Suspension on MGAs is an tried and true design, started out in the thirties. It uses leaf springs and lever shocks -or dampers on the rear. On the front, coil springs are used in combination with lever shocks. There were two types of wheels offered, solid disc wheels or the more romantic 48 spoke wire wheels. My car is set up for solid wheels. The car can be changed to wire wheels, but although I really like the look of wires, they can be troublesome to maintain.
MGAs offered 4 ratios for their differential, 4.3, 4.1, 4.55 and 3.9. 4.3 is the most common and yes you guessed it, that's the one that came with the car. I may, in the future change to a 3.9 for better highway cruising. 3.9 gears are relatively easy to come by, since many MGB are equipped with them. The early MGB used the same axle setup so it is a easy swap.
The rear axle was taken apart cleaned and painted new seals and hub bearing installed and everything tightened to 140 lbs using a special socket (1 61/64"). I inspected the differential and it looks in good shape, no filing in the oil and all the gears looked healthy.
My car came with new front and rear springs, as well as 2 used front dampers and 1 rear damper which turned out to be a MGB variety. I purchased 4 rebuilt dampers and used the old one for cores. New Polyurethane bushing were purchased and installed for the front and rear. Original factory bushing used rubber which tend to wear out quickly.
A Rack & Pinion steering rack provides responsive steering. They are reliable and easily maintained. After examining mine for any problems it was a fairly easy job to rebuild, new seals and rack boots were installed. Though it's tempting to use grease on the grease nipples on the rack, MGA's racks are filled with oil, not grease.
MGAs offered an optional adjustable steering column on all models. Using a small wrench at the bottom of the column would allow the driver to extend or retract the steering wheel a couple of inches. Not something you would want to try while the car is moving, but still way cool! Mine came with the adjustable column, apparently most cars did have this option.
Swivel pins allow each wheel to rotate side to side, basically a threaded rod with swivel links -or trunions- at the top and bottom provide a pivot point. Top swivel links attach to the lever shocks. Bottom swivel links are attached to the A arms. Swivel pins are considered to be a weak point and many owners upgrade to stronger MGB components -king pins-.
I have examined my swivel pins and they are in very good shape. I've installed new bushings in the swivel links and reamed them to proper diameter. Other components have been replaced with parts still readily available from various suppliers.
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