- Foothills British Car Club

February 2010
NEWSLETTER
www.fbccsc.org
President’s Message
Well, Spring will be here soon and the LBC’s will begin to emerge from
wherever they have been hibernating. It is time to get ready for this year’s
round of club events.
We held a Board of Directors meeting on January 26th. We worked on
club priorities for this year and also on the calendar of events.
Wear a Nametag
Get a Ticket
Wear your FBCC name
The two major club priorities are normalizing our relationship with the
tag and when you buy a
Euro Auto Festival, and putting more emphasis on club membership and
participation. Eddie Saunders has the lead in the Euro area. He and I will 50/50 ticket we will give
you a free ticket
be attending meetings this year to work with Euro in providing the
traditional volunteer support to the show and to ensure that the
merchandising effort runs smoother than it did last year.
February Meeting
Tuesday Febuary 9th
You will recall that we discussed seeking new members at the regular
Dinner - 6:00pm
January meeting. We also discussed ways to keep that moving along at
Meeting - 7:00pm
the board meeting. We are looking for someone interested in taking the
lead on membership efforts and also helping our new members get into
club activities.
FATZ Cafe
5051 Calhoun Memorial Hwy,
The second part of that priority is participation, participation in helping to Easley, SC
lead or work on club events and participation when we begin seeking
(864) 859-9832
officers for next year.
The restaurant is on Rt 123
In the membership area we have two new members this month, Robert
Just west of the Rt 153
“Skip” Callaham and his wife Sue, and Ken Simmons and his wife,
Turnoff
Brenda. We look forward to welcoming them at the February meeting.
We have an outline for the year’s calendar. All the dates are not firmly set
but the list of events is probably pretty close.
February 13th The Chili Party – see the ad on page 3
March 20th
Tech session with Hap Waldrop – Location and date not
firm yet
th
Omelet Party at Gene & Betsy McOmbers – provided they
April 24
have not sold their house. (We discussed a clause in their
.
contract that the buyer has to hold the party each year)
May 1st
Mitty at Road Atlanta with Tom Buto – that date has not
been published
The Foothills British Car Club
is a private organization. Club
events are open only to dues
paying members and guests.
New members are always
welcome
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FOOTHILLS BRITISH CAR CLUB
February 2010
May 15th
Overnight trip with Jack and Joanna Donegan – we are going to try a Spring trip.
Destination will be announced – we could combine it with another event so suggestions
are welcome.
th
Scottish Games Show at Furman with John Tuleibitz.
May 28
th
June 19
Poker Run with Hap Waldrop and Forbes Kayhart. Date and route are not firm.
July 18th
A second tech session or party with Steve and Tootie Poteet
th
August 14
Lake Party at Marty & Patti Shane’s
September
Autumn in the Mountains and Gathering of the Faithful
October 16th Euro Auto Festival with Eddie and Jack Date not firm
November 5th Hilton Head with Tim Strickland
November 6th Valve Cover Races with Eddie Saunders
November 13thCMP with Hap Waldrop Date not firm
December 11th Christmas Party with Eddie and Raylene Sauders at The Phoenix
So this promises to be another fun year with lots of events for everyone’s tastes.
Now if you really want to enjoy this year’s events what you really need is a new LBC. So a large part of
this newsletter is devoted to letter’s we have received from people with cars to sell. Our own John
Tuleibitz has a 1980 MGB on page 9. The MGB that Eddie discussed at the regular January meeting is
on page 8. Finally, in what will undoubtedly be the sale of the year, Robert Smith of Hawaii has a
twenty car collection on the market. Read this unique story on pages 5 thru 7. Zach Merrill has a good
tech article on Ethanol on page 4.
We still have a few members that have not sent in their 2010 dues and we will be dunning you again
next week. Won’t you please send in your check and join the fun.
All in all the year is beginning to shape up very well. Come to the February meeting at Fatz on the 9th.
Start making your plans now to have your car ready for this year’s events. Remember that driving your
car to the most monthly meetings in a year wins free tickets to the Christmas party.
Jack
Directory's and Invitation Cards
At the January meeting we handed out FBCC invitation cards. Carry
some of these and use them to invite potential members to our
meetings. We also have a booklet version of the club directory. We
will have these at the monthly meetings, or we will mail you copies.
