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noomg Member
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After 25 years I'm finally getting around to the cosmetics. Although the car runs and drives great and has been on the road since I got it in '93. While both interior and exterior are shot I'm starting with the exterior. I'm taking the body down to bare metal since it's got three paint jobs on it already. It started life as a black car, then some PO got the brilliant idea to paint it WHITE over black(no problem there), after that some PO decided to paint black over white! I've got the doors/fenders/hood/trunk lid off and I'm stripping paint and doing bodywork. I'll post pictures when I have something worth looking at. |
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noomg Member
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As I've been disassembling body parts and stripping things down to bare metal, I've been doing some forensic investigating into the history of the car. When I bought the car I wish I had asked the seller more questions about the history of the car, I guess I was just in a hurry to get it home. One thing I'd always found curious when I got 19661 is aside from cosmetic maintenance(bodywork and paint)this 18yo car was bone stock, no upgrades, add-ons, or accessories(wheels, performance exhaust, high flow air cleaners, etc.). By checking the paperwork that came with car I think I've been able to deduce the answer. 19661 was bought by a young woman and financed through her credit union around '82. Since women generally don't work on their cars, she was probably content to drive it as it was. It was in her family until '93. As yet I haven't found out anything before '82. |
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Preserves1 Member 
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I received this email when I had Q's @ my Jensen. I contacted Rich Calver. He was thorough & extreemly helpful-- read the article linked at the bottom of the page for the Jensen he researched. ========================================================= VIN Database for Jensen Healey & Jensen GT > 1973 Jensen ========================================================== From: johnfalveyross Date: 2018-07-30 07:41:40 Reply: http://www.jensenhealey.com/forums/reply.php?topic_id=2477 You might want to try Richard Calver's web site for some general information about the car. His email address is toward the bottom of the page and he will be happy to share with you any known info from his data base specific to your car. In the case of my car there was no updated info since it left the factory- colors, dates etc. If the same is true for your car he will be happy to know your car still exists and to have one more JH accounted for. Good luck http://www.richardcalver.com/article_jh1.htm |
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noomg Member
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Thanks for the links, lots of great info on our cars that I hadn't seen before. What would really be nice if the DMV would allow current owners to see the previous registrations so you could find out things like; how many owners, where it lived, what kind of work was performed on it. You might be able to contact previous owners and get some oral history. |
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noomg Member
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Update: Well I'm just about finished with the bodywork and with any luck I can start reassembly this month. Now I'm looking for some place to do the paint. I tried one place that looked promising but they do mostly high end restorations. They said 7 to 10 thousand dollars, that's a little rich for my blood. I don't want to wind up with a car that I'm afraid to take out of the garage. What I'm looking for is a nice driver quality paint job that I won't be afraid to drive to the grocery store. |
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noomg Member
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Well it's the beginning of October and after three months of disassembly, cleaning, stripping paint, and doing bodywork I'm just about ready to start reassembly. I've cleaned, prepped, primed, painted and undercoated the inner body. Also, I think I've found a paint shop that will do a nice driver quality paint job without breaking the bank. I've seen some beautiful showroom quality restorations that some of you guys have done. My goal however isn't a showroom restoration but rather to take it to what a well cared for car would look like that is a year or two old. |
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noomg Member
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Well after three months I've finally reached the point where it's time to start reassembly and final prep for paint. Here's where I'm at right now. Attachment: 181007 Car Pictures.jpg (Downloaded 420 times) |
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noomg Member
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FYI, left and right door hinges are not interchangeable. |
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noomg Member
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Well getting the doors and the hood properly aligned was the tricky part but the car went back together pretty quickly(6 days)and it's ready for the paint shop. I should be able to get it to RJ's Paint&Body Shop on Monday and Robert said it will be ready by the end of the week. |
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noomg Member
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As 19661 sits awaiting pickup for delivery to the paint shop I'm struck by how long and low it is and it's simple aerodynamic elegance. Looking at it in this configuration(no windshield, mirrors, bumpers, etc.)you can see why it was a winner(race wise)right out of the box. There's an old saying" If it looks right, it usually is right" I think that can be applied to the Jensen-Healey. |
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noomg Member
