It’s the oldest surviving MG Maestro 1600, but this barn find’s restoration severely tested Joe Barlow’s skills and patience
WORDS MIKE RENAUT | PHOTOGRAPHY MATT HOWELL
Joe Barlow recalls what inspired him to own an MG Maestro 1600, when he was aged 22. ‘In Nottingham there’s a stretch of road over Trent Bridge between two sets of traffic lights – in a fast car you could get to the second set while they were still green. I had an XR3 and was used to beating Golf GTis. Then, one night, an MG 1600 left me standing and I thought, “I gotta find one of them…’”
Fast forward to July 2021 and Joe wins a 1600 on eBay. ‘It was a mess. It hadn’t run since 1993, and when my mate Bish and I pulled it from the barn I thought, “What have I done?” Although it was virtually complete there was a lot of hidden rust because they rot from the inside out. I decided that if I could get it running I’d restore it. Otherwise I’d scrap it and wave bye-bye to the £2400 I’d just paid.’
Once home Joe put a battery on the Maestro and was amazed. ‘It lit up like a Christmas tree and everything worked! Even the digital talking dashboard worked – although I’ve since found out that these were actually very reliable.’
He rigged up a petrol feed to the carburettors and, almost before he knew it, the car was running. ‘I didn’t touch the plugs, distributor or even check the water levels, although I did ensure it had oil. It coughed until it warmed up, then it was spot-on.’ Now committed to the restoration, Joe began stripping the MG and sourcing the parts he knew he’d need. It quickly became obvious he’d need a donor car. ‘It was strange how there’d be an area of solid metal then, right next to it, a piece completely rotted out,’ remembers Joe. ‘It was as if they’d built half the car from already rusty steel. I bought a 31,000-mile Maestro LX for parts, which proved vital – not only for replacement panels and repair sections, but also as a datum point for ensuring everything was going back in the correct place.’
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