Email your request to [email protected].
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FOOTHILLS BRITISH CAR CLUB
February 2010
FBCC
2nd Annual Chili Cook Off
Saturday February 13th, 2010
6:00 pm.
at the
Garage Mahal
Are you really sure you dare
to make chili for all to share
You can make it mild or make it hot,
serve it up in your own crock pot
Let's have a bunch up for the test
and find out who really can make the best
The time draws near for this tasty treat,
Come one, come all for this great meet.
A prize will be awarded for the best chili
Please bring your own adult beverage and a comfy chair
Soft drinks, water, cheese, sour cream, bowls and utensils will be provided.
Directions:
I 85 – Take exit 48A – Laurens Road, towards Mauldin
At the 3rd light (1.3m) turn left onto Forrester Rd.
Then make a quick right (.2m) onto Old Mill Rd.
Go .5m and turn right onto International Blvd.
Go all the way to the end of the road the garage is on the left of the building #112A.
RSVP:
Eddie and Raylene
(864)297-0328 Home
(864)787-8787 Cell
[email protected]
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FOOTHILLS BRITISH CAR CLUB
Living with a Tipsy Classic
Or
Your LBC and Ethanol
In my youth, my father
ran a wrecker service. As a result
of my exposure to that
sometimes-dreadful business,
witnessing other people's hardlearned lessons convinced me
that mixing alcohol and
automobiles can lead to
unfortunate consequences. That
truism has never been more true
than it is today. Until recently, it
was only the operator who
sometimes disastrously opted to
imbibe. These days, our
legislative officials have seen fit
to force alcohol on our machinery
as well. It is very difficult to
avoid being forced to be a
consumer of 10% ethanol mixed
with 90% gasoline. In ordinary
operation in a modern vehicle,
other than a slight degradation in
fuel economy, the evil brew
yields little to complain about. In
vintage vehicles, small engines,
and marine craft, however, it can
be another matter entirely.
Modern fuel injected
vehicles with high-pressure fuel
systems and feedback-loop fuel
management can generally burn
10% ethanol and be content. The
fuel system samples the O2
output in the exhaust, richens the
mixture a sniff and goes on about
its day.
Use 10% “ethanolenhanced“ gasoline (hereafter
referred to as E10) in a
carbureted engine with no O2
feedback, and the scenario likely
won't play out quite as well. Toss
in the additional issue of an
atmospherically-ventilated fuel
system combined with infrequent
use, and you have the making of
a very unhappy experience.
Even in the best of
circumstances, a vintage
carbureted engine running on E10
is compromised. If the fuel/air
mixture had been optimized for
gasoline, it will be a sniff lean on
E10. True enough, the mixture
can be recalibrated if someone
knows how to do it and then
actually follows through. Expect
to lose about 7%(ish) fuel
economy though and expect the
engine to have some issues with
hot weather driveability, but it
will generally run more or less
OK. There are some real potential
issues with attack of rubber
polymers and there is a risk of
crud being dislodged and causing
clogging. Still, most old cars
sorta-almost-nearly run OK most
of the time on E10 if the engine is
operated regularly and the fuel is
not allowed to age more than a
few weeks.
Aging a really bad thing. I
am reminded with each look in
the mirror, but even I age well
compared to E10. Ethanol has a
major affinity for moisture. Store
E10 in a modern vehicle with a
sealed (not atmospherically
vented) fuel system, and it still
only stays fresh about 12 weeks.
Put E10 in your vintage classic
with its vented fuel system, and
within a mere month, the fuel is
no longer fresh. Leave the fuel in
the tank just a few months, and
you are facing disaster. The
alcohol absorbs moisture from
the air. The fuel experiences
phase change. The moisture laden
February 2010
alcohol separates from the gas
and settles to the bottom. It
becomes highly corrosive. As if
that were not bad enough, the
remaining gasoline has very poor
octane and the whole miserable
concoction has a terrible
tendency toward oxidation. Good
old-fashioned red Sta-bil helps
retard the oxidation, but it does
not help with the moisture
absorption and the phase change
issue. For emphasis, let me
remind you this moisture
absorption happens because the
alcohol sucks the moisture right
out of the air and this condition
occurs readily if the fuel is
contained in a vented tank and/or
fuel bowl (as is the case with
vintage cars, boats built prior to
1977, and most small engines.)
