Now SOLD to Tom in California! Bugeye #381 will be headed west!
This week, we made this great Bugeye a whole lot better. We have removed the blistering in the “A” pillars and welded-in new sheet metal, and repainted the repaired area. The car is now ready for the next 65 years! We’ll shoot some more new photos soon, but the car is now looking better than ever!
By the way, the atomic energy sticker on the “A” pillar is no longer there after the repairs!
This is “Soleil,” (AN5L 44441), a 1960 Bugeye that we sold two years ago and were delighted to purchase again for a new owner. We have gotten to know this car well; over the past two years, we upgraded the car for the prior owner, and it is a great driving car with lots of nice upgrades. If you want a car that has already benefitted time in our building, give this one a serious look! The prior owner spent generously to make this car a wonderful driver and the new owner will enjoy the benefits of all the labor and expense that got this car to its current level.
It’s a 948-powered car with a solid smooth-case transmission and front drum brakes. The car has new minilite wheels, new tires, new aluminum radiator and a new valve job with hardened valve seats. We’ve also just installed a new gas tank and fuel sender and rear axle pinion seal. 85,949 is the current indicated mileage, and while we can never trust these old odometers, it might be the original reading.
In June of 2021, we replaced the front brake drums, front shocks, and slave cylinder, and in July of 2020, at 83736 miles (about 2000 miles ago), we replaced the clutch and installed a rear main seal upgrade kit. The car is lowered nicely and looks great, but you may want us to raise it just a bit so it won’t bottom out… as with all our cars, we will partner with the new owner to get the car set up perfectly just for their specific needs!
The second owner of the car bought the car in California from the original owner about 20 years ago, when he brought the car to the midwest. This is a nice car, if you like a little bit of exterior weathering. This paint still shines nicely, but it’s an older paint job. The interior is great, and the whole car is just right, if you are the kind of person who prefers a car that is cosmetically not too perfect, but mechanically very well sorted-out!
Spin-on oil filter, recent master cylinder, recent heater valve, tri bar headlights, new coil and distributor with electronic ignition, new bikini top, great tonneau and side curtains… there are tons of improvements we have made on Soleil, and we’ve got receipts for thousands of dollars of work done by prior owners in our shop. (Send an email if you would like to see them!)
We also recently fit a new Brooklands windscreen, so you can remove the complete windshield frame (four screws) and enjoy screen-less summer fun with the little screen. You can always leave the larger windscreen on in cooler weather. You will notice the brooklands mounts on the dashboard next to the defrost vents on the driver side. This little glass screen is currently removed and wrapped in the boot, and it is easy to install, as shown in picture #50 in the gallery.
Available for $23,995, Soleil is a great car at a great price! Give us a call to make it your own!
