I would suggest that most of us are at best the second owners of our cars. More than likely, we are the 3rd, 4th, 5th custodians of our LBCs. If you really want to know what the truth is about your car (not the song & dance that the P.O. gave you), tear it apart. I was given to understand that my car was a true “GT6 Convertible”. What it is, is a 1980 Spitfire with a GT6 engine. The block is late 1973. The head appears to be either a Mk 2 or a TR250. The pistons… who knows? They were flat tops. The head had been shaved ever so slightly.


If I recall correctly, the transmission serial tells me it came out of a Herald or Vitesse (Sports 6) and the differential serial places it out of a Mk IV (US) Spitfire with a 4:11 gear. It has an aluminum GT6-style trans bell housing.

I originally started, way back when, by rebuilding the carbs, adding K&N filters and a heat shield. Replaced a bad water pump, all flex hoses and rebuilt the right rear axle. The distributor was professionally rebuilt after finding a new vacuum advance for the one removed by the P.O. The vacuum advance canister came from Quality Rebuilds Ltd [barry@qualityrebuilds.com] in New Zealand. (Great guy & excellent service!)

The “shop” that built this Frankenstein’s monster actually appears to have used many correct parts for the conversion. The front suspension uprights came from a (Blue) GT6 and the spindles, hubs and brakes (Earlier 16P) are GT6. The hood (bonnet) is a Mk III GT6. The frame was rather cleanly modified to accommodate the exhaust and the longer engine. The correct support was used under the J-type overdrive and the proper locating brackets for the OE GT6 radiator were installed.

When the engine was “rebuilt”, it was thoroughly cleaned and reassembled. Unfortunately, it appears that no bearing or journal surfaces were machined. Upon teardown, I found what appeared to be very fine white silt in the oil pan… Hmmm.

Since the original wood veneer on the dash was peeling, I replaced it myself with bird's eye maple veneer (theveneerstore.com) and I'm very pleased with the results. See my 'how to' article on re-veneering the dash. A photo of the finished dash is on my profile page.

The car as I received it, had a 1980 "Federal" 85-mph Spitfire speedo with a GT6 tach. I found a replacement Speedo on EBAY and rebuilt all the gauges. I also found a replacement Hazard switch from EBAY UK. As I have undertaken the engine rebuild, I have used James Paddock, Rimmer Brothers and Jigsaw Racing in the UK and BPNW here in the States. I found a perfect 12” electric fan from Sherco auto supply for $36. http://www.sherco-auto.com/fan.htm It only draws 7 amps and pulls (or pushes) 1600 CFM.

I replaced the original ragged soft top with a new one from KEE, which I ordered in a custom color. Beautifully made and was an easy intall. Snaps were factory installed. I didn't do a professional job. but I think it looks (and works) just fine.

The engine rebuild is happening now. See my journal for the progress.