MGC GTS Sebring (1969)

Launched in 1962 and built until 1980, the MGB replaced the ageing MGA with a modern, lightweight design, using a unitary structure instead of the traditional body-on-frame construction. An overwhelming success, the MGB was an instant hit. Development of a lightweight, competition specification ‘C’ began four years after the B’s launch, with the intention of demonstrating its ability in the Prototype Sportscar class.

The MGC was introduced in 1967 as the British Motor Corporation’s (BMC) replacement for the Austin Healey 3000 – a car that had in fact, been built in the same Abingdon factory. The MGC would introduce a new engine, moving from the 1.8 litre 4-cyl to a larger, 3.0 litre 6-cyl.

Using the MGC as the basis, but replacing much of the bodywork with aluminium, the Competitions Department shaved close to 200kg from the car, with the resulting effort tipping the scales at a scant 900 kg. The MGC GTS raced in the 1967&68 Targa Florio as well at Sebring and the Marathon de la Route, Nurburgring 84-hours. Just two would leave the factory in period, with Sebring in 1969 the final race before the project was canned.