Nineteen fifty-four might as well be a different planet, as seen from 2021. When this car came off the production line, England was still firmly in black and white: Winston Churchill was in Downing Street, Frankie Laine was topping the hit parade and the term “British Empire” was still halfway relevant. But it’s a testament to Donald Healey’s skill that his little creation here seems just as exciting now as it did then. Which is more than can be said about Frankie Laine.
I lucked out big time when I saw this Austin-Healey pull up near the park where I was with my kid. It seemed like the car was going to stick around for a while. The guy who drove it met with a couple, and it looked like a sale was taking place. Hence, by hanging around a bit, I was able to ascertain the model year and able to photograph this beauty from several angles – and eventually with the top down, too. Jackpot!
Actually, “Jackpot” is probably the term that this car inspired to its creators, too. The Donald Healey Motor Company, created right after the Second World War, was the source of a bewildering amount of great sports cars. Some were made under Healey’s own name, but the bulk of models were hyphenated. In this category, Austin took centre stage with Healey in devising two ranges of British sports cars that made all concerned very wealthy indeed: Austin-Healey made boatloads of the diminutive Sprites throughout the ‘60s, but this legendary double-barreled marque started off making the more exclusive “Big Healeys” in the early ‘50s.
Donald Healey had an undeniable talent in finding ways to mix and match various mundane car parts and fashion them into an exciting sports chassis. This sometimes meant working with the Nash parts bin or using Riley (or even Alvis) 4-cyl. engines, but those experiments met with limited success. Healey finally honed in on the one British engine, and the one British carmaker, that had the gumption to take things to the next level.
At the Earl’s Court Motor Show, in October 1952, Healey exhibited the Hundred roadster. It had Austin running gear, but otherwise was completely unrelated to the Longbridge giant. Leonard Lord, Chairman of Austin since 1946, was very impressed. He had been trying to get Austin to make something a bit like this, basically trying to conquer foreign markets, since he took the helm. Hence the Austin A90 Atlantic and the A40 America, which unfortunately were both major sales duds.
But it wasn’t going to be a total loss. Healey found the A90’s massive 2660cc 4-cyl. engine was, despite its modest 90hp output, very interesting for at least three reasons. One was that, if it was put into a small and light enough car, the result could make for a decent enough performer. The other was that this oversized engine was pretty bulletproof – an important consideration, given the reputation of certain British manufacturers and Healey’s endurance racing ambitions.
The third reason for employing the big Austin 4-cyl. was roping in Leonard Lord. Healey knew that Austin was taking a bath with the Atlantic on the American market. The reason was that Austin foolishly tried to manufacture a pseudo American car size-wise, but used a big 4-cyl. to power it. Despite Austin’s aggressive promotion of the car in the States, only 350 units were sold there from 1949 to 1952. Americans did not need an American-sized car made by an English company. What they were prepared to consider was a British sports (or sports-luxury) car – the sort of thing Donald Healey could design in his sleep.
The Hundred’s technical aspects were not revolutionary. A sturdy box-section chassis with a short wheelbase and an X-frame, a coil-sprung double-wishbone independent front suspension, a live axle with semi-elliptic leaf springs and a Panhard rod in the back, all tempered by reasonably-sized hydraulic drum brakes. Chassis production was subcontracted to John Thompson in Wolverhampton; the all-metal roadster body would be made in West Bromwich by Jensen, who were already involved in both the Austin A40 America and some of Healey’s prior endeavours. Chassis and body met mechanicals at the Austin factory in Longbridge. Only a handful of prototype cars were ever made by Healey in Warwick, including a dozen LHD demonstrators sent across the Atlantic in early 1953, before the complex manufacturing process detailed above was up and running.
Taken together with the torque-rich A90 engine and mated to the standard-issue 3-speed + overdrive, the total was worth much more than the sum of its parts, thanks to Healey’s knack for getting the most out of every component and creating a cohesive ensemble. The final touch, and not the least, was the styling, credited to Gerry Croker (1922-2020), who also designed the Frogeye Sprite. With its sweetly flowing fender line and supremely elegant grille, the Healey Hundred was clearly going to appeal to anyone with eyesight – i.e. a surprisingly large proportion of the motoring masses.
All it needed was an appropriate price (US$ 3000 when launched in 1953) and it soon became a true success story. So much so that all partied involved – BMC, Healey and Jensen – kept the party going, with substantial detail changes (such as the engine) but essentially the same concept, for 15 years. Healey took a heavily modified “basically standard” Hundred to the Bonneville Salt Flats in 1954 and managed to push it perilously close to 200mph. But the real glory lay in the street-legal 100 M (110hp) and 100 S (132hp) versions, which looked like a production car, yet raced alongside Maseratis, Gordinis and Jaguars at Le Mans or Sebring.
The standard production car could pull off 100mph – the all-important “ton” – and go from 0 to 60mph in under 11 seconds, both which, though far from outstanding by the early ‘50s, was plenty for anything named Austin. Just under 15,000 of the 4-cyl. Austin-Healey 100s were made from 1953 to 1956 – an unqualified success.
