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The seller of this big Healey claims it is all original, right down to that bright red paint! I sure hope they are right, because this this is beautiful. If it turns out to truly be all original, it is likely one of the cleanest original 100-4s BN2 out there. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing quite a few of these in person and I’m always impressed with how elegant they look! I’m not sure if this one is as original as the seller states, I see at least one spot that looks repainted, but I’m sure a closer inspection would reveal more details! Find this garage find here on eBay in Pleasanton, California. If I were closer, I’d take a look at it simply to see Donald Healey’s signature in the owner’s manual!
100% original paint? Go on, pull the other one.
60 year old Lucas wiring system? Register the other one pulled Red ;-)
Always garaged….After frame off restoration.
Is the frame supposed to be red.
I’m thinking the carpets and upholstery are not original. Pretty sure all red Healey seats had white piping, and the carpet just doesn’t look “right.”
But I don’t care. I’m in love!
The seats appear to be original, on the red Austin-Healeys, they did not have white piping. The carpet is definitely replacement as the original were not bound as these are.
I’m thinking I should start a business.
“Do you own a sports car or collector car you don’t want to drive? Don’t let it just sit and rot. Give me a call and listen to your car singing down your drive way as I drive it just enough to keep it in tip top condition.”
I did a similar thing many years ago college-ish years in the late 80s. I had a friend who was a collector of old BMWs – 3.0 Coupes, 2002 tii’s (one Turbo model), a 62 Pontiac Grand Prix tri power, 4 spd. Etc. He paid me to keep the “fleet” clean, drive them a little, help him move them around among different sellers, etc. It was fun.
I always loved the BN2 version of the 100/4 The difference is the earlier 100/4 called the BN1 was a 3 speed with an overdrive. The BN2 has a 4 speed with overdrive. Big difference when driving them.
Mike B
1959 AH 3000 BT7
Beautiful! I’m signing up with this comment to read any future comments about this.
Not to be picky but if ALL original it would have the 1956 California yellow plates with black letters, not the mid-70’s blue plates with yellow letters. Mid-70’s likely when it was put back on the road by a new owner? The engine compartment has been carefully repainted and detailed, as have the wheels. The 57k mileage advertised may be missing a 1 or a 2. Still, a really NICE Healey. it will bring all the money.
Check out the photos, the car comes with one of its original yellow and black plates “DZV 295” and both of its original black and yellow plates “MCF 403”. My BN1 has the CA blue and yellow “HEALEY” vanity plate and its original black and yellow plates.
I like your “drive your car” idea Van. Maybe extend it to muscle cars- “listen to me turn your cul-de-sac into a quarter mile drag strip for the afternoon- let me get your car limbered up for winter storage…”
@Rando: I’ve posted here before – I wonder how many 1962 Pontiac Grand Prix, with 4/spd were made? I’ve searched but can’t find the answer!
I had one in High School, Same year. I remember how hot the cockpit got even in NH spring and fall. Drove it until I spun a bearing and could not find another bearing anywhere. A friend had a Hi Po 289 motor that would fit, which he offered to me for $200 and I turned him down. I’m still kicking myself for that.
I think if I race a customer car the venture would end.
I do push even car I own but I leave the racing to the guys with the money to rebuild.
Granted Jules D-type is a spec racer like the factory 5 racer, it will see Road Atlanta a few times.
Trunk floor is a replacement, look at the trailing edge.. floor pans are repro also. She is a repaint all over. Bottom of front wings look a little peckish. Piping on seats, not sure but definitely wrong clamps on the hoses etc., etc, it will be a project to bring this up to muster. Stainless muffler is not original. Hardly “all original” IMHO.
But it is a Healy…
No, trunk floor is not a replacement, as it still has remnants of the original undercoating on the bottom. Floors pans also appear to be original, it’s just a very rust free car. I know, I have a California BN1 that is virtually rust free and my floor bottoms look like these. Very well may be original paint as there are obvious rust bubbles in the lower rockers and dents in the body, plus a lot of other tell tale details, however someone has polished and buffed the paint. AH Chassis were all painted body color except for the first 600+ BN1s which were black. The chrome has been either cleaned and polished or some of it re-chromed, and the rubber replaced or conditioned.
