Donald Healey and Healey (GB) - 1946>1954

ONALD EALEY AND EALEY

Donald Mitchell Healey CBE, born on 3 July 1898 in Cornwall, was a noted English car designer, rally driver and speed record holder. Prior to forming the Donald Healey Motor Company in 1945 with Achille Sampietro and Ben Bowden, he sold his garage and car hire business and worked for the Triumph Motor Company as an experimental manager. He became technical director and was responsible for the design of all Triumph cars, creating the Triumph Southern Cross and then the Triumph Dolomite 8 straight eight sports car. When Triumph went into liquidation in 1939 he became works manager for H M Hobson, making aircraft engine carburettors for the Ministry of Supply. After the war, Donald Healey’s first production of a Healey used a welded-up chassis and trailing-arm type Triumph Dolomite independent front suspension with power being provided by the well-tried 2.4-litre 4-cylinder ohv Riley engine. At the time of its introduction it was the world’s fastest series-production saloon (104.7mph for the flying-start mile) and cost £1,598. This model was made in small numbers until 1954. Later versions included the lightweight high-performance Silverstone two-seater and some roomier saloons and convertibles by Tickford.

Silverstone Tickford 2-door saloon

The Silverstone was so successful that it led to an agreement with an American company Nash Motors to build Nash-engined Healey sports cars. A 1950 exportonly version for sale by Nash used that firm’s Ambassador 3.8-litre ohv 6-cylinder engine. Only 506 were sold. A home-market version of the car used the 3-litre Alvis power unit. Up until the early 1950’s the Healey’s had all been expensive. Donald Healey wanted to produce a comparatively inexpensive sports car with 100 mph performance seeking to reach a wider market with a 2.7-litre Austin-engined sports

two-seater, manufacture of which was taken over by Austin. The Morris-Austin merger had brought on BMC’s decision to phase out the (Morris) Riley unit. Healey’s new factory, Caper Works, could not supply the demand, so instead Austin-Healey’s were manufactured under a licensing arrangement by British Motor Corporation at their Longbridge works. A total of 74,000 Austin Healey 100s were built, of which more than 80% were exported. At that time Nash and Austin were working together on a project which became their Metropolitan. 1955 Austin-Healey 100M With the delivery of the last Nash-Healey’s in August 1954, production at Warwick came to an end. Donald Healey formed a design consultancy in 1955. One of the results was the Austin-Healey Sprite which went into production in 1958. The production arrangement with BMC ended in 1967 and in 1970 Donald Healey became chairman of Jensen Motors with the enthusiastic backing of key US based Austin-Healey distributors. This was a long and fruitful relationship for Healey, in part because Jensen had been making body shells for Austin-Healey since the 1952 demise of the similar Austin A40 Sports. Healey’s first project with a Jensen was reengineering the Jensen 541S with a V8 engine in 1961, the resulting car being a personal favourite of Healey’s. Ten years later Healey helped design the Lotus engined Jensen-Healey together with Lagonda designer William Towns, to replace the Austin-Healey which BMC were discontinuing. He designed the new Jensen-Healey using Vauxhall running gear and prototyped it using Vauxhall and Ford engines, which both had insufficient power and did not fit the sloping bonnet - nor did they comply with the emission standards set in place in USA. Ultimately he settled on the all-aluminum 4-valve, twin overhead cam Lotus 907. Jensen-Healey 1972-1976 Donald Healey died in Cornwall in January 1988.

FROM:THECOMPLETEENCYCLOPEDIA OFMOTORCARS1885TO THEPRESENT (THIRDEDITION PUBLISHED1985) AND WIKIPEDIA