Around the shop

Big Healey Wheelie

March 14, 2025 by bugeyeguy

We’ve got three Austin Healey 3000s in our shop this week, all undergoing interesting and delightful restoration of finicky long-term annoyances. Thus, I was prompted to make a post that showcases this work because I know there are other big Healey owners out there looking for someone who can help them finally sort out challenges with their cars.

We’re here to help… we’d love for you to give us a call if you would like us to pick up your Austin Healey 3000 and bring it to our shop for restoration. We have openings in the coming months so call for an appointment. We are, with undying tenacity, ironing out niggling problems and making these cars as wonderful as the Bugeyes (and everything else) we have been building for years.

In the video above, you can see the new five speed Tremec kit we’re offering for big Healeys. We will be happy to install one of these in your car! If you’re done trying to get your stubborn overdrive to work consistently, this is a really smart upgrade, and we’ve just installed one in the BJ7 that you see in the photo below. That car was jumping out of third gear, so rather than rebuild the original gearbox, the client opted for go for a new Tremec five speed. We’d love to install this conversion for you!

This week we also installed a really cool Bluetooth stereo in a different big Healey… this one a BJ8. This stereo system is a wonderful innovation, because it’s hidden and requires no modifications that are in sight. Notice the modern head unit in the photo above… these never look right in cars of our vintage, so we much prefer the hidden bluetooth option you see in the car below.

You can mount the speakers and Bluetooth receiver on the bulkhead and operate the whole system from your phone. So, if you’d like to hear some music while you’re on your next long trip or ride to the beach, this is and non-invasive way to do so using your telephone and your playlist as your music library. It’s a delightful add-on for any classic car. This fits Bugeyes, big Healeys, and any other sports car. This unit can also handle additional rear speakers if you want to add them. In the case of the big Healey we show here, we’ve only used front speakers… check it out and get yours by clicking here!

We will be adding more big Healey parts to our catalog of offerings in the coming weeks! Call if you’d like your Healey (big or small) upgraded!

Unbearable

March 6, 2025 by bugeyeguy

Watch the video below to see a wheel that rolls but also wobbles in and out. Wheels should not do this. These wheel bearings are calling out for help!

We see a lot of this. And it needs to be made right, so the car tracks and drives precisely, without slop in the front end and vibration at speed. Tapered wheel bearings are your best bet for this repair. They are adjustable and durable. The original caged ball bearing design is nearly guaranteed to be worn after 65 plus years. Do yourself a favor and upgrade to tapered bearings. They’re safer, and will help you get the most from the nimble handling of your Sprite!

Our tapered wheel bearing set replaces your old, worn, inferior caged ball bearings in your front hubs with modern, more reliable tapered roller bearings. These are a must for any Bugeye or Spridget! Click the photo above to order a set today!

We sell those in our catalog, you can find them by clicking the photo above, or click here for our full parts catalog!

Smooth movers

February 28, 2025 by bugeyeguy

We’ve been hard at work building exceptional new electric vehicles. At the moment, we have a 1960 Bugeye and a 1974 Midget both undergoing conversion, and you can see a few progress photos here, as these cars come together.

This Bugeye is from Iowa, where owner Bruce rescued the car from the crusher. It was a heavily modified car that probably had a V-8 engine in it most recently, and was then abandoned. We completely restored the transmission tunnel and brought back all its original strength while fixing a multitude of other issues. Now, we have a wonderfully sound chassis that we’ve loaded up with electrical componentry and a new dashboard to give this car a new lease on life. Bruce will paint the car later in Iowa… our job is to make a great electric driver.

*We had to graft in an entire tunnel section in Bruce’s Bugeye floor, as it was completely missing. We also restored his dashboard to a more factory look.*

For all those who are opposed to EV conversions, please keep in mind that this Bugeye never would’ve come back from the dead if Bruce hadn’t rescued it for this purpose.

[Read more…]

Oily knee

February 28, 2025 by bugeyeguy

If you’ve been around British cars long enough, you’ve had oil leak leak on your right knee while you’re driving. A spotted right knee is a badge of honor.

*A leaky oil pressure gauge can ruin any pair of pants in a hurry.*

Our cars have mechanical oil pressure gauges, and that means that oil is pumped from the engine directly to your dashboard, and hence, this line is one possibility for pants leaks. Lots of the Sprites we see in our shop have plumbing issues with their oil pressure gauge lines. It all needs to be right or your engine can bleed out.

