President s Message May has finally brought some warmer weather and LBCs are starting to be seen. Now is the time to get your LBC on the road so you can enjoy the ride and weather. The Brits started out their driving season with a trek to Auburn, Indiana, last Saturday and a visit to the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Automobile Museum. See the article and photos on pages 4-11. We were prepared to see some spectacular automobiles, but not prepared for the stunning array of colors. Some of the cars had three different colors and pin stripes. These cars are works of art that also contain a lot of ground breaking technology. If you want to see truly beautiful cars in an art deco building, this museum is the place. On the more mundane level, preparations continue for our annual British car show on June 26 th. As earlier reported, the interior public areas of the club house next to the show field, will not be available this year and next. We are still working on alternative food solutions, including the possible use of just the kitchen by the food vendor. An upcoming meeting with the food vendor and the Special Events group will determine our options. Good news for NAMGBR members (you know who you are!). The May/June issue of the MG Driver states that a NAMGBR member can receive a 5% discount on insurance with Hagerty. For existing policy holders, you have to call Hagerty to receive the discount which takes effect on your next renewal date. Hope to see you Wednesday evening at the Brass rail in Plymouth, IN. Page 2 of 13
May 3rd Board Meeting Minutes Financial David reported that we have money in the account Newsletter Mary working on May draft; it will be distributed after the Spring Drive Car Show awaiting plaques from Norman Perry trophies; lapel pins arrived; flyers mailed April 22 nd ; Dalloway Club House common area not available for show, possibility the kitchen may be available- meetings with Sodexo & Special Events will determine usage; Madeleva Hall will be site of outdoor tables, indoor tables and restrooms (60-70 yard walk) Spring Drive May 7 th to Auburn-Cord, Duesenberg Museum in Auburn, IN Monthly Meeting/Dinner May 18 th Brass Rail & Grill in Plymouth, IN; June 8 th Wheatberry Restaurant & Tavern, Buchanan, MI; July 20 th Lindy s Restaurant, Dowagiac, MI Board Meetings June 7 th Kai s residence Page 3 of 13
2016 Spring Drive By Mary Petersen The Michiana Brits began their 2016 driving season with the annual Spring Drive. This year the drive was held on Saturday, May 7 th. The day started cool (in the 50 s) and cloudy when they met at Stack s Pancake House at 8:00am. Most ate breakfast before arriving. Cars lined up in the parking lot of Stack s Pancake House awaiting the start of the Spring Drive A driver s meeting was held in the parking lot prior to leaving. The sun was shining but it was still chilly. Some brave Brits put their tops down despite the temperature. There were 11 cars for the 2 hour drive on back roads to Auburn, Indiana where we toured the Auburn-Cord- Duesenberg Museum. Page 4 of 13
It was a beautiful drive. The trees were starting to get leaves. The grass was green and flowers were popping up everywhere. Some of the roads were winding (and enjoyed by most of the drivers). In Indiana, in the spring there are also the occasional slow moving farm equipment, Amish buggies to maneuver around, and horse manure to avoid. We stopped in Albion for a short break. Some of the LBC s parked by the courthouse and got plenty of attention by the people of this little town that is the county seat of Noble County. It was a longer than planned stop; getting 20 people headed in the same direction takes time. Page 5 of 13
The Brits arrived in Auburn at a little after 10:00 for our tour of the museum. The Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Museum is more than a building filled with over 120 automobiles and related artifacts. It also contains a wealth of historic information pertaining to Auburn Automobile Company, Duesenberg, Inc, Cord Corporation, Auburn Automobiles, Cord Automobiles, Duesenburg Automobiles, Auburn Automobile Company executives and lots more. The most significant artifact in the Museum s collection is the building itself. It served as the International Headquarters of the Auburn Automobile Company from 1930-1936. The site is designated a National Historic Landmark. The ground floor showcase is decorated in the art deco period. There were beautiful lights and in the background is the Grand Staircase to the second floor. Page 6 of 13