A BN1/2 with red seats would have had red piping, the same with green seats… green piping, and black seats on white cars had black piping. Black seats on red cars had contrasting red piping and blue seats had contrasting white piping. Contrasting white piping on red seats is totally incorrect.
SS silencer is an obvious replacement as well as the petrol tank and the carpet, which is definitely not the original Kar-vel. Still curious about the seats as they appear to be very worn but I suspect that these may have been recovered in the past.
Curt – Chairman AH Concours Registry, Carlsbad, CA, ’55 BN1, ’60 AN5 :{)
Hell of a lot for a non-original car.
After 57K miles the carpets have zero wear even where the heel of your foot digs into them as you drive? Not likely. All 4 wheelwells are perfect and have zero chips in the red paint? Not likely. They have obviously been recently repainted. And the radiator top has new paint. It makes me wonder what other areas have been reconditioned after 57K miles and 60 years in the California sun.
It’s a very nice but not totally original 1956 Healey, and it deserves a good price if it runs well. But the hard sell in this Ebay listing isn’t doing the car any favors.
It would be interesting to run it through a rigorous Healey meet concours and get opinions, then sell it at a high end auction and see how it does there. I think it’s worth a good price, but the hard sell in this ad would not help part me from my money for the car.
The red undercarriage and overspray on at least two of the brake drums don’t exactly sceam all original either. I remember the perfect red/white 100M on a lot in Santa Barbara in the early 60’s for $1,500.00 that I didn’t buy even though they offerred to give me a thousand for my 57 VW. My god, what an idiot. The complaint with Healys back then was that they had very irritating understeer and felt front-heavy compared to a Porsche. Duh.
On Austin-Healey the frame and undercarriage is supposed to be painted body colour, so that is correct.
The red undercarriage is totally correct. That’s not over spray on the brake drums but rather a red reflection of the paint on the silver drums. Actually a pretty original car except for the new exhaust system, new petrol tank, replacement carpet and some touch up painting and chrome work.
I’ve seen several other BN1 survivors in similar condition but they are very rare, and AH 100s are fragile cars that don’t hold up well over time and most were subject to quite a bit of abuse.
Curt – Chairman AH Concours Registry, Carlsbad, CA, ’55 BN1, ’60 AN5 :{)
Had two BN1s. Both were red and the undercarriages were the red car color. Have never seen original seats with the piping the same color. Am a member of the Austin Healey Club of America. They publish a monthly magazine that just recently chronicled the interiors of the big Healeys. Not one came out with one color seats. That said, they were a blast to drive!
Had a silver 3000 circa early 70’s . Just about as cool as a car could be, with maybe the exception of my feet roasting on the hot floorboards, a characteristic. In Central Oregon (Bend) , it gets COLD, so I’d drive to work at Sun River Resort all bundled up and about a block away, I’d stash the winter gear, don a leather coat, British tweed Ivy cap, wrap a matching scarf around my neck and tool into work with my head up and my arms outstretched like Sterling Moss. It was all in the image you know, which is why I put up with Lucas positive ground electrics. It was worth it. :-) Terry J
I’m not sure what all original means in this case, but I suspect it means its never had a body off restoration or new panels etc. I think most of this car is original, certainly the underside looks correct and should be red, it looks like it would be if the car had only been used as a weekend driver and always garaged.
The seats are the correct colour. All Healey 100s whether in Carmine Red or Reno Red had red seats with red piping. These seats are correct. The armacord in the trunk and the spare wheel cover look original and it appears to have an unused Dunlop Sport cross ply spare tyre.
Are they wrinkled from the factory where the rear panel is riveted to the trunk floor? I have been restoring a BT7 and it did not look like that… look closely before you open your wallet on that one. And the wheel arches in front look incomplete. perhaps the early ones did not have the forward panels the BT7 have. Does not look right to me, but you healey experts can clarify that for me.