BugEyeGuys – Page 56

Unchained

August 12, 2022 by bugeyeguy

This week we had a clattery 948 come to visit. It’s somewhat routine for 948s in particular to make a bunch of extra noises (particularly in comparison to 1275s) but this one in particular was a bit outside the norm… So we dug a little further. You can see the video below of the clatter that prompted us to investigate.

If you are new to these cars, valve train clatter is somewhat common. There is some ticking present in the video above, but see if you can hear the louder underlying clatter in the video. This is what prompted us to lift the engine and remove the front timing cover so we could dig deeper.

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Cherry, 1959 Bugeye driver, 1098-powered and front disk brake car for sale!

August 12, 2022 by bugeyeguy

The newly-updated engine bay with brand new air filters and our aluminum radiator!

Now SOLD to Peter in Massachusetts! Congrats on giving Cherry (our 359th Bugeye sold) a loving new home!

We have recently upgraded Cherry with a new aluminum radiator, and hoses, heater valve blanking plate, air filters, and more! If you’re interested in a strong driver Bugeye for the remainder of the driving season, give us a call!

Cherry is a strong driver with a few cosmetic imperfections. Check out the video below!

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Bugeye Second Honeymoon!

August 5, 2022 by bugeyeguy

Maximum originality and accuracy-501 today, as we complete preparation for concours judging now six weeks away

Our latest project started as a bit of a nightmare… Imagine waiting seven months for your number one Frogeye to arrive and then completely filleting it on the floor of your garage. With just eight weeks to rebuild the car completely to concours specs, the voice in my head kept saying “what on earth are you thinking?” 501 showed up nicely restored but with disk brakes, HS2 (later) carbs, an electric fuel pump and lots and lots of incorrect hardware. It all had to go in our quest for concours gold.

Correct H1 carburetors, heat shield, linkage, cables, all in the correct colors!

August dawned this week with a lot of key concours point sucking issues behind us. We corrected foundation issues and started the rebuild and now this project has taken on an entirely new dimension.

It has become a lot of fun.

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Bugeye Numerology

August 5, 2022 by bugeyeguy

501 was always a left hand drive car meant for the American market. But the “L” was not stamped in the chassis number plate… so the first Bugeye was delivered to the USA with a typo!

Bugeye numbers are very confusing. Each Bugeye Sprite has five unique numbers stamped on the car. 501 is no exception.

The chassis or VIN number is located under the carburetors. AN5L 501 is missing the “L” on the chassis plate even though this car was a left hand drive car from day one. Our heritage certificate verifies that he “L” was omitted from the VIN plate due to human error on the production line.

This is 501’s stamping in the engine bay on the passenger side, where the wire harness passes through the firewall. The chap that did the stamping was still learning his trade when he punched car number one. The top line appears to be a mistake.

How could it be that VIN numbers and stampings wouldn’t be exact? Perhaps it was a simple mistake. Maybe the plate was made before the plans were solidified to make the first car LHD and USA-bound. Or maybe the man on stamping was a bit green.

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Two very early Bugeyes, two totally different outcomes!

July 29, 2022 by bugeyeguy

Drivability upgrades abound on AN5L 505, such as an aluminum radiator, electronic ignition and spin-on oil filter!

The excitement continues this week as we attempt to master all the minute details on 501 and prepare the car for the national concours with just six weeks to go! If you’re new to our story, we’re taking a perfectly beautiful restored number one Bugeye and turning it into a perfect re-creation of how the car looked the day she left the showroom floor. This is not an easy task because every nut, bolt and washer has to be exact, every color has to be correct and there are a few mysteries that even defy our advisory board of past concours judges. Fortunately for us, we’ve taken apart and seen so many cars that we have a pretty good idea of how these cars were built by the factory and we feel confident we’re re-building a car that would make Donald Healey proud.

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More early car subtleties

July 29, 2022 by bugeyeguy

AN5 501 engine bay prepped with hydraulic lines in place on the firewall – note the proper steel hydraulic lines to match the original.

Many of our videos call-out the unique features of early 1958 cars. The first 1000 or so cars had some unique bits that were reinforced and strengthened by the time car #1600 or so was built, but there are also some unique features of the very early cars that are not even all that well-documented. One of those features is the mounting of the brake and clutch lines across the firewall. In these photos you’ll see the two green cars 501 and 505 with small p- clips and the brake lines close together and up high on the firewall.

AN5L 505 hydraulic lines, still run in the proper location, but with the copper-nickel line, which is much easier to form and work with.

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