Bugeye maintenance

Don’t do this to your Bugeye Sprite…

December 6, 2019 by bugeyeguy

What’s wrong in this picture above? (hint, not the cracked shock bushings). Another clue is below, but see if you can find it before you scroll down…

DO THIS to your Bugeye Sprite! This is a completely unrelated (cool!) picture of the supercharged Sprite we are building this week for a customer in Arizona, meant to temporarily distract you from seeing the easy clue in the picture below… OK, and now back to our quiz… you can scroll down now…

This is a safety concern, and while we have never seen this before, it is worth taking a look at your Sprite to make sure you do not have the same issue. The brake hard line (to the passenger side front brake) was improperly bent or manipulated in such a way that it was contacting the shock arm. As the shock moved through its range, it was sawing into the hard line, which would eventually drain the brake hydraulics and result in a loss of brakes (you can see the silver abraded brake pipe in the picture above, which is where the line would ultimately fail)

This car was sold online by a dealer in California and came to us all the way from the West coast for sorting and repairs. Sending the car all this way has already paid off for the owner, as we just averted what could have been a disaster. We’ll make a new line and install it so it looks more like the picture below.

Above you can see a hard line we just installed on a different restored car we are building for a customer from Tennessee. Here you can see the (copper-colored) brake line bent in a radius that keeps it well clear of the soon to be moving shock arm. Make sure you have ample clearance on your car!

Sorting-out the last 20 or 30 percent-Video!

November 1, 2019 by bugeyeguy

Here’s our newest arrival. This car is not for sale, but instead here for sorting, after an online purchase by a customer from California.

As you are contemplating all the seductive cars you see on internet auction sites, make sure to plan on sorting the last 20 or 30 percent, because most classic cars are in need of sorting when they arrive, and this one is no exception. In the coming weeks, we will take this cool car and make it into something spectacular. Like most of the cars that arrive, this one will take a bunch of labor and parts to make it really special. Come for a drive below and see what I see when I first get acquainted with a new Bugeye!

The car was purchased in Texas by our customer. We retrieved it with an enclosed trailer and brought it here to CT where we will get everything squared away and then load it into another trailer for the trip to LA. Our national enclosed shipper network makes this possible. This little car will have traveled 5000 miles by truck before meeting its eventual owner. More and more we serve as a national service center for sorting old British cars, with current cars in our buildings from a half dozen states around the country.

The car has the feel of old autocrosser. It’s striped and basic, with a nice exhaust note. And in a month or so, it will be ready for its new home! (And if you want an already sorted Sprite, we have some nice ones for sale that are already prepped!)

Lifted Sprite (Part 2)

October 18, 2019 by bugeyeguy

A few of you asked last week where to jack the back of a Bugeye, so here are a few pix. It’s easy… the spring plate is a very strong part of the car. Above and below, you will see the lift arm under the plate on a surface rusted car (which also has floor rust in front of the spring plate in the photo above).

If you have a freshly painted underside, make sure to pad the lift arm or jack or you will chew up the paint.

You can put a floor jack under the center of the differential too, which is popular with all cars, but if you don’t get it centered, your car can fall off, so these spring plates are a safer bet.

Happy lifting!

Lifted Bugeye Sprite

October 11, 2019 by bugeyeguy

Right front lift arm positions on Bugeye Sprite

People often ask me how to best lift a Spridget. The picture above shows a few options.

The top circle to the upper right in the photo shows our favorite spot, because the front subframe rail is the strongest part of the front of the car. This is the structural member that runs forward to the bumper mount hanging on the front of the car.

The yellow lift pad in the photo above is located on another very strong portion of the front of the car, along the flange at the front of the footwell box (in this case on the passenger side of the car). If lifting here, you’ll want to be careful you are far enough forward so that you don’t dent the footwell gusset, marked by an “X.”

You can also lift at the outer corner marked by the left circle. If lifting here, make sure you don’t damage the outer flange under the rocker panel, because it will be visible for all to see for the life of the car.

Driver’s side (looking aft), outboard of exhaust pipe

Happy lifting!

Save your car (and maybe your butt)

October 4, 2019 by bugeyeguy

Checked your tie rod end nuts recently?

Vertically oriented nut holds the tie rod to the steering arm

A recent pre-departure inspection of one of our sold cars revealed loose tie rod end nuts. We noticed a tad of play in the steering, which we traced to loose nuts.

Please take a minute and check yours today, to avoid any issues down the road. It’s also smart to check the tightness of the front shocks while you are at it. Sometimes the three bolts holding the lever shock to the body of the car can also loosen-up.

The world’s most reliable (and fun) Bugeye Sprite

May 17, 2019 by bugeyeguy

Above is Jeff in his blue Bugeye “Peggy,”, a car we prepared with a supercharger, rebuilt 1275 engine and five-speed transmission. We also performed about 100 additional improvements, to make the car as reliable as possible.

This is Jeff’s car, before it departed our shop, with supercharger installed.

Much to our delight, Jeff took the Amtrak train to our shop, jumped into the fully serviced car and drove it three hours to Boston, then got up the next morning and drove 145 miles to Lime Rock Park where he ran about 20 hot laps on Saturday in a driver school, drove to the hotel (about 40 miles roundtrip), back to the racetrack for another 20 laps of racing, then another 145 miles home to Boston.

Do you think the average Bugeye sold online or on an auction site can survive this sort of intense mixed use driving?

I doubt it.

After 246 Bugeyes through our building, we know what to look for, and what to change proactively to keep your British sports car on the road. Thanks, Jeff, for demonstrating that our processes work. Thanks for the drivable (and racing) testimonial!

If you’d like a supercharged Bugeye of your own, we have “Carmine” available, a car that would be equally at home on the track or at the golf course. You can see Carmine by clicking here…

Photo: Richard Campbell

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