This is the history of the MGA 1600 GHNL98700. For the moment it is a very simple page. I hope to make it better in the future ….

This car has only one original owner, Mr. Karl Heinz Krueger, currently 85 years old. He bought the car new in Germany on the 21st December 1960, according to the original invoice! The German license plate was S-U5638. Mr. Krueger has had several MG's before this one, and he has traded a 1500 for the 1600. It remained in Germany until 1983, and during this time it has seen regular use, being sometimes his everyday car. By then Mr. Krueger had decided to retire and live in California (He was then 66 years old). The car had license plate  1GZF029. He lived there until 1998, and then decided to move to Tenerife. The car was for sale in Tenerife from 1998 to 2001, and it was never used since, but the engine was started from time to time.

You can see the pictures of the car as I've found it in Tenerife in this page. A very poor repair had been done, and the sills and door pilars were in bad shape, but otherwise the car is very original. I've made the most of my stay in Tenerife, and visited the car twice, making note of every detail that might be important for later analisys. I have also filmed it.What a holiday ! :-) Here is a picture of that moment. From left to right, Mrs Krueger, Mr Krueger, my wife Ana and me.

Pictures of the car as found in the garage

 It took me from August 2001 to April 2002 to be sure of every detail ... from expected cost of repair to stupid Portuguese taxes, it was a long wait to have every detail covered and solved. In the end, I've managed to come around most of them. It was this way that on the 13th May 2002 it left Tenerife and headed to Vigo, in the north of Spain, some 120 Km from Porto. Here you can find some pictures taken by Mr. and Mrs. Krueger in Tenerife, during the transportation from the garage to the port.

 Pictures of the car on its way to the port of Tenerife

 The car arrived in Vigo on the 24th May and I went to pick it up on the 28. You can see some more pictures below.

Pictures of the car in the port of Vigo

After a few more days, restoration has begun. I had a big surprise waiting …. the car is in very bad shape! Both rear door pillars simply do not exist, and the front ones are very bad. The lower inner sills do not exist anymore, and all the lower part of the car, both front and rear are severely damaged. See for yourself….

Starting restoration ….

A fantastic bodywork from Mr. Serafim Alves and Mr. Manuel Coutinho. Together, they make a great team !

I will add a few links to related sites, either restoration or MG related. Take a look below.

Graham and Tom Barber’s 1959 MGA 1600 coupe restoration

Barney Gaylord excelent technical site !

The MGA Register – MG Car Club

If you want to make a comment or ask a question, you can reach me at rgigante@oninet.pt

Last update: June 1, 2004