- 74
- United Kingdom
Everyone and their dog can name the Corvette as an iconic sports car. But it would likely have never existed were it not for the astonishing popularity of small British sports cars in the US after the war. Whilst Italy and France were building big, expensive and luxurious grand tourers for the elite, Britain was churning out small, fun, lightweight roadsters well within the reach of the middle class. Enter the MG T-series.
The T-series had been in production with gradual improvements since the 1930s. But this particular iteration, the TD Midget, was amongst the most successful. Over 20,000 of these small convertibles were exported to the United States. Many of the TD's buyers were servicemen stationed in the UK during the war.
Why should this car be in GT7? Well, to put it bluntly, the small British sports car is a severely underrepresented category. I.e, nothing. Zero. Of course this is partly to do with PD's well-documented falling out with Britain's premier manufacturer of small sports cars, but even excluding them from consideration there are plenty of options. And to put it simply, these cars contributed to car culture like nothing else by bringing motorsports to the masses.
You had to be a millionaire to buy a Bugatti, but anyone could buy an MG. And where Britain led, overseas manufacturers followed. The Corvette is the most famous example, but in Japan too - would the Toyota Sports 800 and the Honda S800 exist without this little MG proving that motoring can be fun?
Specs:
Power: 57hp (TD Competition)
Top Speed: 77mph
Weight: approx. 875kg
The T-series had been in production with gradual improvements since the 1930s. But this particular iteration, the TD Midget, was amongst the most successful. Over 20,000 of these small convertibles were exported to the United States. Many of the TD's buyers were servicemen stationed in the UK during the war.
Why should this car be in GT7? Well, to put it bluntly, the small British sports car is a severely underrepresented category. I.e, nothing. Zero. Of course this is partly to do with PD's well-documented falling out with Britain's premier manufacturer of small sports cars, but even excluding them from consideration there are plenty of options. And to put it simply, these cars contributed to car culture like nothing else by bringing motorsports to the masses.
You had to be a millionaire to buy a Bugatti, but anyone could buy an MG. And where Britain led, overseas manufacturers followed. The Corvette is the most famous example, but in Japan too - would the Toyota Sports 800 and the Honda S800 exist without this little MG proving that motoring can be fun?
Specs:
Power: 57hp (TD Competition)
Top Speed: 77mph
Weight: approx. 875kg