*This junction is crucial to a proper oil pressure reading, and to keeping your leg stain-free.*

Start with the proper fitting in the block. Then attach the correct right angle union to receive a rubber high pressure line. This rubber piece is vital so you have a shock absorber in the line. Then comes the correct copper line that goes to the gauge. Make sure to run the copper line through the correct hole in the firewall as shown. Best to have it in a rubber grommet so it can’t chafe on the metal firewall (they can chafe and leak here too!). The correct grommet places the line in a shared hole with the temperature probe tube.

*Both the oil pressure and water temperature lines are fed through this grommet (circled).*

*The location of the grommet in relation to the battery and other firewall appointments.*

That line connects to the oil pressure gauge, which brings us to the source of our leaks. That union has to be tight. A new line might look like it won’t go over the nipple on the back of the gauge but in reality you tighten the fitting nut to pull the two components together and they will seat perfectly (see video that shows the two parts after the nut has been tightened and then removed).

Get it right and your pants will thank you!

If you need any or all of the components mentioned in this post, click the photos below for more information, or click here for our full catalog!

*Oil pressure gauge union at engine block (copper washer included)*

*Oil pressure gauge line, block fitting to rubber line*

*Oil pressure gauge rubber line* *with clamps*

*Oil pressure gauge copper line, rubber union to gauge*

*Combination gauge firewall grommet, water temperature & oil pressure lines*

*Correct Bugeye/Mark II combination gauge with grommet*

*Later Sprite combination gauge, will work for Bugeyes*

Windshield woes

February 21, 2025 by bugeyeguy

If you haven’t put up your top recently, you may not have noticed if your windshield frame gap is right for the front top bar. You need a roughly 3/8 inch gap here so you can fit the front top bar in place.

We’ve restored tons of these… As the windshield glazing dries out, and with people grabbing the top of the windshield, it seems that the frame moves closer to the glass and closes the gap that would hold the front top bar into the windshield frame and stop it from ballooning as you motor down the highway. The solution is to remove the glass, replace the glazing rubber and properly contour the windshield frame, if necessary, which is exactly what we did here on the nice Black Bugeye in the video above.

Most of the Bugeye windshields out there are pretty scratched at this point and glazing rubber is often cracked and perished. If you’d like your windshield assembly restored, you can mail it to us and will take care of it for you. It’s not easy to get the new glass in, but we have it here and we do it all the time so sending us your entire frame for restoration is a great option while there’s still some winter left (and your car is spending more time in the garage).

*Click this photo for more information on our Bugeye Sprite Windshield Frame and Stanchion Restoration and Refinishing service or to purchase the service today!*

Feel free to contact us for the service (or click the photo above for more information) and in the meantime, if you don’t have the top bar for the front of your top, we sell them here as well as a whole line of spiffy tops and bikini tops for your Bugeye! By the way, if you’re getting a bikini top, you’ll need the top bar to function in the windshield as well. Click the photos below for some of our top offerings, or click here for our full catalog!

*Bugeye deluxe vinyl convertible tops (multiple colors available)*

*Flat top bar/bow set (Bugeye late 1958-1962)*

*Bugeye String Bikini top (multiple colors available)*

Protrusion Confusion

February 7, 2025 by bugeyeguy

This week we wanted to share a sampling of what we are finding and fixing in our shop.

First up is a radius arm bolt installed backwards. This bolt is used to connect the lower end of the radius arm box to the chassis, and if installed incorrectly can contact the rear wheel. You can see it was hitting the tire from the pile of rubber on the leaf spring.

Would you like grated cheese on that? The shiny tip of this otherwise corroded radius arm box fastening bolt and the big pile of shredded rubber underneath are an indication that something isn’t right here.

We turned the bolt around so that the thin bolt head is outboard and that fixes the problem… the tire had minimal damage where it was scrapping so we could reuse it. Make sure your bolts are right! Each week we find issues that others have missed… this has been wrong for a long time.

*The circled bolt is the part in question, flipped around so the protruding end of the bolt is facing inward, safely clear of any rotating rubber objects.*

We’ll be happy to pick up your car and fix any lingering problems… each week we sort out more classic English cars and send them off for new adventures! Call if you’re interested in making your car exceptional, reliable, drivable (upgraded) and sorted!

Click the photos below for some of the rear suspension components we offer, or click here for the full catalog!