1958 Austin-Healey Sprite

Austin-Healey introduced the Sprite Roadster in 1958. This new vehicle had a new, cheerful design and rested on a small footprint measuring 80-inches and having a length of just 132.6-inches. It soon received the nickname 'Bugeye' Sprite by the United States and 'Frogeye' in Britain due to its protruding headlamps atop of the hood. Powering the car was an overhead-valve four-cylinder BMC A-Series engine that offered 42 horsepower and 52 foot-lbs of torque. With an overall weight of just 1300 pounds, the BMC engine gave the vehicle a sporty persona with top speed achieved at 83 mph. Zero-to-sixty was in the neighborhood of 20 seconds.

The Sprite had a small oval grille in the front with a crosshatch mesh on the inside. The grille was surrounded by bright molding and just above it was a round emblem.

The interior was minimalistic, featuring leather upholstery and a leather-covered dashboard. The car had no external trunk access. The seats folded down allowing access to the storage space. To get to the engine, the entire front end hinged upwards.

Around 5,446 Austin-Healeys were exported to the United States in 1958. During the production run of the Sprite, lasting from 1958 to 1971, a total of 129,354 examples were produced.

by Daniel Vaughan | Jul 2011