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Well 19661 has been in the paint shop for about a week and a half, hopefully it'll be home soon. In the meantime I've been getting lots of replacement rubber from the usual sources. Lots of cleaning,repairing and repainting of parts slated to go back on the car, lots of replacing old, crusty, rusty hardware with stainless steel where possible. FYI, I got new taillight gaskets from Delta and new rubber for the side marker lights from BP Northwest, they're about a 1/4 inch longer than the originals but still look and fit great. |
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noomg Member
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Well I finally got 19661 back from the paintshop and I'm very pleased with the results. Reassembly is underway and hopefully I'll have it back on the road soon. Attachment: take 2.jpg (Downloaded 329 times) |
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noomg Member
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Well I'm still not back on the road yet. My original goal was bodywork and paint, but as restorations normally go something else has reared it's ugly head. I obtained a pristine dashboard a few years ago. I figured while I had the windshield off I'd do a quick dash swap since access is excellent. Of course you can't just do quick swap, things need to be cleaned, repaired, replaced(example I'm refinishing all the wood). |
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Sander Member 
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SHINY!! Where's the windshield? Are the front fenders already bolted on? |
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noomg Member
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Sander, I'm waiting to install the windshield until I have the new dash in place. Once I've got the dash in place, should take a few more days, I'll install the windshield, windows, windwings, and door weather stripping. Yes, the fenders are already bolted on, I installed all body panels with a basic panel alignment before it went to the painters. I'd considered having it painted disassembled and painting the individual panels separately but in my experience it's very difficult to reassemble painted parts without at least getting some scratches on the new paint. |
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noomg Member
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I'm now finished with the dash, it looks brand new, the wood got refinished(6 coats of varathane)and all the bottom dash pieces are now in place. I've started on the windshield install but I'm having difficultly maneuvering it into place, I'm being cautious because the windshield is so fragile. We'll so how it goes. |
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noomg Member
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Just finished installing the windshield yesterday, it was a rather nerve wracking experience. It was an exercise in twisting, turning, and tweaking a very fragile piece of equipment. I got it in intact, but it wasn't easy. Just a note, if you find yourself in this position during your restoration I'd highly recommend installing the windshield before the dash. I thought dash first then windshield would be best, I was wrong. |
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noomg Member
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Well it's finished, the bodywork and paint that is, the interior is another matter. I was planning to go BRG but decided to stick with the original black. I added the gold stripe as a tribute to the Lotus John Player Special Team and the Huffaker Jensen-Healeys that were raced in black. I did all the work; disassembly, assembly, and bodywork, the only thing I farmed out was the paint job($3000). I spent about $4500 bucks total, that includes all the new rubber, seals, etc. I started this project on 7/1/18 and called it finished on 12/15/18. Totally worth it, it's never looked this good in 25 years I've owned it! Attachment: Car - front view.jpg (Downloaded 245 times) |
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Tim Murphy Member 
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Looks great, a big thumbs up to you. |
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noomg Member
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Now that I've finished the exterior the interior is looking very tired, so now it's time to do the interior. I'm going to start with the carpeting. I'm thinking about using the MacGregor carpet kit, they have 10 colors available and the samples they sent me look really nice. Has anybody installed one of their kits? |
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noomg Member
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I've just ordered a carpet kit from McGregor. They have a black one in stock but I needed a brown one so they have to ship it from England, will see how long that takes but at least it's in the pipeline. As mentioned before their web site is out of date so the $450 price listed is actually going to be more like $700+. Best thing to do if you want to order from them is give them a phone call, I found them knowledgeable and helpful. |
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noomg Member
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It took almost 3 months but the McGregor carpet kit finally arrived. As expected it's around 700 bucks, due to the US/Canada exchange rate I won't know the exact price until a get my VISA bill. The quality is nice, not sure it's 700 bucks nice, but I'm just glad someone still supplies them. As expected it comes with no instructions of any kind, you'll just have to figure it out yourself. I've started interior removal and figuring out how the new pieces fit. I'll let you know how it goes. |
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Dakota123 Member
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Looks beautiful! Keep the updates coming! |
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noomg Member
