MGA Electrical Issues. New owner needing help! Will pay!

[Fifty Six MGA]

Thanks for Steve for pointing me to this local resource.

I'm a new owner of an MGA. It's my first classic car, and I'm not very experienced with Auto mechanics. I bought the car with the intent of having a fun driver and learning more about doing auto work along the way, but I'll admit, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. I've only owned the car a few weeks, and she's been towed twice.

You can read my current situation here in this thread, which is where Steve "found" me.

http://www.mgexperience.net/phorum/read.php?2,1624293" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

but I'm starting to feel a bit out of my league for figuring this out. I could take the car to a mechanic, but I'd like to learn this stuff myself. At the same time, I'm not having much luck figuring it out myself, and could use some guidance and experience. I live in Alhambra, near Pasadena, in Southern California.

I've even considered buying and installing a new wiring harness. Figure if I did that I'd KNOW the electrical system, but I don't know if that's crazy, and I'd certainly want experienced help.

I did buy a heavy duty headlamp harness from Victoria British, but I'm intimidated to try and install it.

I'd be quite happy to pay for your time, either in cash/beer/wine/scotch. Moss gift certificates? I could be generous.

Again, the goal is to get it running again, and to learn more about the car along the way.

geoffcj@gmail.com

[Steve Simmons]

Hey Geoff, welcome to the forum! The good news is that MGAs are very simple cars in the grand scheme of things. Like anything there is a learning curve, but with time you'll undoubtedly have all the bugs sorted.

If I remember correctly, you had some wiring issues and found a bad ground, bu the car still wouldn't charge? My guess is that you have either a bad generator or control box (voltage regulator). Both are very simple devices. The generator can be rebuilt in 30 minutes with $10 worth of parts. The control box is a bit more tricky and perhaps best left to an expert. For this I recommend Jerry at British Auto Electric in Anaheim. Cost is minimal.

Feel free to swing it by and I can try to help, or if you want someone who actually know what they are doing then take it to Malcolm (also a member here) who is an ace mechanic in Temple City right down the street from your area.

[tdskip]

We can definitely get this sorted, but developing a relationship with a pro like Malcolm is a good idea.

[kiwimark]

Hi Geoff
Try this site. Has a lot of great info. http://mgaguru.com/mgtech/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; I gleaned the know how to convert my MGA from pos to neg earth and fit an alternator. I no longer need the control box but left it in for show. has a lot of good info in one place. Saves a lot of searching. Steve is right though, the MGA is a simple car and with a wiring diagram and some patience you can fit a complete new harness system in a short time frame. Took me a day to wire and half a day to trouble shoot as I did not wear my glasses when wiring the dash( big mistake). Do not think by the way that a new harness will be trouble free, test the continuity of all the wires before fitting (another mistake I made as I found a dead wire in the dash harness after installation) to save a lot of heartache later.
Regards
Mark

[VWNate1]

If you just want to pay to have it done , Malcom is honest & reliable , close by in Temple City too.

OTOH , I'm using a brandy new made in India Lucas generator for several years now , along with a Lucas voltage regulator converted to electronic by Wilton Electrics in Wilton , N.H. ~ the best $ I ever spent on my daily driver (800 + miles / week) LBC .

It charges *perfectly* all the time now .

Moss Motors sells these new generators cheaply , not for show cars or 100 % restorations but every bit as good and reliable as an alternator .