This photo kindly supplied by Russell Filby of the Turner Sports Car Register shows Mackenzie in the only Alexander GT and a well known Sebring Sprite, BXN. 

Great to see the Coupes lined up on the Midget & Sprite Club stand at the NEC including Sven Eckhardt's newly restored/rebuilt Speedwell GT, 7140 RO in its original colours.

Sebring Replica DTA 949C has a new owner, Danny Woolard who recently purchased it from Paul Gregory. Danny plans to do some fettling to lower the weight before entering some hill-climbs and sprints.

THE STEVE EVERITT MEMORIAL RACE 2024 - BRANDS HATCH

On Bank Holiday Monday, an extremely healthy grid of about 25 Sprites and Midgets lined up for the 35th running of the Steve Everitt Memorial Race, in memory of one of the most successful Midget racers of all time. When the lights went out, Pippa Cow lead the grid away from the rolling start but sadly retired in the early stages with a broken rear suspension rose joint.

The Frogeye of James Hughes then took over the mantle, going on to win the race, which was of course a round of the Robin Lackford Engineering Sprite & Midget Challenge. A group of Steve's friends were present, including Graham Marchant, who got the trophy made, along with Larry and Dorothy Quinn, who founded the championship 48 years ago. Also present were Laurence and Julian Cutler, Colin Charman, John Baggott and Andrew Shilstone who all raced with Steve in the day. They all watched the race from Paddock Hill Bend and attended the presentation afterwards.
The race series continues from strength to strength and with the sad passing of Mike Parker, will now be run as a Classic and Sports Car Club Championship. As ever the series offers close racing with an excellent group of friendly drivers. Hands on championship sponsor, Robin Lackford, races in the series as well as backing it.

A NEWS UPDATE FROM MARCUS FELLOWS OF AMF SEBRINGS

Andreas Baensch has more of his alloy hinges (see August, below) available if anyone else is interested.
You can contact him by email.

Wild Goose Garage

I recently received a message from Dan Wise in the USA who owns a Lotus 23. He relates:
"My son was kind enough to forward me the link to your website.  I really enjoyed reading it through, particularly about YDF 140 ~ Don Balm 'Ecurie Wild Goose' .  The story about the Wild Goose Garage was very interesting to connect some names. I am the caretaker of a Lotus 23, chassis 23-S-12 that was purchased from Lotus Components June 1962 and built by A.P. (Nick) Garbett, who was a young mechanic at the Wild Goose Garage according to research by Michael Oliver, motorsports journalist and historian.   The 23 was also raced by Tony Kilburn at the Guards Trophy at Brands Hatch, on 6th August, 1962. We just enjoyed a wonderful weekend at the Monterey Reunion and we are invited to the Velocity Invitational October 4-6. I really enjoyed reading your website.  One of my long time friends crews for the owner of a Sprinzel Sprite from San Diego.  I don't get to see him often enough. Best regards, Dan Wise".

An update from Alex and Jochen Schmitt enjoying their Sebring in Hamburg

Our last update is way too old and therefore we are happily sharing you an update on our Sebring Fastback, as a lot has happened (some photos even found already the way onto the website).  The car is roughly for the third year on the road and we did already a lot of events with it. We did several trackdays in Padborg, Denmark and on the Heidbergring. Alex drove a classic car rallye with it and even won his class. One of our highlights was a trackday at Goodwood in July this year. Besides the rain in the morning we got some decent testing in and most importantly had a lot of fun.  On a positive note we were finally able to get HTP´s for the car and looking forward to compete in one/two race meetings next year and even more in the future. Attached you will find some recent photos of the car, which you can happily use on the website.

Sebring Coupe Replica For Sale ~ £15,250

Sebring Sprite based on a 1970 MG Midget. All parts are new or reconditioned. This Sebring is car number 108, last of the Archer series cars built before operation transferred to Aldon. Fitted 1275 cc engine coupled to a 5 speed Ford Type 9 gearbox.  Alloy radiator, stainless sports exhaust, ventilated front brake discs, safety roll over bar. All dashboard and instruments are correct period, and in working order. Including doors and trim panels. Seats and carpets are all new. Fitted with wire wheels and brand new tyres (including spare) also includes a set of 5 alloy knock on wheels and tyres. Finished in Jaguar Metallic Silver with black interior and grey head lining. Large build file with bills and probably more than 100 photos. Location: Droitwich, junction 5 on M5 Motorway (Worcestershire).
Contact Graham Maggs: 07715 892114 or email
[posted 22 Aug 2024]

Andrew Musgrave's new Sebring Coupe

"A couple more pictures bringing my car home from the paint shop. Looks very nice on its wire wheels."

