A SUCCESSFUL FIRST SEASON

A SUCCESSFUL FIRST SEASON

IN this country the h.p. tax has fostered small-engined ears and many enthusiasts have been unable to look beyond the 8-11.1) sports car. Fortunately, we have developed some very efficient cars in this category and there is considerable satisfaction to be derived from recalling the successful debut of one such car-the 750-c.c. M.G. ” Montlhery Midget.” In the 1930 J.C.C. ‘Double-Twelve ” Race at Brooklands, Class II was won by a supercharged Austin Seven, at 64.97

Norman Black, who was 2nd in the ” Double-Twelve .” and who won the Irish G .P. and the T .T .with a7 50-c.c. AI .G . in 1931. He now holds a very important appointment

in connection with munitions control. m.p.h., this car finishing 7th in the general classification. M.G. Midgets finished 14th at 60.23 m.p.h, 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th, winning the Team Prize, but as they were of 850 c.c. they were, naturally, outclassed in the 1,100-e.e. cat ec.(wv. In 1931 the 750-c.c. type C, or ” Mont lhry ” M.G. appeared, and no fewer than 14 of them

were entered for the J.C.C. ‘

Twelve.Seven retired, but the remaining seven finished 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th. 511i, 6th, 13th and 18th in the general classification, Staniland and the Earl of March averaging 65.62 m.p.h. for 1,574 miles in the winning car, Gibson and Fell 64.94. Hamilton 63.21, Parker and Cox 62.81, and Black and Fiennes 62.46 m.1).11. When it is remembered that these M.G.s were unblown,. their performance is little short of amazing. They again won the Team Prize, and Higgin set the Class H lap record to over 72 m.p.h. before retiring. Eleven of these M.G. Midgets, still un-supercharged and still with full equipment but now with uneowled radiators, started in the Irish Grand Prix at Pimenix Park. Nine finished the course within the timelimit, Norman Black winning at 64.76 m.p.h., Horton finishing 2nd at 63.88 m.p.h., and Major Gardner 3rd, at 63.83 m.p.h. The big cars had their race the next day, but Black’s M.G. won the G.P. Outright on handicap, by a margin of 11 secs. For the R.A.C. T.T. at Ulster 13 M.G. Midgets were entered, of which 11 were now supercharged, the blown version of the 750-e.e. having appeared in the L.C.C. Relay Race, when one team of such cars finished 7th, making fourth fastest average speed. In the TN. Hamilton’s car set up a Class H lap record of 70 m.p.h. before retiring, and Norman Black won the entire race, at 67.9 m.p.h., while Crabtree was 3rd at 67.62 m.p.h., tive seconds behind an Alfa-Romeo. ” hat-trick ” in sports-car races in the first season ! he production version appeared in 1932, cost X.490, or £575 supercharged, and was capable of nearly 88 m.p.h. unLlown. From it developed the supercharged J3 and J4 models, introduced in 1933-4. Some of these 750-e.e. M.G.s are in course of rebuilding by enthusiasts who have

been lucky enough to find thcm—J. Baird-Smith has a J4, for instance. and G. V. Coles a J2 converted to J4 syccilication. ThOse who are seeking these ears may like to note that the registered number of the 1931 ” Double-Twelve ” winner was RX8021, Gibson’s 11 X st;23, Selby’s 11X8588, and Higgins’s KM :1114.