BRITISH BRILLIANCE: What a classic sports car should look like
June 15, 2018
Posted by Barrett-Jackson
Written by independent automotive journalist Roger C. Johnson
This “Big Healey” – a 1964 Austin-Healey 3000 Mark III BJ8 Roadster (Lot #657) – will be among the stars of the 2018 Northeast Auction.
The Austin-Healey 3000 was, and still is, one of the coolest early sports cars ever produced for the general public. It offered body lines and proportions that still resonate to all with an eye for these early roadsters. Park one next to a modern-day Miata and see which car attracts the crowd, or you.
The so-called “Big Healey” owns the classic long hood and inline-six configuration, and it represents a purity of design rarely seen in today’s cars. The Healey puts its graceful and aggressive image in the hands of an over-engineered frame and rock-solid engine design, so it’s beautiful and tough all at the same time.
Disc brakes up front and large rear drums give this 2,400-pound sports car all the stopping power it needs to keep you in blissful control when driving in a “sporting” manner. The factory’s extensive use of aluminum body panels keeps the overall weight of the Healey 3000 rather light, despite its heavy-duty frame and cast-iron engine.
Carroll Shelby himself considered using the Healey 3000 for his personal experiment with the small-block Ford. Hundreds of American hot-rodders have stuffed their own American V8s between the fenders of the Big Healey because there was plenty of room for them.
This 1964 Mark III (Lot #657), which will be crossing the block at the 2018 Barrett-Jackson Northeast Auction at No Reserve, has received a professional restoration and then repainted California Sage, with detailed documentation to support the entire process.
A stout three-liter inline-six provides the power to make this a true sports car in the classic sense. A four-speed transmission with an overdrive adds modern convenience to this period-correct Austin-Healey. An elegant walnut burl dashboard shows off an array of stylish analog gauges. No digital read-out instruments need apply. An adjustable steering wheel allows for your favorite driving position. This was all the technology any of us needed or expected back then.
The seats, door and kick panels are upholstered in “oyster” leather. The carpet is wool and virtually the same color, creating a much plusher interior environment than one might expect. A canvas soft-top with rollup windows and a heater make this car an all-season driver. It wears its chrome wire wheels and knockoffs like the classic English roadster it is.
If you’re here because of all those stories you remember hearing about from the old days of sports cars, there is only one way to truly experience what all the fuss is about. And you can’t even come close to it with a modern version of a two-seater sports car. But this particular Healey 3000 can show you everything you missed at any time, and on any road, you like.
For up-to-date information on this vehicle, click HERE.