I agree with everyone who is advising you to to the work yourself! The radio and seat belt prices are clear indicators that you are getting overcharged both for parts and labor. If you shop around,you’ll be amazed at how much you can save ,not to mention the satisfaction gained by being able to say that you did it yourself.
 The ”professional g…[Read more]

Back in the day it was considered safer for the driver to be ejected from the vehicle in the event of a crash. There is some logic to that when you consider lower speeds, a solid steering wheel shaft aimed at one’s chest, lack of crumple zones, no side protection, soldered gas tanks and no roll bars. In that context seat belts might have caused…[Read more]

Even better,From: http://www.mgcars.org.uk/mgtd/mgtd_faq.htm(the source of most of the History of the TD pages here)What type of seat belts were offered with the MGTD?None. Seat belts were not an option offered by the factory. This
would have been a period accessory.

Just took a quick look through a couple “original” TD forums.Seat belts were not standard equipment.If a TD has them, they were likely installed by an owner at some point in the car’s life.

I mentioned the lap belt charge to my “salesperson” today when I told him I
thought 4K might be a bit much to spend on this car. When I pointed out
the fact that they quoted me $211 for lap belts (just the parts, installation
not included) he said that these lap belts were most likely chosen because
they were a more authentic match to the…[Read more]

Retrosound is a very good source too!Very well recommended!

Funny how “what you see is what you get” usually means “pay attention to what you will NOT get…”

I replaced my lap belts with a pair from O’Reilly’s. Made by Superior, very rugged. Cost $36 for the pair. My trim shop installed them when they redid my interior.As for the radio, I just listen to the song of the open road. If I ever do decide to wire it up, though, it’ll probably be from these guys:http://www.retrosoundusa.com/TexAg7140780.573900463

Found another listing in Conroe, north of Houston on I-45. Be a long haul for you, but the asking price is only $3,200:http://houston.craigslist.org/cto/2507392754.html
One concern is that the seller says “what you see is what you get,” and I see no side curtains, top or even a frame for a top.TexAg7140780.5785532407

We’ll see when you get them, but I believe the Empi logo will be larger than the MG medallion. I hope I’m wrong!The flat-center caps are available with no logos. There are links in other threads. I’ll search….

Shane, the cost estimate for the bumpers is probably on target since like most things on car refurbishing, the preperation is the most expensive part.  To re-do the bumper they have to grind down, repair, smooth and straighten the bumper.  It is labor intensive and therefore expensive. The chroming process itself is still pretty expensive, but i…[Read more]

I don’t have “risers” under my seat, just steel supports on the outboard edges.Yes, by rear panel, I mean behind the seat, the rear most flat panel in the car.You may be able to put shallow mount tweeters in the front kick panels too. Four inch, surface mounts, with only an inch or an inch and a half of back clearance will fit.

This combination is close to the look of the original MG wheels. It will be interesting to see what the flat style looks like. It’s a nice alternative to wire wheel hubcaps and costs less than real wire wheels. Easier to keep balanced too.
 
 

That’s a cool radio Paul. I’m gonna hold off on having a stereo installed.
The plan was to put the speakers in the seat risers facing the front of the car.
You mentioned yours are in the “rear panel”, I’m guessing this is behind the
seat? There aren’t too many options re: speaker placement is there?

Thats a good looking wheel Ed. It also looks like the electric TD has early model MGA tail lights. Something I was considering putting on my CMC. Gave me a chance to see what they looked like.

Another wheel option:These wheels, painted (not chrome) are at Cip1 for $50 each plus shipping. On that site they try to sell a center cap system that shows the lug bolts and is nothing like a TD hub cap. But with the smoovies–or maybe that trick TD cap system . . . . looks like you’re getting away from an obvious V-dub look and into something…[Read more]

Man I love that radio. Spending too much money on other projects to buy it now, but someday  soon. Im saving the link to my favorites. I think I have the twin to Pauls 1982 classic in my car.

Thanks for reposting those photos Paul. I had seen the photos before, but did not notice they used the smoothies and the medallion like I was talking about. Notice the coil overs on the front to take the weight of the batteries. I have ordered 1 each of the smoothie and 1 of what is described as flat style. The flat style has the EMPI logo stamped…[Read more]

My engine doesn’t look great, either, but it works fine and I keep it in good running order. The Lafer is pretty much a cash-and-carry project, so my extra bucks have been going to the more visible bits here lately. Giving up expensive whiskey helped.

Paul
I don’t know about de-tox program but I’m going to look at another chevy td on thursday morning , just need one to drive I guess.