Until recently, I did not
know of any off-the-shelf product
that solves the problem. Today,
however, I discovered “Sta-bil
Marine Formula” for ethanol
fuels. Finally, there is hope! I
spoke with a chemist at the
company. I have been assured
that if “Sta-bil Marine Formula”
is added properly to E10, the fuel
will remain fresh for 12 months.
The chemistry in the blue Sta-bil
(not the red Sta-bil) addresses
both the oxidation issue and the
moisture absorption issue. The
red stuff still works fine if the
fuel is stored in a sealed
container...but such is not the
case in the fuel tank of most
vintage cars.
Be aware and be happy
that there is now a solution....but
do nothing, and prepare to be sad.
Zach Merrill
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FOOTHILLS BRITISH CAR CLUB
February 2010
Major Car Sale
Russ Czura and I have been corresponding with Robert Smith, a major collector, in Hawaii. In his collection is
the "Very first Triumph TR2 built for the North American Market, Commission Number TS1 LO (Triumph
Sports, Chassis #1, Left Hand Drive, Overdrive)", and many other fine cars. We will have an article on the TR2
next month. This month we want to acquaint you with Robert's collection. In appreciation for the interest of
Foothills British Car Club members, Robert is offering to ship any of his vehicles purchased by members from
Hawaii to Southern California at no cost to the buyer!
Aloha Jack,
I just wanted to let you know, as an obvious enthusiast, that I am selling my British car collection. If you or
perhaps anyone in close orbit with you may be interested in a nice British sports car. These are cars that I have
collected over the years. Among these vehicles are three cut-door Triumphs, four Sunbeam Tigers, three MGs
(TC, A, and B), two Austin-Healeys (Frog Eye and 3000), two Morgans, and a host of other nifty cars. I have
over twenty vehicles at this point in time. My prices are reasonable.
I do have some parts as well, but for the most part I have finished cars that simply want to be driven! All of the
cars are drivable and are licensed, insured, and "safety checked, and with clear titles from the State of Hawaii. I
retired from working and now have a four year old boy, so my priorities are shifting from the sports cars.
Below please find the list of cars I have for sale. They range from under $10,000 into the six figure range. I feel
these are good cars, carefully collected, lot's of provenance with most of them, my personal libraries go with
each car for which the books are appropriate, and otherwise I intend to carry out good faith sales with full
disclosures. If you want to ship a car or multiple cars to the mainland, I have very good ocean and enclosed
transport contacts. If you buy a really high end car, like TS1, I'll ship it to you on a trailer, so no stevedore will
have to drive the car before you receive it. Enclosed trucking from San Diego or Covina, California to South
Carolina should be in the range of $1800, and the trucker I prefer is DeMoise Trk-Ing based in Greer, SC,
www.demoise.com, telephone 864-609-9390, e-mail [email protected]. Bill DeMoise and his brothers have a
family owned and run business, and all of my experiences with DeMoise have been excellent
. look forward to hearing back from you, if you or any of your club members are interested in any of my
vehicles. You're very close to being among the first to pick and choose from the collection, and I do hope
someone who is a private hobby collector is a client!
Here's the list, and I'm happy to speak with anyone who is interested. I'll haggle some on some cars,
and will likely discount multiple purchases. I have collected these cars over many years and do not feel I have
overpaid for any of them. If you are interested enough to contact me about pricing, I'd be more than willing to
discuss my expectations of price for any individual car or groups of cars. Please note that this
same advertisement is now running in the February issue of Keith Martin's Sports Car Market
Magazine, and a few cars have already been sold,
so call or write soon if anything strikes your fancy!"
Mahalo nui loa (Thank you very much!),
Robert P. Smith
PO Box 43
Hawaii National Park, Hawaii 96718
cell: 808-342-1036 Hawaii Standard Time
[email protected]
Page 5
FOOTHILLS BRITISH CAR CLUB
February 2010
Car List
:
Austin-Healey
1963 3000 BJ-7, near the last of the Mark II Big
Healeys. Frame off, photo documented restoration.
Healey blue with white coves. A very nice,
restored to original car, with lots of provenance
and car show awards that go with the car.
