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3000 Mk III in rough condition - value?

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Andy69

Freshman Member
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I've come across a 3000 Mk III (I don't know what year it is) in rough condition for $1500. I know virtually nothing about them. Any idea if this is a good price? Is it a good price is I want to sell the parts or possibly whole to help finance another project (i.e. make a little extra $$)? This isn't hte best picture but it's the only one I have at the moment. You can get a general idea of the condition (the grass in the engine compartment is indicative of the over all condition)

ah3000.jpg
 
From my vantage point, few people get into the restoration game (either supplying parts by cannibalizing a carcass or by actually performing a restoration) and make enough money to make a reasonable return on their time. Perhaps the best return on your capital and time would be to buy this for $1500 and find someone willing to restore it and pay you $4000 for it. If it has most or all the parts, I'd venture that someone somewhere would pay over $1500 for it.

I'll say it first: you will find few in this forum who would not argue that restoring this piece of history is much preferable to chopping it up. The economic side of this emotional argument can also be made: I'd pay (in fact I did) much more for restored rust free parts in workable whole than what you'd make disassembling and eBaying a hundred different flawed items.
 
At the present exchange rate that would equate to around ÂŁ750 over this side of the pond, I bought a similar wreck many years ago for ÂŁ1000 and then sold it on for ÂŁ2500 for quick money, but a BJ8 like that to the right guy could be worth ÂŁ4,500 + over here. Breaking it for spares you would sure get your money back and some, but if you can store it then source a buyer-----!

Go for it, I would.

Bob
 
Hi Guys

I bought it and dragged it home. Here are some pictures I took in my driveway. This thing is rough, but mostly complete. All the missing body parts are in my garage.

ah1.jpg


ah2.jpg


ah3.jpg


ah4.jpg


ah5.jpg


ah6.jpg
 
Looks like a phase I late 63 to early 64. Few made. I hope Santa will bring you good luck and lots of patients. Great car when finished. Well worth the effort when you get your first thumbs up.
 
I always hate hearing about guys like you finding dirt cheap cars. That car is a lot of work that is for sure but it is still a good deal. I lie in bed at night thinking about all of the cheap Healeys that I missed out on picking up over the years. I also daydream about that ultimate "barn find".
If I were you I would burn a rubber road with a truck and trailer down to the owners place and fork over the $1500. Do this before he asks around and one of his buddies tells him to list it on Ebay. Good luck!

Randy

healey-archaeologist
1963 BJ7 (almost ready for paint)
1966 427 Cobra replica
2006 Mini Cooper S
 
Well if it's any consolation I hate hearing the stories too, because up until the other day, I had never found one! I've already burned the rubber and the gas, and the car is sitting in my driveway right now.
 
Hi Harry, that car looks like it will need a lot of Kruipolie before it's over with-- /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/cheers.gif---Keoke-- /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/laugh.gif
 
Hi Keoke,

You are absolutely right lol.

Maybe it is better to concentrate first on the BN 7

by the way you were right about the carbs

Harry
 
Andy,
Good find! My buddy Karl started out with a much worse car and it is about 3/4 done. I've seen much worse Healeys. At lease it is not rusted in half. You can restore this one. I wouldn't part it out either. You should be able to find everything that you need right here on the list or on Ebay or other sources.

Randy
healey-archaeologist
63 BJ7
66 427 Cobra replica
06 Mini Cooper S
 
BJ7archaeologist said:
Andy,
Good find! My buddy Karl started out with a much worse car and it is about 3/4 done. I've seen much worse Healeys. At lease it is not rusted in half. You can restore this one. I wouldn't part it out either. You should be able to find everything that you need right here on the list or on Ebay or other sources.

Randy
healey-archaeologist
63 BJ7
66 427 Cobra replica
06 Mini Cooper S
Click to expand...

I have seen much worse off cars get put back on the road as well. It would be a challenging project for sure. I've never worked with aluminum before.

I took a look under the car last night. The frame rails look good from what I can see although I'd need to get it up in the air to be sure. The floors and trunk (boot?) have a striking resemblance to Swiss cheese, though.

I checked the VIN and it starts with "HBJ8L" and then the numbers which I assume is the production sequence number?

The body tag reads 3197BJ8 (1st line) and 74157 (2nd line). Any idea what that means?

Cheers,
Andy
 
The last 4 numbers on the vin are the sequence it was made. Yours was probably made between sept of 63 and april of 64 and is called a 64. What you have is know as a BJ8 3000 Mark III phase one. You can give the whole vin to Heratige and get a birth certificate.(at about 50 dollars) It should also be registered with the BJ8 registry as they are looking for all the BJ8s regardless of condition.
 
Yup

Par for the course I would say, from where I am sitting the flanges on the shrouds look to be still in one piece, that's good, and the shut lines do not look to bad, at least you should have straight lines to work from. My old one started to bend in the middle as they got it off the trailer back at the refurbishers, they made it into a full race car in the end, then it got re profiled a little on one of its first races.

Bob
 
My cars body tag number is 3181BJ8 and the second number is 71467. The vin number is HBJ8L26580 and with the data in the Origional Austin Healey book I figured that it was made around April 2 with production of Phase I cars ending sometime in April of 1964. Have a good day!

John
 
Something is worth financially what someone will pay for it. The car is worth $1500 since that is what you paid and no one would pay more. Another time, another place it may be worth more. You will end up spending more to get it to a certain condition than you would have had to spend to buy one in that condition. If you are an enthusiast and not an investor none of this matters. If you restore it, it is worth a lifetime of satisfaction from job well done and giggles from the pleasure of driving your creation. Screw the economics, that aint what it is about.
 
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