George McKinnon's Sebring Replica.

George sent me this photo of his car which made its first outing to the local car show at the beginning of July. He says there is still work to be done but it's looking very good so far.

News from Andreas Baensch of Cologne in Germany

"I’m a friend of Jochen Schmitt and Sven Eckhardt. I read your page about the AMF Aluminium body shells built by Marcus and that three of the shells are now in Germany. One is used by Jochen Schmitt, the second is used for Sven Eckhardt’s blue Sebring Sprite (shown above). I bought the third one from Marcus two years ago and brought to Germany. Sven is currently building the chassis for my car at his garage in Rosenheim. It is planned to be painted in ultra blue (Jaguar color) next month. I will start assembling the car in August. It will get a 1293 ccm engine. Hopefully I can finish it by next year. Please feel free to use this information and pictures to complete the story on your webpage. It is a great webpage with plenty of interesting information and facts. I visit it on a regular basis".

2824 MV sells for $39,000 (£30,500)

Sold via the Bring a Trailer auction site, this well-known ex-Dan Margulies Speedwell GT is a historic item. Let's hope we will see it out racing on one side of the 'pond' or the other shortly. [28/05/24]

These photos taken by David Morys at last Saturday's Prescott Hill Climb (25 May)

"Just a flavour from today’s event Prescott Historic where else apart from Goodwood can you see such a diverse collection of car from a humble Sprite to a V16 BRM or Rover BRM gas turbine!" Thanks David.

Did you know there is now a Historic Class
in the CSCC Midget & Sprite Championship?
Click here to read Mark Turner's account of how to build a competitive car
for this great racing series.

"Here is an article about building a Sprite for Class H in the CSCC Midget and Sprite championship which was a new class for last year aiming to promote racing Spridgets as they were in the 60s but with some concessions to large bore engines and safety, but basically a standard car with big bore engine and Dunlop L sections for lots of sideways fun!"

Derek Stewart is to receive the Brian Archer Trophy for 2023 to mark his very successful installation of a Coventry Cl;imax engine and Toyota T50 gearbox in his Sebring Sprite Fastback Replica 674 VMX

A pair of Armstrong Adjustable Rear Shock Absorbers
for Austin Healey Sprite

On ebay at a starting price of £370
stated to be "original, not converted non-adjustables Obviously not an exact matching pair. Assume will need new seals but no play in bearings.
Note UK delivery costs will be approximately £12".

ARCHERS SEBRING COUPE FOR SALE

1959 Austin Healey Sprite with Archers body kit. Reg WJJ 998. Owned since 2017 and currently running in HealeySport hill-climb/sprint spec, so road legal in spite of having a high level of performance mods. Selling due to decline in health.
Fitted 1330 Swiftune engine running on a 45 DCOE Weber, straight-cut gearbox (serviced by Hardy Engineering last winter) LSD, telescopic rear shocks, front and rear springs top link and negative camber trunnions as supplied by Peter May Engineering. Alloy radiator and fuel tank. Lightweight starter and alternator. Front disc brakes. Stripped out interior with Tillett B6 seat. There are also a pair of Ridgard seats, standard front springs and fuel tank for conversion back to full road use. Offers C £20,000.00. Contact Lawrence Maudsley on 07831264029 or by email

A RARE OPPORTUNITY ~ XSP CYLINDER HEAD AND OTHER PARTS FOR SALE

An original cast iron Weslake cylinder head as normally fitted to an XSP Austin Healey Sprite pre-70s Le Mans engine with the mechanical Lucas fuel injections - MOWOG casting no 707 ,1280 by Wellingborough Foundry in the UK. Bundled with: i) A pair of Dellorto carburetors.
ii) A cam shaft original BMC factory 599 with both gears to suit dry pump application.
iii) 8 port Weslake exhaust manifold.
Seeking €5,550 ex shipping (worldwide)
Contact Julian/Bala M, in Dusseldorf Germany
What's App +49 162 2798732 or email

Looking to build a new Sebring Sprite?

