Saleofcar.com :Austin

Austin Healey Sprite (1960)
for sale

Price: US $3,000.00

Description:

1960 Austin Healey Bugeye Sprite
Early example of the Froggy.
100% original California car. Sold new in San Francisco in August 1960. BMIGT Factory Record included. Original black plates, current California registration. Car was purchased as a wedding gift and sat garaged in Los Angeles from 1974 until found in 2013. A true barn find, cobwebs and all. A great project car waiting to be restored.
Popular and full of personality, Bugeyes have been growing in popularity at auction. Mecum has sold four at Monterey alone since 2912 and Barrett-Jackson got high numbers at Palm Beach in 2013 ($20, 350) and 2015 ($27, 500.)
Most MK1 Sprites have been restored (poorly) at least once. This car has had only one paint job and redo and that's it. Every feature unique to a MK1 Sprite is intact. You will not find another car in this condition as complete and as solid as this. When this car is compete you won't have to guess at how things should be, because it is already the way it should be.
Based on the tire dates and the last registration sticker, this car looks to have been put away around 1974. This is a textbook example of a barn find car. This car has its original CA black plates and they come with the car.
I have owned the car for 2 1/2 years and the only thing done was change two tires that would not hold air. My intention was to either completely restore the car or just redo the car mechanically and preserve the barn find look but after some serious reckoning I have decided that I really want an Innocenti 950 instead. Open to possible trade.
Take a close look at the photos. What sets this car apart is how dry it is underneath. This car has the optional hard top and it looks to have been on the car for most, if not all, of its life. The floors are as solid as the day the car was built. The factory undercoat is drying out and flaking off in places but there is only factory primer underneath. The front subassembly is dry, solid and straight with no distortion that I can see. The lower rear quarter panels behind the wheels have small rust bubbles and bondo but the inner panels behind are surprisingly rust-free. The worst rust issue is the passenger side A piller (a common problem with all Sprites and Midgets.) Feel free to ask for detail photos of any part of this car.
Additionally, the bonnet, while being correct, looks to have been swapped from another Sprite at some point, as evidenced by blue overspray in places. There is some damage to the right hinge and bonnet support but both can be obtained from Frogeye Spares Co. part Nos. BN01 and BP066 respectively. Frogeye Spares also has all needed patch panels for the lower rear quarters and the A pillars.
Mechanically, the car retains its smooth-case gearbox, 948cc engine and drum brakes. The wheels are also the originals. The water pump is stick, but the crankshaft turns freely (with compression) and the transmission goes into all gears. Unsurprisingly, the brake pedal is stuck but the car rolls easily. the interior is complete and all the gauges are there except for a Stewart Warner amp gauge. It looks like a Datsun radio was installed at some point.
This is a prime candidate for restoration and an excellent example of why unmolested California cars are so special.
_{update: 2015-06-21}