I need help: What are good Upgrades for my MKII BT7

[NJHealy3000]

I'm in the middle of a full body off, frame, rotisserie restoration. I am undecided if I will keep the car or sell it but either way I would like to keep it as original as possible and keep the value up, but i also know that some upgrades can add value and reliability. Can anyone offer some advice, here are a list of items i was contemplating:

1) rebuild the head to run unleaded pump gas

2) spin on oil filter

3) new springs or cut a coil out of the originals

4) electronic fuel pump

5) upgraded starter

6) run waterless coolant

7) leather interior

8) 72 spoke wheels

9) better exterior lights

10) poly bushings

11) stainless exhaust

12) rear seat belts

13) new calipers

If anyone can speak on to any of these upgrades or others they recommend that would not hurt the value if I decide to sell, please let me know. Also brands and advice would be much appreciated. Of course I will still keep the original parts for any i replace.

 

[Bob_Spidell]

First, decide if you're going to sell the car or keep it. If you're going to sell, and presuming you want to get the best price, keep the car as original as possible. Original, or restored to original, cars generally sell for more to collectors and to buyers who prefer to do their own 'upgrades.' At the least, don't do anything that's not easily reversible (like cutting the springs). Otherwise, your list makes sense, though I don't think I'd bother with 'better exterior lights' (not sure what that means anyway). I don't think an upgraded starter is necessary, unless you really up the compression ratio. One thing I'd consider is the improved steering box offered by Denis Welch, there's usually at least an inch of play in the steering wheel even with a good box. Also consider adjustable shock plates so you can tweak camber, again only if you're going to keep the car. If you're going to do a lot of long distance cruising consider a 3.54 rearend--a popular mod. If you're going to run big, sticky tires consider the Torrington bearings for the king pins. Invest in spare fuel pumps, electronic or otherwise (stay with SU--the ticking is part of the character, and can give you some indication of the state of the fuel lines and carburettors). Consider a rear main seal (though they aren't perfect).

I've made changes to my BJ8 to make it more reliable, but without changing the essential character. Japanese gearboxes, American shocks, high-torque starters, etc. are fine, but at some point you lose the essence of the car. Austin-Healeys are crude, rough-riding, tricky-shifting, slow-cranking, noisy, smelly, shaky monstrosities with beautiful skin--my kind of car.

 

[Rob Glasgow]

Bob, Do you have personal experience with the Torrington bearings on the king pins? Are they noticeably easier to turn with standard size tires (165X80) than the original metal washers?

 

[Bob_Spidell]

I put them on my BJ8 with 72-spoke 6-in rims and 185/70 tires. It's totally subjective, and there may be some confirmation bias in effect, but I thought the steering effort was reduced (though not dramatically). I expect you'd get some reduction in effort on standard tires and wheels, whether it's worth it or not I wouldn't know, but if you feel the steering effort is high they couldn't hurt. Not a terribly difficult job--I adjusted them using the same shims used to set wheel bearing preload (on David Nock's advice).

 

[bob hughes]

A spin on oil filter is an easy option, as you say you can keep the old one to sell on with the car if you go in that direction.

Unleaded head - good also.

Stainless exhaust - ok - what you can see of it looks nice from the outside and could be a selling point.

I would not touch the springs, why cut them? use a lowering kit if you like your sump to be even nearer the ground than it is.

Chrome 72s are nice along with leather upholstery.

Quite a few people on this side of the pond go for the alternator conversion - you need to decide on this before buying an electronic fuel pump as they come in either positive earth or negative earth. Upgrading the lights could then be an option as the alternator will give you plenty of juice.

If you are going to keep it for a while, have you thought about tweaks to the engine - balancing , lightened flywheel, slightly warmer cam to say a BJ8 spec.?

IMO. rear seatbelts I would leave as you can not sensibly get any one bigger than chidren in there - unless you have them of course then again, if you are keeping it and plan to take the family out then go for it. Never seen them myself.



Bob

 

[NJHealy3000]

Thank you for the advice. Some of the upgrades like the head are some much easier to do since i'm restoring the entire car, i hate the thought of restoring the car and then taking it apart again to add these upgrades.

I am prob 65-35 leaning towards selling it. I know the bt7's are pretty common and less desirable, I have been advised to make it a bit more flashy to garner a higher sale price.

With that said what does everyone recommend I do?

 

[Keith_M]

Austin-Healeys are crude, rough-riding, tricky-shifting, slow-cranking, noisy, smelly, shaky monstrosities with beautiful skin--my kind of car.

Well said Bob! This quote belongs on the bottom of a picture of a Healey. It would make a great poster.

