Thursday, December 4, 2008

In favorite all time car stories, is the Team Sprite high school car restoration, now onto their new project ! Team Isetta !

In Jan 07, a story spread around the internet about a school that had a really cool English teacher, a really cool project, and some teens with the best class that we all wish we could have been part of.
Restoring a '58 Austin Healey Bugeye Sprite.
Starting with a basket case and about 2 dozen boxes of unmarked parts (some weren't off the Sprite!) the last owner had removed in his attempt to restore it, a Bugeye Sprite was reconstructed and restored by a teacher with moxie, and girls with a afterschool project to enable their learning of the fundamental automotive skills of repair and maintenance.

I posted http://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2007/01/high-school-auto-restoration-class.html then.. exchanged an email with the teacher, and never forgot how cool the story was. I've shared it with readers here, and told lots of people at car shows while we enjoyed swapping stories.

They are onto the new project, a '57 BMW Isetta 300! Living Wisdom High, in Nevada City Ca. is the place I consider to have the coolest kids car project ever.
The Isetta was parked in '67 or so when it broke the driveshaft donut, and was started on in May of 2007 by the team of 5 students, this time one boy added to the previous all girl project, and they are not financed by the school. It's an after-hours and summer project, that is funded by donations. Cookies are welcome, but parts support is priority one! http://www.teamisetta.com/Press.html

Parts still needed... donations accepted, but if you have to sell it, they understand and would like first shot at meeting your price....

battery ............... NOS side mirrors ..........door lock tumbler & key
source for rubberized Coconut "hair" seat padding
engine side heater duct ..........inside luggage rack and net for cabriolet
NOS gas cap .................................................both coupling flange
gray fabric for sunroof & cabriolet top ...........paint
clutch disk , spring & pressure plate .........factory radio (working or not)