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CanberraBJ8
Jedi Trainee
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So... I should have started doing this some time ago, as I went, so to speak. But I didn't think of it :rolleye:
I bought my BJ8 in 2007 from a guy who restored it as a retirement project. He had trained as a panel-beater when he was young, but had not had a career in the field. I think I know why... But that is a recent revelation!
I've wanted a Healey since I was in my teens - my uncles first car was a BN4 - a OEW over Black 100/6. For as long as I can remember that car has been up on blocks - he too it off the road when posted to the far north of South Australia as a school teacher graduate. The roads were not Healey friendly... Over the years its degraded further and further (what will happen to it is another story). But I remember being affected by its shape, style and smell - old (OLD) leather and that smell grease and oil etc get when they age - like in farm machinery sheds - I love it. Makes me think of my Grandfather and all things cool and mechanical
.
So my wife and I went to have a look at this car and as far as I could see (without pulling carpets and panels and stuff out of the car) it looked a pretty fair example of a recently restored BJ8. We weren't in the market for a top notch car, as I wanted to DRIVE it (a lot) and as we all know quality costs exponentially as you get better...
Perhaps I should have waited longer and driven more cars, but living in Canberra ACT it is not an easy thing to get to lots of cars. So for better or worse, we bought it. The price for a reasonable BJ8 was pretty low - $67K. The main Australian outlet for Healeys - Melbournes 'The Healey Factory' was generally charging around $85-$120k for this model at the time. Private sales seemed to be around the $75-$85k. So $67k looked pretty good. Certainly it was in good enough condition that everyone who saw it stated that it was a NICE car.
As I got to know it over the next few years the thing that really bugged me was that there was no attention to detail ie all different screws mixed together in something that should have a set, or screws missing, or missing their original holes etc etc... Lately the sign of very ordinary welding has distressed me, but thanks to an application of Dynamat sound deadener, I cant see it anymore
So to skim over what has happened to the car mechanically up until recently:
I noticed the car didn't sit level at the rear and ordered new springs from the Healey Factory. They said I wouldn't like the late model springs and said everyone went with earlier model (lower) springs. At the time I wanted the car to be just as original! So I persisted and received the taller BJ8 springs... That didn't last too long - they WERE ridiculously high and the car felt tippy and I had issues with the inner edges of the tires dragging against the inner body (right edge of the boot (trunk)) when cornering and also the tires occasionally touched the front bottom corner of the wheel arch. So much for my NICE paint... So I've fitted lower springs, and it looks good.
After finally meeting some local Healey guys (there are about 8-9 here) I became friendly with a guy how has a very fast Rally Replica BJ8 - coincidentally exactly 100 cars different in body numbers - one digit. Ok, not that much of a link... I think the difference in rapidity started to play on my mind... Also when I was in my early twenties I owned a '74 Triumph TR6. I remember that car having much better handling (but it had rack and pinion steering!) and importantly it was quicker with a smaller engine! So after a stint in a new job, I spent a chunk of money on having a local engine builder rebuild the Healey's heart to something a bit 'warmer' and most importantly, of healthy standard, with no lurking issues.
Its new specs are;
Further lightened flywheel (it had been lightened somewhat before)
New pistons slightly over sized
Balanced
Head port and polished (properly this time)
Different dampener/harmonic balanceer
DMD inlet manifold (using the original twin HD8s)
Extractors (ceramic coated).
Rebuilt HD8 carbies.
So not overboard, but it has go to match some of the sound... The picture above shows the car after this work, with the small muffler. It had a SS standard exhaust originally - it got knocked off going over a cattle grid...
There were of course little things that I played with over time.
Last year we signed up to a touring trip that follows Australia's most famous tarmac rally - the Targa Tasmania. Shannon's Insurance organises a tour that includes days following the rally - with access to catering and good viewing of the race, and nice drives to good restaurants and coffee etc. My friend with the Rally Rep BJ8 had gone and was going again with some of his mates (E-type, Xk150, 911 carrera). We headed off to travel from Canberra to Melbourne over two days, and then catch the ferry across to Tassie overnight. The first hour and a half went smoothly... then I started to smell wiffs of warm oil... I look hopefully at the E-type in from hoping to see tell-tail white smoke or something to suggest it wasn't me. At a comfort stop - Terry (the BJ8 RR) and I could wait till morning tea lol - i mentioned that I was smelling oil. So we had a look.
I had been experiencing a small amount of oil being 'breathed' out of the valve cover breather since the re-built. The guy was confident that it was just to do with the high revving it was now prone to get -all the thrashing about of the rockers etc... I had fitted a small catchment pot to collect this as its standard fitting to the rear carbie filter resulted in oil dripping down onto the extractors and a lot of smoke. 007 would have been proud of the smoke cloud. Well what we saw when we lifted the bonnet (hood for you Americans) was that the pot was now full and over flowing, which at freeway speeds was proceeding to 'rust proof' well, everything...
We persevered, trying a few things until we stopped for the first night at around 6:30. After a round-car meeting that to proceed on a two week tour with a car that was shedding oil at this rate was going to be not much fun. So as I have the fortune of another classic at home, turned around for the 5+ hour drive home, to swap the car and return early he next morning and catch the group before heading further south. An extra 10+ hours of solo driving. Fortunately the 356 performed very well - the little car that 'could'.
