MG PB Mille Miglia

The surviving Triple-M Register record is particularly useful: it confirms PB0464, registration AVF50, engine 731 APB, matching chassis, engine and bonnet, and records an unusually long period of ownership from 1964. The car is also documented in the 1000 Miglia entry records, including the 2024 event.

1935 MG PB Midget – Chassis PB0464 – Registration AVF 50

A very special pre-war MG with an exceptional competition history

There are few pre-war British sports cars that combine the charm, mechanical character and accessibility of the MG Midget with genuine long-distance event history. This 1935 MG PB Midget, chassis PB0464, registration AVF 50, is one such car.

It is a particularly desirable example of the final and most developed version of MG's famous P-Type Midget, and today it possesses a provenance that makes it considerably more interesting than an ordinary road-going PB. In addition to its long and fascinating ownership history, AVF 50 has successfully competed in the Mille Miglia on two occasions, completing the event on both occasions – an achievement that demonstrates not only its eligibility but its ability to undertake one of the world's most demanding historic motoring events.

The MG PB – the final P-Type Midget

The story begins with the MG Car Company of Abingdon and the remarkable family of small overhead-camshaft sports cars known collectively as the P-Type.

Introduced in 1934, the MG PA was conceived as a more sophisticated development of the successful J-Type Midget. For 1935 MG evolved the car into the PB, creating what would prove to be the ultimate version of the P-Type before the arrival of the TA.

The PB retained the delightful proportions and traditional construction of its predecessor but received a number of important mechanical improvements. Most significant was the enlargement of the four-cylinder overhead-camshaft engine from 847cc to 939cc, achieved by increasing the bore to 60mm while retaining the 83mm stroke. With twin SU carburettors, the engine produced approximately 43bhp at 5,500rpm.

The PB also received a close-ratio four-speed gearbox, while the familiar 12-inch brakes were retained. Externally it can readily be distinguished from the PA by its attractive vertical-slat radiator grille, together with the revised dashboard and separate instruments.

Production was short-lived. Approximately 526 PBs were built, making the model considerably rarer than the PA and one of the most desirable of the pre-war overhead-camshaft MG Midgets.

The PB is particularly significant in MG history because it was effectively the last of this wonderful line of small, lightweight, overhead-camshaft Midgets. When MG moved to the TA in 1936, the company abandoned the OHC engine in favour of a larger pushrod unit. Thus the PB represents the end of an important chapter in MG's sporting history.

PB0464 – its own remarkable story

Chassis PB0464 is recorded by the MG Triple-M Register with registration AVF 50 and engine number 731 APB. Importantly, the Register records the chassis, engine and bonnet as matching and original.

The car has an unusually well-documented connection with East Anglia.

According to the history recorded with the Triple-M Register, the MG was purchased new in 1936 by Mr Charles Bowman of the White Horse Public House at Brancaster Staithe in Norfolk. It was supplied by Mann Egerton of Prince of Wales Road, Norwich, one of the prominent motor dealers of the period.

The car therefore appears to have entered active road use in the immediate pre-war period and, remarkably, survived through the Second World War and the subsequent decades.

By the early 1960s, however, AVF 50 had fallen into a very different existence.

Rediscovered in 1964

In 1964, the car was discovered in a garden in London.

Rather than being broken up or abandoned, it was rescued and returned to running condition. The new custodian drove the MG back to Norwich – a wonderfully appropriate return for a car originally supplied there almost three decades earlier.

Even more remarkable was the length of the subsequent ownership.

The Triple-M Register records that the owner acquired the car in 1964 and retained it for many decades. It was initially lightly refurbished before eventually receiving a much more comprehensive restoration.

This extraordinarily long period of custodianship is an important part of the character of AVF 50. It was not a car that passed rapidly through a succession of collectors and dealers; rather, it became a cherished long-term possession.

Restoration and mechanical development

The car underwent a substantial restoration, completed around 2009–2010, during which it was rebuilt to a high standard while retaining its important original identity.

The Triple-M Register specifically records that the full rebuild to original specification was completed in 2010, and confirms that the chassis, engine and bonnet were matching numbers and original.

At some stage during this period the car was also equipped with a Marshall supercharger.

This is particularly appropriate for a PB. MG's small overhead-camshaft engines were renowned for their ability to respond to tuning, and supercharging was an established means of extracting considerably more performance from the compact Midget engine.

