PHILADELPHIA -- A man has found his beloved 1967 Austin Healey 3000 after thieves stole it 42 years ago.

Bob Russell, 66, was a graduate at Temple University in Philadelphia and used the classic cream-coloured British racing car to woo his wife Cynthia who was also a student there.

The car, which Mr Russell paid $3000 for but could be worth up over $50,000 today, was stolen from a parking lot the morning after their second date.

Mr. Russell, a retired sales manager from Texas, spent years surfing the internet looking for his car and eyeing similar Healeys on the road.

Still, he didn't hold out much hope of ever finding the vehicle, which he bought from a friend in 1968.

'The fact that the car [could still exist was] improbable,' he said. ''It could have been junked or wrecked.'' However, a dogged search over the decades came up with a victory when Mr Russell spied the car for sale on eBay.

KSEE