Buyer’s guide: MG Midget & Austin-Healey Sprite

By Malcolm McKay

| 29 Dec 2000

Classic & Sports Car – Buyer’s guide: MG Midget & Austin-Healey Sprite

Why you’d want an MG Midget & Austin-Healey Sprite

After WW2, British sports cars were largely aimed at the US market – the few sold in the UK were too expensive for most motorists.

A thriving industry emerged for sports cars in kit form using more mundane parts (siring the likes of Lotus and Lola).

Leonard Lord at the British Motor Corporation saw an opportunity and commissioned Donald Healey to develop a prototype using Austin A30 running gear.

Healey snaffled rack-and-pinion steering from the Morris Minor, added hydraulic rear brakes and quarter-elliptic rear leaf springs.

The resulting Austin-Healey Sprite – and soon-to-follow MG Midget – showed that sports cars didnʼt have to be faster than the average saloon.

Sporting looks and sweet handling were enough, and for those who wanted (and could afford) a bit more, there was a huge range of factory tuning options available.

In 1960, Innocenti introduced a snappy, modern-looking version as the Italian-market Sprite; BMC followed a year later with the restyled MkII Sprite and MkI MG Midget, giving them subtly different trim (even different optional hardtops), positioning the Sprite as a no-frills version of the more pricey Midget.

The 948cc ʻSpridgetʼ grew to 1098cc in 1962 and 1275cc in 1966. Under the British Leyland conglomerate, the Austin-Healey marque was phased out, with a brief spell of Austin Sprites in 1971.

In 1974, the Midget acquired the 1493cc Triumph Spitfire engine, with a raised ride height and the infamous polyurethane bumpers.

Desperately cramped by 1970s standards, the Midget was still fun and sold well, until finally being discontinued in 1980.

Itʼs 20 years since our most recent buying guide on the Austin-Healey Sprite and MG Midget – so what has changed?

According to Spridget guru Mike Authers, fewer cars are being fully restored now than before – British Motor Heritage sells very few new Midget shells (at £13,320 each).

The cars remain affordable, with 1500s still the bargain of the breed, but the once huge price gulf between rubber- and chrome-bumper cars has narrowed.

Parts availability remains remarkably good, but the quality of some reproduction components can be poor and some arenʼt as cheap as in the past.

Rust is still the biggest challenge, so have a really good look inside and underneath before buying, armed with a magnet.

Images: James Mann

MG Midget & Austin-Healey Sprite: what to look for

Trouble spots

Please see above for what to check for when looking at MG Midget and Austin-Healey Sprite classic cars for sale.

Engine

Simple, robust and honest, the A-series engine will tell you with rattles, leaks and heavy breathing if it’s getting worn out.

The 1500 can hide a dark secret of crank thrust-washer failure – watch the front pulley while the clutch is depressed.

On both, check for signs of overheating and valve-seat failure.

Suspension

The front suspension of an MG Midget/Austin-Healey Sprite needs frequent lubrication: check kingpins, trunnions, lower wishbones and wishbone pivots.

Also inspect dampers and brakes.

Hood

Check the hood and sidescreens for fit and condition: it was never brilliant (one road-test car leaked across the ’screen top!), but shouldn’t be horrendous.

Rust

Check for filler with a magnet where the front wing, sill and A-post meet.

The lines of an MG Midget/Austin-Healey Sprite should be smooth, even and flush like this, not bulging and hiding horrors.

One of the most awkward (and often ignored) areas for rot is the box section above the back of the sill over the rear wheelarch: look under the carpets.

MG Midget & Austin-Healey Sprite: before you buy

Britainʼs first monocoque sports car inevitably suffers from rust, but also needs checking for swapped components – often rife when they were cheap and owners didnʼt care.

Most have had a replacement engine, so donʼt be dismayed if the numbers donʼt match, but make sure you know what youʼre buying: many have been uprated with more powerful engines, but some have Minor or Marina units instead.

A-series cylinder heads are especially prone to valve-seat erosion on unleaded, so if tappet clearances are closing up and power is down, budget £500-plus for an exchange head with hardened valve-seat inserts

Triumph used a tougher iron so 1500s are less prone, but they suffer from bearing wear unless oil is changed frequently: check for excess crank end-float, which can wreck the block as well as the crank.

Uprating was encouraged from day one, with tuning kits and Shorrock superchargers transforming performance.

As a rule of thumb, period upgrades will enhance a carʼs value, while non-period ones can detract (but may make them even more fun to drive).

Similarly, five-speed gearbox conversions can transform the carʼs drivability on longer journeys and reduce wear on the engine, too. The Spitfireʼs overdrive ʼbox can be fitted to 1500s with some careful surgery.

Brakes and suspension are also often uprated, but that doesnʼt mean standard components are inadequate – they are absolutely fine for normal and hard road use, if well maintained.

