Faults:

Rear window zipper slider broke.

General Comments:

I feel in love with the MG-F after a quick test drive in Jan 2006 but the dealer wanted a ridiculous price for a 1996 1.8i. I bought one on an auction site and it's the best. Drove it 200km home after buying it and no fatigue. I drove a Mazda 323 (Neo) with 17" alloys, but always got sore shoulders. Not so with the comfort of the MG. It is simply a dream car.

Faults:

Snapped gear selector cable - knuckle had been damaged from a bottom-out and a hard change ripped the cable. Expensive repair.

Vandalised hood - twice. Knife wounds can't be repaired. The fabric needs to be replaced. At least $2000 a pop.

General Comments:

I bought this car over 2 years ago with a fairly high odo reading. I drove the car for 10 minutes before falling in love with it and deciding that $90 was a small price to pay for an experienced MG mechanic to give it a thorough examination.

From day 1 I've been impressed with the handling, fuel economy and comfort of the car. I drive the car hard and I'm rewarded with a smile on my face every time. And best of all the fuel economy never goes above 10 or 11 litres per 100kms.

Just be careful of the rear end in the wet - it goes around very easily, although I have a habit of cornering too quickly in all conditions. In the dry it is quite amazing. The only problem I've had is almost losing whole thing trying to take a sweeping 90 degree turn at 85kmh... but I recovered it - although somewhat ungracefully.

The only real problem I've had is the mongrels that decide the soft-top is an easy target. I've had it slashed twice - and this can be an expensive repair if you aren't insured. Or a bonus if you want a new glass rear window ;)

But you know the best part? 90% of the population have no idea what the car is and estimate it costs 2-3 times what I paid for it (ie: $60000). It looks that classy.

Faults:

Major engine overheating at about 45,000kms due to a "known design fault".

On-going engine/cooling problems ever since.

Loose wiring causing notable rattling while driving.

General Comments:

I fell in love with the F when I first saw one on holiday in Scotland in 1999, and absolutely had to buy one when I got home.

Much searching of local dealers later I had my prized British Racing Green MGF. Glorious!

The car handles very well, and is a delight to drive. It flies from a standing start and takes to the open road like it was born to it.

The F also has a stylish look to it - especially compared to the lacklustre appearance of competitors like the Mazda MX5.

For a convertible, it hardly ever leaks, even in severe storms.

It was great fun for a while.

Then the trouble started. Engine overheated on a long trip. Taking the car into the local Rover dealer I was informed that the F had a "known design flaw" relating to stud bolts attaching parts of the cooling system. However despite it being a "known design flaw" nobody was willing to take responsibility for this, and I was required to pay for repairs myself. Some NZ$6,500 (about US$3,000) six months, and many many returns to the workshop later the car still loses coolant on an irregular, but frequent basis, and the engine fan is now significantly louder than prior.

The dealers are completely incompetent and lacking in any real knowledge of MGs. They also drove a Land Rover into it during servicing.

The only saving grace was the excellent customer service from BMW New Zealand. BMW are of course no longer owners of MG (but were when the car was built), and they were very helpful - albeit not financially.

One final nitpick - the original tonneau design is ludicrous. Get the newer one.