It Gets Better

Further layers of bondo removed; new surprises revealed. There was obviously some splitting of metal when the Sprite was hit, as evidenced by the weld scar in the photos below.

Scar

Progress

At first I thought there might be holes in the metal as the bondo came off, but thankfully that wasn't the case. The wrinkled condition of the rear doesn't make repairing it any easier, but I could just re-bondo this area if necessary. 


Being the perfectionist I am, new panels may be the more likely scenario.

Wrinkled Ass

No, no...this is not a post endorsing some new space-age (aren't we already in that age, btw) anti wrinkle cream for butts. 


Hmm...now I am wondering if such a product exists. 


*Googling....*


Well, looky here, there is such a thing as cream for tightening your butt. 


Amazing.


Back on topic. I spent a short time stripping some bondo from the Bugeye's ass today. The rear of the car was it at some point it its life, and with every layer of bondo removed, I am finding out why it was used instead of pounding out the dent. See below for the gruesome truth being uncovered.

Damn!

There is a nice wrinkle that makes me wonder if replacing the entire middle, rear panel (where a trunk lid would be for normal cars) would be the easier repair.


Maybe some of that Brazilian butt cream would help?

Floored.

It has been a long while since I have done anything on the Bugeye; the Land Rover has been the main focus for the last 6 months or more. This weekend, I decided to break out the grinding and scraping tools and get to work on the interior. My goal was to cleanup the passenger floor in order to assess the rust damage.

I had my work cut out for me as there was a thick layer of adhesive mixed with a tar-like substance that might have been sprayed on at the factory to protect against rust. It didn't work!! I spent most of the time scraping that crap off to get down to the metal.

There was a little surprise, too! I found a small chunk of the factory-installed rubber flooring stuck in a corner. It was red, which confirms my suspicion that the car was originally white with a red interior.

Rubber flooring remnant. It is red, though it is difficult to tell by the photo.

Oh, and the really fun part of this job...In the middle of doing the work I took a break and performed my periodic check of the Rover for leaks and other mechanical issues. And what do ya know! I noticed a new coolant leak in the front timing cover. It was very small, so a little glob of Hylomar Blue should hold it temporarily. THAT will be an involved bit of work. I guess the Rover was jealous I was paying attention to another vehicle. Sigh...

Below are some photos of what I managed to complete. The arrows identify the worst rust spots, which includes most of the front floor (surface rust bad enough to consider replacing it), the side floor (nearest the door) and the middle section where the seat mounts. Most of the middle section is in great shape up to the structural support, but there are a couple of holes where it meets the support. I'll probably need to replace it all anyway, and the side floor is definitely toast, along with the rocker panel (inner and outer).

Upper left hole at the bulkhead is bad but obscured by shadows here.

Front floor is pretty solid, but tons of surface rust has produced pock marks. Probably needs replacement.

In this photo, notice the smal holes in the structural support. :(
Yep; that will need to be replaced as well.

Big holes in the floor indentation; small holes in the structural member very bad, very, very bad.

Transformation Inspiration

Though it has taken a back seat to the Rover over the last year, the frog is still a priority for me. I still have big plans to transform this little bugger into a proper English roadster, but I just need a little inspiration to get me back in the mood to shift gears from pampering the Landy to giving the frog a bit more of my time and attention; and who better way to spark that flame than the fine folks over at one of my favorite auto programs, Wheeler Dealers!

The following series of clips are a great view into what my little froggy CAN be. And if you simply like cars, you should consult your cable TV listings for current episodes of this show. These guys make fixing up autos fun!

Part 1/4

Part 2/4

Part 3/4

Part 4/4

1960 Austin Healey Bugeye Sprite- gift for your girlfriend

I am drooling over this car. And--since I have not gotten much accomplished on the bugeye this summer--it isn't too late to consider this color scheme!

In other news, my Land Rover has been greedily hoarding all my attention this summer, but I am getting close to finishing some major maintenance items on her, so I will be focusing on the Sprite again soon.

First Pass At Exploratory Body Work

Got an itch today and decided to start the initial exploratory body work; locating more rust and filler. I ground down a few spots on the passenger side. There were some surprises and some confirmation of what I already knew needed major patch/weld work.

The most surprising was the lower forward fender arch; full of filler and little holes where a previous owner attempted a dent and rust repair. I made a pretty big mess in the garage, but it was educational, and I have a good idea of what is going to need repair on the exterior panels on that side of the car.

There is plenty of rust on the same side in the interior, but I'll deal with that later.

Below are the photos of the areas I examined today.

Gap, holes, wrinkles. Had about 1/8 inch of filler in this area. Needs patch panel

Holes, needs patch panel

Major rust on both outer and inner panels. Patch panels needed

Lots of filler. Wrinkles and some rust on lower apron. Will be a challenging area

Some Engine Compartment Bits Redone

I finished a few engine compartment items today, including the passenger pedal plate cover (painted and repainted twice), the washer bottle bracket, and some of the heater box pieces. Below are the before and after photos.

Pedal cover before

Pedal cover after

Washer bracket before

Washer bracket after

Heater box before

Heater box after

The heater box cover is one of the few parts of the assembly that is restorable, so after some careful thought, I am going to buy a new unit.