Panda gave the MG the kiss of life (so we could unlock the doors)

Then the recovery truck arrived

now £35 later, she's sitting on my drive and the parking space that has been resreved for 4 years is now free again

Here's the lowdown:

the condition is surprisingly good, my housemate and i gave her a proper clean after the recovery guys dropped her off.
Alot of the mould came off with a vacuum cleaner, and the majority of spider's webs have now been sucked up.

It's really nice coming back to the house to find MY mg sitting on the drive

The paperwork is ready to be signed and sent off (although i think i'll leave it a while as it's sorned at the moment) and i want to do an HPI.

so some possible bad news.

In the few year that i've been driving, i've owned 5 fiats and an Alfa Romeo, and i'm yet to experience this dreaded 'head gasket failure'.
But after taking off the dipstick i'm worried to say that there was a milky substance hanging to the bottom of it, are we safe assuming that this is an HG failure, if so what does that mean? is it an expensive job on these cars.

I've picked up some engine flush and 5l of 10w40, as well as a jerry can of petrol, some redex and some octane booster.

I was planning on doing a full flush and oil change tomorrow but i dont really know now due to the potential HG problem (that i might be imagining)

i know usually you see the mustard substance under the filler cap, but i figure theres nothing there because the engine hasn't been run.

So here's what i'm thinking.

1.) check the levels, top up a bit, but attempt to start the engine using the oil that's already in there. and then check under the cap for any mustard/problems.

2.) do a full flush and oil change first and then attempt to start the car.


Here is an embarrassing question:
i've never had a mid engined car before i can't work out how to access the engine? do i have to unbolt the panel under all that sound deadening under the rear window?


Thanks

more pics tomorrow

Owen

 

Hi owen and :welcome:.

Congratulations on your best freebie EVER!!:lol:

I'm stunned at just how well she looks after being abandoned for so long.:broon:


Your plan for startup seems sound,:broon: and you'll be pleased to hear that in all likelyhood the 'mayonaisse' you've seen on the bottom of the dipstick is purely condensation on the oil from standing cold for so long....

.....most Ks develop this after just a few weeks idle, and it evaporates off after a good hot run.

If your oil looks like chocolate milkshake then you've really got problems.:lol:......also while on the subject, commonly HGF for the K presents as an oil to water mix as well, and shows as an oily sheen on top of your coolant.



Yes, you access the engine bay by unclipping the hood rear at the parcel shelf, and lifting the hood forwards. (be sure to secure it with a bungee strap or such like, unless you're fond of a bruised head)
Then lift the carpet and soundproofing from the parcel shelf to expose the engine access panel..........then it's out with the spanner and undo countless bolts.

Be warned, exposing the engine is the easy bit.........accessing all areas is much easier if you've arms like a gibbon.........(best buy some plasters for the knuckles before you start...:lol

Good luck.:broon:

 

Nice Car Owen.

No need to panic about oil yet, you often get a build up of condensation on the dipstick which forms little creamy dots and lumps.

Drain the oil and see how it looks. Black or very dark brown is fine, even with a few creamy bits after standing for that time. Cappuccino / frappe not so good

As described above to access engine, unclip rear of hood, lift up and hold in place with bungi cord. carpet out from parcel shelf and you will see the engine cover.

As Jon commented when filling with new oil use the oil filler on top of the engine, not the one thats accessible from the boot. The other oil filler by the way uses the dipstick pipe, so when using that you need to take the dipstick out. Its also very slow going. Use the one on top of the block whenever possible.

Keep us posted.

 

This a great thread! What a story!

I'm sure we're all rooting for you and waiting for the happy ending!

Laurie.

 

I absoultely agree, like everyone else I can't wait to hear what happens when you turn the key!

 

More news plese Owen. We are all waiting with baited breath!!!

 

News?

Oky Dokey!

------

here is what happened yesterday:

So after getting the car home friday night, i decided that Saturday would be my day to check everything out followed by today where i would actually do work on her.

I put the car up on axle stands and had a quick look under the car... theres quite a lot of rust, but nothing structural that i can see

I found the engine cover (thanks)
and decided that it was worth the hassle of taking it off...



Firstly, who's idea was it to put a bolt under that massive bit of plastic (where the spanner is sticking out on the right)

After about 15 minutes on that one screw i finally got it out

yay!

and revealed the engine in all it's glory.

I popped off the plastic cover to reveal the spark plugs (which i was going to oil and check) but i didn't have a spark plug tool.

Anyway...

Some other stuff happened, i freaked out about a HG problem, got reassured by your posts (thanks again)

I found a receipt for a service that had only been done about 10000 miles before she was dumped which includes, new plugs, oil, filters, belts, pretty much everything actually, which gave me much more confidence when attempting to do this:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcxeUkhBCUU

a little lumpy sure... but 4 year old petrol (with a jerry can of new stuff, some injector cleaner and octane booster) and 4 year old oil she sounded pretty good, with no clunks or bangs.

I left it running for about 20 minutes, with my eyes fixated on the temperature gauges.
All seemed good.



So, my plan for today:

I have new oil, a can of engine flush and some mates with better tools than me

So we're going to put through the can of engine flush with whats in there at the moment, then put another couple of Litres to flush through, followed by 4.5litres (i think that's right?) of 10 W40 Part Synthetic.

I've pumped the rear tyre up, which seems to be holding...

I'll update you some more this evening, where hopefully we'll have taken her out for a quick spin around the block.

See you on the other side!

Owen

 

Sunday Update:

the Boys came over in the X19:

With a decent air compressor and the nesasary tools.

and after adding a can of flush to the oil and running it through for 20 minutes, here is the result:

Black but definately not cappuccino
So oil and filter change done, I left her to run for a bit and then i took her for a spin round the roundabout.
(video to come)

All in all a great day lots of things learned, and now i have to think about what i'm doing with her.

here are the plans:


1.) Get an MOT (which she should fly through) then sell her.

2.) Sell my Beloved Panda and use the MG all the time...

3.) keep the car in the garage, and move the insurance over from the panda whenever i want to do a track day.

4.) Move the insurance over from the Panda, and keep the MG for the summer, then sell her at the end of August.

5.) find cheap insurance and keep the MG running as a second car.

So my next question to you all is about insurance?

I am possibly THE WORST candidate for cheap insurance... here is the list:

Firstly i'm only 23
I've got 6 points.
I had an accident at christmas that was my fault (slipped on ice and hit an Audi ) and consiquently have 0 ncb

for the last 6 years, elephant/admiral has always been the cheapest for me, but is there an option i havn't looked at, such as limited mileage insurance, or classic car (this is a classic right??) in which case, where would/do you go for it?

Cheers!

Owen