The MG Story: The M-Type Midget

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The MG Story: The M-Type Midget


MG M-Type Midget
M-Type Midget

The M-Type Midget



In 1929 a new overhead-cam Morris Minor was introduced, and in April of that year the Kimberized version appeared: 1100 pounds and 847cc of M-Type MG Midget. The weight was kept down by using fabric-covered plywood bodywork in pointed-tail style, which was hurled along at nearly a mile a minute by some 20 horses.

Already the characteristic shape was emerging. These M's had a pugnacious, "try-me" look that hinted at prowess and fun-potential out of all proportion to their foot-locker dimensions and admittedly mundane ancestry.

Reaction to this new approach was instant and positive. Kimber's four-wheeled cycles were soon seen scuttling all over the English meadows, taking part in sprints, hill climbs, and trials.

They did so well, in fact, that 3234 M-Type Midgets were built and sold before the model was discontinued in 1932. With such basic material around, it wasn't long before MG's ace racing mechanic, R. C. "Jacko" Jackson, had modified an M and, among other things, raised its usable rev limit some 1200 rpm.

One thing led to several more, and by the fall of 1930 a new prototype - the EX 120 - was ready to set the engineering pattern for MG's for the next six years. Its engine was destroked to 745cc, and with a patchwork streamlined body and a blower driven by chain and sprockets, it became the first three-quarter-litre car to break the "ton". This was only the first big entry in a logbook of MG record-breaking.

Also see: MG Heritage | MG Performance Chart
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