There was something for everyone. The party car complete with a bar.. Bev Glanders admiring The Beverly Page 7 of 13
Tom Shumaker trying out a race car. Bob Petersen checking out the racing helmets Page 8 of 13
John Dillinger s car: Deb Shumaker seeing what it feels like to drive back in the old days. Page 9 of 13
During the tour someone noticed that it had started to rain so the drivers that braved the cold to have their tops down had to dodge raindrops to put their tops up. (We were hopeful that it was just temporary.) After the 1 ½ hour tour guided by a docent, we drove across town to Mad Anthony s Tap Room for lunch. There the food was fantastic. The service was great and the beer was cold and good. They served brewpub fare and hand crafted beer. When it was time to get back on the road to travel toward the South Bend area, Keith and Mary Wishmeier s Spitfire had a starter problem but not so much that a little push start from the Brits wouldn t solve the problem. Page 10 of 13
Just a minor problem for LBC drivers The rain stayed away after the brief shower that forced the tops to go up. After lunch, the sun came out and it stayed warm until we were a few miles from South Bend when the clouds came back and the winds were very chilly. All in all, it was a fantastic driving day. Thanks to Randy Glanders and Keith Wishmeier for setting up the trip and to Mary Wishmeier for checking out the restaurants for us. Page 11 of 13
2 nd Annual Michiana Brits Odometer Contest This is going to be the fourth in a series of reminders to check out your odometer and write down the mileage before the start of this year s driving season. Last year we had limited participation and would like to see a lot more of our members involved in this year s contest. The start date will be the date of the tech session but if you drive yours before that write down your mileage. The couple that drives the most miles (combined if you have more than one LBC) will be awarded the Michiana Brits motor way award and a $50 gift card. We would also like to track how many miles our entire club drives over the course of the driving season, so if you feel you didn t drive enough to make a difference every mile counts. If you have any questions regarding this contest give Bob Petersen a call 574-850-7604 or email me at bpete56@sbcglobal.net. Stagman's Tech Tips By Roger Deacon It is good to be back home in Indiana. The 5 months in Florida was great. While there, I had an operation on my shoulder and will be recuperating from that for several months. For cars that I have lined up to work on, the owners will have to do the heavy lifting, no pushing or pulling and working over head for me. Last December, I wrote an article about getting your distributors sent to Advanced Distributors to have your distributors rebuilt. I sent 3 distributors to Advanced. They said that it was a 3 week turn around; well it took 7 weeks as they were swamped. No problem as I didn't need them till the middle of April. Three days after I was home, I installed the 3 distributors. It was quite a cross section of MGs. A 1968 B, a 1971 GT and a 1978 B. After installing and timing them, I found that they idled smoother, revved smoother and didn't bog down from a standing start. They seemed to have more pep when cruising on the road and again no bogging down when passing. No more dieseling when shutting the engine off. I found the cost right where Advanced told me - $140.00/ distributor. I have had several conversations with Jeff who owns Advanced Distributors, and he told me that he doesn't agree with John Twist on setting the distributors at 32 degrees BTC. Maybe this is OK before Jeff rebuilds them but not afterwards, so I set them per Jeff's instructions. Some MGs that I set to 32 degrees BTC - it was too much and I had to back them off. If anyone wants to learn how to work on their LBCs, I have a lot of cars lined up. 72 B install rebuilt engine with OD tranny, 76 TR6 rebuild front end, 72 B electrical problem (won't run), 72 B rebuild front end, 72 GT install OD tranny, 60 TR3 install rebuilt starter, generator and carbs, Page 12 of 13
74 GT tune up plus various other things. TR6 starter. And then there is one in Pennsylvania and one in Indianapolis; bodies are Ok but they have been sitting for 10 years and they want me to get them running so they can enjoy them. And there are the ones that just come in off the street or by word of mouth. Safety fast, check those brakes; most important thing on our LBCs. Roger Deacon Page 13 of 13