The weekend car

What do you do when you hit that certain birthday in mid-life? Buy a British sports car, of course.

Chris Creek bought his MGB as a 'fixer upper' in the UK and proceeded to have it converted to left-hand drive as well as restoring it before shipping it to Dubai.

Chris Creek's racy 40th birthday present to himself was no mid-life crisis. "I've had MGs ever since my early twenties," explains the British helicopter engineer, who celebrated the milestone last year. A somewhat tricky birthday for many men, Chris opted to cushion the blow of the passing of time in jaunty style by presenting himself with a 1972 MGB Roadster. "I've always been very interested in older and classic cars and, although I've bought and sold MGs for years, this MGB Roadster is definitely a keeper." Chris says that having an engineering background has fuelled a below-the-bonnet interest in the classic British motors, which have been in production since 1924.

"My colleagues all seem to have an above-average interest in cars, namely taking them apart and rebuilding them. I've been a helicopter engineer since leaving school and I see that lots of engineers have old cars as hobbies. I think it is easier as we already have the tools to tinker with the cars - a lot of them are the same. I share a villa with two colleagues, so having two electrical engineers on site certainly helps."

Chris bought the MGB Roadster in the UK in 2008 as a "fixer upper". The vehicle needed a lot of work before its new owner could take his seat behind the steering wheel, and this was carried out by specialists in the UK. "A company in East Hull and Yorkshire rebuilt it to specifications that matched those of the UAE, namely the left hand drive. The major improvements I made from the original were quite considerable," he says. "The car was fitted with a new, fast five-speed gearbox and also a supercharger for better performance. The suspension and brakes were also upgraded for the extra power. The hardest part was fitting the gearbox in a left-hand drive car, and we ended up having to make a gearbox mount from scratch. But rebuilding it was the easy part; it was what happened after that was a bit of a problem."

He explains that, having waited three months for the work to be completed, he signed off the completed and revamped car and was eager to welcome his new toy to the UAE. Sadly, like many items going through Dubai customs, the car fell victim to thieves. "I was warned it might happen and, sadly, the radio and speakers were stolen from of the car." Although the stolen parts were mercifully inexpensive to replace, finding the right size was a little bit tricky.

Luckily, MGs have been in production for a long time, so getting parts for them wasn't too difficult. "There are several clubs and associations as well, so there's a strong network of owners and drivers who you can turn to for help if you need a part," he says. The MGB project was the biggest restoration he has undertaken so far, and he says he won't sell the car. "I've restored a Midget, in 1990, which I sold when I moved to Dubai as an engineer with Dubai Airwing. I'd actually done most of the work on that myself. That car had only had one owner and the guy's wife cried when he sold the car as they'd had it for such a long time. It was a 1970s brown colour, not the best-looking colour in the world, so I changed that to a genuine MG colour called Tartan Red. In the 1970s, the rust protection wasn't as good so they do rust quite badly, and I had to do a lot of work on the bottom of the car as it was very rusted."

Chris has also owned an MGB GT. "That was an easier project, because it didn't require much work, just a tidy up and some new halogen lights and new leather interiors. I sold that in 2008 before buying the Roadster." He says part of the appeal of older vehicles is that real motoring skill is required to drive them. "It's different when you're driving an old car because you have to really drive it rather than just steer it. It's a much more involving experience." Although his MGB is technically a "weekend car", Chris isn't precious about taking it on the road. "I was up in Khasab last weekend and have taken it on several road trips," he says. "I do enjoy the reactions of people, of course, especially when they smile and wave as I drive past. You do get some odd looks from people in four-wheel drives occasionally, but most people seem pleased to see it and you get waves and toots, which is all part of the fun."