The resulting specification makes AVF 50 particularly well suited to historic long-distance events, where additional performance can make the difference between merely participating and genuinely enjoying the experience.

From cherished road car to Mille Miglia competitor

The next chapter in the life of AVF 50 is perhaps the most significant from a collector's perspective.

The MG PB is an eligible car for the 1000 Miglia Storica, and its combination of 1935 manufacture, lightweight construction, compact dimensions and sporting specification makes it an exceptionally entertaining Mille Miglia car.

The Mille Miglia is not simply a concours event. It is a demanding historic motoring expedition covering thousands of kilometres over public roads, through mountain passes, towns and countryside, with regularity tests and time controls along the route.

For a small 939cc MG, completing the event is a considerable achievement.

AVF 50 has competed in two Mille Miglia events and successfully finished both.

This is a highly significant part of the car's modern history. It demonstrates that the MG has not simply been prepared to look like a competition car – it has actually been used for the purpose for which its sporting character was intended.

The car's Mille Miglia credentials are independently supported by contemporary event records. The 1000 Miglia entry information for 2024, for example, lists AVF 50 as a 1935 MG PB, RHD, with Neil Walker and Ian Walker as the crew.

The Mille Miglia connection is particularly compelling because the MG PB's eligibility is not merely theoretical. The Triple-M Register and other specialist MG sources recognise the PB as an appropriate Mille Miglia car, while contemporary event records confirm AVF 50's participation.

A car that has actually been driven

One of the most appealing aspects of AVF 50 is the contrast between its age and the way it has been used.

This is a 90-year-old British sports car that has been driven across Italy in the Mille Miglia.

That is exactly what an MG PB was created to do.

The P-Type Midget was never intended to be a grand tourer in the conventional sense. It was a lightweight sports car, with a simple chassis, compact dimensions, a free-revving overhead-camshaft engine and direct driving characteristics.

The PB's combination of approximately 43bhp, low weight and a close-ratio gearbox gave it an unusually sporting character for such a small car.

Add the Marshall supercharger and the car takes on an even more purposeful character.

It is easy to understand why owners have continued to use cars such as AVF 50 for historic events rather than merely displaying them.

Why PB0464 is particularly interesting

There are several factors that distinguish this MG from an ordinary PB:

• Rare model – only approximately 526 PBs were produced.

• Desirable final P-Type specification – the PB represents the ultimate development of MG's pre-war OHC Midget.

• Matching numbers – the Triple-M Register records the chassis, engine and bonnet as matching and original.

• Known early history – supplied new through Mann Egerton in Norwich to Charles Bowman of the White Horse Public House at Brancaster Staithe in 1936.

• Remarkable survival – discovered in a London garden in 1964 and rescued rather than dismantled.

• Exceptional long-term ownership – acquired in 1964 and retained by the same owner for many years.

• Comprehensive restoration – restoration/rebuild completed around 2009–2010.

• Marshall supercharger – giving the little 939cc OHC engine considerably more sporting character.

• Genuine Mille Miglia history – two participations and, importantly, two successful finishes.

• Contemporary event documentation – AVF 50 is recorded in the 2024 Mille Miglia entry list.

• Recognised by the MG Triple-M Register – providing an important independent reference for the car's identity and history.

A wonderful opportunity for the next custodian

For the enthusiast who appreciates pre-war MGs, AVF 50 offers something increasingly difficult to find: a genuine historic sports car with a documented story and a proven ability to participate in major international events.

It has the rarity of the PB, the mechanical character of MG's famous overhead-camshaft Midget, the added interest of a Marshall supercharger and, most importantly, the experience of having been driven and successfully completed the Mille Miglia on two occasions.

For Classicmobilia, this is precisely the sort of car that deserves to be presented not simply as a beautifully restored 1935 MG, but as a 90-year-old sports car with an active sporting life and a remarkable story of survival.

After spending decades with one custodian following its rescue from a London garden, PB0464 now enters the market again, offering its next owner the opportunity to continue a story that began in the 1930s and has already taken this diminutive MG from Norfolk to some of the most famous roads in Italy.

Classicmobilia is delighted to now offer this exceptional MG PB, chassis PB0464, registration AVF 50, for sale.