*** For those of you who saw this listing a few days ago and wondered where it went, Ebay removed it  due to the internet link embedded.    I did not realize that was against Ebay policy.  My apologies to  you watchers.   This listing is almost the same except I had to rewrite the description from memory. ***

This is a 1957 Isetta cabriolet (convertible) 100% frame-off restoration done from 2005 thru 2008, and from Canada to Florida.  You can see from the pictures that is is a very nice car.  It runs and drives great..you can go around corners on two (or 1 ½) wheels if you want.   It cruises at 45-50 mph, maxes at 55, and gets 60+ mpg.  Clear Florida title.  I am very reluctantly selling it because we are moving to a colder climate where we need the garage for our (real) cars. 

The frame was sandblasted and painted with POR.  A professional body shop did the necessary work , including replacing the (overly thin) floor with new metal stamped like the original.   

The 1 cylinder 300cc engine, transmission, and master cylinder were rebuilt by Bill Rogers of Dillon, SC. Bill did a great job at a very reasonable,  price and also answered many other technical questions I had at the time.   The odo  shows 19796 miles, but only 400 or so of those are after the engine rebuild  three years ago.  The front shocks were rebuilt by Isetta John, the rear shocks are new  conventional units off-the-shelf. 

You can the chassis/engine being tested in one of the pictures before the body was installed. The quality of the resto should be obvious here.  Note: the plywood and duct tape is TEMPORARYJ

 The interior was completely redone by a local auto upholstery shop in period motif. The same shop also redid the canvas convertible back and sunroof top to replace the originals, which were in tatters.

Fatter Kumho tires were added to get a grip on the road. This required custom made spacers on the front axle to clear the shock towers.

All rubber, silentblocs, seals, gaskets, and bearings are new.  All control cables (speedo, clutch,etc)  are new.  Larger chrome parts were polished up and reused when possible even if they had some pits and missing chrome..this includes the nerf bars, grab bars, outside door handle, door hinges, inside mirror, ashtray,  and hub caps. Other larger brightwork had to be replaced..including the head/tail light rims, bumpers, outside mirror, and speedo rim.

The glass is original. ***there is a ¾ inch crack in the front windshield drivers side lower corner, which I put there when cleaning the curved windshield on a flat table and leaning too hard on it..before having it professionally installed.  Not one of my better moments.   I epoxied the crack, and between that and good moulding holding it in place, it hasn’t  worsened in the 2 years and 400 miles since. It is barely noticeable unless you are looking for it.

  The brakes got new linings and work well. Downshifting with this engine works even better…you almost don’t need the brakes.

The car was completely rewired using the original fuse blocks. A Nossa  electrical VR replaced the mechanical Bosch.

 Shortcomings on the car are:  the horn is miswired and goes off if connected.  I haven’t tried real hard to get the  windshield wipers to work.  And the ¾ inch crack in the windshield.  And the tiny turn direction lights on the dashboard refuse to work. Minor stuff.

This car was shown in a local meet and won its class and almost ‘Most Popular’, being beat out by a sublime ’54 Corvette.   There are a couple of pictures from that event.  I wanted to take it to the National Microcar meet in Madison, GA in 2009, and actually could have driven it 400 miles to do that, but family conflicts intervened.

The story behind this car is that my Dad drove a 1958 Isetta on a military base in the early ‘60’s when I was a kid.  He used to take my sister and our big black standard poodle for a ride, the dog would sit on the rear deck with her head and shoulders up through the sunroof. Must have been quite a sight.  I didn’t see another Isetta for 40 years until just two months after my dad had passed away. One zipped by in Canada, and I almost wrecked trying to watch it.  That reminded me of a long standing desire to restore and drive one in honor of my Dad.  This car is the result of that dream, and I am very proud of it.

I would like to see this car get a good home.