new member here, saw some threads on here about auto cross, 1/4 eliptic cars etc. well, my fun car is a 1961 austin healey sprite roadster, 1380c.c. 120 h.p. huffaker built motor, datsun 5-speed, front disk brakes with tube shocks, rear end is a stock housing for 1/4 eliptic springs, harden axles, 3.70 final drive [3500 rpm @ 70 mph], its as close to track "t" [bo jones] as i can get for now. R.D.
Cool little car! You do know that a Bugeye nose is a bolt-on and was an option when the car was new, don't you? Those little AH Sprites are lots of fun, even in stock form. I owned a ragged 62 in 67 and replaced it with a nice Bugeye in 68.
yes i have seen square body spridgets [sprite/midget]with a bugeye front, but have you seen a bugeye with a later front, i here it looks like a scaled down AC corbra. thanks for the feed back, R.D.
Don't be suprised if someone jumps you for being off topic. Having said that, I had a '59 Bugeye in '66 when I was in junior college. It was one of the most fun cars I ever owned! Left the steering nut loose on the steering wheel so my girlfriend (now my wife) and I would have more room to make out.
yes in know its off topic, but i figuared some people had one back then, it is a hot rod roadster, and i cut my teeth on model "a"s, "t"s '38 ford pickup, '40 GMC surburban, '56 chevy 210 [high school car for a $100 bucks "1975"] its just MY car now, thanks for looking, R.D.
I had a 59 Bugeye Sprite....always wanted to put a 215 aluminum Buick/4 speed in it....sold the car, still have the engine.....wish it were the other way around Yea, probably off topic, but got me to look!....and reminise. Skot
Back when I had mine we measured every which way for bigger muscle. Too bad some of the four bangers that are available now wern't around then.
i've seen any thing for chevy v-6, toyota 4age, 12B rotary, jag inline 6, lots of engine swap fun, but when you pop the hood and you see a cylinder head thats about 14" long everybody just grin and ask if its a 3-cyl or what. R.D.
I had a '67 Sprite years ago as a daily driver. Lots of fun but not recommended for Northern Ontario where I lived at the time, but when you're young who cares! There was a BMC dealer in a nearby town so parts were no problem and I still remember one fall trip driving with the top down and the tonneau cover in place, heater going full blast and the northern lights shining bright. Everyone I knew in the small town where I lived put the car down since foreign cars were rare then, but it actually was no less reliable than my Road Runner I had later - darn, I miss those cars.
Nice Sprite! Prolly OT Needs at least a SBC and a huffer to make it barely HAMB friendly (check my avatar). Rick
when i was about 13/14 yrs. old i saw this car in r&c mag., 4-banger, 3-speed , q/c rearend, wires, thats what started it for me. R.D.
I have a '59 Bugeye. Plan is to rebuild it from the ground up with a Buick 215 and T5. I am waiting for the outlaws to visit next weekend so I can get a parts car for the disc brake parts I need.
I also have a '59 MK1. Plans are to sell it and finish my roadster. Sprites are on my short list of favorites, but so are modified style Ts. My old '61 MK1 recieved a 12A Mazda with 5 speed.
Great little car. I like the moon disks. I had a Bugeye, and a TR3. Right now I have two Minis. Here's a picture of one.
R.D. That's a magnificent looking Sprite Mk2 !!! I think most people know these little Healey's have a great racing history in America ! Especially on the Sebring circuit. This one was raced in (I thought) 1962 by one Steve McQueen esq.
I had a friend that put an Alfa 1600CC 4 cyl in his Bugeye, in the mid 60's, it was awesome. Sounded like a Sprite to about 5000 Rpms and then blew by Corvettes on the street
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