1953 Austin-Healey 100

Donald Mitchell Healey was born in 1898 and during World War I, he was a pilot in the Royal Flying Corps. When peacetime resumed, he opened a repair shop in his garage in Cornwall. Successful rallying campaigns led to a role with Riley. In 1931, he drove an Invicta S-Type Low Chassis Tourer to victory in the Monte Carlo Rally. Two years later, he moved to Triumph as Development Engineer and later Technical Director.

After World War II, Donald Healey became a sports car designer and manufacturer that ultimately achieved international racing success on the world's most grueling and memorable circuits, and his cars would achieve multiple titles as a speed and endurance record-breaker.

The Healey 100 was initially intended as a limited-production sports car that offered high performance at a low cost with many of its components sourced from the Austin A90 Atlantic saloon. The Atlantic's 2,660cc four-cylinder engine offered 90 horsepower and gave the lightweight Healey a 100 mph-plus top speed and zero-to-sixty mph in under 11 seconds. Aimed specifically at the U.S. market, its international debut took place in 1952 at the Earls Court Motor Show in London. They were later rebadged as the 'Austin-Healey 100' after Austin boss Leonard Lord negotiated the rights to the design with Mr. Healey on the launch day.

In keeping with Mr. Healey's passion for motorsports, the agreement between Mr. Lord and Mr. Healey specified support for competition. This led to two lightly tuned Special Test Cars prepared for the 1953 Le Mans 24 Hour Race resulting in 12th and 14th overall finishes by Becquart/Wilkins and Gastonides/Lockett. Later, a team of drivers led by Donald Healey and George Eyston set numerous international and national AAA speed records at Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats driving stock and modified versions of the 100. Among the accolades were a maximum speed of 142.626 mph and 1,000 kilometers at 127.00 mph achieved by the modified 100. Additionally, an AAA-selected stock, 'off the showroom floor' 100 averaged 104.3 mph over 24 hours.

The frame of the Austin-Healey 100 was comprised of a pair of steel rails that traversed the length of the chassis about 17 inches apart. It passed beneath the live rear axle and below the front lower wishbones. The body (built by Jensen Motors) was formed from alloy and steel and mounted to the frame using brackets that extended outward from the main rails. One of its endearing features was the lay-down windscreen that gave it a streamlined appearance and helped increase its top speed. Girling 11-inch drum brakes provided the stopping power. The suspension was comprised of modified Austin A90 components, with the front being independent and the rear using double wishbones with coil springs, semi-elliptic leaf springs, and a rigid axle. The steering was by Austin's worm and peg system. The long-stroke four-cylinder, 2660cc engine offered 90 horsepower at 4,000 RPM and 144 foot-pounds of torque at 2,000 RPM. It delivered high levels of torque at low engine speeds, greatly enhancing its sporty persona. The engine was backed by a three-speed manual transmission with floor shift controls, with a Laycock de Normanville overdrive on second and third gears. In high overdrive, the top speed was approximately 110 mph. The contemporary MG TD offered 54 horsepower and 64 ft-lbs of torque, meaning the Austin-Healey 100/4 delivered two-thirds more power and over twice as much torque.

Production quickly reached a rate of 100 cars per week, with most being sent to the American market, where its price positioned them above the Triumph TR2 and below the Jaguar XK120 and XK140 models. Over 14,500 examples of the Austin-Healey 100s were built in two series from 1953 to 1956 before the four-cylinder engines were succeeded by the six-cylinder 100/6 series. 10,030 examples of the BN1 were built from May 1953 until August of 1955 when they were replaced by the BN2.

Improvements to the BN2 included a real four-speed manual transmission with overdrive on the top two gears. They had slightly larger front wheel arches, optional two-tone paint, and different rear axle.

A total of 4,604 examples of the BN2 were built with production ending in July of 1956. A high-performance version called the 100M was introduced in 1955, bringing with it a larger carburetor, a cold air box, a high-lift camshaft, and 8.1:1 compression pistons. The 100S (for Sebring) were aluminum-bodied examples that were built primarily for racing.

by Daniel Vaughan | Aug 2020