Midas Cars Forum - www.midascarsforum.com

Can anyone tell me about the modified front ends that I see on some Mk 2's? Mine has a split-bumper arrangement but I have seen some front ends that appear to be much sleeker/smoother with recesses for auxilliary lamps. Aslo, is it possible to modify the front end in order to run round headlamps instead of rectangular? Any pointers will be gratefully received.

Hi,

The wrap around front bumper was added as the mk2 was facelifted with the wider wheel arches. You can fit the bumpers to a narrow arch mk2 but you'll need to extend it further back as the standard ones will be an inch or two short. A few years ago Charlie (ad in the Midas Owners Club mag) paid a fortune to have some moulds made to remake them in a pre-extended form so you could trim them for a wide arch car (i had the first set on my Mk2) very nice as the company who made the mould and laid them up make the noses for Eurostars and a few other notable things. He may have a set in his loft or the moulds still although he effectively is cleaning out his garage due to age and poor health. Alistair at the current factory may also be able to reproduce them as he's quite adept at regenerating missing items.

Cheers,

Mike

Mike. Many thanks for the information. I will chase it up. As an alternative I may make a mould and create something myself. Will keep the forum informed.

The modified front end was designed by Steve Pearce. He won a Bronze kit as a prize in a competition run by Kitcars and Specials magazine. Not happy with the look of the front end he made a bumper replacement. I believe that Harold was so impressed he put it into production, along with a modified rear bumper. Steve later styled the Gold convertible (I rather tongue in cheek described him taking a chainsaw to the Gold, it was actually a jigsaw, although the club website still uses my description)

Steve's car also had a small rear spoiler, not for any aerodynamic function, purely to visually widen the back.