1959 Mark 1 Frog Eye Sprite. Chassis #1 for
production year 1959. No expenses spared custom
restoration. Old English White with proper red
interior and proper piping. Factory original
hardtop. Chrome wire wheels including spare.
Four wheel disc brakes. 1275 cc engine and ribbed
transmission. Maybe one of the nicer, restored
Frog Eyes around, with upgrades.
1960 Austin Gipsy. A rare, four wheel drive soft
top, similar to and built by Austin as a competitor
to the Land Rover. Correct Beige with Beige
Interior. Right hand drive, originally built for the
German market. This is one the of the nicest
Gipsy's I've ever seen, and a rare car.
MG
1949 MGTC drophead coupe. Build record
indicates actual build date of October 1948. USA
titled as a 1949. A recent, photo documented
frame off restoration, completed in 2006. MG
green with Connolly leather interior and Hartz
cloth top, all in a beautiful beige. This is one of the
best restored cars I own. Photo documented, frame
off restoration. I'm the third owner. I'm the third
owner. Restoration completed in 2006. A nice
value, as the car was restored here in Hawaii, thus
I have no shipping costs involved with the vehicle.
1965 MGB roadster. Correct Tartan red with black
interior, red piping. 80,000 original miles. USA
title says it's a 1967, but I have a British Motor
Heritage Certificate showing numbers matching
build record and showing the car to have been
built in 1965. A very nice, chrome bumper "B."
Morgan
1952 Plus Four Drophead Coupe, chassis number
P2462 and matching engine number V368ME.
Complete history documented in professional
binder by MMC historian in Europe. This car is
currently under restoration. It will sell in the high
thirties when restoration completed.
1963 Plus Four fourseater. 20,000 original miles.
Chassis number 5513. BRG with tan interior. If I
sell this car, it will be priced in the mid-thirties.
My wife likes the car very much, and our son fits
nicely in a fourseater! So, it will be a bit of a sales
job on my wife to allow me to sell the car! Page 7
has a picture of this car during a time when I was
the parade car for Miss Hawaii 2005. Yes, I kept
my eyes off the rear view mirror (not!).
1960 MGA 1600 Roadster. This car has a British
Motor Heritage Center Certificate, and was
ordered and imported by an Army doctor. I bought
it where it always lived, in SLC, Utah. I believe I
am the third owner. 60,000 original miles. Iris
blue with black interior, blue piping, black top,
correct in every way.
Page 6
FOOTHILLS BRITISH CAR CLUB
Triumph
1953 Triumph TR2, Commission Number TS1 LO
(Triumph Sports, Chassis #1, Left Hand Drive,
Overdrive). This is the first Triumph sports car ever
built for the North American market, chassis #1. It
is finely restored, well documented. To know more
about this car, go to
http://www.triumphregister.com/TS1%20LO%20Re
turns%20Home%20to%20Britain.html and
download a free history at:
www.triumphregister.com/ts1_final.pdf
1957 Triumph TR3. A beautiful, award winning
example of a late small mouth Triumph. Numbers
matching and with overdrive. BRG with tan interior,
and chrome wire wheels. This is one of the few
small mouth Triumphs with factory front wheel disc
brakes. An older restoration, but very nice, and
some car show awards.
February 2010
hardtop. Extras include an original Cobra high
rise manifold, dealer option Tiger Hertz shifter,
and four wheel disc brakes. Lot's of provenance,
including an original Book of Norman.
1965 Tiger Mark I. Another car restored by Dale
Akuszewski. This is a one off, custom restoration,
and Dale utilized a beautiful Series II body to
create a Tiger that resembles one of the three,
original Tiger prototypes. Black with red interior,
and a black hardtop. Pictured with narrative in
The Book of Norman by Norman C. Miller. A
very nice, very fast collectable Tiger.
1966 Tiger Mark II. A completely original car
that I bought from a physician here in Hawaii,
who bought the car new in San Diego. Forrest
Green with black interior. Never wrecked or
modified. Original 13 inch wheels with original
1963 Triumph TR3B. Frame off restoration, and I'm hub caps. Numbers matching engine, etc. Needs a
the third owner. Beautiful primrose exterior with
new convertible top. This car is a good buy for an
black interior. Photographs of frame off restoration original Tiger.
as well.
