bugeyeguy.com – Page 2 – The largest restorer and reseller of Bugeye Sprites in the world

Jay Leno’s Bugeye Survivor!

June 10, 2022 by bugeyeguy

Exciting news!

Jay Leno has made a new video chronicling his 1959 Bugeye, which is linked below. Jay’s car has many similarities to “Muffin,” another white Bugeye survivor, just purchased this week by Bob in New Jersey (our 354th). Jay obtained his original survivor and has spent the past few months going through it and this is the first peek at how the project has moved forward. This video is one more mainstream endorsement of the car that we love so much, and you can see how giddy Jay is while he plays with it!

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The Quest For Gold!

June 10, 2022 by bugeyeguy

As I write this, AN5L 501 should be loaded on its second container ship and on its way from Cartagena, Columbia, to Edison, New Jersey, where we can retrieve it after the long voyage from Australia and begin our quest for concours gold! The gold medal we seek will (hopefully) come when we bring the car to the Austin-Healey Club Enclave in the Pocono Mountains this September, where the car is entered in the Concours judging competition. Our goal at this event is to attain “gold” certification which means that out of 1000 possible points, we are able to attain 950 or more, as determined by a team of four judges and a roughly two-hour stem-to-stern inspection.

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All about the “L”, Part 2

June 10, 2022 by bugeyeguy

You may not remember that I had a chance to buy AN5L 501 in about 2012. At that time, the car was a basket case. It was also located in California, so I was not able to physically inspect it, nor did I have an abundance of photographs. There was also an additional anomaly… the number plate. The vin plate pictured above read “AN5 501.” But left-hand drive cars for export were all supposed to include an “L”(for left-hand drive) after the AN5.

This car was stamped as if it was a right-hand drive car, yet it was configured as a left-hand drive car. All documentation stated that the first production Frogeye was built for the USA market, so there should’ve been an “L” stamped into the number plate. Everything else (that I could see) checked-out on the car, but this numbering issue was unsettling, especially once I factored in the magnitude of work that lay ahead and the (at the time) outrageous price that was being requested for such a rough car; so I passed. (See my prior post about the number plate by clicking here.)

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Proper ’59 Cherry Red Frogeye For Sale! NEW Driving Video!

June 9, 2022 by bugeyeguy

Now SOLD to Dan in Kansas! Bugeye #355 is heading to the Great Plains!

We finally had a minute for a new driving video this week! Ride along below as we take Wayne on our train station test loop!

We are pleased to introduce you to “Wayne”, a stunning 1959 Austin-Healey Sprite. AN5L 16729 was a multi-year restoration completed in about 2016. The car has mostly sat idle since then. We’ve just refreshed the interior, and now we have a very striking cherry red on red Sprite that looks very much like an original showroom example. BMC’s “cherry red” was a deep red just like what you see here, and as such, we have an excellent mostly stock example. Remember, you could have your new Bugeye in blue, green, yellow, beige, white or red. This car is the correct shade of red offered on new Bugeyes.

The carbs have been upgraded to HS2s (a smart move) and we have just added an electric fuel pump in back. A spin-on oil filter was also added during the restoration. Otherwise, this is a mostly stock drum brake 948-powered four speed car. The paint is excellent. The carpet is brand new.

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

June 8, 2022 by bugeyeguy

With a little love and attention, the chrome work on Cherry is brightening right up!

Not every one of our cars is perfect. In fact, every one of the cars we sell needs something. How many issues get addressed here depends on the needs and budget of each client. We can fix everything, or nothing… it depends on you, and your appetite for repairing issues on your own. These cars all have issues. If you like, we can address every punch list.

Check out the video below!

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Top Shelf 1960 Bugeye Sprite For Sale! Driving Videos!

June 8, 2022 by bugeyeguy

NOW SOLD to Eric in New York! Our 353rd Bugeye sold!

This is AN5L 33167, a 1960 Austin-Healey Sprite Mark I we call “Cinnamon.” Cinnamon is one of the nicest restored Bugeyes in the United States, and if you are looking for an upper-echelon Bugeye, give this one a serious look!

Part of what makes this car so special is that we have already been through it and upgraded it for a prior owner, so dozens of the usual punch list items have already been addressed. We started roughly two years ago with a fantastically restored car with excellent body and paint work, and sorted every last detail for its first owner after the restoration, who lives in Florida. He had us upgrade the car with an aluminum radiator, three point retractable seatbelts, a GPS speedometer, electric tach, and all the reliability improvements that are most common for cars prepared in our shop. That owner later added Ford five-speed conversion to upgrade the car even further!

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