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i just got a set of MX-5 seats and center armrest....SUPER SWEEEEET!!!!!! should be able to heat the plastic around the shifter to fit properly "werase643ex" 14940... MORE
Hi All, Here's a case of dedication and good fortune! Friend of mine from Virginia located a Fully restored Bugeye, all original, complete with soft and hard top on either Craigslist or Traderonline. Was sent a bunch of photos, which he forwarded on to me. It looked too good to be true for 6K. It was located in Kennewick, WA. Was about a 10 year old restoration. Original owner passed away and a friend was selling it for his widow. He flew out with his wife, they loved it! Bought it. Drove it to friends place in Puyallup. Made... MORE
G'day all Why is it you Yanks have to have your own unique way of measuring stuff. Where did this idea of a "US gallon" come from anyway. I don't suppose you have a "US inch" or a "US second" do you? OK, I can understand the confusion, but this is a British car and has British components measured in British units. You should be aware that referring to components in other languages (and I do refer to American) or even daring to carry metric tools in the boot (no, not trunk) can cause your Bugeye to have a... MORE
Colin, We might be looking at different units of measurement here. The manual for my 62 Mk 2 Sprite list the tank as having a capacity of 6 gallons (7.2 U.S. gallons,27.3 litres). So it was 6 gallons on one side of the pond and 7.2 gallons on the other side while speaking of the same tank. Nelson "Nelson Wittstock" 14909... MORE
Does anyone have digital pics of the flooring that was stock on the Bugeye? I have an individual that makes latex masks for the movie industry that is willing to try to make an accurate mold of the flooring if I can provide him with some pics with some sort of measurement reference.I would love to make a run of flooring if possible.( a tape measure laying across it at different angles would be great) I would like clear pics of the "lift to fill" script,the ribbing over the hump, and the surround area for the shifter. "Nicolas Conklin"... MORE
Over here, Colin, we measure capacity in U.S. gallons of which the BE holds 7.2. The factory service book says it and I believe because in 1965 I ran out of gas in my BE and just happened to coast into a service station and stopped at the pump. It took precisely 7.2 U.S. gallons and cost $2.00 exactly. I can only find reference to the 12cj engine equipped cars being 6 gallons and the later RBM cars are still listed as 7.2 U.S. gallons. BC************* "British Classics" 14910... MORE
There's an odd noise I can't identify coming from the back of the bugeye when the car is moving. Almost sounds like a muffled bag of tools bouncing around. It doesn't sound exactly metallic, but if you were ruling out sounds, you'd be left thinking that metal is responsible for the sound. It's not a click, grind, whine, rattle. Maybe a bit clunk-ish with a blanket thrown over it. It's repetitive... maybe 1-2 per second. My instinct says driveshaft related. Maybe u-joint? Or some slop somewhere? On to the stupid question you've all been waiting for... I want to... MORE
But then for those 2 end screws, I found SS sheet metal screws that matched the SS domed machine screws that I used on the rest of the surround.... Bob, Troutdale, OR "Robert Webb" 14856... MORE
Pat- I sent this response out to another BE restorer last week on the same subject... "Kevin- =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 Pages 94-95 of Linsay Porter's "MG Midget and A-H Sprite Guide to Purchase and DIY Restoration" give a good step-by-step description to wing bead renewal. If you don't have the reference book I can copy and fax you the pa ges if that would help....if so, contact me offline at dpecchenino@... ." Same offer applies... Doug in Santa Clara dpecchenino@... 14862... MORE
I just replaced my BE seats and foam kits from Victoria British. Blue on Blue Bugeye standard. Woops, just means last August. I don't know what their price is now!! The kit went on pretty well for an novice upholstery guy. the best way to get excellent gass millage is to lie about it!!!! Gas story - I drove from Corvallis, OR to LaGrande, OR a distance of 350 miles. Wanting adventure I stayed off the freeway I5/I84 and crossed the mountains over to Prineville. I filled up in Prinville and As I was leaving town I checked my... MORE
I still think 15 is way too little for the amount of work it is doing " at highway speed". I keep records of my vehicles MPGs and here are some other examples. Wifes 1275 Sprite 35 My RBB 32 with moderate Hwy driving in o/d. 1970 350 4 speed Chevelle 24.3 1988 5.0 Mustang GT 5 spd 28 1962 Pont. Bonn. 389 4 spd 18.4 1963 Pont GP 389 4 spd 18 1967 Chevelle SS396 4 spd 15 1974 Buick 455 18 1978 Transam 400 4 spd 17 8500 lb 4x4 dually 454 4.56 gears 11.4 1970 302... MORE
You really take tools, parts and towbar with your LBC when you travel? You don't get to work on my car.......... (HHH) 15 MPG is pretty bad, need a tune up? I have driven my BE from Vancouver, BC to Ensenada, BC ( Mexico ) , never took so much as a screwdriver and got 47 MPG. My Mother used to regularly get 54 in hers. BTW, your brake pipe is off and on my desk, I will get it posted soon. It is "as bent" originally and you get the OE " British Undercoating " too! BC******************** "British... MORE
