[Healeys] Wing mirrors

Chris Dimmock austin.healey at gmail.com
Wed May 15 03:56:38 MDT 2013


Kees,
You haven't been in a Bellet until you have been in a Bellet.
There, but for the grace of BMC, nearly went I....
A small light package, independent rear suspension - faster and cheaper and
better handling than a stock bugeye- and even cheaper when I was an 18 year
old kid.
And a Holden Gemini "modern"  1600 cc OHC engine and 5 speed gearbox slipped
straight in.... And looked stock.
3 or 4 of my mates did...
Like any car, driven hard, with independent rear suspension, you had to limit
the tuck under when a wheel lifted....
But those little cars are still awesome in my book. My little brothers car? i
remember being on the other side of a crowbar, at Mum and Dads, when we put an
1800cc OHC Japanese ISUZU motor in it, with twin webers, Back in about 1986.
He's restored again since. Mechanically, its been rebuilt again since.
He's as passionate about his Bellet as I am about my Healey.
He just loves that no one even knows what it is, but handling? Seriously Kees.
That's a bit like me telling you Jensen Healey's don't handle, or you telling
me the Black and White car doesn't handle.....
Anyway. Japanese cars of that era have little oblong chrome covers. So if you
take those guard mounted mirrors off the guards, you just pop in a chrome
filler...
Too much information ??!
;-)
Chris

Sent from my iPhone

On 15/05/2013, at 5:31 PM, Oudesluys <coudesluijs at chello.nl> wrote:

> I remember the Isuzu Bellet GT-R well. A friend of mine had one imported in
the mid '70's. A jewel of an engine, a very good looking car but the road
holding left much to be desired. Total rubbish. Springs and shock absorbers
were not matched at all. In those days you could go to the KONI factory here
in Holland where they would build custom made shock absorbers for you at no
extra charge.  It improved matters considerably.
> Lesser Bellets were fairly popular (all things relative) over here. Other
Isuzu's were not so.
>
> Kees Oudesluijs
> NL
>
> Op 14-5-2013 23:52, Patrick & Caroline Quinn schreef:
>> G'day
>>
>>
>> The Bellett GT has quite a following here and in Japan. One version
(Bellett
>> GT-R of 1969) was fitted with a DOHC engine many years before other
Japanese
>> (and others) cars were so fitted. Having driven one I can tell you that it
>> is a rocket.
>>
>>
>> Bellett were made by Isuzu when that company was making road cars. Isuzu
>> still exists and is the largest manufacturer of diesel engines and so
>> powered vehicles in the world. If you were to look under the bonnet of
most
>> diesel powered cars you will find some contribution from Isuzu. I don't
know
>> the percentage, but GM hold a commanding ownership of the company.


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