The Big Healey then switched to a 2639cc 6-cyl. and got a new grille in the process. Production soon moved to the MG plant in Abingdon, before the engine grew to 2.9 litres in 1959. The car was rechristened Austin-Healey 3000 and gradually became ever more powerful – going up to 148hp by 1964, still popular thanks to lower prices right up to the end, in December 1967.
The later 6-cyl. Healeys are more powerful and offer additional creature comforts. For my money though, nothing beats the 4-cyl. cars, with that handsome fan-shaped grille. But all Austin-Healeys stand alongside the Jaguar XKs, the MGs A & B and Triumph TRs as the epitome of the post-war British roadster, serving Blighty’s insatiable need for other countries’ money by providing fun, style and value. For such was the order of the day, and such was service at Her Majesty’s pleasure.
Related posts:
Vintage SCI Review: 1957 Austin-Healey 100-6 – The Big Healey Gets a Six, by PN
Curbside Classic: 1960 Austin-Healey 3000 – The Most Classic British Roadster?, by Roger Carr
There are few things as right as a properly-styled English sports car of that period. If I had known of the early A-H fours I had forgotten about them. How fun this one must have been to circle and photograph.
I had two big Healey’s, a red 1955 100S, and a silver-blue 1965 3000 convertible (real glass windows) plus a baby blue 1961 Bugeye Sprite. The ’55 and ’61 were like new cond, the ’65 was new, a replacement for the ’55 after a Polara police car hit and totaled the aluminium Healey, a year later a ’58 Buick Century hit, and parked atop the ’65, destroying it, I switched to a 1957 Lincoln Premiere, several years later I bought the Buick. There was much more, but until my eye surgery can’t focus long on the keyboard(or4 anything else). Still , this brought back my youth and a flood of memories. inc pics of the sprite (also my ’64 Imperial conv the day i got it, and my ’61 Electra conv), don’t have othres loaded.
totaled the aluminium Healey
The Healeys had steel bodies, not aluminum. As a body man, I would assume you’d know that.
At least on the 3000 – some parts were aluminum, some parts were steel – at least the way I recall it.
I think the basic body was aluminum and the bolt on parts were steel.
See my comment below. Steel body with two minor aluminum valance panels.
The front and rear valance panels were aluminum. That’s a very small fraction of the total body. Factory rally cars had some other aluminum panels, like front fenders and hoods.
The 100S was a lightweight Healey built car, with aluminium body according to my memory – and Wiki agrees.
Fifty or so built, lots of mechanical upgrades for competition, and sexier looking grill !
Aha! I failed to note that he said he had a 100S. Of course he would, given that they were competition cars and extremely rare. I say that because unfortunately this commenter has a long track record of exaggerations about his cars. So take his claims with a grain of salt. Note that there’s no picture of it, just the humble Sprite.
But PN, he’s also put up a bunch of stuff that’s been credible and certainly interesting (same sort of polaroid-type pics of 300’s, etc). Also recall, if vaguely, that he made Chryco perfomance claims here that were dissed but which he backed up unaggressively, aggro often being the sign of the net liar. Firmly reckon it’d be worthwhile contacting him (unsure if commenters emails show up at your end) and finding out some more. Might be quite some tales there.
Alternatively, if you read this LRF, contact Paul at the email!
Justy: which is why I approached him about doing a COAL a few years back. But before I committed to that I vetted him, going back over many of his comments. I found a number of serious discrepancies which could not be explained.
How does a car detailer (which is what his business was) buy literally hundreds of exotic cars within just a few short years? He would have had to practically live at the DMV. Insurance on them all? I could go on.
He apparently detailed cars for some wealthy owner(s) of exotics, but it seems that at times the difference between detailing them and perhaps driving them has become conflated with actually owning them.
And then there are the uttery impossible stories like the one where he needed to clear his head and drove his ’63 Buick at 130 mph in every one of the 48 contiguous states. Within two weeks. Of course he did! More like a long drive though the California desert, or maybe Nevada.
I have spent way too much time vetting him, and invariably discrepancies come up, even regarding his life history, marriage, kids, etc.. How can one forget how many kids you’ve had?
I cannot turn COAL into a fiction series, unless it’s clearly stated as such. That’s happened on a smaller scale before here, and I still get comments proving that the story/stories were fiction.
Anyway, it’s a moot point because serious medical issue with his eyes wouldn’t make it possible.
Ah, I see. Thanks for that, Paul. I surely can’t have been the only CC-er to have been most curious about his comments and pics over time!
The old rule, I guess – too good to be true is usually just that. A pity.
the 100s was aluminum body, hood strap, 4 wheel disc, hotter engine, chrome wires. the aluminum crumpled far worse.
A 3000 has been on my dream car list forever, although I doubt I’ll ever own one. Just looking at the “faces” on these A-Hs reminds me of a happy puppy wanting to go out and play.
We had a 3000. BRG paint. Was hopeful I’d get to buy that from my father one day but he got the itch for something else and sold it while I was away in the military. Ugh!
