Super Sprite

Color sense

September 27, 2024 by bugeyeguy

How do you go off the map without breaking it? We love making art and we love original Bugeyes. We also love contemporary interpretations of everything… as long as they don’t go too far afield.

Meet Sage, a new Super Sprite we are building (will be done soon). With this car, we wanted to evoke tradition and innovate at the same time. So the spiffy Sage color is Leaf green derivative (one of the original Bugeye colors), yet totally current at the same time.

We faced multiple choices (re)designing the interior, and after much rumination, we settled on pebble grain leather for the seats and distressed leather for the dash and panels. This week, we chose to line the doors with wool carpet to match the floor pans. We might have used rubber per the stock configuration, but this created a bit of a dark cave (see photo below). Tan wool (above) gave us a lively and integrated door face and thus won our hearts.

The black inner door liners we normally install on all of our Bugeyes created a bit of a “black hole” vibe that we weren’t thrilled with, so we went with the same wool carpeting we used for the flooring.

Every choice matters, such that we integrate each texture into the special completed whole. Now, each driver can paw his way into the driver seat and savor the smell and feel of freshly tanned leather. A stunning wooden steering wheel is also to come.

*The sewn pieces on the floor are in-house color tests and mock ups*

Next up, new tonneau material… dark or light? Stay tuned! And if you want to buy this car, it will be complete shortly, and you can help us with the final color choices!

Check out the video below to see more of our thought process, as we move toward completion of another ultimate Bugeye!

Bugeye Of The Week! 1380 CC, five-speed, “Cars & Coffee-killing” Bugeye Sprite for sale! Videos!

March 3, 2023 by bugeyeguy

NOW SOLD to Cliff from New York! Congratulations on taking home Bugeye #383!

This week we have added custom black & red retractable three point seat belts as well as a hand made black tonneau with matching red stitching! Nothing but the best for our latest “Super Sprite!”

We have added a freshly-striped license plate plinthe to the rear of Gray, as well as a blacked-out license plate light housing. Every inch of Gray has been obsessed over in an effort to build the ultimate Super Sprite; we hope you’ll agree! Check out the post below and give us a call if Gray is the car for you!

NEW plinthe with matching stripes installed this week! Read below for more details!

Check out the driving video (above) and walk-around tour (below) of this wonderful automobile and give us a call if you’re interested!

If you have been looking for a one of a kind hot-rodded Bugeye Sprite, this stunner is worth a serious look! “Gray” is a Bugeye modified with many of the upgrades we have proven on my own personal modded Bugeye, “Gumby.” This is a special vehicle for anyone looking for the ultimate super Sprite. We’ve now built close to 500 Sprites, and this one has the benefit of our experience with pushing the envelope far enough to make these cars spectacular, but not so far that we lose the DNA of the original machine. We have also adorned the car with numerous high-end custom cosmetic subtleties. The end result is a special and unique work of art.

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Liberty earns her stripes!

January 27, 2023 by bugeyeguy

It’s risky business to try and improve the style of our favorite time-honored classic. See if you agree that we have done just that in the project shown here.

Liberty has always been a sharp Bugeye, but it needed a little something extra to address some imperfections in the paint and also add a little pizazz.

Over the years, we’ve seen dozens of different ways people try to stripe their Sprite, but inevitably there are only so many options. The most popular is the twin stripes down the center of the car. occasionally will see an offset center stripe and often also see some enhancement around the grill, where the stripes will follow the contour and expand around the mouth of the grill, a bit like lipstick.

A conventional center-stripe pattern as shown on Gray.
(Click here to check this car out!)

Another popular choice, an offset stripe, as seen on Midnight. (Click here to check out Midnight for yourself!)

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Build your ultimate Bugeye

December 21, 2022 by bugeyeguy

This week, we take a deeper dive into our super Sprite “Gray,” and get closer to what makes this car so special and unique. Countless hours over the past several years have been spent to make this car particularly special, and here are a few videos to give you a taste of our latest creation.

There are so many mods on Gray, I thought you would enjoy a detailed tour. And you can also see a drive in the second video below. Keep in mind this is a brand new engine with very few miles, still breaking-in.

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Bugeye Sprite Driving Impressions From 61 Years Ago Still Ring True Today!

November 4, 2022 by bugeyeguy

With our recent focus on the first production Sprite and concours accuracy, I thought you might find the following article particularly interesting. The April 1961 issue of Car and Driver Magazine featured a road research report which is reprinted below. I found it very interesting to read Bugeye driving impressions from 61 years ago.

The article makes it abundantly clear that Bugeyes are a very malleable platform. In the report, you’ll see the stock Sprite reviewed, and a pile of parts offered to transform your Bugeye into a capable rally or race machine. The author made it quite clear that the car was designed to do many different things with simplicity and grace. (Check out the end of this post to see the article in its entirety.)

Credit: Car & Driver Magazine, April 1961

Since 2007, we’ve transformed hundreds of Bugeyes; just as the article predicted in 1961, some folks enjoy the stock version, and others prefer to customize their ride.

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Shelby Says Sayonara!

June 24, 2022 by bugeyeguy

Shelby is ready to depart!

It’s always particularly special when we get a car back in our shop that we previously prepared because the car inevitably leaves with new improvements each time through. In this case, Shelby has been here for two prior owners and now is ready for Vernon in Oklahoma, the third owner to push the car to new heights.

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