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I'm no A-H expert, but....
- Thread starter lawguy
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Sherlock
Yoda
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Jumping in again as a definite non-Austin-Healey expert, I know enough that anything can be saved and restored if it's a rare enough car. I've read stories about people restoring a car where there was less of it left than that car, but typically they'll only bother if there is either rarity factor, historical value or some significant monetary value at the end of restoration.
So... in your more expert opinions - is an early Healey 100/4 like this rare enough to be worth even attempting a restoration on this one?
So... in your more expert opinions - is an early Healey 100/4 like this rare enough to be worth even attempting a restoration on this one?
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You can find some pretty nice 100's for 20 to 30 grand. About half of what it would cost you to restore one.
D
D
Mark Beiser
Jedi Warrior
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The Sportscar Warehouse in Arlington, Texas has a 100-4 for sale for restoration. It is complete and rust free, but in rough shape. $17,000 is the asking price. Its currently painted a horrid orange color.
OP
lawguy
Jedi Knight
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<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by Dave Russell:
You can find some pretty nice 100's for 20 to 30 grand. About half of what it would cost you to restore one.
D<hr></blockquote>
I don't need a car, I need a hobby....I've always wanted to do a restoration, maybe not concours, but something nice.
However, right now, I've no space, and more money than time (for the first time in my life), so it will wait for now, but not forever.
You can find some pretty nice 100's for 20 to 30 grand. About half of what it would cost you to restore one.
D<hr></blockquote>
I don't need a car, I need a hobby....I've always wanted to do a restoration, maybe not concours, but something nice.
However, right now, I've no space, and more money than time (for the first time in my life), so it will wait for now, but not forever.
Sherlock
Yoda
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I'm also asking the rarity question, are there many 100/4's left out there?
I only ask this because if we junk too many cars you eventually reach a point where it may be difficult to even find an example of a particular make of car (for historical purposes), on the point of rarity is this car worth saving? From what I'm hearing so far perhaps the answer is no, that there are a reasonable amount of them around still... am I correct in saying this?
I only ask this because if we junk too many cars you eventually reach a point where it may be difficult to even find an example of a particular make of car (for historical purposes), on the point of rarity is this car worth saving? From what I'm hearing so far perhaps the answer is no, that there are a reasonable amount of them around still... am I correct in saying this?
stevebn2bj7
Jedi Warrior
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I may be the only one who thinks that this car is worth something. My 2 cents are that it is a salvageable car although not for the faint of heart. My current BJ7 project was about this bad off at the start. The rear shroud looks like it was ripped off by someone trying to pull it by the bottom of the shroud/trunk floorrather than the bumper. Shrouds are available from dismantlers. Otherwise the body looks workable. It does not appear that the chassis has sagged too much beyond normal and new sills/outriggers will fix that. Even if that is bad, at this price a Jule chassis is feasible. The hinge pillar front door fit looks good. The unkown is whether the main rails under the passenger compartment have any rust through. It does appear that it has some floor boards left though which is a good sign. Otherwise it seems to be a rather complete car. The other major drawback is that the bonnet and boot lids are destroyed and it would be hard to match the factory body number stamp on replacement pieces. The 100 is rather rare and I have not seen a good restoration candidate in quite a while. This car would interest me if I did not have my own 100 awaiting restoration. Somebody buy it and put it on the road.
Steve
63 BJ7
56 BN2
Steve
63 BJ7
56 BN2
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Sherlock,
The UK Austin-Healey Registry which includes a lot of US cars shows about 990 BN1's & 450 BN2's.
Original production was around 10,000 BN1's - 1953 to 1956 & 4,600 BN2's - 1956. This registry appears to contain about 10% of the total production. It's really hard to tell how many are left out there.
As you know, the Healeys had a real rust problem & the unibody construction makes them a major project to correctly repair since structural damage is major part of the rust problem. I suspect that a lot of them have gone to the crusher. As others have said, you need a lot of patience, time, & money to do it.
D
[ 01-29-2004: Message edited by: Dave Russell ]</p>
The UK Austin-Healey Registry which includes a lot of US cars shows about 990 BN1's & 450 BN2's.
Original production was around 10,000 BN1's - 1953 to 1956 & 4,600 BN2's - 1956. This registry appears to contain about 10% of the total production. It's really hard to tell how many are left out there.
As you know, the Healeys had a real rust problem & the unibody construction makes them a major project to correctly repair since structural damage is major part of the rust problem. I suspect that a lot of them have gone to the crusher. As others have said, you need a lot of patience, time, & money to do it.
D
[ 01-29-2004: Message edited by: Dave Russell ]</p>
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<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by Mark Beiser:
The Sportscar Warehouse in Arlington, Texas has a 100-4 for sale for restoration. It is complete and rust free, but in rough shape. $17,000 is the asking price. <hr></blockquote>
If it is truly rust free, & it takes an expert to tell, you are 1/2 of the way to having a great car.
D
The Sportscar Warehouse in Arlington, Texas has a 100-4 for sale for restoration. It is complete and rust free, but in rough shape. $17,000 is the asking price. <hr></blockquote>
If it is truly rust free, & it takes an expert to tell, you are 1/2 of the way to having a great car.
D
Lawguy
More money than time eh? Buy a nice Healey, enjoy it, drive it like a fiend, years from now, when you have more time, you'll have the perfect car to restore AND you'll know a good deal about the car, because you've owned and enjoyed it!
I see waaay more 6 cylinder Healeys than 4s here in South Florida. At the last show, there were 12 Big Healeys entered, all were 6s!
More money than time eh? Buy a nice Healey, enjoy it, drive it like a fiend, years from now, when you have more time, you'll have the perfect car to restore AND you'll know a good deal about the car, because you've owned and enjoyed it!
I see waaay more 6 cylinder Healeys than 4s here in South Florida. At the last show, there were 12 Big Healeys entered, all were 6s!