The MGA Roadster Redefined By Frontline

Built in the hundreds of thousands, if not millions, the British two-seater sports car is an automotive genre in itself. It comes in many guises, but the recipe is pretty much the same every single time: compact, lightweight, a curvaceous exterior and room for two plus a bit of luggage (or tools and parts). But which one is best? The Triumph Spitfire? The Austin Healey? The AC Ace? The Lotus Elan? Or perhaps everybody’s favourite, the MGB? (Please don’t say MX-5!) Well, the answer to that question is debatable, of course, but to me, one of the finest ones has always been the MGA, which is now gently restomodded by Frontline Cars!

The Em-Gee-A

The 1950s and 1960s are often touted as the golden age for British motoring, at least when it comes to design. It was a time when British car companies birthed a whole range of absolutely gorgeous and sometimes revolutionary sports and touring cars. Cars like the Jaguar E-Type, the Jensen Interceptor, and the Aston Martin DB5 immediately come to mind for their incredible good looks. The downside, however, is that these are all big-budget cars. Luckily, there is a solution to this, which is the lightweight British sports car!

Among all the roadsters to be built in the UK over the past 100 years or so, a few stand out. Sometimes for their motorsport heritage, sometimes for their style and presence, and sometimes for whole other reasons. One of the sexiest examples, to me and many others, is the MGA. Built between 1955 and 1962, it was penned by Syd Enever, MG Designer at the time. The MGA is perhaps MG’s finest-looking car, even though the MGB that succeeded it was far more popular and was in production far longer. In terms of numbers, it’s a bout 1 to 5, with just over 101,000 MGAs rolling off the assembly line, and more than half a million MGBs!

The MGA was available as a coupe or as a roadster, weighed around 900 kilos and was powered by a 1.5-litre inline four-cylinder at first, which was later replaced by a 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine that came in a few configurations (single cam, twin cam). Power ranged between 72bhp and 108bhp, which meant the MGA was nippy but never blisteringly quick. But to most, that was never an issue as it’s more about handling and agility than about brute speed when it comes to the best British roadsters.

The Frontline MGA Factory Edition

Aiming to redefine the golden age of British sports cars, Frontline operates out of Oxfordshire, United Kingdom, with the goal to create the best-handling driving machines imaginable. Founded by Tim Fenna, who was brought up in and around cars, Frontline works almost exclusively on MGs and has been refining them for over three decades. The company’s work can be split into two categories: Bespoke Editions and Factory Editions. True to its name, bespoke editions are individual builds as desired by each customer. And as always, pretty much anything goes! The Factory Editions are a little bit different, as it’s a more serially produced run of cars, low volumes though, as envisioned by the Frontline team.

While primarily working on MGBs of all sorts and shapes, the latest beauty to come out of Frontline’s workshop is the MGA Factory Edition, a nipped-and-tucked take on one of the finest roadsters around. Frontline recognises the MGAs’ untapped potential and unlocks it by going over everything in detail. No longer limited by the technology of its day, the MGA gets improvements in power, suspension, braking, creature comforts and so on. Pretty much nothing is left untouched.

At the heart of the Frontline MGA no longer beats the admittedly underpowered 1.6-litre four-pot. Instead, it gets a new Ford Duratec 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine, producing 225 horsepower and 241Nm of torque, considerably more than the original on both fronts. There’s also the option of going for a 290bhp and 330Nm strong 2.5-litre Duratec straight-four, which would make a total riot out of any MGA! The naturally aspirated, high-revving engines use individual throttle bodies, a modern ECU, a stainless steel exhaust and more precision performance parts to ensure it’s as engaging as it can be. Power is sent to the rear wheels through a Mazda gearbox.

The body looks very close to stock, yet is 85 kg lighter than it originally was. Tipping the scales at 815 kilos only, and knowing there’s between 225 and 290 horsepower at your disposal, makes light work of sprints! In fact, any Frontline MGA will clock zero to 100kph in less than 5 seconds! The original leafspring suspension system is replaced with an adjustable five-link rear suspension kit, with optimised spring rates, camber and caster set up by Frontline and their partners Nitron. The front suspension is also reworked completely, and everything can be customised to your specifications. Ventilated brake discs all around provide the much-needed stopping power, which is a reassuring thought given the rise in power.

What I love about Frontline’s work on the MGA is that it looks very period correct, even down to the 15-inch wire wheels. From the outside, you wouldn’t assume you’re dealing with such a potent little machine, which, in all honesty, is capable of embarrassing much more powerful sports cars! The body of the donor car, whether it’s a coupe or a roadster, is preserved as much as possible and subtly tweaked and perfected, down to the smallest shut lines. The biggest change, perhaps, is the modern LED headlights and the removal of the side indicators, but for the rest, it’s as elegant as it has ever been! All this continues on the inside, with an interior tailored to your very liking, even down to the stitching of the upholstery. You can opt for a classical look, with lots of leather and wood, or take it into a more contemporary direction with Alcantara and aluminium.

Now, this incredible amount of craftsmanship, updating the MGA on all fronts, means investing countless hours into each and every car. As such, it requires you to drop off at least GBP 140,000 of your hard-earned money, alongside a donor car. But in return, you don’t just get a better MGA, you get an MGA, perfect…

For more information, please visit Frontline-Cars.co.uk.

Editorial note: The information sourced and images portrayed in this article are sourced from and used with permission of Frontline Cars unless stated otherwise.