He found a 1979 MG Midget 1500 with a broken engine (big surprise) and swapped out its original 1,493cc inline-four shared with the Triumph Spitfire for an unexpected powerplant.

Dear Alex, I have owned my MG Midget for more than 15 years but now find it too difficult to get into or drive. I put it for sale on eBay; it had 1,000 views and many watchers, but not a single bid.

My first car was a 1929 MG Midget, which I bought very 'second hand' in about 1950 for 80 - when I was a student.I understand that 1929 was the… ...