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Well I've gotten the old seats and what was left of the carpeting out along with the requisite clean up, rust mitigation, resealing and painting. Next is figuring out where everything in the new carpet kit goes, typical of any Brit trim kit there are no directions. Over the years I've replaced; tops, tonneau covers, carpeting, seat covers with zero directions, I guess the assumption is you know what you're doing. Some of the carpet pieces are obvious others not so much, it's sort of a process of elimination, but the pieces are starting to fall into place(pun intended). A word about the jute backing. If your ordering from McGregor it's good stuff and pretty close to the original but make sure you measure up for what you need. I ordered 3 yards and I probably needed twice that since I'm doing the floor boards as well as the trans tunnel and rear wheel arches. |
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Brett Gibson JH5 20497 Member
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here is a diagram of the carpet lay out. Brett. http://www.deltamotorsports.com/products/pg10b-deltas-carpet-kits.html |
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noomg Member
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Thanks Brett, I have seen that Delta diagram, the carpet kit I got from McGregor is somewhat different, for example the front floor mats aren't one piece including the firewall, it's two pieces, one for the floor and one for the firewall. I'm sure that everything will go in just fine and look great once installed. |
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redracer Member
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Something you may want to check if you're installing the "extra thick" padding, especially on the firewall and floors. Having just finished working on a '75 that had this super thick padding: 1) the gas pedal will NOT go down far enough to full open the chokes(only on left hand drive cars, U.S.A., etc) . 2) the seat would not go back very far and get "jammed" by the extra thick junk. You may wish to eliminate extra padding in those spots. best wishes, bruce |
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noomg Member
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Thanks for the heads up Bruce, I usually learn that stuff the hard way. |
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noomg Member
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Well everything is going in and it's starting to look pretty nice. My biggest problem now is figuring out the overlaps, in other words which piece needs to go in first before you can install the next piece, but it's all coming together. |
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noomg Member
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Well I just finished the carpet installation. Not all that difficult but it was a bit involved. It looks nice and it's the first time I've seen the car with a nice interior since I've had it(26yrs), the original was rotted and shredded when I got it. Next on to the seats, if anyone has any suggestions I love to hear them. Attachment: IMG_1265.jpg (Downloaded 160 times) |
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noomg Member
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Well with the dearth of suggestions I decided I have three ways to go, 1) order the seat kit from Delta 2) order the leather seat covers from Rejen 3) get seat foam from Delta then take everything to an upholsterer and have it done in leather. Pros and cons, 1) The Delta option is probably easiest, cheapest, and quickest, but I'd love to have leather and I've heard mixed reviews on the Delta seat kits. 2) The Rejen option is leather and looks really nice but probably expensive and who knows how long it would take to get them. It took 3 months to get my carpet kit from England! 3) This might be the best option, I can talk to the guy face to face and look at actual materials to be used. This might be the most expensive way to go but I should be able to get what I want in a reasonable time frame. |
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mgreaves Member
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Love your work ! |
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Art DeKneef Member
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noomg It always comes down to what you want and how much you want to pay. I haven't used the Delta seat kit but know of one person who got it and said it was alright. He got it because they are local and had it in stock and wanted something relatively quick. Getting it down locally would, like you said, you can see and feel the material before you decide. And where you are in California I doubt you would have too much difficulty finding a reasonable shop. While looking for parts and stuff in the local wrecking yard, I got a pair of Miata seats in good condition. They will fit in the car, but for me, the front portion of the seat is a little too high and my legs are really close to the steering wheel. Thinking of replacing the steering wheel with a 13" unit and then I'll try the seats again. For one of my other JH I have taken the seats apart and will be cleaning the frames and finding some seat foam with the idea of shaping the seat a little differently. But that is a ways off. |
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noomg Member
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Art, There's been a lot of discussion about Miata and Fiero seat swaps not only on this board but also on the Triumphs and MG boards. Which is fine, your car your choice, but I happen to like the stock seats and find them to be quite comfortable even on long road trips. As far as the wheel swap goes it's good move for the Jensen-Healey, the steering is light to begin with so a smaller wheel is no problem and you get more leg and arm space. I'm running a 14" Lecarra on my Healey and could have gone 13" with no problem. |
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noomg Member
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Had a bit of a setback this week, when I pulled the car out of the garage the battery was dead(way dead) and wouldn't take a charge. When I installed a new battery I got a lot of smoke from under the dash. So now I'll have to track down the short and repair any damage, hey it's British. Meanwhile I'm still forging ahead with the seats. |
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Dakota123 Member
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FWIW, I just went with regen but in vinyl -- thought seriously about leather, but couldn't justify the price difference. Vinyl was $600 for two seats, one seat bottom foam, and webbing. |
