The Frame of Restoration

The first step in restoring my Austin Healey 100/4 BN1 was to strip it down to the frame and sub-frame. George and I accomplished this step back in July. This weekend we moved on and complete steps two and three. Specifically, sandblasting the frame and applying epoxy primer to the frame.

The Austin Healey was loaded onto a friend's trailer to be taken to Artistic Body Shop to be sandblasted. Most likely this will be the only work I outsource.

After five days and eight hours of labor, the car came back with a new and different look!

Sandblasting takes the frame and sub-frame down to bare metal and remove any rust, truly exposing the areas that need to be repaired.

Overall, the frame and sub-frame was in the condition we expected, and, thankfully, the sandblasting process didn't expose any problem areas we didn't already knew existed.

Since the car is down to bare metal, it has to be primed with an epoxy primer immediately. A bare metal frame and sub-frame can easy rust. Even a fingerprint can cause damage. So George and I spent the afternoon applying an epoxy primer to the frame and sub-frame.

Now that the frame and sub-frame have been primed, we will now move onto the next step: repairing the frame!

The Engine Dilemma

My Austin Healey came with four cylinder, 2660cc (or 90 horsepower/2.6 liters) engine. The 100/4 name came from its top speed (106 mph) and the number of cylinders (four) in the engine.

The four cylinder engine was powerful and could move the car from 0-60 mph in 11.2 seconds. On top of that, the car still got 22.5 miles per gallon! Unfortunately, my Austin Healey didn't come with this engine or transmission (a three speed with overdrive). In fact, the last engine to be in the car was a Chevy 350 V8 (the previous owners butchered parts of the car to fit it in).

Before starting this restoration project, I had decided to use a Chevy V6 4.3 liter engine with a five speed manual transmission.

This Chevy V6 has many advantages. First, the engine is readily available, which means a lower cost. I should be able to find a good engine and transmission for about $600 to $800. Replacement parts are also readily and cheaply available. Second, this engine, unlike the V8, fits very well in the Austin Healey. Lastly, the engine does increase the power of the car. The V6 will move the car along very quickly (which is both a pro and a con).

The only disadvantage the Chevy V6 has it that it significantly decreases the value of the car. According to several experts, it decreases the value somewhere between $30k to $40k. Now I am in a dilemma, which engine do I choose?

I love the look, idea, and added value of the original four cylinder engine. However, I am not thrilled about the cost, as it will cost approximately $15k to $17k to install a rebuilt engine and transmission. Currently, my plan is still to use the Chevy V6 because my budget doesn't allow me to consider the original engine. Though once the car is finished, I can look into saving my money to get the original engine and transmission. I may put the original engine and transmission in my five-year plan.

The British Parts Guy

Back in my Austin Healey Sprite days, I spent much of my time (when I should have been in school) at European Sports Car Garage. They proved to be useful in ordering parts for my Sprite.  This same place came to mind when I need parts for Austin Healey 100/4. I simply had too many parts to track down individually and knew I needed a parts place if I was ever going to restore this car.

I performed a Google search of British parts store with the intent to see if European Sports Car Garage had a website. However, in my Google search, another British car place comes up, British Car Specialts. As I checked out their website and online catalog, I found they have almost everything I need. The icing on the cake was that this British car parts store was located in Stockton, California. I couldn't believe my luck! Out of all places where such a place could be located to have it so close (only 40 miles away) was a relief! But maybe it’s too good to be true. So I called them. They were just as knowledge and friendly as I had hoped they would be. Dave, the owner of British Car Specialists, encouraged me to come and visit his shop to see some Austin Healeys under restoration, see his parts warehouse, and to touch base with him as I begin this restoration process.

In late-September 2014, George and I took a quick road trip to Stockton to visit the British car specialist. From the moment we go there we were treated with great customer service. Dave escorted us around, showed various Austin Healeys in his shop, and showed us his parts warehouse. He answered all of our questions and gave us invaluable information about my Austin Healey. He had every part available I would need to rebuild the car.

He even encouraged me to think seriously about putting in the original engine and transmission back into the car. According to him, it would add about $40,000 in value.  However, it will cost me approximately $15,000 to go that route. Now I have to do a cost-benefit analysis (I knew the policy analyst in me was going to come up). I will be thinking about this in the months to come. 

Moving forward, British Car Specialists will prove to my main resource for parts and will make this restoration process so much smoother!