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MG TD TF 1500 - TF tonneau

Hi all,

Have recently been assembling info re original tonneau designs and have always accepted that only half tonneaus were supplied by the factory. However on the last page of a March 1958 Service Parts List,under the heading 'TONNEAU COVER', 'Overall tonneau cover complete with fixings', RHD & LHD is listed.

I've never realised that such a full tonneau was apparantly available - is the Parts List correct? Presumably the zip alignment was offset on the LHD & RHD versions.

Cheers, John.

J.C Mitchell

Hi John,

I think just as the factory supplied wire wheels for the TD after it left production and never offered wire wheels during TD production, the full tonneau was probably added because of demand. I'm guessing your 1958 parts list is a simple reflection of the factory hoping to capitalize on the popularity of the full tonneau which were being fitted by independent shops and by dealers. I believe at that time the upholstery was completed in the Mezzanine level at the factory, but weather equipment was built offsite by a jobber.

warmly,
dave
Dave Braun

Hi Dave,

Thanks for response - I'm sure you're right about the increasing demand for the retro fit of full tonneaus, which are so much more practical than the 'half' ones especially in the often rainy UK!

I'm curious - you seem to hint at knowledge re operations layout at the factory - could you expand?

Cheers, John.
J.C Mitchell

I thought all the 'canvas' stuff was built by the company who made the hoods and sidecurtains (can't remember the name, but met a lady who had worked there)...She did TD and Austin Princess seats!
gblawson (gordon)- TD#27667

John,

I read a lot. So things stick with me, but when it comes to finding the exact source, I would have to hunt. I am certain about TD wire wheels, however, and I remember Gordon's discusion of TD and Princess seats. But like Gordon, I also specifically remember reading how weather equipment was bought from a supplier, and for the life of me I can't recall the name of the company.

warmly,
dave
Dave Braun

Hi:
I met a lady who worked in a small shop in England that supplied side curtains to a lager concern who in turn had several factory contracts. She could not remember what cars the side curtains that she made were for but thought that MG was on the list. She mostly talked of the tight quality control. She said that not one stitch could be out of place or the side curtain was rejected and she never got paid for the work. If more than three or four were rejected she was out of a job. She did say that the pay was pretty good if you could work fast.
Godspeed in Safety Fast
Jc
John Crawley

Found it in the archives...:

they were both in their 70's and she started at Covington Hood and Side Curtain Co. in 1950. She said they made tops and sidecurtains for all the British Manufacturers and the Military.
She sewed the rolls and pleats on the seat bottoms and added the piping. Said she worked "piece work" and made about 5 pounds a week... a low wage for the time and a full weeks work (not sure if that was 5 or 6 days). Anyway...she said her friend "Alice" was the top hood seamstress in the company and her seams were always perfect. She also mentioned that they had to chalk their intitials on just about everything they made so if it was rejected, they would have to repair it as part of their quota. She mentioned she loved the leather work until the MGB had what she called "that pressed sh*t" for upholstery...(she was pretty cool for 70). Have invited them to our next car club meeting to have a little chat.... How neat was that?????
She also mentioned that the 'Princess' seats went on forever and were hard to manage through the sewing machine.
gblawson (gordon)- TD#27667

Hi Gordon, Your above thread brought back a memory from 12 years ago when I was replacing the door panels in my TD. Upon removal of the left door panel I found the name "Patricia" written in chalk on the inside of the panel. I wonder if anyone else has found something similiar when replacing their panels. It was a pleasant surprise and made me wonder about "Patricia".
George Rahan
TD 4224
G. L. Raham

The full tonneau cover was also listed in the 1954 edition of the TF Service Parts List. (Andrex shock absorbers listed too).
I doubt if the dealers bothered ordering these. Far simpler to have one made locally if a customer requested one, and no delays waiting for the car to be shipped over. I assume the LHD and RHD vairiants were to accomodate the steering wheel. Half tonneaus were standard issue. I still have my factory half tonneau.

Cheers,
Matthew.
Matthew Magilton

If you're thinking about getting a full cover--the one I got from Moss didn't fit. Had to order extra material.
David Werblow

Hi,

Thanks to all who responded - more info for the archives! Interesting note from Matthew Magilton, indicating that despite conventional wisdom , full tonneaus were available from 1954. The last point is the material the later TF tonneaus were made of, the strong suggestion being that an early type of 'plasticised' material was used, now unobtainable.

Any further thoughts on this would be useful,

Cheers, John.
J.C Mitchell

I may be wrong, but I thought the MGA was the first 'vinyl' type tonneau... not sure about the TF, but early ones were canvas/duck material? Certainly was enough of it around after the war!
gblawson (gordon)- TD#27667

"David Werblow, Connecticut, USA, MGAdavid@Yahoo.Com
If you're thinking about getting a full cover--the one I got from Moss didn't fit. Had to order extra material. "

I am not a great friend of Moss's, but I bought my full tonneau ten years ago from them and save for some occasional cleaning it is like new. I have first installed four extra pins for the lift-the-dot connectors on my car, two next to the rear mirror and two which replaced the screws on those chromed protections I have over the top of the doors. Then adjusted the tonneau cover, had the lift-the-dot base plates mounted over, and starting from the back I got everything fit. Since it has a zip in the middle, I have been able to install it quickly in case of sudden rain and drive with my hands covered.

Denis, TD 1034
Denis L. Baggi

This thread was discussed between 22/05/2008 and 24/05/2008

MG TD TF 1500 index

This thread is from the archive. The Live MG TD TF 1500 BBS is active now.