Sources 2

In the late winter of 1999/2000 four Healey owners, Doug Buckley, Ward Stebner, Gerry Threlfall and Ed Driver discussed at length our spares needs. These needs were identified after each reviewed the status of his respective Healey. Our needs were quite diverse. Doug was interested in a few spares in order to maintain his BN7. Ward's needs were many as he was restoring his BN2 frame up. Gerry started in the spring of 1999 to restore only the boot of his BT7 but changed his mind. Gerry decided that many aspects of the BT7 needed attention so he and the boys stripped the Healey down to the tub and removed the engine and transmission/OD. For the BJ8 Ed knew that the engine needed to be totally rebuilt after the compression and leak-down tests were done.

The objective, that arose out of our meeting was to reduce shipping charges so we would order our spares as a group, whether it was two, three or the four of us that participated in a particular order. Gerry suggested that we each supply our collective needs, and that he and Ed would source the parts and where possible the shipping costs. In some cases group orders were not going to be possible, either in terms of timing of activities or of a specific repair.

A simple spreadsheet was constructed; a list of parts down the left-hand side along with shipping fee, across the top the various suppliers, within each cell was the specific part number and the price. Initially we had only the catalogues from Moss Motors and Victoria British. With some searching on the Internet, consulting the e-mail traffic on the Healey List (team.net), asking the opinion of various List members, and reviewing the advertisers in the magazines of the two major clubs we were able to assemble a substantial list of suppliers. Other suppliers were identified as we progressed.

Ed was the only one embarking on a major engine overhaul, others, Gerry and Doug needed a few small parts here so the spreadsheet had its first real test on Ed's engine spares. All spare (part) prices were converted to Canadian dollars, we used several sources (a.) foreign purchases made on our VISA or Master card the rates of exchange information was pooled and (b.) we used the web site Currency converter Universal Currency calculator. Where possible the various vendors were contacted by e-mail and were asked to supply a firm quote including shipping costs for a list of spares supplied. This approach allowed for an exact comparison of costs. Quite surprisingly, an individual supplier did not have the lowest cost on all items. It was necessary to decide if it was worth it to submit a number of orders, bearing in mind the extra cost such as shipping charges and brokerage fees.

 

SOURCES

The following suppliers are separated out as to the major items they supply. We have also included their web site address from which you can obtain phone and fax numbers, e-mail address, and a mailing address. We have also rated them as to service, here service means responsive and co-operative, follow-up, accurate information supplied, and personal touch (poor, good and excellent) and to costs, costs include shipping, handling charges and price of goods (reasonable, high). Also we've included the availability of a printed catalogue and in some cases the availability of an online catalogue. We do not consider this list to be a definitive one even though we've expanded it beyond the suppliers we dealt with.

 

GENERAL ITEMS: HEALEY SUPPLIERS - TRIM, BODY PANELS, SUSPENSION, ENGINE, TRANSMISSION, WHEELS, RUBBER, ELECTRICAL, ETC.

AH Spares, www.ahspares.co.uk - England - good, reasonable; printed catalogue available.

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SC Parts Ltd., www.scparts.co.uk - England - good, reasonable; printed catalogue available. A online version of the catalogue exists on the SC Parts web site.

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UK Healey Center (Steve Jowett) www.ukhealey.co.uk -England - excellent, reasonable; printed catalogue was available and now downloadable catalogue is available.

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Moss Motors www.mossmotors.com - United States - good, high; printed catalogue available, free.

Hemphill's Healey Haven - United States - 1-800-9-Healey - excellent, high. A printed catalogue is available.

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Victoria British www.victoriabritish.com - United States - excellent, high. A printed catalogue is available, free.

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British Car Specialists www.britishcarspecialists.com - United States - excellent, high . Two catalogues are available "Rare and Hard to Find Parts" and "Kilmartin Sheetmetal for Healeys".

Christian Hollum Imports -Canada - excellent, reasonable (only Healey engine and suspension spares), 2150 Victoria Avenue, Lachine, Quebec, H8S 1Z3, 1-514-639-4639

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All British Cars -Canada - excellent, reasonable 401-3835 E. 1st Avenue, Burnaby, British Columbia, V5C 3V6, 1-604-294-5747 -interesting cross section of spares and very resourceful.

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Holden Vintage and Classic Ltd. www.holden.co.uk -England- excellent, reasonable. Catalogues available and an excellent on-line catalogue (lighting, electrical, tools, etc).

 

SPECIALTY ITEMS: BRAKES, SUSPENSIONS, HARDTOPS, REAR DISC BRAKE KITS, ENGINE ITEMS, CARBURETORS, BODY PANELS, RUBBER TRIM, ETC.

Denis Welch Motorsport www.bighealey.co.uk -England - excellent, reasonable, a printed catalogue is available (aluminium heads, performance camshafts, competition brake components, aluminium alternator brackets, spin on oil/ oil cooler spares, etc.).

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Cape International www.cape-international.com - England- good, high, a printed catalogue and periodic newsletter are available, free (many aluminium specialty items).

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Jule Enterprises -Canada - www.Jule-entreprises.com excellent, reasonable. Rockwood, Ontario N0B 2K0, 1-905-854-3555, primarily chassis and tub replacement parts.

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Nical Engineering Ltd. -England - excellent, reasonable The Barn, Leygreen Farm, Lyndhurst Road, Beaulieu, Hampshire, S042 7YP 01590-612181 (nick@nicalengineering.co.uk) Hardtops for BJ8, BN4 and BN2.

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S.U. Midel www.sumidel.com-Australia - excellent, reasonable, online information but you must write Bill Bressington for prices (SU carburetors, pumps, needles, etc.)

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Burlen Fuel Systems www.burlen.co.uk -England - excellent, reasonable, online catalogue search by vehicle, model, or part number.

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MacGregor British Car Parts macgregorukcarparts.com -Canada- excellent, high, rubber, hardware, carpets, heat insulation cloth.

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Pegasus Auto Racing Supplies pegasusautoracing.com -United States - excellent, reasonable, online catalogue and print catalogue available.

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SMALL SPECIALTY ITEMS AND SERVICE: ENGINE I.D. PLATES, TOOLS AND HARDWARE, ETC.

Clarke Spares and Restorations - www.clarkspares.com United States - excellent, reasonable 90 W Swamp Road, Doylestown, Pennsylvania 18901 or 1-215-348-0595 engine identification plates made to order, wire hose clamps, etc.

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Namrick, the nut and bolt store namrick.co.uk -England - excellent, reasonable. Online catalogue and free print catalogue available.

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British Fasteners and Tools www.britishfasteners.com -United States - reasonable; has good supply of Whitworth wrenches and makes special service tools for Healeys and other BMC cars.

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Nisonger Instruments nisonger.com -United States - excellent, reasonable, excellent instrument and gauge repair, especially speedometers.

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Mo Ma Manufacturing -United States Mo Ma Manufacturing - excellent, reasonable. Margaret Lucas (Mo Ma) can be reached at 1321 Second Street NW, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87102 or 505-766-6661 or (momanm@aol.com) new circuit boards for BJ8 tachometers and gauge repair. Mo Ma is quick and helpful.

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Peter Groh (British Car Keys) www.britishcarkeys.com -United States - excellent, reasonable.

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Although there are many more suppliers than listed many of the above we have had experience with, you can reach me at "edriver AT sasktel.net" if you have a specific concern or question. One closing thought, shipping charges have increased primarily since the terrorist attacks in the US and exchanges rates are variable, although for many items we find suppliers such as the Northern Healey Center and Ahead4Healeys in the UK extremely competitive with the North American suppliers.