Good body, excellent mechanical condition, includes inventory of spare parts

1968 Austin Healey Sprite Description

Please read the entire description before bidding or asking questions.

Additionally, please read my conditions at the bottom.

Up for auction is my coveted 1968 Austin Healey Sprite with silver exterior/black interior. It is complete with the very desirable 1275 cc engine. The previous owner of the car titled it in Massachusetts and then performed a partial restoration in 2000-2002. It was then stored from 2002 until 2016 in non-running condition. I have been working on it for the better part of a year and it is now in excellent driving condition. I have not registered the car, but have driven it locally in the rural area that I live in. It has been completely reliable; I just get in and drive with no headaches. There are a few cosmetics and misc. items remaining for a near-perfect car, but rather than do them myself, I prefer to pass the savings on to the next owner. I am freeing up space for another project, but am in no hurry to sell.

You will not likely find a better condition Sprite from this generation at a lower starting price.

Mechanical Condition:

As stated, the car underwent a partial restoration before my ownership. The previous owner stated that the engine had been rebuilt about 20k miles ago, but did not have any documentation. I have tested the engine compression at 165-170 psi for each cylinder and the valve clearances are all spot on, so I am confident that the engine is in very good condition. The chassis has 98,735 miles. I have rebuilt/tuned/synchronized the carburetors and replaced the jets. The car came with a Falcon stainless steel muffler/resonator. Running without the muffler and just the resonator produces a nice throaty sound without being too loud. There are videos on YouTube of people running this set up.

During or just prior to my ownership, the following was completed. All work that I performed is documented in the form of receipts and/or pictures.

- New battery and cables

- Carburetors rebuilt

- New water pump and thermostat

- New coolant hoses (car specific)

- New gas lines

- New fuel pump

- New fan belt

- Rebuilt front and rear brakes, new brake pad/shoes

- New master cylinder

- New generator - regulator/relay set to proper setting

- Starter replaced

- Clutch rebuilt and line replaced

- New clutch slave cylinder

- New starter solenoid

- New gas pedal, linkage and brake switch

- New choke cable

- New breaker points

- New air/oil filters

- The steering rack was disassembled, converted to grease, boots replaced and new tie rod ends installed.

The Michelin tires are the correct 145R13 size (difficult and expensive to find these days) and have 95% or more tread.

The fuel gauge just stopped working and is almost certainly the sender. This is common on these cars and the part is inexpensive. The cable for the temp gauge has snapped and will also need replacement.

Body:

The body was semi-restored before my ownership. Both front fenders were replaced, the rear quarter panels were patched and the trunk has evidence of being patched also. There is also some evidence of body filler in the wheel wells, but the entire car passes a magnet test. The floor pans are rust free and may have been replaced. The small square supports just forward of the rear wheels under the car still have some rust and there is a bit of rust hidden in the right rear wheel well. I can point it out when you inspect the car.

During my ownership, I replaced the battery tray/heater assembly as it was damaged due to battery acid.

There was some rust just ahead of the radiator, so I replaced the entire front nose piece with brand new upper and lower assemblies.

The paint is far from perfect. It was likely done by a non-professional and there are numerous touch ups where the paint was peeling. From ten feet away it looks great, but if the car does not sell, I will likely get it professionally painted. The color was originally pale yellow.

Up until now, I had the bumpers off the car, since I preferred the look, but just remounted them for the sale.

The convertible top is not in great shape and probably should be replaced at some point. I do not keep the car out in the elements and only drive with the top down, so up until now a new top was unnecessary. The right rear plastic window is cut, there are a few small tears and one of the buttons is damaged. These are all fixable (I am including a window that can be glued in and a number of buttons that can be sewn on), but a new top is relatively inexpensive. The hood release is through the fender, but a cable routed to the interior console is only about $12 should the next owner wish to upgrade.

There is a circular cut-out on top of the right fender for a mirror and I am including a brand new right-hand mirror. The hole is currently plugged with a rubber grommet.

Interior Condition:

The carpet is newer and in good condition. The small pieces on the rear wheel wells are missing and any generic automotive carpet will do. The seats backs are in great shape and the seat bottoms have a custom cover in place of the original vinyl, however the colors are an exact match. The seat frames are mounted directly to the floor and would need to unscrewed to be moved. I suggest installing a pair of universal seat sliders.

The original leather shift boot is in good condition and I am also including 3 additional boots. A stock rubber boot, a black full cut boot (covers the entire base) and a tan full cut boot (new)

The window seals need to be replaced and I am providing a brand new set.

The beautiful 13” mahogany steering wheel and machined hub are brand new and includes a wired AH horn button should the next owner wish to move the wires from the stalk to the steering wheel. The horn behind the grill is non-functional, but is inexpensive and easy to replace.

The dashboard is original and has a couple cracks in the vinyl. If I end up keeping the car I probably will replace it with a mahogany dash to match the steering wheel (easy to remove, only four bolts).

Parts Box:

This is not my first Sprite and I am including a box of accumulated parts at no extra charge. The parts include: a starter motor, a generator, a brand new mirror, the original steering wheel, convertible top pieces as mentioned above, a radio console with speaker, a glove box, a rubber door gasket, 3 different shift boots, new window seals, a left front shock, and many other smaller miscellaneous parts.

I also have some extra body parts available that are unnecessary for this car, but are valuable for future use or resale: two doors with complete glass and a trunk lid. I will also include these at no extra charge.

Overall:

At almost 50 years old, there are no too many of these cars left in good condition and the buyer will be getting the benefit of all of my hard work. I had originally planned to just drive it as is, but am moving on to other projects and freeing up the garage space. I am selling it with mixed feelings, not only because of the thousands of dollars that have been put into it, but because I love driving it. Someone will be getting a very nice Healey at the end of this auction!

Seller's Conditions:

-I do not wish to misrepresent this car, so if you have any specific questions after reading the description above, please contact me. Please do not send me an open ended message with simply “Tell me about your car”.

-If you would like to inspect this vehicle, the time to so is before bidding. I strongly encourage you to do so.

-Please do not contact me to ask that I end the auction early for a ridiculously low price.

-Scammers, phony bidders and other unscrupulous types will be dealt with harshly. I am prepared to take legal action against non-paying bidders.

-I will block anyone who does not respect the above conditions or contacts me with the intention of trying to circumvent the legitimate bidding process. Messages that come off as rude, disrespectful or entitled will go unanswered. I don’t mean to sound unfriendly, but over the years I have dealt with just about every kind of dishonest bidder that you can imagine.

-Payment: Winning bidder to send a $500 deposit within 2 days of auction close. Do not use PayPal. Any payment method other than cash will need to clear with my bank before possession is taken of vehicle and title. I have been trading on eBay since its inception… almost 19 years, check my feedback and bid with confidence.

-Shipping: Shipping, if necessary, is the sole responsibility of the buyer, though I will assist with logistics where I can.

On Aug-27-17 at 11:33:06 PDT, seller added the following information:

As part of the parts box that I am including at no charge, I am including upholstery for a tan interior minus the door panels.

On Aug-28-17 at 06:16:14 PDT, seller added the following information:

The convertible top was not folded properly in the photos, so I have added a picture of it done correctly.