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Engine dress up - welcome to the dark side

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AUSMHLY said:
Curious, your offer to scroll to the bottom of this page....nothing follows.
Are my computer setting blocking this? Anyone else affected?
Roger
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Gaaawd Roger! :laugh: I was trying to keep it uncluttered. When you post a link, the second dialog box allows you to enter what you will see in the post as a link. I.E. "here" as opposed to "https://www.dunritetool.com/AH Products/DRT Site AH Products.htm"
 
I am going to be the dark side --- Why does the engine have to look pretty? 'As built' is as it should be. Clean,no oil dips secure gaskets is pretty to me. I must admit to being sadly shaken by an example I have seen:the mink upholstery and velvet dashboard being well beyond the limit we should be expected to endure. Please carful about the wish to pretty your baby up.
 
I feel as you do, John. One of the things that attracted me to the Healeys originally was the raw, simple look of power under the bonnet. You can look at the engine and imagine the power it exudes. The sounds also sing power. When they are gussied up they loose that masculine appearence. But that is why they make different flavors of ice cream. They have turned their cars into a thing of beauty. I love looking at Hot Rods at Hot August Nights in Reno each year but I'd never own one. (And they never return anywhere near the money the builder put in them. They do it for recognition and love of the hobby). I enjoy seeing Rogers car (I've had the pleasure of seeing it in person many times) and all the things he does to it. It is a beauty but I'd never do that to my car.
Is a Healey still a Healey if it is altered/improved? Where does it stop? There are many directions I have seen the Healey be taken. When I attended the conclave in San Diego this year almost all the Healeys were as original. It made me feel good that so many were true to the marque.
Many others may disagree. I have been collecting antique slot machines for over two decades and we have had the same dispute over originality. Its a debate you cannot win. You just have to love them all for what they are.
 
tahoe healey said:
When they are gussied up they loose that masculine appearence.

I enjoy seeing Rogers car (I've had the pleasure of seeing it in person many times) and all the things he does to it. It is a beauty but I'd never do that to my car.

Is a Healey still a Healey if it is altered/improved? Where does it stop?

When I attended the conclave in San Diego this year almost all the Healeys were as original. It made me feel good that so many were true to the marque.
Many others may disagree.
Its a debate you cannot win. You just have to love them all for what they are.
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Dude, ouch! Did you just say I have a feminine engine?

I'm surprise you feel so strongly about your perception of an engine loosing it's masculinity because it looks "gussied up". Hi, I'm the guy next to you in the ice cream line. I'll pass on the vanilla, I'd like the masculine chocolate with the manly walnuts and some testosterone favored jimmies. Hold the whip cream and cherry. Yeah and put it in a man sized paper, make that a metal cup and no spoon. I'll eat it with my fingers....gerrrrr!

Dude, your coloring outside the lines. It is a beauty (Roger's car) but I'd never do that to my car.

TH, didn't you modify/altered/improved your car to negative?
Rear reflectors to brake lights?
Using Redline vs. Healey recommended straight 30 weight?
Other modifications?

Is a Healey still a Healey if it is altered/improved? Where does it stop?

TH, is your car original, true to Marque? Do you feel as good about your car as the cars at the San Diego Conclave?

TH, in my opinion there are only two types of Healey's. Concours and modified. I love them both.

Cheers,
Roger
 
Roger,I didn't mean to offend. As I said, it's all taste. But there is some need to preserve some of these for the future as original. The mods I made are for safety. The PO changed it to neg ground over ten years ago. I have no need for it cause my radio (thanks Greg)switches from neg to pos. I've not changed anything for proformance or cosmetics. The stuff I've got on her is period. (Badge bar, stone guards, radio, Moto-lite steering wheel and wood gear shift knob).I like the car as is(could stand new paint). Your car is a real beauty and I'd love to have it. It is a show stopper. I am not saying you are wrong in in your changes. I enjoy your modifications cause they are fun and interesting. You are clever and a dreamer. I just happen to agree with John. They were things of beauty in the 50's and 60's and they stand the test of time as is.
Yes, I do feel good about my car as it showed in San Diego. They had a special area for modified "nasty boys" that was great. V8s and all kinds of stuff. Very cool. Still Healeys and still beautiful.
An MG friend of mine put it this way. "I like my girls in bikinis with out tatoos." Check out the MGBs if you want to see some modifications.
I know you professionally as a prefectionist and I would expect no less from your car. So, I'll buy you a Guennis next time I see you and we can laugh at out differences.
TH
 
Interesting conversation here. Of course this one has been going on for decades.

