Beschreibung:

Austin-Healey was a British sports car make and was established through a joint-venture arrangement, set up in 1952 between Leonard Lord of the Austin division of the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and the Donald Healey Motor Company, a renowned automotive engineering and design firm. Austin-Healey cars were produced until 1972 when the 20 year agreement between Healey and Austin came to an end. Donald Healey left the company in 1968 when British Motor Holdings (BMC had merged with Jaguar Cars in 1966 to form BMH) was merged into British Leyland. Healey joined Jensen Motors who had been making bodies for the 'Big Healeys' since their inception in 1952, and became their chairman in 1972. The Austin-Healey was developed by Donald Healey to be produced in-house by Healey's small car company in Warwick. Healey built a single 'Healey Hundred' for the 1952 London Motor Show, and the design impressed Leonard Lord so much that a deal was struck with Healey to build it in quantity at Austin's Longbridge factory. The car was renamed the Austin-Healey 100. The '100' name comes from Donald Healey, who selected the name from the car's ability to reach 100mph. The final '100' models, 1956's 'BN4' (2+2 seats) and 1958's 'BN6 (2 seats) were six-cylinder 100/6 cars. The cars used a tuned version of the BMC C-Series engine previously fitted to the Austin Westminster which at first produced 102bhp increasing to 117bhp in 1957 by fitting a revised manifold and cylinder head. The overdrive unit became an option rather than a standard fitting. In late 1957, production was transferred from Longbridge to the MG plant at Abingdon. The current vendor has owned this example since January 2003. A restoration project was carried out between 2000 and 2002 including sandblasting and treating the chassis. Invoices totaling £4,360.18 confirm the parts purchased from 7 th June 2000 through to 19 th September 2002. Supplied originally to Richard Bamford of Uttoxeter on 6 th June 1958, this much loved Austin-Healey has only had five owners in over 50 years. An original righthand drive UK car, with overdrive, original engine and tonneau cover. Supplied with a V5 document and a MoT test certificate valid until 10 th March 2012, this is an opportunity to purchase and enjoy a much loved British sports car.