New Purchase - 1959 100-6

[PHulst]

While I've been a member here a long time, and done a LOT of reading, I have not owned a British car until recently.

20 years ago I helped a friend restore his 1959 Austin-Healey BN4 100-6, and about 2 weeks ago I purchased it from him. While (sort of) driveable it needs some finishing touches, and someone who is more mechanically inclined. That would be me, so I now have a winter project.

I've been making a list of what needs to be done, and will have a list of items to repair or order. As time goes on I'm sure I will have questions.
Working on American cars, specifically Corvettes, is very familiar to me. The Austin-Healey is all new in many respects, but at least many of the principles are the same.

If you don't mind, I'll start out with one question - are all of the fasteners on the car Whitworth, and if so what tools should I obtain? I have a large selection of SAE sizes as well as metric, but even with the little work I have done so far I can tell that some of the bolt heads are "not quite" the same as the sockets I own.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[healeyblue]

I don't think you will come across many whitworth fasteners on the '59. I don't have any on the '57 I restored. Overall it looks like a nice job so far. Welcome to the forum!
Jim

 

[DerekJ]

There were a mixture of Whitworths and others on the 100s but on the 100-Six they should all be standard AFs. I think there might a Whitworth on there somewhere but if there is I can't remember where.

Welcome to 100-Six ownership. If you'd like to learn more about the model you can check out my website.

www.healeysix.net

 

[DerekJ]

…forgot to add. That's a very nice looking car that doesn't seem to require anything except maybe a tune up. Nice to see the detail touch of the crankcase vent rubber connections sprayed green as they came out of the factory.

 

[bighealeysource]

Hey Phulst,
Welcome to the Healey world ! Looks like a very nice BN4, love the color combo. I've owned Brit cars since 1968 and never had a set of Whitworth tools. Even restored a 1949 MG TC over a 20 year period and although probably could have used a set, did fine with metric and SAE. Haven't needed a set on the Healey's I've owned either.

Two things I would highly recommend - join the two national Austin Healey clubs being Austin Healey Club USA and Austin Healey Club of America. They both bring some different things to you as a member and the two magazines are tremendous. You can go to the following websites:

www.healeyclub.org
www.healey.org

Good luck and post any questions that come up as always a bunch of us out there waiting to help if we can.
Regards
Mike

 

[PHulst]

Thanks guys.
The car only has about 2000 miles, probably less, since it was restored. Given that it was in boxes for years, its probably less than 2000 miles since about 1981.

The body and paint are, for the most part, very good. It will need a bit of touch up and repair, but that won't happen until spring.

Currently the brakes are a problem, as only the right front works. Bleeding and readjusting are first on the list.
2 of the 4 shocks are leaking. I will likely just send them to WWAP in Madison for rebuilding. Are they dated so that keeping the originals means anything? In Corvette world correct dated parts are everything.
The overdrive sometimes works, sometimes does not. The previous owner had a problem with the wiring, so I will look there first.
Clutch also needs to be bled, and is probably an issue that goes with the brakes.
It runs better with new gas than the several year old gas that was in there. However, I'm likely going to have the distributor checked/rebuilt by Advanced Distributors to remove all doubt.
Gas gauge doesn't work.
Speedometer likes to flutter too.

Other little issues also exist. Some are from it sitting, some are just end details of a restoration.
Suggestions always welcome.

Patrick

 

[John Turney]

Welcome to the world of 100-6 Austin Healeys!

The only items that I've found to have Whitworth have been the SUs. If you find metric, it's probably a reproduction part.

You may need to rebuild the brake and clutch cylinders, and clean out the brake lines. The fluid and rubber pieces may have turned to gunk.

The shocks don't have recognizable date codes, so go ahead and send them in.

 

[bighealeysource]

Hey Patrick,
Quick check on the OD would be the fluid level. If it goes in and out that can sometimes be as simple that it is a bit low on your 30 or 40 wt non detergent oil. That's the best stuff to use so might even be a good idea to drain the old out, put in new, and make sure it is topped off to correct level. Then see if you still have the problem. If so probably electrical and can check that out.
Regards
Mike

 

[roscoe]

A friend of mine was driving a VW bug for a short trip across town in the dead of winter in Denver and his wipers couldn't keep up with the ice and snow. Even though he was wearing shorts (crazy Air Force guy) he pulled over in the storm and got out to clean the windscreen only to end up locking himself out of the car. Getting cold really fast, he went to the side of the road and found to his amazement, a key that looked like it would fit. It was shaped like and weighed like a fist sized rock, which he used to unlock the door from the inside (after reaching through the broken window he made). My point is that I also belong to the "use what works" school and if a wrench fits properly on a fastener, I will use it. Don't really care if it is standard, metric or Whitworth. Although I have all of those, my philosophy ends up saving me time. Besides, what do the Whitworth sizes actually mean? I am more than willing to admit that my "that looks like it will work" attitude sometimes gives me grief. I think it comes from my aviation background where I wouldn't dream of using the wrong tool.

 

[Rob Glasgow]

Patrick, welcome to the forum. Your car is beautiful. When I had WWAP rebuild my shocks, I called Peter and asked if I could get my old shocks rebuilt and returned to me as opposed to having him send me shocks that were sitting in his inventory. He said that was possible but it would take a couple of weeks to turn mine arround,so if I needed to get my car back on the road sooner then the exchange program would be quicker.
I chose to get my original shocks rebuilt. Took about 20 days if I remember correctly.
They really improved the ride.

 

[PHulst]

Patrick, welcome to the forum. Your car is beautiful. When I had WWAP rebuild my shocks, I called Peter and asked if I could get my old shocks rebuilt and returned to me as opposed to having him send me shocks that were sitting in his inventory. He said that was possible but it would take a couple of weeks to turn mine arround,so if I needed to get my car back on the road sooner then the exchange program would be quicker.
I chose to get my original shocks rebuilt. Took about 20 days if I remember correctly.
They really improved the ride.

Thanks Rob. That was going to be a question for Peter.
The previous owner kept/reused an amazing amount of original parts, so I would prefer to reuse the originals. Given the winters here in Michigan it's not like I'll be driving it anyway... :joyous:

 

[HealeyRick]

Beautiful color, one of my favorite combos. From the pics, looks like your steering wheel needs to be adjusted. With the wheels straight ahead, the steering wheel should have one spoke located straight up at noon. This allows the gauges to be clearly seen without being blocked by the spokes. Looks like it will be a lot of fun, enjoy.

 

[PHulst]

Beautiful color, one of my favorite combos. From the pics, looks like your steering wheel needs to be adjusted.

Needs a horn button, too, as one of the 3 prongs is broken off. They're difficult to find, though.

 

[Duane_Rhynard]

Needs a horn button, too, as one of the 3 prongs is broken off. They're difficult to find, though.

Contact Curt Arndt at (760) 458-1926 cell or cnaarndt@gmail.com He can provide both parts and service and does excellent work!

Duane
'58 BN6