40 years young: The Midget and Sprite Club

Inexpensive, beloved and well represented in terms of spares: these are just a few of the things a ‘Spridget’ has got going for it. With the comings and goings of lockdowns, the advent of 10 per cent ethanol fuel and more competition from the internet than ever before, Andrew Parrott, club chair of the Midget and Sprite Club, reassured Lancaster Insurance Services that the organisation was more than set for the challenges of the future.

In 1983, club representation of certain MG and Austin-Healey models wasn’t where it needed to be in the eyes of those still using and enjoying their cars. The ‘Spridget’, a portmanteau of ‘Sprite’ and ‘Midget’, was fresh in the memory of enthusiasts, the last 1500s having left Abingdon barely five years prior. Mindful of the cars’ significance, the Midget and Sprite Club (MASC) was born.

40 years ago, the club landscape was very different. There was no internet, or even bulletin boards; social media was a long way off. It was later realised that co-operation was crucial; changing political views towards internal combustion meant clubs had to band together as part of a wider motoring heritage movement.

Andrew explained: “Our club was set up because we didn't feel that the Midget or the Sprite was being well enough represented by the existing clubs. And to be honest, that's turned on its head because we now have a really good relationship with both the Austin-Healey Club and the MG Car Club.”

Key to the Spridget’s appeal is its accessibility: they were and are affordable, as, bar one exception, values have remained static. Using the Spridget regularly remains crucial, in Andrew’s eyes; as far as the club is concerned, they’re too much fun to stay in a garage and become investments.

He added: “They're not that expensive, actually. You can probably get a good chrome bumper car for around £7,000, which isn't a huge hill of beans, really. And you could probably get something which needs work for a bit less.

“It wouldn't scratch the surface of a Frogeye, which is north of £18,000-£20,000 for a very nice one. Apart from the Frogeyes and the specials, the prices haven't increased at all, really, over the last few years.

“I would say that people who own Sprites don't see them as an investment. While price might be something which stopped people from buying them, people don't buy them to restore, to sell on and make money, because you won't with a Sprite.

“I spent more money on my car in the last two years than it's probably worth, but I've got a car that I can enjoy and use whenever I want. Okay, it's not a Ferrari or what have you, but it's not an investment. It's a labour of love rather than an investment.”

Although the Frogeye is king of the hill in terms of values, the Midget and all of its variants hold equal importance. The club unfortunately missed out on celebrating the Midget’s 60^th birthday owing to COVID-19 restrictions and accommodation issues, so the club changed tack when celebrating its fourth decade.

Andrew explained: “This year we made a decision to have multiple events throughout the year across the country and ask the areas to either have a bigger presence at something they would normally go to, a local show or an event or something, or start something new.”

The club is split across 24 chapters of the UK. “All of those will aim to have a monthly meeting, in a pub, and then organise runs and events and things like that. We were active supporter of things like Drive It Day, so most club areas will have a run out on Drive It Day.”

The sheer ubiquity of spares – and even the availability of new bodyshells – means that the parts situation for the MASC is very good, with the odd exception. “I can imagine if you've got something rare, like an Innocenti Spider (or something which is based on a Midget), you struggle to get bits for it,” Andrew said.

“We're fortunate,” he continued. “It's an A Series engine, so engine bits are normally very easy to get hold of. There are lots of suppliers supplying refurbished or second-hand parts, so you can get a spare gearbox from somebody and get it rebuilt, so that's not a problem.”

But it’s not all plain sailing – or plain riding, as it turns out. “There was a discussion on our about shock absorbers,” Andrew recalled.

“You can get new front shock absorbers, but not new rear ones, currently. So that's something I think we need to have a discussion with suppliers about. There's a point where the unit you've got can't be reconditioned.

“[Shock absorbers] need to have more than just the seals and fluids changed. It needs machining and stuff like that, which people can't do at home. It needs somebody to step up and actually deliver quality shock absorbers.

“There were only so many built, and you end up having to get them reconditioned, and there's nobody in the UK reconditioning them to the quality that people want. So you buy one and it leaks. This is a big problem.”

The MASC isn’t bothered about higher-ethanol fuel – E10 – that arrived in September 2021, either. Once the initial fear subsided (and stocks of critical components like carburettor bowls and ethanol-resistant fuel lines were located), the club coped without issue.

Andrew said: “I think there was a lot of fear about E10 when it was introduced, but I think most people realised that if you change the hoses throughout, there's nothing internally which will be affected by it. We advise that people be careful about leaving half a tank in over winter [owing to corrosion], things like that.”

He is also aware of the increasing pressure traditional clubs face, particularly from the internet. “We can't fight against each other. We need to be looking out for each other more than we do. This is why the MG Car Club and Triumph [clubs] are doing things together for MG Triumph 100.”

For Andrew, that co-operation was a study in how clubs should be coming together. “They pooled their resources and, yeah, we had some good contact with the Austin-Healey Club on the same ideas, really, that we're talking about. We need to be encouraging ourselves to work together.”

Raising awareness of the Club itself remains crucial. Adds Andrew: “This year, we did some advertising in a place we hadn't done before, so we had a piece in Practical Classics.

“We've been in MG Enthusiast this year as well. We've done things to encourage new members, so we have an introduction card, which people can put their membership number on and give to a prospective new member. If that member then joins the club, the referring member will get a credit in some way. So that's borne a little bit of fruit.

“We always support the two NEC shows, the March and November shows, and we always have a good presence there. And we have people come up and say, ‘I've not heard of you before’. So there's still work to be done.”