Dad and His MGB

by Mario Somoza

My father, Francisco “Cuco” Somoza, was a dentist by profession and a diehard sports car enthusiast. He was a very successful rally driver in the late ’60s and ’70s, winning several of the biggest rallies on our native island of Puerto Rico and a few races across the Caribbean. Through those years, he owned several classic sports cars: split-window Corvette, Mini Cooper, Porsche 911, and Maserati Ghibli, among others.

In 1980, he bought a 1961 MGA 1600. The engine of the car had been replaced with an MGB 1800 engine, but other than that, the car wasn’t in bad shape. My grandfather had been an airplane mechanic in his younger years, lending him some rather useful technical knowledge—he and my dad fixed up the MGA, tinkering with it over the years. One fond memory I have is of helping my dad install a new convertible top. I was always proud of how well that top held up over the years.

When I got my driver’s license a few years after he bought the car, he taught me how to drive a stick shift in the MGA. It wasn’t long until the car became my daily driver while in high school, switching to my summer car while I was in college. My dad was a firm believer that cars are meant to be driven and enjoyed. It made him happy to see how much I loved and cared for that car.

A few years later, he bought a 1954 MG TF 1500. Working out of his garage, he kicked off a full restoration of the roadster, enlisting the help of a few fellow MG enthusiasts. As you can imagine, that was a time when Moss Motors packages would arrive almost daily at our doorstep. It took him two full years to finish the TF, and when it was done, it was a beautiful car— shining and pristine. So, I was surprised when he sold it shortly thereafter to one of his buddies who worked on the car with him. When I asked him why he sold it, he said that restoring it was the fun part.

He never sold the MGA, however. He always kept that car, doing a few restorations on it over the years. My father passed away in 2013, and at the time, the car needed some mechanical and engine work to get it back in running shape. Since my technical abilities are limited, I found a trustworthy shop to work on the carburetors and brakes to get it running again—excited to find that the car was just as much fun to drive now as it was 40 years ago. I recently put a new top on it and new wire wheels. I know my dad would be happy to know that the car not only still looks good but is being driven on a regular basis.

Even though my father owned several sports cars throughout his life, the pleasure and joy he got from the MGs was unmatched by anything else, and I believe that is why he always kept that MGA. He passed that on to me, and I am hopeful that one day my daughters will enjoy that car as much as I have for over 40 years.