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If this image has already been posted, I apologize but it really brings home the comparative geometry of our cars. Now I see what people mean when they say: “like driving a VW from the back seat”.
VW Type 1 wheelbase – 94.5 inches
MG TD wheelbase – 94 inches
I’d say that’s pretty close!
You’d see more difference in a head on shot:
VW Beetle track: 54.3 front, 53.2 rear
MG TD track: 47.2 front, 50 rearPaul Mossberg
Former Owner of a 1981 Classic Roadsters Ltd. Duchess (VW)
2005 Intermeccanica RoadsterIf you own a TDr and are not in the Registry, please go to https://tdreplica.com/forums/topic/mg-td-replica-registry/ and register (you need to copy and paste the link)
Well that’s interesting. I was under the impression that the VW Beetle chassis, wheel base and all, was left unchanged for these kit cars. You know, old bug body pulled off, new kit body put on. Nothing else.
Although, I had seen some talk of making changes like narrowing the front end. But not until after the car is already put together.Guess I should measure here to compare so I’m not wondering what it is now.Page 4 of the Fiberfab Ford Pinto Assembly Manual has the same type photo with the Pinto and MGTD superimposed.
Bill Ascheman
Fiberfab Ford
Modified 5.0, 5sp., 4:11
Autocross & Hillclimb
"Drive Happy"LRH wrote:Well that’s interesting. I was under the impression that the VW Beetle chassis, wheel base and all, was left unchanged for these kit cars. You know, old bug body pulled off, new kit body put on. Nothing else.Although, I had seen some talk of making changes like narrowing the front end. But not until after the car is already put together.Guess I should measure here to compare so I’m not wondering what it is now.That comparison is of the original VW Beetle (and a VW-based TD Replica) to the original MG TD.
Early FF TDr on 69 VW pan
Slowly coming back from the ashes...I’ve often thought when I’ve been tearing around the countryside how well my car takes the curves.
Now I know why; center of gravity is about two feet off the ground! And the the wide track makes it almost impossible to lose traction.
Not mention the after market wheels I changed to add another 2″ to the original track.
LOW CENTER OF GRAVITY + WIDE TRACK =SUPER GLUE!:lol:Amor Conquista Todo
I think the center of gravity on these cars is well below the tops of the tires (2 feet off the ground). Probably more like 14-15 inches in a VW-based car. It does make for a naturally good chassis design and its why you can keep up with pretty much all the LBCs of the 1950s and ’60s pretty easily.
They do lose traction though: VW-based TDs tend to understeer–plow–when pushed in corners. Stiffer front suspensions exacerbate this, which is why we advise removing the small torsion leaves from the beam. The light weight over the front wheels also promotes understeer, which is why some folks like to add weight up front.Chassis flex also contributes to unpredictable cornering. This is the biggest (and hardest to correct) concern with a pan-based TD: all the stiffening properties of the old Bug body are gone.Fixing these flaws is not strictly necessary in a car with 60 horsepower. It might be, though, when you have double that. That’s the impression that I get, anyway.LHR, your impression is correct. The VW Beetle chassis, wheel base and
all, is left unchanged for these kit cars. You know, old bug body
pulled off, new kit body put on.Paul Mossberg
Former Owner of a 1981 Classic Roadsters Ltd. Duchess (VW)
2005 Intermeccanica RoadsterIf you own a TDr and are not in the Registry, please go to https://tdreplica.com/forums/topic/mg-td-replica-registry/ and register (you need to copy and paste the link)
Oops. Yeah, I wasn’t thinking of an actual TD compared to VW Beetle.
I sure didn’t know the VW was an inch wider at the front wheels than rear, or real TD a few inches narrower.That’s something I think of as being equal since I don’t know about wheel track. Only pay attention to wheel base if anything.So I see you all discovered what I changed the site’s error (404 file not found) page to….
Yes, I clipped it form the manual as I was going trough verifying everything was working.
Cheers and hope y’all had a wonderful and thankful weekend!
Stephen
Buxton, Maine
1982 London Roadster - "Kit Kat"Chassis flex also contributes to unpredictable cornering. This is the biggest (and hardest to correct) concern with a pan-based TD: all the stiffening properties of the old Bug body are gone.
Late to the party, I know, but eliminating the chassis flex isn’t that tough. Well, maybe it is if you’ve already put your car together.
Welding square tubing into the channel at the sides of the VW pan will replace a lot of the stiffness previously supplied by the steel body. (Convertibles already have the channel filled.)
So that brings up a new question. Were bugs destined for convertable bodies factory-reinforced, making them more suitable for kit car conversions?
😕
Both Bug and Ghia convertibles have an additional metal channel-type reinforcement that bolts under the perimeter of the floorpan, underneath the doors.
Early FF TDr on 69 VW pan
Slowly coming back from the ashes...You can narrow the front track of a VW to make it look more like a real TD. I put one like this on my car:
http://www2.cip1.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=C26-401-017-4
IMHO, nothing makes a TDR look more “fakey” than the wide VW track with the tires sticking out beyond the fenders. The narrowed beam really makes the TDR look a lot more like a real TD. The track is still wider than I’d like, but at least the tires are fully inside the fenders now. The drawback is that even with 4-1/2″ rims and 165 series tires, I get a certain amount of rubbing on the flat part of the pan that sticks out under the fenders. Not particularly bothersome, I avoid it mostly by just not turning so sharp, and when it does happen, it’s not really a big problem. I haven’t driven the car enough to know whether whether affects handling, but so far, so good.
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