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noomg Member
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Dakota, What's the price difference in price between the leather and the vinyl and what's the lead time between placing your order and receiving it? |
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Dakota123 Member
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About $500 for the vinyl, against $900 for leather as listed on eBay (not including the cushion etc.). Depends on the exchange rate, of course. We’ll have to see about delivery; just placed the order this morning — keep you posted... |
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noomg Member
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Dakota, Thanks for the info it's helpful, please keep us updated on how your project goes. |
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noomg Member
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Just an update on the electrical issue. I pulled the console and glovebox for a closer look and the news was not good. It looks like the main harness behind the dash console is damaged(melted), how bad I won't know until I get further into it. I think the culprit was a short in the lighter on the console. Unfortunately I may be looking at a main harness replacement. |
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Dakota123 Member
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That well and truly sucks. At least the whole thing didn’t go up in flames. |
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redracer Member
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just read: the lighter(a common item that gets shorted) is fused by the 3rd/bottom fuse, and should NOT have melted the main harness. A common problem on the earlier J-Hs(not sure what # they changed) was for the rear side light/fender markers top get shorted. The English cars did not have rear side lights and as somewhat of an after-thought, they ran the wires to them around the "U" shaped inner small piece and the fender; eventually, the foam on this piece would wear away and the "hot" wire(UNFUSED!!) would ground out and melt the harness all the way to the footwell where the extra bundled wires acted as a heat sink. The later harnesses(again, not sure what chassis #) had a 4th pig tail fuse below the 3 fuse panel for this reason. I drilled a small hole in the little piece with the foam and put a rubber grommet in, as it should have been done at the factory. Have plenty of good used harnesses if you need one best wishes, bruce |
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noomg Member
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Bruce, You're right, the lighter short shouldn't have melted the main harness under normal circumstances and that #3 fuse should have protected it. Unfortunately when I first got my J-H in '93 not only was there no #3 fuse, there was no fuse box just a hole in the firewall where the fuse box used to be. I probably should have done something about it back then with no internet and almost no information about it in the workshop manual I wasn't even sure what I was looking for. At the time the electrics seemed to be functioning as was and there were a lot of other things that needed immediate attention(brakes, bearings, tires, etc.) Thanks for the info, I'll know more once I get the rest of the console apart. If I do need a new harness what are you selling them for? |
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redracer Member
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As previously stated, I only have USED ones(in good shape). You can have one for $100(+ $14 USPS flat rate ship). I do recommend strongly that you clean all the contacts with the coarsest fiberglass brush possible (https://www.eraser.com/products/fiberglass-brushes-erasers/) These brushes(not sure if sold on AMAZON?) are excellent for cleaning surfaces before soldering. |
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noomg Member
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Update on my interior restoration which has morphed into an electrical fix. After pulling the console(under the dash)to get access it looks like the damage is limited to the harness on the right side of the console and down into the console. Bruce you were right about the #3 fuse, it blew when the short happened(that's how I found it)but I don't know why it didn't protect the circuit, maybe someone inadvertently bypassed the fuse at some point in the past. I think the harness can be repaired, I'll give it a shot first to see if it's possible to avoid replacing the whole harness, a much bigger and more expensive job. |
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noomg Member
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Also, I've been in contact with Rejen and they've quoted me some prices and are sending samples. I think this is the way I'm going to go. For those of you who maybe interested prices are as follows; 6pc. leather seat covers $845 Seat foam 2backs 2bottoms $389 Seat webbing for 2 seats $184 Total $1418 |
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Dakota123 Member
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BTW, haven’t installed my Regen covers yet (maybe this weekend), but they look first-rate. Only took a couple of weeks to be produced to order and shipped. |
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noomg Member
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Dakota, Thanks for the update, let us know how it goes, pictures if possible would also be nice. Meanwhile I'll await the samples from Rejen while I'm trying to straighten out my electrical miseries. |
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Dakota123 Member
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Too darn hot this weekend here outside of Denver, unfortunately; even the garage is sweltering, and I really want this to go right (new carpet I’ve had for 6 or 7 years as well). Supposed to start cooling off, so hopefully next weekend. Really good to know about the side marker issue! Mike |
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noomg Member
