These days, everything that came BEFORE the pandemic seems more romantic than ever. How can you not fall in love with nostalgia when the world has changed so dramatically (and so quickly)?

We are keeping our tiny little remembrance of a bygone era alive and well, with more parts orders shipped this week than during any other week in our company history. Thanks to all who ordered for the opportunity to be your Sprite parts supplier.

This week, we also sold two Bugeyes in a single day. Congratulations to John in Asheville, NC, for taking home our white project car, and to Bob and Carla in Bardstown, Kentucky who will taking “Eggplant” to Bourbon country. We are honored to bring so much joy into people’s lives during a challenging time.

I never dreamt that we would sell even 50 Bugeyes, and now, as we approach our 300th Sprite sold, I am completely moved by the great people out there who want a piece of this heavenly Bug and Frog-o-sphere. We have made this niche of car-world our home, and we thank you all for joining us here. We will do everything we can to keep this little (and safe) nostalgic universe intact, and we look forward to your virtual visits by phone and internet, each and every day.

Just remember to bring your gloves.

If you always wanted a Bugeye in your living room, this could be the next best thing! After all, who wouldn’t want to hang out in an lounge graced with a Spridget?

A commercial property developer in New Jersey is hoping that a classic British roadster in their building’s “speakeasy” will help make their building particularly attractive to new young apartment buyers looking for a home just across the river from NYC. We were lucky to get the contract to build this exciting and unconventional display!

While a later Spridget is shown in the computer rendering above, we are excited to announce that we are now constructing the world’s first Bugeye Sprite Instagram selfie station destined for permanent display in the lounge shown above. The Bugeye we are building will look and feel just like a fully restored Bugeye Sprite, but it will have the entire driveline removed and will be bolted to the floor!

When approached for this project, I will admit I was concerned about taking a Bugeye out of circulation and permanently parking it. Now that many former parts cars are being restored and brought back to the road, it would seem a shame to entomb any Bugeye in a condo.

But, on the other hand, if we could find a car that would not likely return to the highways and byways, and if such a car could help millennials fall in love with the cars that we hold so dear to our hearts, maybe, just maybe, this is exactly where one Bugeye Sprite should be forever parked. Our cars need marketing help with a new audience. Maybe the wrecked Bugeye shown above would willingly give up its life on the road to go to work as our evangelist, its task to convince millennials that old sports cars are fun, one selfie at a time.

In the coming weeks, we’ll show you how we dragged a long ago forgotten Sprite out of the weeds and leaves and turned it into perhaps one of the world’s most loved Frogeyes. This is a car that will be pawed and fondled by many a future collector. Sure, this car will help make the lounge in one particular apartment building the coolest lounge in town. But it is also secretly tasked with enlightening a whole new generation of collectors.

For this particular car, there is no more noble work.

We are open for business and have remedies for what ails you!

Everyone seems to be spending a disproportionate amount of time in the garage these days and we are well-stocked with good medicine…. PARTS! Most of the other parts suppliers are closed, but we are open, building cars and shipping parts daily. Click here to check out our parts store and use our search window to find what you need.

We can’t help with a vaccine but we certainly can help with Bugeye therapy! (PS, I am told the photo above is a photo of a drive-by Polio vaccination, circa 1960. Oral Polio vaccine was widely used starting in 1961. Shoulder belts and child car seats came later-1985 was the first year for child car seat laws!)

Paul Simon’s music sounded different this week. Crisp, clear and most of all, comforting. Same with Elton John, (who had his 73rd birthday this week). His music was equally grounding. Pink Floyd was also on the shop speakers a lot this week.

These are influential sounds from my past, from times in my life that made more sense to me, when the floor was the floor, and a pandemic was more science fiction than reality. I so appreciate my own personal nostalgic soundtrack these days, when it is hard to tell what will come next.

Locked in our steel Bugeye Hut this week, I couldn’t help but marvel at the nostalgia that surrounds us inside. Nearly everything with wheels in our building was built between 1958 and 1960. Our building itself was built in 1951. We have chosen to surround ourselves with these old things, they make us feel better. And now more than ever, the cars we love, our old cars, matter that much more.

Nostalgia is a powerful remedy in this day and age. It is helping me stay strong and well for now. But even if I should get sick, we will be back, stronger than ever, grounded in the past, and ready for the future.

Because the other important quality that those of us who love classic cars all have in common, is the desire to make things better. We are fixers, builders, producers, and we are unstoppable, united when we see a path to improving that which lies ahead (that’s why we love old British sportscars, they all need improvement!). We will restore and evolve in the post pandemic reality. This is our gift.

This week, I looked through pictures of our Quonset Hut in the summer of 2015. At that time, you would never have thought it was possible to take a totally trashed structure (that many would have demolished) and make it into what it is today. Not just a cool, restored building, but a world headquarters for restoration of other cool old things (with a new extension on the back, no less). We’re not curing cancer in our building, but I think about our journey, and the pure realization of a vision that was unlikely every step of the way, and now, five years later, here we are, thriving. This is an expression of what is possible, when people set their minds to a common goal, and this very energy, this human capability, is exactly what will get us through this pandemic.

It may seem a leap from Sprite restoration to people suffering in overcrowded hospitals, but the human desire to repair, to improve, to contribute, this is what will make us stronger. No virus can take that away.

We are grateful for being in the nostalgia business. And in a business that makes people smile. Our work gives the world something fun to pull out of the garage, and from which to go out and explore the neighborhood and see it with new eyes.

When people are ready to come out and play again, we are happy to report that we are well-stocked with cars, parts and talent to support this little piece of our collective journey.

Come play with us.

With play and humor and a desire to make everything a little bit better when we touch it, we will all get through.

Ever heard of an Alexander Sprite? This was one of many aftermarket tuners and modifiers who gave Bugeyes (and other sports cars) more juice. Their Frogeye kit included a sidedraft Weber and other performance modifications as well as a distinctive side racing stripe.

In the photo below, you can see their unique and sexy fastback hardtop. In the photo above, you can see their soft top option, guaranteed to dent your back deck (perhaps a long fastback top is the best way to cover the damage).

I always marvel at how nice these cars look in fastback mode. This one is unique since it includes a more sloped windscreen.