1939 MG WA Drophead Coupe

1939 MG WA Drophead Coupe.

Launched at the 1935 Motor Show, the SA had represented a new departure for MG. The first all-new model to be introduced since the company's acquisition by Morris Motors, it was considerably larger than any previous MG and caused a certain amount of consternation amongst enthusiasts who feared an abandonment of virtues embodied by the marque's nimble sports cars. They need not have worried, for although based on the Wolseley Super Six and aimed at the luxury car market, the SA received sufficient input from MG founder and designer Cecil Kimber to transform it into a car worthy of the famous octagon badge. Originally of 2,026cc, the overhead-valve Wolseley six had been enlarged to 2,288cc by the time SA production commenced, and was further stretched to 2,322cc in 1937.

For the WA, first seen in the summer of 1938, the engine was enlarged yet again, on this occasion to 2,561cc. Notable as one of the first engines to employ a fully counter-balanced crankshaft, the WA six produced 95.5bhp at 4,400rpm, some 20 horsepower more than the SA unit, which was good enough to propel MG's largest pre-war model to a top speed of around 90mph. On the chassis side, the WA benefited from larger brakes (14" as opposed to the SA's 12" stoppers) and had a rear track wider by more than 3". Like the SA, three body types were offered: a factory-built saloon; a Tickford drophead coupé by Salmons & Sons; and a Charlesworth open tourer. By the time production ceased with the outbreak of war in 1939, only 369 WAs of all types had left the factory.

The rare survivor offered here, chassis number '0417', was completed on 7th February 1939 and exported to Nyasaland (now Malawi) in southern Africa.

Descriptions & pictures by Wikipedia & bonhams & svwregister