1952 Nash Healey Roadster Roadster Sports Convertible

Transatlantic travel once took a leisurely week, quite quaint by our standards. Yet it was a time when friendships were formed, romances bloomed and business deals were often sealed. If not for a serendipitous 1949 voyage on the Queen Elizabeth, the Nash-Healey might never have existed. Donald Healey was returning home after a failed attempt to buy Cadillac engines for his new sports car. George Mason, president of Nash-Kelvinator was also on board. Over dinner Mason told Healey he'd be interested in a partnership as a sports car connection which would help improve Nash's image. General Motors loss was Nash's gain and soon Nash drivetrains were enroute to England, destined for Healey's new sports car.

Healey's British works began building Nash-powered prototypes that began mixing it up on race circuits from LeMans to Mille Miglia. An aluminum-bodied Nash-Healey finished third overall at LeMans against a grid that included Talbot-Lago, Ferrari, Jaguar XK120, Aston Martin and Allard. That podium finish on the world's biggest stage gave the marque much-needed credibility. Beginning in 1952 Pininfarina created the hand-formed steel bodies, complete with aluminum hoods and trunks, or bonnets as some might say. The Nash-Healey actually beat the Corvette to market, establishing their claim as America's first production sports car.

This car was the last 1952 model produced. The current owner purchased it from the estate of an American Motors executive who had replaced the in-line six with a 1957 Nash Ambassador 327 V8, later modified to compete in sports car racing.