Back in 1958 I was the proud owner of an A35. One day
when calling at the local BMC garage I was shown the catalogue
for a new small sports car which was shortly to be announced.
This was my first sight of the Austin Healey Sprite.
I had thought of a Morgan 4/4 but the cost and the
fact that they still used the 1172cc side valve Ford engine with
3 speed box turned my attention to the new Austin Healey Sprite
with it's modern OHV 948cc engine.
By the end of 1959 I was in a position to buy a Sprite,
I had hoped to find one in BRG but of course by now this colour
had been discontinued in favour of Leaf Green.
5506AR was Cherry Red with red interior and black hood,
my car had a front bumper and overriders, rev counter, tonneau
and heater. As far as I can remember all these were "optional"
extras. This made the advertised price lower but I believe very
few, if any, cars were produced without the first two "extras".
Just out of the box
December 1959.
5506AR in the winter sunshine.
The car was used as daily transport to and from work,
I was lodging in the Kingston area of Surrey ( The home of Speedwell
conversions) and I worked in East Molesey. Occasional I did longer
work journeys incude several trips to London Docks, Liverpool,
Newcastle, and Sunderland. On these journeys I carried the tools
and materials I would required to complete small repairs to the
fibreglass ship's lifeboats boats that my employer's company produced.
In 1960 these journeys were a pleasure even the ones through London
to the docks.
In summer 1960 we took the Sprite on a tour of the
Highlands and West coast of Scotland, this proved something of
a non-event as there was so much sea mist we could scarely see
the road for several days and many miles. The spectacular views
of the West coast were not fully realised until nearly 10 years
later when we returned in a Wolseley 16/60 with caravan and three
children!
With the impending arrival of our family the Sprite
was traded for a Mini, but the short experience of ownership was
not forgotten. In 1969 I decided that the Wolseley was too large
to use as my every day transport so bought a 1959 Sprite in Leaf
Green for my journeys to work. PCL760 needed a little tidying
up and the gearbox jumped out second of gear. I fitted a new gearbox
and used the car happily, eventually deciding that the engine
too could do with attention. With a replacement units fitted I
had an excellent car.
Winter 1969
PCL 760
Fitted with hardtop.
Fibreglass hardtop was made by myself from a fibreglass
mould constructed in my garage. Several of these were cast from
this mould, they all featured a roll over front edge which lipped
into the windscreen top rail, this gave excellent weather protection
and minimal wind noise.
Returning home from work a few days later the car became
straddled on the snow on the driveway and had to be dug out in
the morning.
For the next three years PCL760 was my daily transport
and did several trips to Norfolk, took me camping in Wales and
towed a trailer locally to transport bulky items.
Blue Frogeye.
During my ownership of PCL760 I noticed a derelict
car in a local farmer's barn. I called one day and after some
conversation bought the Blue Frogeye as a project. It had been
severly damaged at the back but had an unfitted fibreglass rear
body section with it. The bonnet was very poor. PCL760 and trailer
went down to Wimbledon to collect a secondhand bonnet and also
a fuel tank. The Blue Sprite was made respectable, I dare not
say restored! Fitted with another engine at a cost of 30/- (£1.50)
it was used as a sprint car, never competitive but great fun.
Red Frogeye.
Then a friend of a friend sent a message to say that
he had abandoned his Sprite (it had demolished a brick privvy
one icy morning), he was moving away and the car was mine if I
collected it. I now had 3 Frogeye Sprites sitting in my driveway.
Soon common sense (?) prevailed and I sold all three, I had a
new project in mind and needed both cash and space.
Over a number of years I have built various kit cars
including a Magenta, Westfield SE, a Westfield Eleven and a Haldane
all of which were every day cars for commuting to work.
In 1996 an MGB took my fancy, After a fair amout of
searching I found a car quite close to home, I even knew a little
of its recent history having spoken to the person who had installed
the rebuilt engine the previous year. I bought FJD535D as a running
project and with the intention of rebuilding it into a Heritage
shell. I ran the car for a couple of weeks to see how the mechanicals
performed, then drove up to the MGBHive to order a new shell and
all the basic components like a new loom, fuel pipe and brake
pipes, the items it would be difficult to replace later. The shell
was delivered by the BHive fully painted and I was able to start
the rebuild. At the time I had a large workshop and was able to
have the cars side by side as I transferred all the components.
After many trips to get further parts the car was ready for the
road.
