Frosch…

No, this is not a spelling mistake; the little 1960 Frogeye spent 30 years in Germany hence Frosch (Frog in the language of the Grimm Brothers).

From its service history, my Frogeye/Bugeye was in Scotland before immigrating to West Germany in the late 80’s and returned to the motherland – the UK – in 2018.

In this 30 year period, the car was on and off the road and received various modifications including: 

•      Hazard light kit
•      Front disc brake conversion (using last 60’s Spridget parts)
•     1500 midget front springs
•      Rear telescopic shock absorbers
•      Extra radiator fan
•      Weber 45 Carburettor
•      3-2-1 Exhaust manifold
•      Electric fuel pump
•      Black Mohair roof
•      Black respray
•      Chrome luggage rack
•      Various chrome adds-on
•      Triumph GT6 wheels

When the car came back to our shores, it ran too rich and could be hesitant. A fuel pressure regulator was missing and the Weber needed to be tuned properly. The previous owner decided to go back to basics: mechanical fuel pump, Twin SU HS2 carburetors, and standard exhaust manifold.

The following picture is a caption of the original internet ad and shows how the car was when I purchased it:

This very small car (about 1 foot smaller all around than the Elise) is full of charm and makes people smile when they see it 😍. As my daughter puts it: 

“it’s a Princess car” (not an Austin Princess thankfully).

Mid-December 2019, I gave it a quick heath inspection and went for a shakedown drive. With its 660kg powered by 948cc engine producing ~40bhp, this road runner should not get me into trouble with the Rozzers. This was a lot of fun, taking the corner barely touching the brake trying to keep the momentum.

And yes, I broke down during the first proper drive… 😅 The ignition cable under the dashboard got undone.

Since then, the wiring was fixed, the luggage rack and the front bumper were removed and I am slowly getting accounted with the car.

As I play around with it, I’m drafting a list of things that need to be serviced or modified to suit my preferences.

Introduction

Welcome to this new blog about my car journey.

 As mentioned elsewhere, I like sports cars and classic cars. Since my 20s, I have been involved with Mazda MX5, Triumph Spitfire, Morgans, Lotus Elise, Caterham Seven and now a British old-timer: a 60 years old Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite.

The most significant car was the Elise S1; I have been this car custodial for 13 years, about 95000miles – many of them on track. When I acquired the car in July 2006, it was mostly standard (118BHP and 118FtLbs); some lotus cosmetic “upgrades” had been added.

As many young single chaps without much responsibility, I started to play with the car and one thing leading to another, I took it a track and I got “intoxicated”. The virus got the best of me and I started to modify the car and race it in local club series… 

This is where people either roll their eyes or produce a little smile knowing that I did the same stupid things they did.

In 2019, my Elise produced 180bhp @ 7000rpm and 137 to 145 FtLbs between 3500 and 6500 rpm and weighed 735kg. The 0 to 60mph was rather quick and 100mph was effortlessly reachable.

While this Elise is technical simple (1990’s technology, mechanical), repair and services can be laborious. For example, to change the radiator, half of the bodywork has to come out. This is itself is not complex but requires time and space. Adjusting the accessory belt involves taking off a wheel, liner and then you can do the work through a minuscule aperture.

As the Elise had become a little too much of a track focus car, I made the decision to go back to something I could enjoy more on public roads hence the Frogeye.

In the following publications, I will discuss the specifications of this Frogeye as I bought it and I will explain how I want it to evolve.