I would add one thing to this list - sound and heat proofing (or is that 2 things?). I coated pretty much the entire inside of my BT7 with Dynamat and I coated any parts that could transmit heat (firewall, floorboards) with heatproofing. This made a huge difference in how the car feels. Dynamat on the interior surface of the door skins is particularly effective, I think. Don't worry, the car will still be plenty noisy, but most of the noise will be engine noise, and that's a beautiful sound in a Healey.

Keith

 

[HealeyRick]

Sounds like your more in favor of selling. That being the case, here's my comments:


1) rebuild the head to run unleaded pump gas (I wouldn't bother unless the head already needs a rebuild, then I'd go for it)

2) spin on oil filter (an inexpensive mod, keep the original for the new owner in casee he likes the feel of hot oil dripping down his forearm)

3) new springs or cut a coil out of the originals (No, No, No. Cutting the springs is a bad idea. Why would you want to lower the front end, you rip the exhausts out on these things anyways)

4) electronic fuel pump (not too spendy, I'd go for it)

5) upgraded starter (waste of money if your present one is working. If it's not, just sendd it out to a rebuilder)

6) run waterless coolant (if it's got a cooling problem, fix the radiator. Waterless coolant won't fix it and it's very expensive.)

7) leather interior (go for it, vinyl really lets the car down)

8) 72 spoke wheels (not cheap, but they do attract buyers)

9) better exterior lights (probably not much of a selling point)

10) poly bushings (if you're replacing them anyway, sure)

11) stainless exhaust (you won't get your money back on resale, throw in a mild steel one)

12) rear seat belts (I wouldn't bother)

13) new calipers (just rebuild your present ones. stainless steel pistons are nice.)

 

[NJHealy3000]

Well said Bob! This quote belongs on the bottom of a picture of a Healey. It would make a great poster.

I would add one thing to this list - sound and heat proofing (or is that 2 things?). I coated pretty much the entire inside of my BT7 with Dynamat and I coated any parts that could transmit heat (firewall, floorboards) with heatproofing. This made a huge difference in how the car feels. Dynamat on the interior surface of the door skins is particularly effective, I think. Don't worry, the car will still be plenty noisy, but most of the noise will be engine noise, and that's a beautiful sound in a Healey.

Keith

For sure. Why heat coating do you like? I've used ceramic paints and exhaust wraps in the past. As far as the fiber board that is used on the firewall, heat shield and under the car, do you recommend getting the same pieces, using a different brand/type, or just using dynamat and a coating and not even needing the fiber board?

Did you put anything on the hood?

 

[NJHealy3000]

Thank you rick, very helpful. My head does need a rebuild (as it sat for over 30yrs) i have not tested my starter yet but is a rebuild more cost effective then a newer upgrade?

 

[Keith_M]

For sure. Why heat coating do you like? I've used ceramic paints and exhaust wraps in the past. As far as the fiber board that is used on the firewall, heat shield and under the car, do you recommend getting the same pieces, using a different brand/type, or just using dynamat and a coating and not even needing the fiber board?

Did you put anything on the hood?

I think I would leave the original fiber heat shields in place. I used dynamat and dynaliner as sound and heat shielding, respectively, and I used them exclusively on the interior surfaces of the cockpit. I think dynamat is one of the better products out there for sound reduction. I'm not so sure about the dynaliner for heat shielding; others in the forum may have some better suggestions.

I didn't put anything on the hood, but I've thought about it and still might try it depending on what others in the forum recommend.

 

[steveg]

Before rebuilding the head, you might want to consider a regimen of Marvel Mystery Oil - dousing the rockers and down the pushrod tubes and adding the balance to the oil. Let it sit overnight then fire it up.

There are quite a lot of success stories with old MGs and the buy/sell guys online where that's the first thing these guys do to an old car to find out the real status of the engine. These cars run fine without the "unleaded" head rebuild, which has turned out to be a non-issue -- except for the fact our engines run cleaner now and don't accumulate nearly as much carbon as they did back in the day.

 

[steveg]

My 2 cents: From the list: Leather seats, spin-on filter & electronic fuel pump. The rest of the stuff neither here nor there if the existing setup works.
PS - it's probably worth yanking the radiator and having a shop overhaul it.

These are the kind of things Edd & Mike on Wheeler Dealers would do to make a car more appealing for resale. You can hype them and they'll have value to the buyer.

 

[HealeyRick]

Thank you rick, very helpful. My head does need a rebuild (as it sat for over 30yrs) i have not tested my starter yet but is a rebuild more cost effective then a newer upgrade?

Rebuilding depends on whether you have someone locally that can do it. I'd probably just test your old one and if it works leave it alone. As far as the heat shielding goes, the stuff under the hood and under the car is asbestos and unobtainable. To replace it you can go to the local big box home improvement store and buy cement tile backer board. Looks identical and is inexpensive. Make sure you get the right cut off wheel to use in cutting it.