Sandy Krug’s 1938 MG TA Tickford Drophead Coupe is as spotless as the day it rolled out the door for the first time. Maybe more so.

 Tickford is the name of the custom coachwork built by Salmon and Sons of Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, England. The company began building horse-drawn carriages but switched to building custom bodies for automobiles. Slightly more than 300 Tickfords were built, and Krug speculates that only 35 or so are in this country.

 After the MG TA chassis, firewall and fenders were completed at the factory in Abingdon, the car was driven down the road to Salmon and Sons, where craftsmen installed the custom Tickford body, interior and top. Tickford patented its three-position folding top, which the English call a drophead. The drophead could be closed, partially open or completely open. Along with the clever top, roll-up windows and a fixed windshield gave the Tickford the protection of a closed car and the freedom of an open one.

 The TA has a 1,292-cc, four-cylinder engine that produces about 50 horsepower. It sold for about 750 pounds when new, more than twice as much as a new Chevy.

 Krug’s fascination with MGs began in 1974 when he saw one near 74^th Street and State Line Ave. He stopped, bargained with the owner and bought it on the spot. Krug, of Prairie Village, drove it home.

 By 1984, he really had the bug. When his wife saw an ad for a TA for sale in California that year, Krug called and said, “Please don’t sell the car until I can get there this weekend.” He flew out on Friday night, bought the car on Saturday and flew home Sunday. It was an expensive weekend, he said with a chuckle.

 He began restoring it in 1995. Craig Vaughan of Foreign Car Enterprise of Kansas City did the mechanical and electrical work. Jeff  Deutch of JMD Restorations in Platte City did the body and Joe Poindexter of Ace Auto Fabric of Kansas City reupholstered the interior working from old photographs.

 Krug has shown his MG all over the country, and his family room is full of trophies. It has appeared at the prestigious Meadow Brook Concours d’Elegance in Detroit and the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in California.

 One of Krug’s favorite Tickford stories comes from Pebble Beach. A judge remarked that the engine’s chrome valve cover would be a demerit, but Krug had to inform him that the chrome valve cover was absolutely correct.

 That first TD in 1974 led Krug to becoming a collector. He also has an MG TC, an MG TF 1500 and an Austin Healey 3000. All are in show condition, and Krug said he enjoys nothing more than taking them for a spin when the weather is nice.

Sandy and Barbara Krug