Speaking of Portland does anyone, besides the ones who live nearby, plan on going to the ABFM in Portland (first weekend in September) this summer? We plan on driving the Bugeye again this year, assuming it is not broken by then :-) We usually take two days up and two days back with the stopovers being in far northern California. Anybody interested in a caravan let me know and maybe we can hookup. My buddy Warren will co-drive the Bugeye and Sandi & Kathy will drive the emergency vehicle with tools and other spare parts, including a Bugeye towbar.... MORE
Well... it's not a single cotton thread...it's three or four strands twisted around one another and soaked in copper coat (or similiar). This "amalgam" of soaked "fibers" were then placed on the gasket, normally between cylinders 2&3. The head was then installed and torqued in the normal way. The story goes that.....supposedly..... the block deck between cyls. 2&3 on factory fresh Series A motors was subject to "sinking" a bit until such time as the block was decked during subsequent overhaul, after which further "sinking" in this area did not occur. It was a long time ago that I... MORE
Kevin- Pages 94-95 of Linsay Porter's "MG Midget and A-H Sprite Guide to Purchase and DIY Restoration" give a good step-by-step description to wing bead renewal. If you don't have the reference book I can copy and fax you the pages if that would help....if so, contact me offline at dpecchenino@... . Doug in Santa Clara dpecchenino@... 14770... MORE
My head has .070 shaved off it. When I installed it, I painted the gasket with silver paint on both sides and placed a piece of copper wire , unraveled from a multi strand wire, between the cycl. It seems to have worked for 10 to 15 years without leaking. H Haynes "haynesh2000" 14725... MORE
BTDT... Oh, I agree, but my horn didn't and doesn't work without the little ground wire I ran from the steering rack to the radiator support bracket. It looks like the steering column is not grounded to the steering tube, and the little fitting the steering column attaches to, is surrounded with a plastic seal/bearing and with the oil/grease in the rack, somehow isn't grounded. Bob, Troutdale, OR "Robert Webb" 14721... MORE
List, I'm trying to lower my compression ratio enough to get it to hold a head gasket. Short of removing some material from the combustion chamber, I thought I might try using two head gaskets. Anyone had any success with this? I calculate that I'd still have nearly 12:1 compression ration with two gaskets, and I'm a bit leary of adding a another potential leak path and perhaps damaging the integrity of the gaskets. Just wondered if this has worked for anyone else. Thanks, Curt "cfisher1a" 14707... MORE
Why not just remove the damper cap above where the steering shaft enters the tube and pore the oil in? Biff Jones '59 Bugeye 'Kermit' '61 AH Sprite 'Ole Gray' in "The Healey Book" '71 Midget 'Freebie" http://sprites2.homestead.com/ "Biff" 14692... MORE
about to buy a new top but cant find one that comes with the metal bar front and back. Since I dont have a top I cant switch them out. Anybody know where to get the metal that hooks under the windshield and across the back? "Max Harrison" 14658... MORE
Hmmmm, didn't know the steering wheels could be restored. Please elaborate group. My "new" 59 BE that I just got has a steering wheel that is close to pristine and I've wondered how that can be. Not flawless, mind you, but it is so smooth and the depth of the gloss is noticeably good. Wondering if I could have my 58 BE steering wheel improved. Who would do it and what's the procedure? Is this something a paint shop would do? Secondly (now don't freak everybody), there's a picture in "Original Sprite & Midget" by Terry Horler on page... MORE
"On early crs with a steering rack grease nipple, inject SAE 90 hypoid gear oil with 10 strokes of a grease gun," "Clymer Sprite & MG Midger 1958-1979 Shop Manual,"page 17. And since ther rest of the car uses multipurpose grease, which is semi solid, I find the best way to keep the two seperate is to have seperate grease guns. The steering rack grease nipple is at the bottom of the car, with the nipple accesable only from the top which I find is not practial to just dump 90 weight in the general direction of the zert... MORE
How do you lube the steering on a 60 bugeye. There is a zirc fitting and the book says to use 140 weight gear oil. I went to the car parts store and couldn't find a tool to inject the oil into the fitting. Any ideas? Thanks Bob Irwin rlirwn@... 14631... MORE
Hi all - I recently found a after market hard top for '60...no swoopy, wrap around glass, but cool none-the less. Somewhat fin like in the back with flat plexi inset. The problem is it has no hardware at all. It has two holes, each about 3 inches back from the front, on the side, metal inset where the wind screens sit in. The other holes are on each side in the fiberglass on the back behind the wind screen insets. I've no idea who made it and have yet to see one similar...but haven't spent an enormous amount... MORE
In the Moss catalogue it says that 4 wood packing strips are required, but the Original Sprite Book says that only the drivers adjustable seat needs the wood packing strips. Passenger side installed without them, using bracket to secure. My question: Is Moss wrong again here, or are you supposed to use all four (double thickness) packing strips under the drivers seat upon installation? Michael Modesto, CA Furryoldgrover@... 14602... MORE