1966 Tiger Mark II. Another car that is original,
1967 Triumph Spitfire. Ex-Jimmy Cohn, ex-Kas
but restored to original personally by Norman C.
Kastner SCCA race car. Lots of extras, including a Miller, author of The Book of Norman. Forrest
new set of Panasport racing wheels and compound Green with black interior. Norm has said in the
tires. This car will be sold on a Bill of Sale basis
past that his personal restoration job on this car
only, as it is strictly a race car.
Continued on Page 9
Sunbeam
1964 Tiger Mark I. Restored by
famous Sunbeam specialist Dale
Akuszewski of Dale's Restoration.
This is an absolutely beautiful car,
white with black interior. Black soft
top, black tonneau, and black
Page 7
FOOTHILLS BRITISH CAR CLUB
February 2010
For Sale - 1970 MGB Roadster
Good chrome, body and bumpers
Split rear bumper – and luggage rack
Recessed grill and badge in good
condition
H-4 head lamps Door and wing mirrors
Engine is 1798cc bored 0.050 over.
Balanced and printed by Loftis Bros.
Big valve head with H.P. street cam, 1
¾ S.U. HS Carbs, Hi Flow air cleaner
Long center branch headers, Hi Flow
exhaust with twin tip low restricted
muffler
Four speed transmission with electric
overdrive
Interior, dash and gauges good, with zip
out window Nardi steering wheel and
oak door rails
Tape deck, Interior panels are black
leatherette over wood panels, British
Racing Green in good condition Bonnet
has some damage but the hinges are
okay
Enkel modular wheels, Tube shocks
Stainless steel brake lines
Poly fender liners
This car was completely restored in
1986 and won 1st in the SCCA Southern
Division
Concours event McAlister Show
It has been garaged until last year
February Calendar
I also have an aluminum MG bonnet
and a factory MG hardtop separately
priced
$5000
Tuesday 9th Monthly Meeting at Fatz
Saturday 13th. Chili Cook Off
Garage Ma-Hal
Bob Jones
405 Old Buncombe Rd.
Apt. 19
Travelers Rest, SC 29690
864-834-8549
Page 8
FOOTHILLS BRITISH CAR CLUB
February 2010
FBCC Merchandise
The club has always maintained a large
inventory of FBCC logo merchandise.
This is a separate inventory from what we
sell at Euro. We realize that a lot of our
new members have not had an opportunity
to purchase these items, so there will be an
opportunity at each meeting.
At the top of our list is the quality FBCC
Grill Badge shown below.
....................$35
Long sleeve Tee shirts...................$15
Short Sleeve Tee shirts..................$10
For Sale: 1980 MGB. 33,000 miles.
Extensively recommissioned after 20+ years in storage Embroidered hats..........................$10
many new parts. Rust-free original body and paint.
Linda Barber will be displaying items
Need the garage space badly. $9,000 or near offer.
before each monthly meeting
JohnTuleibitz. [email protected]
Car List Continued
helped him form the basis for many of his technical
observations found in The Book of Norman. Parts of the
restoration are pictured in The Book of Norman. Comes
with lots of provenance plus both original type tires and
wheels/hub caps and Los Angeles Tiger wheels, as
originally sold by dealers, with the spinners. I have a
hardtop too. Norman C. Miller is also the official keeper of
the Sunbeam Tiger Registry, and a car restored by Norm
simply carries extra value with that special provenance. I
fully expect this car to appreciate rapidly, as with all of the
Editors Note:
Tigers.
For the last several months it has been a lot
of fun putting the FBCC newsletter
Kaiser
together. People have provided a wide
1951 Henry J Deluxe. I bought this original car from Mike range of interesting articles and event
Scotty, the guy who bought the car new in Sacramento
information. So just a reminder, to keep
(Mike is now deceased). A Henry J Deluxe has the six
those submissions coming in. Also
cylinder Continental engine, overdrive, a heater, and extra remember that we are always looking for
stainless trim. Mike ordered the car in a special color,
presentations at the monthly meetings.
Sportsman green. Lots of provenance comes with the car,
Send your submissions to Jack Donegan,
including Henry J workshop manual, etc.
[email protected] 864-944-5799
Thank you,
The Editor
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FOOTHILLS BRITISH CAR CLUB
February 2010
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