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Dakota, Once you get your carpeting installed you'll kick yourself for putting it off for so long. After driving my JH around for 25 years with no carpeting it was like driving around on a tractor, with the install of the new carpeting and a set of custom cocomats the interior is downright cozy. |
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noomg Member
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Dakota, Just had an interesting question come up, over on an Austin-Healey message board a guy had to smog test(and failed)his '66 Healey, hard to believe something that old isn't exempt. The question is, do you have to smog test your J-H and if so how often and what does the test entail? |
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Dakota123 Member
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I did when I first registered it in Colorado in 2009. Since then, regulations have changed somewhat and vehicles registered 1975 or before that are not driven more than 4,500 miles per year (affidavit signed by owner at registration time) are generally exempt. Registration is good for five years. If not registered as a collector vehicle, testing is annually (two-speed idle test and check for originally-installed emissions equipment). 1976 with collector plates get idle-tested every five years. Without collector plates, generally everything gets tested annually, although 1981 and older is the two-speed idle test and equipment check. Also depends on county (or part of county) of registration; some areas of the state are exempt altogether. |
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noomg Member
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Wow, and I thought it was only CA that picked on classic car owners. |
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noomg Member
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Well I've placed my order with Rejen(seat foam, webbing, and leather seat covers)it should take about 2 or 3 weeks. In the meantime I'm still dealing with my wiring harness issue. I've been cutting back the harness looking for clean, undamaged wire as of yet I haven't found any. So it's starting to look like I'm going to have to replace the whole wiring harness. |
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redracer Member
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I think this was answered, but the fuses are NOT the same # as printed on the original LUCAS fuses. 35 amp Lucas would be around 17 so I use standard 20 amp fuses. If in fact someone put a 35 amp fuse in(non Lucas) the wire would melt before the fuse blew. Hope that helps if you haven't already seen this. bruce |
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noomg Member
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Bruce, You're right, there has already been a thread or two on this issue. In my case there was AGC 30A fuse in the #3 fuse holder so when the cigar lighter shorted the wires melted down before the fuse finally blew. Ironically when it shorted the wires ended up protecting the fuse rather than the other way around. When I get it back together I think I'll use 15a fuses, they're a bit smaller than original but I'd rather have to replace fuses than a wiring harness. |
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noomg Member
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Well, my new NOS wiring harness arrived from Delta. It looks brand new and appears to be an exact replacement, all the wires look like they're the right colors and the connectors seem to be right as well. That being said it's a real bag of snakes, so installation promises to be an adventure. Oh, and did I forget to mention it only cost 900 bucks! |
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noomg Member
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After replacing the wiring harness and a complete redo of the interior, including all rubber seals, I guess I should have used a broader title for this thread, what can I say it just got away from me. Believe it or not this whole thing started when I accidently pulled a 1" paint chip off the driver's door. So after almost two years and around 7 to 8 grand this project is complete. |
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noomg Member
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The finished product(I hope)! Attachment: outside.jpg (Downloaded 66 times) |
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Dakota123 Member
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She looks fantastic, love the high quality work! |
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noomg Member
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Dakota, Haven't seen an update on your carpet and seat cover replacement, should I ask? |
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mtechwim Member
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That looks awesome dude, have lots of fun with it! |
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noomg Member
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I've had lots of fun with it since the day I drove it home in '93 it just happens to look good now too! |
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Dakota123 Member
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Summer was busy, in part finishing the 2.2L and fabbing up crank fire and injection system... and winter was cold... I had planned to work out in the garage this winter, bought a powerful heater and all. Just every time I walked out there I said to myself “this is supposed to be fun, and freezing is not fun” (a heater can only do so much, tools are still freezing) so mainly turned around and went back in the house. I pulled the original engine last weekend so am starting to ramp back up. I’ll see about posting some pics to 10628 Refresh in Projects. Last edited on 04-18-2020 06:22 pm by Dakota123 |
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noomg Member
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Looks like interior is on the back burner. Typical stuff during a restoration as priorities change. Might be a good time to order any interior parts you need so they'll be there when you get back to the interior. |
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