The Austin Healey 100-6 is one of those classic cars that while undoubtedly desirable, always seems to be lurking in barn find form somewhere, at any given time. It definitely seems to be on the leader board as a top 10 car most frequently discovered as a barn find project, and it always strikes me as odd given fully restored examples go for fairly strong money. The question is: is the Austin Healey going to survive the shifting demographics of older enthusiasts exiting the hobby, or will projects like this 1958 Austin Healey 100-6 BN4 listed here on Facebook Marketplace for $10,000 continue to become more affordable to buy?
Thanks to Barn Finds reader Zappenduster for the find. I still have the iconic scene from Father of the Bride II burned in my brain where Steve Martin’s character is this close to losing it and chooses to escape wedding preparation hell but ripping off to the grocery store in his Mark II Austin Healey 3000. It’s a fantastic scene showing us just how important a vehicle is as a means of escape. In the case of this 100-6, the only escaping it’s done at this point is moving out from underneath the storage racks that have been its home for many years. The good news is that the Big Healey has clearly remained dry and seemingly mostly rust-free.
The seller lists the Healey as being complete, but needing total restoration. The photos do show a fairly robust list of parts, ranging from body panels to mechanical bits, and the body parts appear to be in good shape. The engine in a 100-6 BN4 in 1958 should make around 117 b.h.p., and to this day, this engine generates one of my favorite sounds in a production vehicle. They sound absolutely lovely, deep and raspy, and if you had to bottle up the noise associated with a British roadster, this is it. Performance-wise, the 100-6 should be good for a run to 60 in about 10 seconds, a great number for the 1950s and still respectable today.
This Healey features the 2+2 seating configuration, and for a sports car, it pulls off the rear seat integration quite cleanly. One of the more encouraging signs is how clean the carpet remains, and the same goes for the seats. This tells me the Healey has been stored indoors for many years and was likely never allowed to rot outside; damage to the seats and carpeting would be obvious. The seller’s asking price may be reasonable for a very restorable car, but to my earlier point: as enthusiast vehicles from earlier eras begin to see some value fluctuation, will the Healey be one of those cars that withstands the test of time and is always desirable?
It’s in DeSoto,MO.
I had a ’59 100-6 that I paid $1000 for in 1975,which was a good
deal,even back then.The first car my (future) Wife & I went out in.It
also was a 4 seater.
I sold it to the son of one of the owners of Love-Thomas Motors
in Honolulu,Hawaii for $2800,thinking that I’d made a killing on the sale.
I’ve lost the paperwork that had the serial number on it,& wonder if it’s still around.
It was Red,with chrome disc wheels,& flat metal bumpers.
After the two ’55 100 fours I was headed toward trying to find a 100 6. Never got one as a ’57 Porsche 356 Cabriolet got in my way that I couldn’t refuse. That’s happened many times since including my present race car build. Too late to worry about the big Healeys but I do regret not finding one sooner as the prices of these cars have exploded way past my car budget. Based on what l’ve seen lately we need to start a “how crappy can you make your garage” competition.
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“Based on what l’ve seen lately we need to start a “how crappy can you make your garage” competition.”
Bob, if I could give 10 thumbs up on that one…… I would. You aint kiddin’….Good Grief….. I will score bonus points for making the most out of cubic feet of storage above the Austin Healy. I will say, it looks a little sketchy and I’m hoping someone sooner than later rescues this one before all that shleving collapses on it.
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Yes.. the center section looks like it is starting to sag! As a carpenter and a car restorer, I built a 2X frame around my finished Spridget project where space was at a premium in my garage. The items stored on top of it were most light items and cardboard. This set up looks to be a bit heavier. The owner should present the car a bit better if he want 10K for it. Those Big Healeys do have value for the right buyer. As with all British marques, the markets seem to be shrinking as our generation (older seniors) are leaving this earth plane!!
Tucked away in a garage gathering dust. Isn’t this where most of these end up?
The 2X4s through the engine compartment are weird but necessary.
At 58 and playing with old cars for 42 of those years, and British cars for 30 of that I’ve probably been doing this too long. I see stuff like this and just see how many hours and how much money it will take to get it to even a driver condition, let alone fully restored – which I’m not interested in doing anymore – and I think you’ve outpaced the market value which is destined to only get increasingly softer on this generation of cars over the next 10 years.
The Healeys are gorgeous cars, but you can spend $5-10K more and get a driver-quality TR3 or 4 in this market that has performance that is pretty close. I think you’d spend double that difference to just get it road-worthy.
If that were the case I’d rather spend $30K upfront on a big Healey that might be cosmetically tired, but mechanically sound that I could drive right away and slowly improve as funds and energy allow.
Too bad, but I believe someone will point up, probably not for 10K. These are unique, and I had the luck to care for a buddy 3000 for a year while he went overseas. I loved it, the sound, smell, and it was a blast to drive. Gotta watch the road holes, RR tracks, and anything else that was 4 to 5 inches above the road. However, I have passed on a 3000 for a 911 40 years ago, but do miss that one year. If things weren’t so damn expensive, a lot more folks would be considering this. I am not sure if the newer generations don’t like the 50’s and 60’s or just don’t have the bucks. I would guess they don’t have the bucks, just like many of us do. Too bad. It should sell for 7K.
I honestly know little about these things other than watching Dennis Collins from Collins brothers jeep in Texas snatch them up so if this was bidding in my barn I would dig it out clean it up then reach out to him and see if I could sell it and if not I would pay the $5 bucks to post it on Craigslist for a high price like this and see if someone bit.
I watched an interview where Dennis Collins, who owns/owned the GOLD Healey, said that he had owned at least 500 Austin Healey’s.