I guess I personally fall into "the dark side" corner of the debate as it was more important to me to rebuild my Healey as an expression of what I wanted in a classic Austin Healey. If I had wanted a true show car, or more specifically a Concours car, I would have strictly followed the Concours guidelines and not included 72 spoke chrome wheels, oversize high-performance tires, free-flow exhaust, negative ground, alternator, alloy valve cover, Moto-Lita wheel, Heritage leather trim, cloth top, etc.

To me the question is not if the mods are ok, but rather are they done in good taste and do they reflect well on the owner and the Mark. Knowing Roger's car quite well, I can say that everything he has done is 1. very well thought out, 2. tastefully executed, 3. carefully done to make it easily reversible for a future owner. I also know that Roger has a wall full of show trophies in the garage to attest to the fact that others agree with his decisions. I say we all live in a wonderful world of infinite choice. Viva la difference!

Happy New Year to all... Peace and Prosperity!

Randy '66 BJ8, '68 E-type OTS

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Randy, your BJ8 looks every bit as nice as Rogers form the pictures and you both should be proud of them. Nice XKE too. Must be hard to decide which to drive to a show.
 
Thanks TH for the nice comments. My car is a 5 footer, Roger's is a 5 incher! He's taken his car to another level, but hey,it's all good. The E-type is a hoot. Last year I converted the open headlights to Series 1 covered lights. Now she really is something. They both get road time but the Jag seems to get a bit more these days. Hope to see you at an upcoming car event.
Happy New Year

Randy
 
Randy Harris said:
I guess I personally fall into "the dark side" corner of the debate as it was more important to me to rebuild my Healey as an expression of what I wanted in a classic Austin Healey.

To me the question is not if the mods are ok, but rather are they done in good taste and do they reflect well on the owner and the Mark.
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:iagree:

My car was a derelict, so not much of a basis for a concours candidate. It'll go back together with modifications that no one but a Healey-phile could tell weren't original (alternator, valve cover, uprated suspension components, exhaust system, etc.) and could/would have been contemporary and near-contemporary performance enhancements.
 
tahoe healey said:
When I attended the conclave in San Diego this year almost all the Healeys were as original.
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My personal taste would be bored with that. If I came onto a field of 200 Healeys that were are restored to guidelines, (depending on the year the guidelines were issued) I'd look at maybe 6 and would be done. It is the clever way people solve problems that gets my interest up. I know I'd be crawling around Roger's car for a good while. Keoke's BJ8 was the same way. He cut up two turnbuckles to use as the base for his luggage rack. Installed a light in the engine compartment near the distributor. It's the one-off stuff that signals me "Here is a kindred spirit".
 
I think it is sharp and well done.

The only thing that doesn't work for me is the brass coil. It pulls attention away from the engine and "fights" with the name plate on the valve cover. Go back to chrome or painted.

Just my two cents.... :smile:
 
Silverghost said:
I think it is sharp and well done.

The only thing that doesn't work for me is the brass coil. It pulls attention away from the engine and "fights" with the name plate on the valve cover. Go back to chrome or painted.

Just my two cents.... :smile:
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Hi Peter,

I hear ya. Thanks for the two cents!

There were two items that were chrome and I decided to pull off. One was the thermostat housing and the other was the Pertronix chrome coil. I too thought the coil in chrome would look nice, but in my eyes, once on, it didn't work. Interesting how people view things. I think the gold coil ties in with the brass Austin Healey plate. Sort of balances things out, in my eyes. Brass parts on the left side of the car, the carbs, in the center with the valve cover and the right side, the coil.

Thank you for commenting. I do like to hear other's visions. And there are many times I say, I didn't think of that. That makes sense and I incorporate that idea in.

Cheers,
Roger
 
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