Price reduced! $59,995
This car was owned by one of our clients for the past year and he is ready for a change so we have this wonderful car available for sale once again! He hired us to make a few big changes last year before delivery, for example, the owner had us change the seat color to black leather with red piping (and also replace all the foam and seat bases) and also invested in new rear shocks and dog bones and an aluminum radiator to improve cooling as well as a new battery. Those are sweet upgrades for any big Healey (from exactly one year ago). We also adjusted the valves.
You can see the new interior color in the photo gallery. The tan seats and tan panels shown in the photo below are no more! Underside pictures are new. And the underside is quite nice!
This is BN1L156795, a 1954 Austin Healey 100 with M features installed like the louvered hood, leather strap and 100M airbox. I like the early BN1s because the rear fenders do not have the reflector pods (that came along with BN2s), so you have a cleaner rear-end. If you are unfamiliar with these striking cars, the windshield folds down to the speed position shown below, which is the way you attract maximum attention and/or stand-out at cars and coffee. As the cute girl in the Jeep yelled as she passed just after I folded the windscreen for these pictures, “that thing is FIRE!”
I have owned many Healey 100s, and I bought this one because it is stunning. These cars are frequently requested by our customers so I am sure this one will be popular because it’s a striking restoration. She was restored in 2014 in California and done nicely. The car drives wonderfully, as you can see below in the video drive at the top of the listing. We also have a NEW walkaround tour available below!
Unique to this car is the Toyota five speed transmission conversion. This is courtesy of a company called “Smitty’s” and this is a popular conversion for big Healeys, and one we have also used in TR3s in the past.
If you’re a purist, it’s an insult to have this gearbox installed in your handsome piece of classic machinery but from my perspective (as a drivability specialist), this is one of the greatest assets that any British car can have. The original BN1 transmission was a three speed oddity borrowed from a column shift Austin with a wacky shift pattern on the floor that was difficult for most people who are not driving classic British cars each and every day. First gear is located where fourth is and second where first would normally be on a traditional H pattern. There’s nothing wrong with that… I’ve owned that gearbox in my personal BN1 and there’s something quite charming about it… but they’re usually worn and they’re expensive to rebuild and they don’t downshift very quickly because of aging synchronizers.
That gearbox is paired traditionally with an electric overdrive unit (that has more parts than the entire car) and those two can be finicky and require expensive service when they don’t work. So enter the Toyota gearbox conversion, which is basically bulletproof and buttery smooth 100% of the time… anyone can drive it without fear of destroying expensive equipment and it will outlive all of us. Smittys has been making these available for years and it’s a time-tested conversion that really an asset to the car so perhaps you’re a purist who really wants the original gearbox set-up but if you want to drive your car, this is one of the greatest features we can offer. Perhaps we have a unique perspective given that we’ve done dozens of five speed conversions on Sprites, but I believe that if you like Healey 100s (like me), you’ll love this gearbox too.
This gearbox has a basic H pattern with a fifth gear over to the right and forward. The gearbox is fully synchronized. You can shift into first gear without worrying about wearing an ancient gearbox, and that is somewhat liberating and makes driving more fun.
This Healey 100 has many M features installed, including the louvered hood, leather bonnet strap, and cold air box for the carburetors. A spin-on oil filter kit was added during the restoration. We just rebuilt the carbs and replaced all the gaskets and removed the air box to do so, and to tune the carbs so it is off for the pictures above. We’ll have it on for you next week.
Also included with this car are a very nice black convertible top with the correct soft side curtains, which are new, and a very nice red tonneau cover.
Also installed is a 5 blade upgrade engine fan for better cooling.
Feel free to call if you want to discuss Big Healeys, and this wonderful car which drives great!
Note… this car was never in Colorado, the Hundred license plate on the front bumper is from our private collection, and used for photos only. It does not come with the car.
Also, please note, the car has a black interior now, and any pictures shown in the gallery with tan seats are older pictures before we changed the interior to black. They remain in the gallery just so you can see more angles of the exterior of the car.
