MG Quiz

In 1948 Reilly left Jowett followed in 1949 by Palmer who returned to Morris where he took up the job of designer of a new range of cars for M.G., Riley and Wolseley. The results of this were the M.G. ZA Magnette and Wolseley 4/44.
Gerald Marley Palmer (January 20, 1911 - June 23, 1999) was a British car designer

so designed about 1949-50

Launched in 1953 at the London Motor show alongside the TF Midget, the MG ZA Magnette was greeted with mixed feelings both by enthusiasts and the motoring press alike

car as per pick dont know :rant:




The Wolseley 4/44 preceded the MG ZA Magnette by a year and was launched in 1952. The delay on the MG was to allow the new BMC 'B' Series engine to be fitted along with other newly developed components, whilst the 4/44 had the XPAG series engine handed down from the Y type. Palmer wanted to differentiate between the two cars and did this by making the Wolseley the luxury car and fhe MG the sporting saloon. This was achieved by lowering the MG body by some two inches and changing suspension and shock absorber characteristics. This gave the MG a far more sporting-appearance as well as greatly improved roadhandling. Although basically similar in appearance, in the end many of the bodypanels were different. The only ones common to both cars were the roof, front doors and bootlid. The floor pan, rear doors, rear wings, front wings and sills were all different as was the bonnet arrangement. Each car had its traditional front grille and on the Wolseley this was fixed in the normal fashion with the rear hinged bonnet opening in conventional manner, whilst the Magnette carried the grille affixed to the front bonnet edge. The Magnette was the first MG to be fitted with the all new 'B' series engine. This twin carburettor 1489 cc unit was based on the 1200 cc Austin A40 engine which was first used in 1947, however the new engine was substantially modified and produced a healthy 60 bhp @ 4,600 rpm. This 'B' series engine certainly made the Magnette a good performer and was far quicker than its stablemate, the Wolseley 4/44 powered by the XPAG engine that could only muster 46 bhp @ 4,800 rpm. The Wolseley was also hindered by a non-positive column gear change whilst the Magnette had a new centre floor gear lever in keeping with its sports saloon image. The rear axle was also new and had a torque reaction arm to aid axle location as rubber bushes were used extensively in the suspension mountings to reduce noise, improve the ride quality and reduce maintenance. Suspension was independent at the front with wishbones and coil springs and semi-elliptic springs at the rear. Large 10 inch brakes all round catered for the increased performance.

Was hoping it might take a little longer for someone to come up with the answer! Will try harder next time...

Perfect answer!

oooh seem to be on a roll lol
so the next question is errrrrr

ok what is this car

what was it built for

and who built it

and name a compertition it won





good luck :yesnod: :broon:

Nice find Mark, visited the site in a search on the Lenham Spitfire GT a few months ago.

Put these clues together and you may find Mark's car


What's she called?


Could go here: A place you may have found him there in May

Good luck

tui wrote: Woohoo :woohoo: ! Can't believe I won :omg: !

So here goes! My first question is a two-parter:

Who designed the MG ZA Magnette in what year?
What was so special about this car?

Very well done and welcome to the quiz, great answer and good question. now you are hooked you wont be able to stop, you will be able to give Mr F and Paul "a run for their money" :whistle:

Few more clues to Marks Question;

The car was built the same year Prince Ranier of Monaco married Grace Kelly

The car like a challenge and has been here a few times



Roger of Chevron, converted a pair, the other one was a 1958 model.

where is mr forgetfull id thought hed have the answer by now

the car has FIA papers most mgs never made it to fia status

MGF MARK wrote: where is mr forgetfull id thought hed have the answer by now

I suspect Mr F is getting over a weekend of Augusta Fever

I'm struggling to find the competition it won.

Mr F is off on his holidays so will be away from the quiz for a while.

Mark are you sure of the competition win, I too was unable to locate it. :nonod:

hi the page i have says it wone in xxxxxx
but to speed things up ill accept all withought the races where it wone :broon:

MGF MARK wrote: oooh seem to be on a roll lol
so the next question is errrrrr

ok what is this car

what was it built for

and who built it

and name a compertition it won

good luck :yesnod: :broon:

This one has been quite difficult! Next time I won't be including any names of cars for clues...!

There are a couple of bits I can't answer but here goes...

The car is a 1956 MG ZA Magnette called "Emma."
The Magnette ZA was launched in 1953 and production ceased in 1956, when the ZA was superseded by the ZB. The Magnette was designed by Gerald Palmer.

It was designed for the home market with 4 seats and 4 doors, but 2 were race-prepared by Roger and Judy Anderson.

It was built by Roger Anderson of Shevron Cars. Only 2 of these race-prepared Magnettes were built.

I too cannot find any reference to it winning a challenge/competition, but the car has participated in numerous Monte Carlo challenges and as previously mentioned is one of the very few MG Magentte competition cars to have FIA papers. It is also one of the very few MG Magnettes that is eligible for invitation to the Mille Miglia and the Goodwood St. Mary's trophy.

The car "Emma" is now owned by Wattinne Patrice and lives in France.

well that will do for me :broon:

it sold for 15k

TUI your turn