The MG Maestro Turbo
The MG Maestro Turbo
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"In 1989, it was the fastest accelerating
production MG ever". 0 - 60 in 6.7 seconds. And even today it is only surpassed by the MG RV8 and the MG XPower SV/SVR. It's faster than the model MG TF 160. My wife and I have owned 7 Maestro Turbos to date No. 502 - Flame red. No. 428 - White No.5 - Black (the original Rover Press car) We previously owned No.31 a Flame Red car pictured top left. And now we have owned black car No.193 (for a short while) which is rather unique as it has had a total respray in metallic black. It also has some interesting wheels by a company called Dare. MGF wheels are very popular with Maestro & Montego owners as they fit without too much modifications - a 3-5mm spacer is all that is require for the front wheels unless you have a big disk brake conversion, in which case you won't need the spacers. The rear wheels bolt straight on and the centre caps just need 2mm shaving off the four plastic legs - just make sure you leave the ridged part which holds the cap in place. I can email you a picture of these if required. |
 Only 505 MG Maestro turbos were made. This rare Limited Edition car sports an exclusive Tickford bodykit. At the time it was the fastest production MG ever made with a 0-60mph of 6.7 seconds. Only about 100 are currently known to have survived. Contact Daniel Pyke to authenticate any potential purchase before you buy - just let him know the chassis/VIN number and or registration number. Cheap classic car insurance is now available for these cars from specialist MG insurers. Do try and get an insurer who will give you an agreed valuation for the car eg., Lancaster Insurance Price Guide for MG Maestro turbos - 2006 Mint very low mileage(under 30k miles) - £4000 Mint(recent total respray, no bodywork required) - £3250 Good condition(only minor cosmetic bodywork required) - £2000 Average - £1500 Rough - £500 Cars with the Tomcat T16 engine conversions can fetch a premium too, as normally this popular conversion will cost around £1000 to do.This could add £500 - £1000 to the value of a car depending on the quality of the installation (but a bodge job may deminish the value of the vehicle!) |
I wonder how many are still
around? The MG Car Club Front Wheel Drive register are constantly trying to monitor those cars which have survived. Thanks to Roger Parker (MGOC Technical expert) we have a list of all the chassis numbers and the Tickford records. Daniel Pyke has taken over the running of the register from John Orrel and has created a great website www.maestroturbo.org.uk for Maestro turbo enthusiasts . When I was looking after the register we had the following confirmed numbers: 1999 - 165 cars 2000 - 145 cars 2001 - 128 cars 2002 - 101 cars 2003 - 94 cars 2004 - 75 cars This does not mean that there are only 75 cars left today, it just means these are the confirmed sightings and contacts from owners for this year. This is where we need your help. Please can you let Daniel Pyke know if you still have one of these vehicles and also if you know of other vehicles in your area which are still around today. Although the figure for 2004 and 2003 are clearly false.... the figures for the previous years - 1999 to 2001 does give a better idea of the actual number of these cars which are still around. Back in 1999 we had 40 Maestro turbos turn up to the annual MG Saloon Day event. This number has gradually diminished slowly since then. I would guess that there are around 100 cars still around today , but many are in need of restoration possibly 50% of this number.
Details we are looking for are: |
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| Of the 505 Maestro Turbo's made: 215 were Flame Red 92 were White Diamond 149 were British Racing Green 49 were Black |
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Rover brochure picture from May 1990 Inside the MG Maestro Turbo |
| As most insurance companies don't know the difference between an MG Maestro 2.0i and one of the Limited Edition 505 Tickford Maestro turbos - Lancaster insurance, and other MG specialist insurers, will provide an agreed valuation for your classic MG. One small bump and most insurance companies will try and write off your Tickford car and offer you a derisory amount of compensation. As you can see by the Classic Cars Price guide above, this is well below their true market value. Unless you have an agreed value insurance policy with one of the specialist MG insurers then you will have a struggle getting the true value of your car back should the worst happen. | Insurance valuations |
 Buyers Guide |
Tidy engine bay of Maestro turbo F222 NBU. A clean tidy engine bay is a good sign that the car has been looked after, unlike the grubby and scruffy engine bay of the black car in the picture below - which had been neglected for some years |
 Buyers Guide |
To verify the identity of a Maestro turbo you need to check the VIN number which always starts with the following prefix of SAXXCTWT7AM followed by six numbers. The VIN number is stamped into the metal of the suspension strut housing as shown by the picture left. Examine this area carefully as some owners have reshelled their cars using EFi donor vehicles. If this is the case then the original VIN identity of the Maestro turbo will be lost - and it is illegal to transfer the VIN number from and existing shell to another shell which already has a VIN number stamped into it. The only way to do a legal reshell is to use a brand new bodyshell which does not already have a VIN number stamped into it. |
 Buyers Guide |
The aluminium VIN plate identifier on a Maestro turbo is located just inside the front passenger door at the bottom of the door pillar. This plate is rivetted into place so is easily transferred from one bodyshell to another. So always check the VIN number stamped to the suspension strut housing inside the engine bay as shown in the picture above. |
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A20 TBO Roger Parker's creation - a Rover 220 16 valve Turbo engined MG Maestro turbo. This is a popular engine conversion for Maestro and Montego owners as the bottom end of the T16 engine is virtually the same as the 8 valve engine. Without the restriction of a CAT the engine should produce 235 bhp in a Maestro or Monty without any modifications. I owned this car after Roger and the performance was awesome! I often regret selling it..... |
| Yellow MG Maestro Turbo, featured in Fast Car Feb 98. One of only two yellow custom painted Maestro turbos. There is a silver MG Maestro turbo which was done by Motobuild (featured in Revs magazine) which is currently being restored and may end up being resprayed Tahiti Blue. Other custom colours are a metallic black, nightfire red, and XPower grey. |
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Jeremy Clarkson and A20 TBO. Friday 31st March 2000. A20 TBO gets shot for BBC 2's new series "Clarkson's Car years". The new series went out on the 1st June 2000 on BBC 2 at 8.30pm. The 5th episode featuring A20 TBO and also F999 RHP (the BRG Rover press car), was on the theme hot hatches...and as we know, the Maestro turbo was the hottest of them all! ;-) |
 This was my wife's white T16 Maestro turbo - Tickford No.428. Also converted to T16 power by Roger Parker - MGOC technical expert |
 No.88. Current owner Jason Colling |
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www.maestroturbo.org.uk |
Daniel Pyke - now looking after the MG Maestro Turbo register |
