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MG MGA - Boot Bags

Has anyone used a boot bag on an A? do they work or to be avoided?

David
d brenchley

David,
by boot-bag,I assume you mean the new-ish rip-stop nylon design that have straps which fasten around the boot lid and rest on a thin non-slip mat?

They do work and they dont fall off, however, the MGA boot lid is aluminium and only has a lightweight frame and so it is easily distorted.
So you do run the danger of distorting the lid,possibly permanently, if you have strapped the bag down very firmly.
Also, the lid is not latched down very tightly when it is closed and it doesnt take much pressure from inside to lift the edges up away from the seal, even pushing an extra jumper into the boot when it is full will open up a gap there and let (lots) of rainwater in. So placing straps in between the lid and the seal could easily cause the boot to leak.

Im not a great fan of boot racks but if you are going to carry stuff on the boot lid, I think you may as well fit one, it wont distort the boot lid and you can be sure it will not fall off.
You could even carry your spare wheel on it to give you much more space inside.

I have done a few long distance trips in the MGA over few years, including the Lands End-Jon-o-Groats trip last September which took us over 2 weeks travelling over 2200 miles and have never needed a boot rack.

We managed to carry everything inside the car for the entire trip including all our clothes etc, plus a surprising amount of tools and spare parts. I even carried the sidescreens in the boot as if they are behind the seats, they tend to restrict my legroom.

The secret is to carry lots of small soft bags which allows you to squish them into all the odd shape spaces inside the boot. I admit that when you enter a hotel from your MGA carrying loads of bags, you do tend to look like you are just coming home from a spending spree at a car-boot sale! :-)
But you do tend to get noticed whenever you park up in an MGA and so I wouldnt let it bother you.

For the best advice on packing your MGA you should contact Stuart Mumby -The MGA Registers Registrar- he has it down to a fine art.
He has even somehow managed to find storage space beneath the dashboard for his wife Irenes apparently infinite collection of MGA-friendly hats which she appears to change every few minutes. (or maybe I should say "At the drop of a hat")

Colyn
Colyn Firth

Ref your comments about "lightweight boot lid" - that always concerns me where I see spare wheels attached to a rack on the boot!
Graeme Williams

Gramme

Done it many times. Absolutely no problem.

Never heard of a boot bag before this thread.

Steve
Steve Gyles

Thanks for the comments so far - the web site is http://www.boot-bag.com

Not really happy about fitting a boot rack as to my eyes it spoils the lines of the car...

David
d brenchley

The boot on an MGA is lightweight but not really that flimsy being fitted with a peripheral steel frame, longitudinal top hat section ribs and cross bracing. It is even stronger when fitted with the Moss pack rack where the main straps are directly above longitudinal ribs as shown in the attached photo (the six fixing bolts supplied by Moss were original a bit short as can be seen in this photo - Moss supplied correct bolts when advised of the issue).
The boot strength was severely test by the Antipodean Adventures last year where we travelled around 6,000 miles around Europe and the UK as several of us elected to mount our spare wheels on these boot frames to allow more secure storage within the boot. No damage or distortion was reported despite plenty of spirited driving on the outer western wilds of Scotland with the exception of some paint rubbing where the side of the boot touch the body (I suspect the boot catch wasn't clipped properly and the play in the hinges allowed the lid to move sideways a little.
BTW Moss supply a boot bag,
http://www.moss-europe.co.uk/shop-by-model/mg/mga/general-personal-accessories/luggage/boot-bag-luggage-system-50-litre-gac9155.html
Has anyone tried these?
Mike


Mike Ellsmore

Boot rack with spare wheel - design proved strong enough for Scottish roads! (I am fortunate enough to have a plain boot for everyday use).
Mike

Mike Ellsmore

Mike, I also went out and bought a second boot lid to paint up and use as a carrier for a boot rack just to avoid drilling holes in my present bot lid.

In the end I didnt use it as I just couldnt bring myself to fit a boot rack onto my bumper-less MGA as it looked wrong.

So the spare lid is in the garage, along with the bumpers, to pass on to the next owner who will probably fit them all and think that the DPO was an idiot! :-)

Colyn
Colyn Firth

This thread was discussed between 27/02/2016 and 28/02/2016

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