Newbie from Morecambe

Hey'up,
New MGF owner. Inherited a car from my god parents and am trying to bring it back from the brink. 
had to replace the fuel outlet pipe and fuel pump, which was a fiddly job. Now shes running again. Oil change this weekend and then a test drive is on the cards. Quite excited. 
I need to lower the seat as I'm a tall one. I saw some helpful tips on this sight, so I'll be replacing the seat base clips with zip ties this weekend to see if it makes a difference. Then I'll fabricate some permanent long clips if it does. Fingers crossed.
Oh I also purchased an eBay special hydragas pump which worked a treat. i dont think its built to last but it definitely worked once.

We’ll done that man & this from a fellow Lancastrian. Judging by the wheels it’s a VVC, an early Mk1 also, those who are deeply steeped in MGf lore will tell us when the black windscreen surround went to body colour, the orange indicator lenses changed to clear with the Mk2 (I think).
It looks a little over pumped, particularly at the rear, mine is a bit too low side. I must get around to fitting the replacement spheres.
Just check that measurement one more time.
M

Regarding the suspension height, I pumped it till it was 36cm from wheel centre to the top of the arch on the rear wheel. Have I made a mistake? 

I'm guessing lowing will require a very controlled pressure release tool? At 400psi i doubt i can use an old tire pressure gauge. Is it best to just push the valve and start a fresh?

Oh I'm being dumb!!

I can use the release on the hydragas rig!! 

Hey, don’t get in a spin, my car sits low & I've got 17” wheels, the whole suspension wants sorting on my car, I’m going back to my original wheels tomorrow, as the 17’s are catching on the arches.
I’m so hefted to my set up other cars sometimes look odd to me & that’s my problem not yours.
If you’re happy with your measurements, stick with it, you have your own pump so you can tune it until your happy.
Hydrogas sag is imperceptibly slow & it’s only when you get the tape measure out do you have that “Oh shit” moment.
M

Up early after a troubled night worrying about ride hight; I had my “Oh shit” moment at 7-30!
My comment about imperceptibly slow sagging we’re prescient, it was seriously sagged.
Out came the pump & with several serious strokes a system was saved.
And it’s now 8-30 & all’s well.
So Speedg99 thanks for your post, it has saved this old hack from impending embarrassment.
M

welcome to the tbar.

Welcome Speed. Its good to hear how you aquired your F and what you have done to it so far. Have you got any more jobs lined up for it ?

Is yours a VVC or are the wheels optons ?  I had those on my first TF, fitted by a previous owner, I think they look excellent, especially on an F which is where they really belong.

If there is one bit of advice I would give, other than the obvious to stick with your MGF through thick and thin, is to add a low coolant alarm. This really is something that should have been fitted at the factory. Several options exist for this

Nice one. I lay awake thinking of what jobs need doing, drives my wife nuts! I re measured the ride and it slightly over 36cm but only by about 11mm so I recon I leave it for a while.

It's a VVC model. Completely standard. My god mother purchased it new from Stanley's on the south coast back in 1997. She said back then you could go to the car dealership at midnight on new reg day. She said there were loads of others there, all super excited to drive their new cars. At midnight they all set off tearing up the southcoast in the middle of the night. Sounds awesome. The car did a number of runs to south of France and through the mountains etc but sadly the last few years it's sat rotting away.
today's She had new oil and I leant the hard way to pour the oil slowly. That was a pain. Then got it home and washed years of grime away. She has some rust spots and underneath looks pretty rusty to but not un saveable.
next job is to replace the coolant.

Exciting project. Good luck.
Oil, yes. Me too.

Filling the oil from the indirect filler at the back demands quite some patience and is most practical for small top ups.

For chucking in greater quantities of oil, for an oil change say, its best to remove the engine cover and use the direct oil filler cap ontop of the cam cover. If you do that just make sure you use a decent funnel so you dont spill it as stray oil thats spilled on top of the engine collects in the spark plug wells which can cause a mysterious misfire until the penny drops. Guess how I found that out.