MG Midget & Austin-Healey Sprite price guide

Restoration/average/show

‘Frogeye’ Sprite: £2000/11,000/20,000
MkI-IV: £750/5000/12,750
1500*: £500/3500/7500

*Add £1000 for good chrome-bumper conversions

^{Prices correct at date of original publication}

MG Midget & Austin-Healey Sprite history

1958 Austin-Healey ‘Frogeye’ Sprite

1961 MkII Sprite & MkI Midget launched

1962 1098cc engine, front discs, new trim

1964 Sprite MkIII/Midget MkII: semi-elliptic rear springs, new dashboard, wind-up windows

1966 Sprite MkIV/Midget MkIII: 1275cc

1967 Negative earth, reversing lights

1968 Higher axle ratio, standard heater

1969 Facelift: black exterior trim and grille, slimmer bumpers, rubber-faced overriders

1970 Bright windscreen frame returns

1971 Austin Sprite: 1022 sold to mid-1971

1971 Oct Round rear arches, rocker switches

1972 Alternator ,larger fuel tank

1974 Midget 1500: 1493cc, all-synchro ’box, new bumpers, 1in lift, square arches

1978 Dual-circuit brakes, Spitfire dials

1979 500 run-out Anniversary models

The owner’s view

“A school friend had one and took me for a drive,” recalls motorsport enthusiast and marshal Kingsley Beck.

“I loved it, especially the front wing line from inside. After that, my first car was a Midget, in 1968.

“It was a 1964 car and it failed its first MoT on rust: the panels rotted and the kingpins would go. I also crashed it, partly because it had such a tiny steering wheel!

“I bought this one five years ago: it’s a real ‘survivor’, with 80,000 miles and a full history.

“It was restored eight years ago for the second time, but still with the original bodyshell – although the Clipper Blue is actually a slightly later colour, and this car was built in late 1961.

“It’s simply a beautiful thing to drive. Of all my cars – Lotus Cortina, MGA, Mini Cooper ‘S’ and a Group N Ford Sierra RS Cosworth – it would be the one I’d keep: it’s just so much fun and it always feels as if it won’t let you down.”

Also consider

The Triumph Spitfire (left) and Turner are alternative buys

TRIUMPH SPITFIRE

Michelotti’s small sports car on a shortened Herald frame, the roomier Spitfire outsold the Spridget most years. Rust is the main thing to look for, but easier to spot on its separate chassis.

Sold 1962-’80 • No. built 314,332 • Price now £1500-15,000*

TURNER

In kit and built forms, with BMC running gear in a ladder chassis, first as the 803, then 950. The 948cc Sports Mk1 (above) arrived in 1959, before Turner used Climax and Ford power.

Sold 1955-’66 • No. built c540 • Price now £10-25,000*

^{*Prices correct at date of original publication}

**MG Midget & Austin-Healey Sprite: the Classic & Sports Car verdict**

Numbers-matching, original-spec MG Midgets and Austin-Healey Sprites with full histories command the highest prices (except for works competition cars), but most will still have had a colour or engine change in their lives – it doesn’t really affect value, because condition and specification are paramount.

The 1275s are the most usable A-series cars, but the charm of earlier models and sweetness of the 948cc engine make them equally desirable.

The 1500 is the quickest, the most usable and offers great value.

FOR

The Austin-Healey Sprite and MG Midget are exceptionally well served by parts, tuning and restoration specialists
Replacement components are often remarkably inexpensive
The cars themselves are still great value for money

AGAINST

Values have plateaued for years, so a full restoration now far exceeds the return on investment: be very wary of any wrecks

MG Midget & Austin-Healey Sprite specifications

Sold/no built 1958-’80/129,347 Sprites, 224,817 Midgets
Construction steel unitary
Engine all-iron, ohv 948/1098/1275/1493cc ‘four’, twin SU H1/HS2/HS4 carburettors
Max power 43bhp @ 5200rpm-65bhp @ 5500rpm
Max torque 52lb ft @ 3300rpm-77lb ft @ 3000rpm
Transmission four-speed manual, RWD
Suspension: front double wishbones, coil springs (anti-roll bar on 1500) rear live axle, quarter-elliptic leaf springs (semi-elliptic from ’64), trailing arms; lever-arm dampers f/r
Steering rack and pinion
Brakes drums (front discs from ’62)
Length 11ft 4-11in (3455-3581mm)
Width 4ft 5-8½in (1346-1435mm)
Height 4ft ¼ -1¾in (1226-1264mm)
Wheelbase 6ft 8in (2032mm)
Weight 1466-1774lb (665-805kg)
0-60mph 20.5-11.9 secs
Top speed 83-100mph
Mpg 27-40
Price new £724/736 (Healey/MG, 1968)