Aggressive Stance – MG TF 135

Adam Tait looks at the angular and purposeful MG TF

Any small convertible seems to pick up a Vidal Sassoon hair dresser stereotype, but an aggressive look will assist in moving this view to one side, which is where the TF succeeds. Sharp looks will always be a winner in the male stakes over the curved boundaries found on the rival Toyota MR2 and Mazda MX-5. Unlike the TF’s predecessor, the general stance is more purposeful and hard-hitting, rather than “cute”, a description commonly used amongst our ‘cut and blow dry’ friends.

Angular styling gives the TF a much more aggressive look than the MGF

When launched there were four engine choices in; 115bhp, 120bhp, 135bhp and 160bhp, and as you can imagine the 160bhp variant is the one to go for if performance is your game, it will hit 60mph in 6.9 with a top speed of around 140mph. The TF I had access to had the 135bhp engine which gave ample performance, reaching 60mph in a whisker over eight seconds, the gear change was defined requiring a clear-cut movement of the wrist to select each cog, and when revved hard the soundtrack is fantastic. However there is an important member missing from the orchestra, induction noise, an after market kit would be the answer but I’m not sure on how much it would affect cabin noise, I’m guessing it would make a significant impact.

TF new nose treatment

My preferred driving position is usually upright but due to the way your legs are out flat in the TF this proved uncomfortable, so after a trade of adjustments I was all set. The controls for the seat are however positioned in a somewhat challenging location, so those of you with sledge hammer hands have been warned.

Neat square spoke alloy wheels

The local B roads was where the TF made the cheesy grin appear, the handling may not be as taught as say, a Lotus Elise or Caterham 7, but an equal balance is offered between handling and comfort, the latter being a negative in the 7 and Elise. However you still have to be aware of pot holes in the TF, when it was released the chaps at Longbridge opted for the coil spring setup over the Hydragas suspension as found on the Metro. This along with a few other tweaks then MG quoted the new and improved TF to be 20% stiffer than the prior MGF. Some readers may think this is a downfall, and for those of you that do, I suggest you hang up your driving gloves and buy a Land Rover Discovery.

Headlamp units, with sleek silicon-protected polycarbonate covers, each house twin high-efficiency 70mm projector lamps

Cooling air intake protection at sides is a black hexagonal mesh, with a bright-finish option

The Achilles Heel of a car with two seats has to be practicality. A weekend was planned to visit friends in Southampton, and naturally, the TF was the guinea pig. Although compact, the cabin is well thought out with cubby holes to stow away odds and ends, the boot can swallow two weekend bags with no problems. Unfortunately for us we had to bring our own duvets, so the passenger had a holdall wedged beneath his legs for the whole journey, which was apparently, “ok”, so I’m told.

I knew of a private stretch of road en route to Southampton that was remarkably similar to the M25, a complete imitation almost, even down to the junctions and scenery. Anyway, along this private stretch we broke the 100mph barrier, to discover any serious wind buffeting that may have occurred along with cabin noise. To my surprise our surroundings remained peaceful, conversation was still flowing, but the volume on the stereo did need fine-tuning to work in conjunction with the added road noise, which was understandable. After 110mph the roof did a great kite impression but I’m sure a hard top would overcome that problem.

The car in question is owned by a good friend of mine and he has been the proud owner for nearly a year, he hasn’t encountered any problems in that time. The only niggling fault was the CD player that decided to retire from playing CDs, but this was soon rectified by the dealer. The only gripe he has is the access to the boot, with no internal release or push button that can be pressed from inside. This means that the engine has to be switched off to gain access to the rear which is an inconvenience to say the least, the design team must have been on the beer previous to this decision.

Bootlid has a ‘cleaner’ top surface and an integral raised rear lip spoiler. Built into the spoiler lip is a new high-level brake lamp, with fast-acting LED illumination.

Fuel cap unchanged

Although dubious at first, as to whether the TF could be used both everyday and for the odd weekend away, my assumptions were blown out of the water because each box got a tick, performance, economy, comfort and a certain degree of practicality. A Swiss-Army knife sports car made for the masses.

Note: a remote boot release can be fitted to the MG TF and MGF, and is available from MGOC Spares see EMG March 2001.

Perry Stephenson