Leno's Bugeye

[drooartz]

Fun little video on Jay Leno's Bugeye. Now I can say I have the same car as Leno!

 

[DrEntropy]

Great find! I noticed a concession to modernity in the added hood stay, but certainly no sin! That bonnet is HEAVY.

That there's an oil leak is kind of puzzling though. If they rebuilt the engine there's not much excuse for it IMHO.

 

[drooartz]

That hood stay is actually factory, there was an additional prop from the front so that you'd have a little more protection from being eaten by the bonnet.

I was puzzled by the oil leak as well, an A-series can be reasonably oil tight with just a few drips. I'd have expected better from his shop. The 1275 in my Morris only drips a bit, and that's from the slightly janky spin-on oil filter adaptor.

Really got me motivated to get working on my Bugeye (famous words from me)

 

[DrEntropy]

The prop is all I've ever seen in a MK1, never the slide & lock. Not until after 1967.

 

[Pat MM]

Three of us siblings have Bugeyes and the link has been passed along, thanks Drew! Good for Leno, finally.

My Bugeye only has the 2 side slide and lock pieces. They work great! (Unless you don’t get both sides up fully at the same time…) The extra prop seems like it would be in the way?
I know from experience that it’s better for me to keep the handle that unlocks the bonnet inside the passenger compartment until I need it. It just gets smacked hanging down, which doesn’t help the bonnet. (Same with the front bumper, but it hangs out in the garage)
Maybe that’s only an issue where the potholes are bigger than the car… like here in Sonoma County.

 

[drooartz]

The prop is all I've ever seen in a MK1, never the slide & lock. Not until after 1967.

All three are stock. One heavy bonnet!

I do appreciate that Leno has such broad taste. He really does seem to enjoy his little bugeye just as much as his super
cars or Duesenbergs. Or steam cars. I can respect that.

 

[SaxMan]

Leno also has a Midget, too, like a '71 or '72, IIRC. You catch a quick glimpse of it when he takes the Sprite out for a drive.

His descriptions of the car sound like just about anyone who owns one of these cars. Kind of neat to hear someone like Jay Leno talking the car the same way one of us would.

 

[JPSmit]

Leno also has a Midget, too, like a '71 or '72, IIRC

Leno has everything

 

[AngliaGT]

.....except a 105E Anglia.

 

[equiprx]

.....except a 105E Anglia.

Or any Ferrari's.

 

[JPSmit]

legalists......

 

[Pythias]

I was at the Healey Conclave in Snowmass in 1982. Donald Healey, when asked about how to make them stop leaking oil replied "When they stop leaking oil, it's time to to them up."

 

[DrEntropy]

Similar story answered with sarcasm involved Colin Chapman. At a racing event he was puzzling over a problem with one of his cars, frustrated and not wanting to be interrupted. A guy running an amateur class Elan approached him asking what fire extinguishing system he should be using in his car. Chapman, in no mood for it said: "You don't need an extinguisher. The fire will put itself out soon enough!"