Disabled move into the Fast Lane

I have always admired the sleek look of the classic MG, and longed to be able to drive one, but being disabled from birth with Cerebral Palsy (I walk with the aid of two sticks) I can only drive automatic cars fitted with hand controls.

Until I met my wife Beth, who is also an enthusiast and with rather more experience of MGs than myself, I was unaware that automatic classic MGs had ever been manufactured. This revelation fuelled my interest even more and I began to research further into the possibility of purchasing one.

John with his MGB

My friends thought I was mad. They couldn’t understand why I, as a disabled driver with poor mobility and legs that spasm, wanted to acquire a low sprung, difficult to enter car (which wouldn’t have power steering, probably would be draughty and most certainly would break down in the middle of nowhere) when I could have a comfortable, power driven and reliable modern automatic.

But that wasn’t me. I’ve always loved adventure and when people throughout my life told me I couldn’t or shouldn’t achieve something I deliberately went out of my way to do just that. I had been on holiday to Scotland, in my teens, with a friend who had an MGB GT and I had never forgotten the feel and the sound of that wonderful car. It was a true sports car and I knew even then that I wanted one. Why shouldn’t disabled people have the same dreams and aspirations as able-bodied people?

Special hand controls to complement the auto transmission

However, it did make me think a little. I wasn’t a teenager any more and my body wasn’t as agile as it had been then. Would I still be able to get in and out of one? It was difficult enough with modern cars. Luckily I met someone, through my local MG Owners’ Club, who had a GT and he brought it along for me to see if I could manage getting in and out. It was hard at first, but I worked out a strategy and it wasn’t as bad as I expected because of its great expanse of leg room. This made me more determined than ever.

My particular interest is classic MGB Roadsters, but as only one in 50,000 sold of these was automatic, I thought the chances of me finding one in a good reliable condition would be very small. However, I contacted the MG Owners’ Club in Cambridge and told them of my interest and they promised to advise me if they learned of one coming up for sale anywhere.

John goes out in his MGB ‘Rita’ at every opportunity

I didn’t hold my breath but over a year later a gentleman contacted me regarding one he was thinking of selling. It seems the club had informed him of my interest. He told me he had a 1972 automatic Roadster and that he was willing to sell it providing whoever bought it would take the same care of it that he had. He was, at that time in the process of purchasing a different model and told me that he would let me know when this was finalised.

Unfortunately however, a couple of weeks later, he rang me back to say his purchase had fallen through, because the car he was buying had been written off in an accident and that until he found another to his specifications, he would be keeping the Roadster. He seemed such a nice genuine chap that I asked him to please keep my number and contact me if it ever came up for sale again. He promised to keep me updated and to give me first refusal, should that ever be the case.

Bert, as I found he was called, kept his word and contacted me every few months to say he’d not found anything, and I would reply that I hadn’t either. I actually looked forward to his calls as I learned such a lot about MGs from him, but I began to think that I was destined never to fulfil my dream.

Almost two years elapsed and I had all but given up the hope of ever finding a good condition automatic MG, when out of the blue I had a call from Bert saying he’d found a car and would I still like to have a look at the Roadster.

Beth and I jumped at the chance and a few days later we were on our way to the West Coast to view the car. She was an absolutely immaculate Jaguar Racing Green, with automatic gearbox, leather seats and perfectly polished chrome and had obviously been well loved. I couldn’t test drive her myself there and then without hand controls, but Bert took me for a long spin and that was it. I was hooked! A price was agreed and Beth and I returned the following weekend to collect her. Beth drove us home, with the top down and the wind in our hair. Beth said the car handled like a dream and the wonderful sound of the engine and the smell of oil was like nothing I had ever experienced before. I couldn’t believe this fantastic piece of history was now actually mine.

The week it took to arrange for hand controls fitting was just about the longest of my life. I think I must have washed, waxed and cleaned every inch of that car whilst waiting to be able to drive her. When at last I was able to, Beth came with me and we took her out for a spin. For the first ten minutes it felt very strange and the steering heavy, but once I’d got the hang of it I knew I had made the right decision. I was living my lifelong dream at last.

The best part though was that Bert, the ex owner and myself have now become firm friends, sharing tips and motoring stories and experiences (Bert too is a lifelong fan of MGs) and I have even named my car ‘Rita’ after Bert’s wife. Since then I have purchased an MG flying jacket and a white scarf in order to look the part and feel even more special in my special car.

I do have a boring, non-descript modern automatic to go to and from work, but I’m out in ‘Rita’ at every opportunity. She’s a real showstopper and I get lots of interest in her when we’re out and about.

Ask any able-bodied MG enthusiast why they prefer their classic MG to modern cars and they will more than likely have exactly the same reasons as I do. There’s nothing more satisfying than driving the best car in the world.

John E Griffin