Classic & Sports Car – The specialist: MGOC Spares & WorkshopWhen the MG Owners' Club moved to its current site north of Cambridge, in the east of England, in the '90s, its associated Workshop and Spares businesses were already in full swing.Founded in 1979, MGOC Spares now supplies millions of units each year, from 23,000 product lines organised in its 30,000sq ft warehouse, while next door MGOC Workshop continues its reputation from 1986 as a go-to for expert restoration, servicing and inspection."The building is already at the maximum permissible size for the site," says workshop manager Ian Wallman.AdvertisementAdvertisement"We're booked months ahead, but I wouldn't want it any bigger."Classic & Sports Car – The specialist: MGOC Spares & WorkshopThe workshop majors on post-war classic cars, from the MGA right through to the MG6, although T-series models do also pay a visit occasionally to the busy Swavesey site."We do about four full restorations each year," reflects Ian. "Often we will take on jobs where the owner has started it, but run out of skill, time or enthusiasm."Fresh out of the MG Owners' Club's on-site paint booth during our visit was a Harvest Gold MG BGT, delivered stripped and ready for a respray.It stands adjacent to a Riviera Blue example of an MGB roadster sent here from another garage with a list of tasks to complete.Classic & Sports Car – The specialist: MGOC Spares & WorkshopThe team also sees plenty of 2000s-era MG ZTs, especially V8-engined cars – "we've got three in at the moment," says Ian – although fewer of the increasingly valuable SV supercar.AdvertisementAdvertisementFor different reasons, the MG ZR hatch in for recommissioning when we pay a visit is another unusual sight, but then the workshop has also restored a Maestro and a Montego in the not-too-distant past."The rear wheelarches go on them and you can't get rear wings, so we cut front ones with the same contour to fit," workshop manager Ian tells us, underlining the specialist nature of the work.Business is both varied and international.Classic & Sports Car – The specialist: MGOC Spares & Workshop"We have two modern TFs that come to us from France every year," says Ian, "and our rebuilds have landed in Spain, Israel and Bermuda, while one is heading to Australia soon.AdvertisementAdvertisement"We've had many customers for decades, and our staff is the same: one person has been here for 30 years, and I've been here for 25."A crash-damaged RV8 we spot as we take it all in that's here for inspection is one of the rare MG victims of scarcity, as Ian laments."We can get a repro bumper in glassfibre and I could make a new door from an MGB one, but the wing, headlight cowling and air-con are all difficult to source."Classic & Sports Car – The specialist: MGOC Spares & WorkshopHaving MG Owners' Club Spares just next door is invaluable for the majority of the workshop's projects: "We work hand in hand. We don't have to order and wait."From its side, the workshop is invaluable for component development.AdvertisementAdvertisement"We have a feedback loop," explains MGOC Spares sales director Chris Bentley, "which is key for testing new products."Already supplying improved parts such as stainless-steel MGB bumpers and MGA radiators with 20% more efficient cores, MGOC Spares is now working on 3D-printing components on site.After completing a 3D visualisation degree, marketing assistant Marcus Howard has begun developing parts such as the notoriously fragile F sunvisors.Classic & Sports Car – The specialist: MGOC Spares & WorkshopThis is just the beginning."We're just scratching the surface," he says. "We don't want 25 year's worth of stock, but there is a demand."So far, MG Owners' Club Spares has sold 130 sunvisors. It is clearly worth doing and the potential is enormous.AdvertisementAdvertisementAnd now equipped with a second printer, there is even more scope for producing prototypes in ABS plastic, such as bronze (instead of Mazak) quarterlight fasteners."If you model it from scratch and then test, it's far more reliable than scanning," explains Marcus.The Q-parts brand, pitched as an 'OEM-plus' line, is another result of this development.Classic & Sports Car – The specialist: MGOC Spares & Workshop"We have kept it anonymous, because 50% of our sales are business-to-business," says Chris.MGOC Spares staff also tend to be long-serving and, despite the business flourishing, there is little appetite for expansion."We are very much the anoraks of the industry," Chris tells us. "We are not box-pushers, we're about providing and developing products for enthusiasts."AdvertisementAdvertisementWhich is just as it should be – and classic MG owners around the world are very grateful for this service.Images: John BradshawThe knowledgeName MGOC Spares & WorkshopAddress Octagon House, Over Road, Swavesey, Cambridge, CB24 4QZ, UKStaff 30Specialism Restoration, service and partsPrices £55-65/hr+VATTel +44(0)1954 230928/234001Web mgocspares.co.uk; mgownersclubworkshop.co.ukWe hope you enjoyed reading. Please click the 'Follow' button for more super stories from Classic & Sports Car.
+43 others