Here is a picture of my checking (topping up) the oil late at night around 1.5 hrs from home...
I bought my BJ8 in 2007 from a guy who restored it as a retirement project. He had trained as a panel-beater when he was young, but had not had a career in the field. I think I know why... But that is a recent revelation!
I've wanted a Healey since I was in my teens - my uncles first car was a BN4 - a OEW over Black 100/6. For as long as I can remember that car has been up on blocks - he too it off the road when posted to the far north of South Australia as a school teacher graduate. The roads were not Healey friendly... Over the years its degraded further and further (what will happen to it is another story). But I remember being affected by its shape, style and smell - old (OLD) leather and that smell grease and oil etc get when they age - like in farm machinery sheds - I love it. Makes me think of my Grandfather and all things cool and mechanical
.So my wife and I went to have a look at this car and as far as I could see (without pulling carpets and panels and stuff out of the car) it looked a pretty fair example of a recently restored BJ8. We weren't in the market for a top notch car, as I wanted to DRIVE it (a lot) and as we all know quality costs exponentially as you get better...
Perhaps I should have waited longer and driven more cars, but living in Canberra ACT it is not an easy thing to get to lots of cars. So for better or worse, we bought it. The price for a reasonable BJ8 was pretty low - $67K. The main Australian outlet for Healeys - Melbournes 'The Healey Factory' was generally charging around $85-$120k for this model at the time. Private sales seemed to be around the $75-$85k. So $67k looked pretty good. Certainly it was in good enough condition that everyone who saw it stated that it was a NICE car.
As I got to know it over the next few years the thing that really bugged me was that there was no attention to detail ie all different screws mixed together in something that should have a set, or screws missing, or missing their original holes etc etc... Lately the sign of very ordinary welding has distressed me, but thanks to an application of Dynamat sound deadener, I cant see it anymore
So to skim over what has happened to the car mechanically up until recently:
I noticed the car didn't sit level at the rear and ordered new springs from the Healey Factory. They said I wouldn't like the late model springs and said everyone went with earlier model (lower) springs. At the time I wanted the car to be just as original! So I persisted and received the taller BJ8 springs... That didn't last too long - they WERE ridiculously high and the car felt tippy and I had issues with the inner edges of the tires dragging against the inner body (right edge of the boot (trunk)) when cornering and also the tires occasionally touched the front bottom corner of the wheel arch. So much for my NICE paint... So I've fitted lower springs, and it looks good.
After finally meeting some local Healey guys (there are about 8-9 here) I became friendly with a guy how has a very fast Rally Replica BJ8 - coincidentally exactly 100 cars different in body numbers - one digit. Ok, not that much of a link... I think the difference in rapidity started to play on my mind... Also when I was in my early twenties I owned a '74 Triumph TR6. I remember that car having much better handling (but it had rack and pinion steering!) and importantly it was quicker with a smaller engine! So after a stint in a new job, I spent a chunk of money on having a local engine builder rebuild the Healey's heart to something a bit 'warmer' and most importantly, of healthy standard, with no lurking issues.
Its new specs are;
Further lightened flywheel (it had been lightened somewhat before)
New pistons slightly over sized
Balanced
Head port and polished (properly this time)
Different dampener/harmonic balanceer
DMD inlet manifold (using the original twin HD8s)
Extractors (ceramic coated).
Rebuilt HD8 carbies.
So not overboard, but it has go to match some of the sound... The picture above shows the car after this work, with the small muffler. It had a SS standard exhaust originally - it got knocked off going over a cattle grid...
There were of course little things that I played with over time.
Last year we signed up to a touring trip that follows Australia's most famous tarmac rally - the Targa Tasmania. Shannon's Insurance organises a tour that includes days following the rally - with access to catering and good viewing of the race, and nice drives to good restaurants and coffee etc. My friend with the Rally Rep BJ8 had gone and was going again with some of his mates (E-type, Xk150, 911 carrera). We headed off to travel from Canberra to Melbourne over two days, and then catch the ferry across to Tassie overnight. The first hour and a half went smoothly... then I started to smell wiffs of warm oil... I look hopefully at the E-type in from hoping to see tell-tail white smoke or something to suggest it wasn't me. At a comfort stop - Terry (the BJ8 RR) and I could wait till morning tea lol - i mentioned that I was smelling oil. So we had a look.
I had been experiencing a small amount of oil being 'breathed' out of the valve cover breather since the re-built. The guy was confident that it was just to do with the high revving it was now prone to get -all the thrashing about of the rockers etc... I had fitted a small catchment pot to collect this as its standard fitting to the rear carbie filter resulted in oil dripping down onto the extractors and a lot of smoke. 007 would have been proud of the smoke cloud. Well what we saw when we lifted the bonnet (hood for you Americans) was that the pot was now full and over flowing, which at freeway speeds was proceeding to 'rust proof' well, everything...
We persevered, trying a few things until we stopped for the first night at around 6:30. After a round-car meeting that to proceed on a two week tour with a car that was shedding oil at this rate was going to be not much fun. So as I have the fortune of another classic at home, turned around for the 5+ hour drive home, to swap the car and return early he next morning and catch the group before heading further south. An extra 10+ hours of solo driving. Fortunately the 356 performed very well - the little car that 'could'
. Here is a picture of my checking (topping up) the oil late at night around 1.5 hrs from home...