Check out our review of a recent online purchase that came to us for inspection and sorting. In the video below, I review the issues that were not apparent in the auction but still need addressing nonetheless.
It’s so easy to fall in love with an auction car online… but sometimes crowd sourced information in auctions can be misleading. Check out the video to learn more!
Don’t do this to your Bugeye Sprite!
Through the years, we have seen some really messed-up steering columns and threads. People seem to have trouble with the steering wheel nuts and the threads on the shaft. In the photo below, you can see the ultimate expression of resignation… just throw a few hose clamps at it!
This week, we are proud to introduce the correct die so you can chase or rethread your column to save it, since columns are not available new. This die is a handy thing to have in your tool box. Click on the photo below to order one!
And below are some other common needs for many Spridgets that cross our garage threshold. The felt bushings will help keep the column secure. The horn brush is often missing or too long to keep your horn push in place. Horn bezels are often missing or cracked.
Let us help you get it right! Click here for our complete parts catalog!
Well…
Don’t do this to your Bugeye Sprite.
In the “I’ve never seen this before” category, here’s a Bugeye rear deck that’s been damaged by someone who didn’t realize that the fuel neck to their tank could be modified to fit the body rather than making the body fit the tank. We’ve run into this before-old body damage to the back of a Bugeye and resultant body repair can make for a slightly fatter boot section at the filler neck. Because the filler neck is a fixed length on original and some replacement fuel tanks, it can be difficult or impossible to get the fuel cap onto the neck if your body is slightly taller at the location of the filler neck. This restorer chose to beat up the body rather than modify the filler neck and damaged the back deck of the car for no reason.
The correct solution for a slightly pregnant rear deck is to cut the fuel filler neck and put in a rubber hose with clamps to extend the neck above your existing body and thereby make your filler neck adjustable in height.
We sell a fuel tank kit with a removable neck and you can set the height of the neck to your specifications regardless of any body damage that may have been built into your car before you bought it. You should never have to damage the body of your Sprite to get something to fit… call us if you have a problem that makes it looks like that might be needed —we’ll help you find a workaround.
Another important issue here is that sometimes the fuel cap is way too tight against the body rubber gasket, which blocks the vent in the cap, creating a fuel delivery issue. So make sure you have at least an eighth of an inch gap between your cap and the rubber grommet that goes in the back deck, so that your fuel tank can vent properly, otherwise your engine can die if the tank doesn’t breathe. If your cap is too close to the grommet, you may need to cut your filler neck, just like the above restorer should have. We have all of the parts and tools needed for this job in our parts catalog! Click the photos below to learn more or click here for our full catalog!
Axle ouchie
The unassuming pile of random metal chunks shown above may look pretty innocent to most, but they are the remnants of a crippling failure that will ground any Bugeye in an instant.
The pictures shown here are just a few examples we have encountered over the years involving axle shaft failures on Bugeye Sprites. This is a failure that is not uncommon in Spridget circles; often (but not always), overly aggressive acceleration, deceleration, clutch dumping, burnout attempts, or other automotive hijinks are the culprit.
But many of our more recent examples have come under completely normal driving conditions. For example, the axle bits in the top picture were removed from Jose’s Bugeye over the holidays in our shop after he heard a pop and lost all forward motion while driving in New York City. He originally thought he had a clutch issue, but once we learned more, it became apparent a broken axle shaft was to blame.
We offer in our catalog both new and used axle shaft options, should you encounter a broken one in your Bugeye. Click the links below for more information, or click here for our complete catalog!
Thrown out and thrown up
We are quite bullish on upgrading to a roller throwout bearing from the original-style carbon type. You likely don’t need any additional convincing since we’ve talked about this multiple times, but here’s a throwout bearing that has failed in a novel way to further help convince any remaining doubters.
This one seems to have fused to the pressure plate during hibernation, and then split when the driver tried to “break the clutch free.” At the time of breakage, the bushing popped out of the hosing, and the carbon bearing sheared, so now you have two half throwout bearings floating around on the shaft outside their holder, waiting to explode into a bunch of small pieces into the bottom of the bell housing.
The roller throughout upgrade will not do this, as instead of the fragile carbon mating surface, our roller throwout uses a metal one, with a roller bearing behind it. This allows your clutch to engage with much less friction, prolonging the life of both your throwout bearing, and your clutch!
Make sure you have one ready next time your engine comes out! Click the photo above to order today, or click here for our full catalog!
Spooky wiring
Lucas wiring gets a bad name. The stuff works when it isn’t butchered, but sadly, lots of the cars that come through here have been butchered.
The photo above shows one of the more nutty re-wire jobs, which features an alligator clip and plastic wire nut, both of which are not to code. The alligator clip is easy to knock off and short out everything. There’s lots of surface area that’s live. So we’ll remove all this and replace it with a new harness, and will work great for a long time once we are done.
And this is our recommendation… if your car has multiple repairs layered on an original harness, now is the time to gut it all and start over with a stock harness. That’s how we approach this sort of thing, and our cars have very few electrical issues going forward.
If your Bugeye’s wiring gives you a fright, give us a call to discuss bringing in your car to have your wiring transformed! Should you decide to tackle this problem yourself, we have a full line of electrical components available in our parts catalog. Click the photos below to learn more about some of our products, or click here for our full catalog!
