1954 Austin-Healey 100/4 BN1 Roadster

Description

Donald Healey conceived the 'Healey Hundred', as it was initially known, as a sports car that would fill a gap in the marketplace between the MG and the more expensive Jaguar XK. With stunning roadster bodywork styled by Gerry Coker, the new car had a sensational debut at the 1952 Earls Court Motor Show and orders quickly flooded in. Healey quickly joined forces with the might of Austin to build the newly renamed Austin-Healey, the first pre-production cars leaving the Warwick factory between January and March 1953 before production moved to Longbridge. The earliest BN1 Austin-Healey 100s built from March 1953 until 1955 are regarded as the purest expression of the form, combining the rugged Austin A90 big 'four' with the three-speed (plus overdrive) gearbox lifted from the A70. Developing a very healthy 90 horsepower at 4,000 rpm, the 2660cc motor had twin SU H4 carburettors. Suspension was independent at the front, with coil springs, wishbones, lever-arm dampers and an anti-roll bar while a live rear axle, with semi-elliptic springs, a Panhard rod and lever-arm dampers took care of the rear. The vast majority of the 10,030 BN1 Austin-Healeys made were exported, predominantly to the United States, and a great many ended up being raced around the world, from low level club and SCCA races through to major endurance events like Sebring and Le Mans. A modified BN1 even set International Class D speed records at the Bonneville Salt Flats in 1954. The first of the so-called Big Healeys, the BN1 built a platform for the various four and six-cylinder derivatives that followed, Coker's basic shape enduring well into the 1960s. Austin-Healeys remain popular with collectors and enthusiasts to the present day, with a thriving club scene and are well catered for by numerous events throughout Australia.