!!!Update: More posted October 22nd, 2009, page 5, Status etc....
Hi all,
My name is Jason and I'm a graduate student at Mississippi State University pursuing PhD and Masters degrees in Mechanical Engineering. I'm currently taking Finite Element Analysis, and work for the Center for Advanced Vehicular Research in Mississippi State, MS as a Graduate Research Assistant.
This is my 1966 Austin Healey Sprite. I've had it for a while now. It was Sept. 2004 when I was visiting a friend's house to go out for Cruisin the Coast when I noticed his neighbor's later model Bandit Transam. My friend introduced me to his neighbor and as he was telling us about his car, I noticed a "go-cart" on the side of his house and asked him what it was. He said the car was an Austin Healey. At the time I had no clue there was such a brand, and after talking about the car for about 10 minutes I asked if I could take it off his hands. He thought for a moment and said "$X and she's yours"! I was a freshman in college at the time, and my mom helped with half the cost. I've been working on this car in small spurts since Sept. 2004, and little by little she's been coming together. Currently, I am a full-time PhD/Masters student in Mechanical Engineering at Mississippi State University and money is always tight. I just put the engine back in with the help of some friends on 1/17/08. Hopefully I can have the car on the road in time for Cruisin the Coast this October so I can go cruising with my grandma and dad. The car is a 1966 Austin Healey Sprite that originally had a 1098cc engine, but mine came with the later 1275cc. These cars originally came with a 6V positive ground electrical system with a generator and voltage regulator box. I removed all of that, started from scratch with all new wire and connectors, and opted for a 12V negative ground electrical ignition system.
Thanks for looking.
1966 Austin Healey Sprite: Current Photo
The 1966 Austin Healey Sprite Timeline 9/11/04
The car basically looked like it did in the pictures below when I bought it. I picked the car up from a best friend's neighbor. It was time for Cruisin the Coast on the MS Gulf Coast and I spotted the little "gocart" on the side of his house. A conversation arose and I purchased the car the very next day.
Man oh Man, the floor was rusted. The car had sat for a few years out in the weather with no cover...Looked like a lot of work was needed.
Here is a picture with the new mirrors attached. I spent two days working on the car and was driving it up and down the driveway while sitting on a cinder block!
5/3/2006
Time flew by with not much being accomplish on the car due to time and money. Eventually, the car was transported to Jackson, MS to a good friend's house during my internship there so I could work on the car. Here is Grandma and I the day I towed the healey on a lawnmower trailer.
I did a little work to the engine and tried to cure an electrical ghost, but with not much time to work on the car it just sat in my friend's yard.