Marcus Fellows at AMF Sebrings is building new bodyshells for early Sprites. Whether you want a standard car or an alloy Coupé/Fastback to FIA Spec, Marcus can provide.

"ORIGINAL" SEBRING SPRITE 410 EAO ON THE MARKET AGAIN

The ex-Andrew Hedges alloy-bodied Sebring Sprite restored so painstakingly by Jonathan Whitehouse-Bird over an 18 year period is up for sale on Car & Classic. The owner is looking for offers in the order of £150,000

AUSTIN BLOOR and 712 PTB

Halda Speedpilot for sale in Australia

Peter Westcott is seeking to sell this rare item on ebay
- previously used in his rally Sprites.
For further information go to: https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/116001884452

Rene Bloemen reports on progress with his aluminium-bodied Sebring Fastback

108 CPX

Mike Henneys tells me he is the new owner of this Sebring Rep which was the first to be assembled using the Archers Garage mouldings back in 1992/3. After the original owner John Morgan sold it to Andy Actman it was campaigned first in historic rallies and then very successfully in club racing. It then went to Neil Fletcher who raced it for several years before he sold it to Ellis Bardesley. Mike bought it last year 2023, owner number 5.

AND A BIT MORE NEWS ABOUT 2214 UE

I asked John (Poulter) if he could make enquiries as to the situation regarding the restoration of 2214 UE. Sadly, owner John Tizard's daughter Christine reported that both John and his wife passed away several years ago and the car is still with her. She has a brother and sister, the three now jointly owning the car. Unfortunately some of the original parts like the Girling brakes are no longer with the car which currently awaits a wiring loom, trimming and paint. It will be interesting to see what progress is made with this valuable historic car in the future.

Pete Fletcher is looking for a new owner for his Sebring Fastback competition car (below)

Peter also has this Sebring Sprite Coupé which he built as a spare (below)

SOME PICS OF BOB HEPPELL'S COUPE ~ LAST OF THE ARCHER CARS

SEBRING SPRITE RECORDS UP-DATE

I am endeavouring to bring up to date my records of the Sebring Replica cars as well as the much earlier group of original cars. In doing so I have been in touch with Andrew Musgrave who has one of the first Coupe kits suppled by Andrew Forster through Aldon Automotive. The car (left) will bear the registration WET 465 and is due to be painted shortly though Andrew is still undecided about his choice of colour scheme..

Please get in touch if you own a Sebring Sprite and the records on the website are of date.
Just go to Feedback and send me an email. Many thanks.

COPIES OF JOHN SPRINZEL'S LAST BOOK NOW AVAILABLE AGAIN

Tom Coulthard apologises that John's book "LUCKY JOHN" hasn't been available for some time due to illness. But copies from the original print run (with signature plate individually signed by John) can be obtained again, now at the reduced price of £30 including UK postage. Just go to coulthardpress@btinternet.com and pay using PayPal, provide your full name and address and a copy will wing its way to you.
Available in the UK ONLY.
Also see "Books & Regalia" for more info.