It’s wonderful with an excellent color combination. It always cracks me up though to see a car that would have been right hand drive in its original design state be sold in a left hand drive country and properly equipped for such, only to years later end up in yet another right hand drive country.
Like all British sports cars from that time, the overwhelming majority went to the US. But you knew that…
The standard production car could pull off 100mph – the all-important “ton” – and go from 0 to 60mph in under 11 seconds, both which, though far from outstanding by the early ‘50s
“Far from outstanding” in what context? That 0-60 time is the same or better than the 33% more expensive Jaguar XK-120 roadster. For the early ’50s, the A-H’s performance was certainly excellent. In our recent batch of vintage reviews of sports cars from 1955, hardly any could better that 0-60 time, and many cost more.
Beautiful car! The 100s are easily my favorite Big Healeys. The final 3000s seem like they’re the most popular, or at least the most expensive, but every advancement they made (such as roll-up windows) took away a little of the charm for me.
Probably depends on where a person lives. The 100 might be fun in southern CA but rollup windows, good wipers and good heat was welcome in my part of the country.
Also, the four speed overdrive was welcome on the interstate. There was a switch on the dash for overdrive.
Now I really miss that old car!
Lovely piece, Professor T87, on what looks like a spectacular example.
Normally, I prefer the styling of the 3000 to the fan shaped grille, but maybe because this one is in Tokyo (?) that fan shaped grille fits. Great colour scheme, too, that shows off the real fender/wing profile well.
Was he selling it to you? I bet he could have!
I feel like I’m getting an overdose of T87 this week – and loving it! Sure hope you can keep this up.
A few minor Austin-type corrections if I may. The A90 Atlantic was styled to look like an American car but it was considerably smaller, with only a 96″ wheelbase (!) and less than 15 feet long. No wonder the proportions were a little challenging. Yet it cost much the same as a Buick – what could go wrong there? Ha! And the A40 that was selling up a (relative) storm at the time were the Devon and Dorset models. At least that one brought home plenty of foreign currency; but mostly from Australia and NZ though.
CC-in-scale doesn’t have a Hundred (magnificent name for the era, that!), but I built this 100/Six last year.
Very interesting slanted door cut lines.
That should cause the door to swing up a bit and clear taller curbs. Could also slant the door inward when open and shield door interior trim from rain (less important in a convertible, but useful if the rag top is up …)
An absurdly nice example to be casually on the street, not to mention on a crossing!
An acquaintance turned a literal pile of rust into a concours-standard machine years ago, (in his garage in spare time, as you do), then drove it as daily. It could move! All torque, and no weight on, as they say.
A bit of trivia. The box is actually a four speed, but first is blanked off. I think it was because it wasn’t trusted (or built) to withstand the wheelspin starts a sporty owner might impose upon it.
Is that a feature of a 100 b/c the 3000 had four speeds and electric overdrive.
Yes. The transmission in the 100 was designed for heavy sedans, and thus had a very low first gear, making it unsuitable for the light but powerful Healey. The 3000 had a different gearbox with suitable ratios.
The one positive about the 100’s transmission is that it was fully synchronized, at a time when essentially all transmission still had a non-synchro first gear.
Thanks. Never been up close to a 100. Our 3000 did not have a synchronized first. I teased my father about his “fancy sports car” lacking a synchronized first when my lowly Beetle two years older did.
A little further research shows that only the BN1 (1952-1955) had the three-speed transmission, modified so that the original first was unusable. The BN2 (1955) and later 100s all had a four speed transmission, presumable the same basic box with better spaced gears, although I’m not certain.
And apparently the 3000’s first gear was still so low that many owners regularly start in second gear, which is also easier to engage due to being synchronized. But these gearboxes were never a joy to operate.
“So much so that all partied involved”
Or “all involved partied”
I dont know how well writing this will go with eyes, have tried beefore to you but gave up, waiting surgey. I had separate auto restoration and detail shops, handling every new/used deler in area as well as private. i had over 1000 cars, over 59 years and still byuing, not few years. i picked up special cars for customers from around us and broughy back. Doc and i became tight friends, he often was out of US, had me live at his estate, care for Wolfhounds and take care of 30 car collection, to drive as my own. Needed to ‘clear my head after my fiancee did suicide, trip took 10 1/2 months thru 48 US part Mex and Canada and often ran 100-130 mph engine is 425 built at friends speed shop, even ran nitrous for while, but cracked pistons, hot enouht without it. ALL MY CURRENT cars are pumped. Imperial isn’t done, too much power, have blown 8 diffs, need special build . Had a common law open marriaghr, kept thinking 47 years, son Nate pointed out 53 my 1st son died from m/c wreck, before Nate was born from another woman, he doesnt ride, knows if hr goes i go. had hoped could write flly, btw, I had the cars I DID BECAUSE I sought them out, Chico is still a good place t8 get rare cars, Nates gone through 60+ collecter caes alresdy. trying to go through thousands of pix of my dars but frusterating becaysew of eyes, lost some in Paradise fire at Nates.I can verify things ive done but dont need to, my friends knoe them.