Here are some safety and reliability items I find important.
1. Brakes. I find that just bleeding them regularly does only a
halfway good job of returning them to a firm feel. In addition to
bleeding, I suggest a complete replacement of fluid at least once a
year (my Sprite is my daily driver). In practice, this entails using
a syringe to remove most of the fluid from the MC, then topping up
with fresh, then conducting long bleeds at each corner until fresh,
clean fluid flows _at each corner_. It's amazing how fast brake fluid
gets gunked up and how good it all feels when it's fresh. Of course,
the entire braking system should be checked yearly. It really does
make a difference.
2. Lights. Make sure that your headlights are aimed correctly and are
bright. Make sure that your brake lights and turn indicators actuate
and are bright. This sounds basic, but on every Healey outing, I see
that MOST cars have dim lights and almost non-functioning indicators.
On my car, several of the grounds need attention about once every two
years. I'm thinking of going to halogens, at least for the brake and
indicator bulbs.
3. Wipers. Or more accurately, Rain-X. I don't care how good or bad
your wipers are, applying Rain-X to your windshield maybe once every
two months is cheap, cheap insurance. This stuff should come standard
in the glove boxes of all newly sold cars. There have been many
instances where I've not even bothered to turn on the wipers in a
Spring shower because the Rain-X was beading the water so well.
4. Did I mention brakes?
5. Horn. Many people have written that horns don't do much for you;
if you need to use them then it's too late. I disagree. There have
been numerous instances in Atlanta traffic where a little beep from
my BMC noise maker made another driver aware of my presence and kept
a deteriorating situation from getting dangerous. Plus, our little
horns are not aggressive; nobody is going to get upset when you beep
them and they see what you're driving. Keeping Atlanta drivers from
being upset is a good thing. Make sure your horn wiring is in good
shape. When I bought my Sprite, the horn did not work at all. Ten
minutes of work (most of which was spent removing the grill) revealed
the culprit: Both contacts on the horn itself were corroded. A little
sandpaper and voila, a nice cheery beep.
6. Did I mention that fresh brake fluid is cheap?
7. Driver. Be aware _everytime_ you drive your Sprite that you are
doing something SPECIAL. This is a two-edged sword. It's fun,
exhilarating, makes you feel above it all. The other reality is that
you are below it all; in the case of a Subdivision...I mean
Suburban...you are several feet below the driver's sight line. Don't
be scared, but be AWARE. Don't paint yourself into a corner in
traffic. Always assume that you cannot be seen and that you will need
to compensate for the apparent blindness of others.
8. Did I mention that bleeding brakes is a fun way to get your
significant other interested in your Sprite?
Jeffrey H. Boatright, PhD
Assistant Professor, Emory Eye Center, Atlanta, GA, USA
Senior Editor, Molecular Vision, http://www.molvis.org/molvis
mailto:jboatri@emory.edu
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