Phil Gardner's Sebring Fastback and Ashley GT Hill-climb/Sprint cars

 Phil Gardner: "I completed my build in the Autumn of 2017 and used the car for two seasons with Healeysport, with a modicum of success. I put hours of work into the Sebring and I will hate to part with it!! I built the Sebring to replicate the Peter Clarke “Peel” bodied JT 51. The car is built onto a 1959 Frogeye shell, a car that I had owned for quite a while prior to my decision to build a Sebring. It was built as a fast road car but with the intention of perhaps trying a hill-climb or two!!  The car is now purely used on the road and I have had to change some of the setup to make it friendlier to drive on the roads. It has a 1310cc engine with Omega cast pistons on a standard crankshaft, a Piper BP285 camshaft and 1.3” roller rockers on a stage three big valve head. It runs twin 1.5” HS4 carbs and a Maniflow inlet and exhaust system. Once run in it was put on the rolling road and had 101bhp at the flywheel. The flywheel and clutch are 7.5” MED lightened and balanced. The front suspension remains modified to 400lb springs, 25% uprated shock absorbers, adjustable top trunnions, with the Peter May top arm kit. The roll bar is 11/16th. The rear suspension has been returned to road specification as it was too soft for the road. The car has front disc brakes and Riley rear drums as per the original cars. It also has a Sebring type pedal box and master cylinder setup. I used to run with either a 4.2 or 4.5LSD Diff, but it now has a 3.9. The car has a full roll cage and was originally fitted with Cobra Classic one piece seats. Currently I am changing these back to standard Frogeye seats but with the exact colour match.During lockdown I decided to build another Hill-climb car, this time for competition use only and with significantly more power. This car is Ashley based and runs a 1380cc engine with multi-webbed Steel crankshaft, forged Omega pistons, Arrow rods and Weber power 45DCOE. An altogether different beast!! I have had two good seasons with it. 

Another Sebring Fastback on the road - shortly

COPIES OF JOHN SPRINZEL'S LAST BOOK NOW AVAILABLE AGAIN

Tom Coulthard apologises that John's book "LUCKY JOHN" hasn't been available for some time due to illness. But copies from the original print run (with signature plate individually signed by John) can be obtained again, now at the reduced price of £30 including UK postage. Just go to coulthardpress@btinternet.com and pay using PayPal, provide your full name and address and a copy will wing its way to you.
Available in the UK ONLY.
Also see "Books & Regalia" for more info.

Riley 1.5 for sale on ebay

Just in case anyone feels keen enough to secure some Girling rear brakes for their Sebring this Riley would offer the necessary parts. At £400 it;s probably a bit pricey unless you can sell off other spares to Riley enthusiasts. Ebay No.186161995956 NOW SOLD 19 Nov 23

The Story behind Stephen Casson's Championship (Class) Winning Lenham GTO

"I bought the car off David (Scothorn) in November 2021, - he had had it in storage since he bought it in 2011.  The car had an original Lenham GTO rear end (one of 4 originals according to Sean Rainford), but an AG Thorpe front which was in very poor condition and 2 Magnesium Minilite wheels (alas in too poor a condition to use).  The car was much modified to accept a MGA engine and MGB gearbox with alterations to the chassis, and bulkhead as well as the removal of much of the transmission tunnel.  The chassis was, in the main, good with only minor rusting to the nearside.
To run in HealeySport, the car had to be restored to original and (parts of) the chassis were replaced along with the transmission tunnel.  A new Lenham front was purchased from Sean who has all the original Lenham moulds.  A full race 1330 series A engine along with a Dog Box was fitted.  The suspension remains standard in the main, just uprated within the regs.  A full welded in cage was fitted by GC Fabrication of Ipswich (highly recommended).  Brakes are uprated as allowed by the regs.  I carried out most of the work myself including spraying the car! It took 18 months from start to finish and I tried to do something everyday!  Took 5kg of underseal off the bottom of the car filling a Sainsbury’s carrier bag! Haha. 
The car has had a few teething problems this season, mainly due to the rear suspension set-up.  With much help from Peter May Engineering, the car is now running well and with a lot of help from the weather and the racing gods, managed to retain the Class Championship in the HealeySport Sprint and Hill Climb Championship".

A Virtually New Sebring Coupe replica for sale

Very Rare Aluminium Speedwell Monza Bonnet NOW SOLD

Jonas Lindquist has decided to sell this very rare item (I believe only 6 were made).

"The bonnet was damaged in a collision in the late sixties, the front part was roughly straightened, cracks repaired with aluminium strips and pop rivets and filler was applied to make the bonnet-shape look good again. The bonnet was used in this condition for several years until I bought it. I have removed the filler and my plan was to TIG-weld the cracks and then to let a skilled sheet-metal guy do the proper straightening and repair of the bonnet. I have now decided to use my GRP Speedwell bonnet instead and now the aluminium bonnet is up for sale. I’m sure most of us know how very rare these aluminium bonnets are! This item is not cheap but since it needs repair (or filler…) I will happily discuss the price with anyone who is seriously interested. The bonnet is currently in Sigtuna, Sweden."

Sebring Sprite 1/32 scale slot cars/models