classic austin healey

This Just In – 1961 Austin Healey 3000

June 8, 2022

The gorgeous 1961 Austin Healey 3000 has arrived at the Bridge Classic Cars workshop for the team to carry out a relatively small job on the classic sports car.

The car has come in for the team to replace the wiper motor for the car.

But, it’s always lovely to have another one of these in our workshop.

Heading Home – Work on the 1959 Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite is Complete

April 25, 2022

The 1959 Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite has been in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop for our restoration technicians to get the amazing little sportscar back into perfect running order.

The team have worked on rebuilding and adjusting the brakes and working on the hydraulic system which not only controls the brakes but also works the clutch as well. The slave cylinder had to be replaced due to a leak from a seal which was causing an issue bleeding the system to make sure the whole circuit remained pressurised.

Along with that, the team found several issues with the suspension of the classic Austin Healey. This required some of the important substructures of the car to be carefully rewelded, as well as removing and correctly installing parts of the wishbones.

To take a look a the entire project, click here!

Adjustments – Getting the 1955 Austin-Healey 100 Running Right

March 24, 2022

The restoration workshop technicians at the Bridge Classic Cars workshop based out of our Suffolk HQ have been working on diagnosing and fixing the running issue on the 1955 Austin-Healey 100.

The car came into us to look into a running issue once the car got up to temperature or if the weather itself was hot. Our technician Jon began by looking into the various systems in the engine bay such as the fuel system and intakes. He noted that the classic Healey was idling rather quickly so he rolled back the idle speeds on the carburettors to give everything a good baseline to work from. However, the carburettors are not the throttle stops so were bought down to a safe speed achieved from the screw. He did notice that the car would ”run on” after being switched off when hot but would start up near enough straight away afterwards.

Upon inspection of the points inside the distributor, Jon discovered the car fitted with electronic ignition which helps with the diagnostic as it is one system that would not need adjustment and could be relied on as a baseline.

Along with that, Jon checked and read the spark plugs on the classic Austin-Healey. After very slightly adjusting the spark plug gapping, he installed them back into the car to move on to the timing. With the timing, Jon managed to slow down the idle speed a little more. Then, he could begin road testing the car.

After numerous tests and adjustments, Jon has got the car’s engine into a good place. Although he has noted that when coming to stop at a junction it will momentarily go towards stalling, the road performance of the classic Austin-Healey is exceptional and pulls very well through each gear. The car will continue to be road tested and adjusted to get it just right for its owner.

This Just In – 1960 Austin-Healey 3000

March 16, 2022

This stunning 1960 Austin-Healey 3000 recently arrived at the Bridge Classic Cars restoration workshop at our Suffolk HQ.

The ”Big Healey” will go through each of our restoration departments to be assessed and inspected by our restoration technicians to find out if the car requires any work to be completed on it. Each of the teams will compile their inspections and report back on the condition of the 1960 Austin-Healey 3000.

New Piece – New Clutch Slave Cylinder on the 1959 Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite

March 16, 2022

The new clutch slave cylinder for the 1959 Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite has arrived at Bridge Classic Cars to be installed on the classic sports car.

Once the piece is in place and the hydraulic system completely bled, the workshop can begin to test and check over the rest of the car as part of the jobs requested by its owner.

Mirror Finish – Machine Polishing the 1959 Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite

February 28, 2022

At Bridge Classic Cars, we have a phrase called ”Dead in Red”. This is what we’ve found to be the best description of red paint after years of oxidization and exposure to the elements.

So, while we have this stunning 1959 Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite in our workshop we thought it was time to bring back the paint to its beautiful glossy and deep finish. The car has been both machine and hand polished to not only bring back the depth of the red paint but also protect it for years to come and allow its paint more longevity.

As you’ll agree, it looks absolutely wonderful now the paint is bright and vibrant.

Moving Along – Working on the 1959 Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite

February 25, 2022

The 1959 Austin Healey Frogeye Sprite in the Bridge Classic Cars has been moving forward towards the goal of running and stopping perfectly.

First on the list of jobs was for our technician, Dave, to look into the cooling system on the iconic classic sports car. Dave began by looking at the radiator, which on inspection had a broken mount for which he fabricated a new replacement for. With the radiator out, the workshop could then work on replacing the water pump for the car.

Dave found the old water pump wasn’t in the best of shapes so it’s good that we had been asked to replace it with a customer supplied unit. During this time, he took the opportunity to completely flush out the cooling system and clean up the outlets. With this, it was found the thermostat was packed almost solid. The battery on the car has also been replaced and the battery tray rust treated.

After this had been completed, Dave could begin his inspection of the suspension and brakes as part of the car’s pre-MOT check. He found the driver’s side track control arm was loose and the bolts which held it were so corroded they couldn’t be tightened accurately. So, he removed the old bolts, cleaned the threads in the arm and replaced it with new hardware from our stores. Whilst inspecting the braking system on the Frogeye, Dave discovered that the master cylinder had become corroded internally from sitting which in turn had caused the wheel cylinders (which were recently fitted) to seize. Replacements were going to be needed to get the brakes on the Frogeye working correctly.

With this and waiting for several parts, Dave could now move on to the next jobs on the list…

Austin Healey Sprite

May 11, 2021

We’ll hopefully be welcoming this little Sprite in soon for some work – keep your eyes peeled!

Austin Healey’s Engine Troubles

May 5, 2021

This Austin Healey 1000 has come in with some engine troubles. We identified a water leak and oil in the water. We’ve removed the head to investigate.