You know how you kick yourself over the Car That Got Away? That cheap '70 Chrysler 300H I didn't buy in 1989 was the worst, but the Toyota-engined Austin-Healey Sprite was nearly as painful.

Yes, the car that inspired me to start doing the Project Car Hell series, PCH numero uno, the engine-swapped Sprite that took on the Fiat 850 back in July '07; after posting it, I decided I had to have it. I called the guy up, but it had already been sold. Damn! That'll teach me to post on a car without being 100% certain I didn't want it for myself, I thought at the time… and kept my eyes open for another like it. Then, Oskimba sent me a tip on this Craigslist ad (go here if the ad disappears). It's the same car! Long story short, I bought it, along with many extra parts… and cheaply enough that I can sell some of the extra parts to get the cost into 24 Hours Of LeMons territory if I so choose. For now, I'll be pretty busy making a new wiring harness from scratch (after wiring the totally gutted Black Metal V8olvo I know what I'm in for here), and then I'll need to get the brakes working, and so on. It was being driven on the street as recently as 6 months ago, and it can be started and moved around now, so this project could be more hellish. Long-term, I'm thinking of building up a hairy 22R for it and installing a sturdier rear end… but first things first. Here's the first batch of photos, shot last night after the tow truck dropped it off in my back yard:

By the way, the guy who sold me the Sprite has quite a collection of Jalop-worthy machinery, so many that he can be forgiven for not finishing this project. How about an original 500-mile '61 Volvo Amazon wagon? Or a vintage-racer 1912 Model T? Perhaps a genuine crashed-in-the-original-series Dukes Of Hazzard '69 Charger, parked next to a cherry Stage 1 Buick GS, parked next to an IHC Scout? Yes, all those and much more, and I'll be posting some photos in the near future.

Send an email to Murilee Martin, the author of this post, at murilee@jalopnik.com.