We moved to a house in Lincolnshire with a large double
garage and the MGB and my VW Passat. Jane commented that I was
becoming idle and needed a new project, she suggested building
another kit car but with all the red tape now involved I was not
keen. The idea of a Frogeye however did seem quite practical,
it would even be small enough to fit in the garage alongside the
VW abd B. after a lot of thought I decided that it would be wise
to find a car that needed some work but not a total rebuild as
space would be a problem for a major project.
Spring 2002
478LHA The new project.
First registered in November 1959.
Several panels replaced and resprayed by the previous
owner.
Replacement 948cc engine and smooth case gearbox.
Cosmetic work still needed.
Once home (deelivered on a transporter) close inspection
showed the car to need quite a lot of work to the front suspension
and steering, this done an MOT was booked and the car driven to
the test station. On test the brakes were not up to standard and
the car returned for further work. In the process of investigation
I found that the master cylinder had been incorrectly assembled,
the clutch and brake components put in the wrong bores.
All this on a car that had extensive and costly professional
work last year in preparation for it's MOT and done about 20 miles
since.
Dashboard retrimmed, still more interior work to do.
Now with insurance, tax and an MOT the car can be driven
and the bugs ironed out as they show up. So far this has ammounted
to small items easily corrected like the over reading tacho (oversize
pulley on the dynamo).
A move back south to our home village in 2005 meant
that space was going to be a problem, I sold both the MGB and
Frogeye.
Toys sold and really settled into retirement
2009/2010
Time for an update.
Then I spotted ad on ebay for my old MGB so it was
off to Lincoln to view "my car" and a deal was done
on the spot. The seller had bought the car for his 40th, and drove
it to Rome and back to over a long weekend complete his celebrations.
Not long after the move I lost Jane, my wife of 47
years.
With the passage of time and a bit of clear thinking,
I decided that I needed a Frogeye once again and that there was
room for it in the garage. I searched the small ads and the dealer's
web sites. Eventually I decided to blow the budget and buy a really
nice car with almost all the work done. Sadly I no longer relish
working on the floor under a car. I looked forward to enjoying
my new aquisition and possibly doing that trip to Scotland.
Well that was a mistake, the car proved to be less
than I had hoped and was returned to the dealer after 2 days of
ownership as in 25 miles it managed to loose all compression on
3and 4. Recovery truck to my home and then a charge for hire and
collection by the dealer!
With that space in my garage I started looking about
for a Frogeye.
I bought another Frogeye which on the face of it appeared
very solid, it was an excellent shell but I could not get the
engine to run to my satisfaction, traded for a Mini Cooper 1300
mpi, which really well but was SO uncomfortable. I had forgotten
how basic the suspension was on those cars.
Winter over and common sense has prevailed. I am was
back with an MGB Roadster, a 1969 car which though not pristine
did drive very well, no overdrive so possibly that will be an
upgrade for this winter.
This upgrade did not happen as after working out the
cost of fitting overdrive it was decided that it would be better
to find the right car with overdrive. As a result I purchased
a very nice car LFL410L.
Later I changed to a blue MGB V8Roadster, rebuilt on
a new Heritage shell it has proved to be a very nice car, An original
MGB V8GT kept the roadster company until at the end of last year
when I moved to a bungalow in town.
With just a large single garage means I need to be
realistic about my cars.
I don't use the Blue V8 Roadster very much but I thought
this one must be a keeper....
and then what did I see advertised,
1959 Frogeye
Recently rebuilt using a Wheeler and Davies shell with
original 948 engine and smooth case gearbox.
The car was in Chichester, my friend David drove me
down Sussex and acted as backup on the journey home.
I drove the car home a trip of about 120 miles via
the M25, an uneventful journey completed with just one stop for
petrol and a snack, not bad for a first outing!
Various cosmetic jobs have allready been done, the
first to fit front bumpers, fit the correct the rear bumperette
brackets and fit a tonneau cover.
The the dash had a non standard a clock and ammeter
these I have removed along with the surplus wiring.
There are other small jobs which will be undertaken
as the parts become available
The Blue V8 was garaged locally while I made up my
mind what to do, my own garage is large but to put both cars in
it would make work impossible.
The Blue MGB V8 now sold I am enjoying sorting out
the small jobs on the Frogeye and planning days out in the coming
months!
Oh dear I can get comfortable in the Frogeye, either
it has shrunk or I have put on weight, a lovely drive but it had
to go.
Late 2015.
Next was a tidy MGB, I knew I would be comfortable
in this one, good spec Heritage shell it has a 2 litre fast road
Ivor Searle engine, and few miles on the engine.
1971 MGB Roadster.
Watch this space to see how long I keep this one!!!
Already wondering about another original factory MGB
GT V8 such a practical and comfortable car, difficult to find
now so let me know if you have one to sell.
