Fantasy Junction

Description

1956 Austin Healey 100-4 BN2
s/n BN2L231348, Engine no. LEA231348M
White with Black coves and Black Interior

The Austin-Healey 100-4 is in many ways the quintessential British sports car. Fitted with beautiful bodywork, tremendous fun to drive, and reasonably high performance, they are everything that a sports car should be. Early cars such as this one are very pure: fitted with simple but elegant dashboard, no rear seats, no external door handles, rudimentary weather equipment, and fold down windscreen, they are no frills sports cars that perfectly capture the single-minded sporting approach to motoring that makes old cars so enjoyable. Yet with 50% more power and 100% more torque than a contemporary MG, they had genuinely high performance for the day and remain usable and entertaining in modern traffic. The BN1 and BN2 were the earliest big Healeys, with numerous detail differences and the introduction of a 4-speed overdrive gearbox and larger brakes on the BN2. About 10,000 BN1s were built compared to 3924 BN2s.

This particular car is a lovely matching-numbers example equipped with overdrive, radio, and luggage rack. The car has a nice older restoration and runs and drives superbly. This is a long time San Francisco Bay Area car, having attended 2nd Annual Austin-Healey West Meet in Eureka in 1976, the 4th Annual Austin-Healey West Meet in San Rafael on 2 September 1978, and the 20th Annual Silverado Concours d’Elegance in 1986. From 1994 to 2009, it was owned by the same gentleman in Healdsburg, California, who donated the car to the Blackhawk Automotive Museum in 2009. The car was comprehensively serviced in March of 2013, to include brake master cylinder, sway bar bushings, refinished wheels, new tires, rewiring of some electrical components (electric fan, fog lamps), replacement of some body seals, fitting new carpets, refurbishing the brake drums, new radiator hoses, tuning the engine, resealing the gearbox and engine oil pan, and fitting a new top and tonneau cover. Consequently, the car runs and drives superbly.

The car displays very nice driver cosmetics. The body is straight and solid, and the paintwork was done to very good standards, though there are numerous chips that have been touched up. The undercarriage is wonderfully clean, solid, and free of corrosion. The chrome is very good throughout, and the lights and glass are excellent save for a very small area of delamination on the windscreen. The car has full weather equipment including new top, side curtains, and tonneau cover. The car has Lucas Flamethrower fog lamps and Cibié headlamps. The recently refinished wheels are excellent and sit on new Vredestein tires.

The interior is in excellent overall condition. The seats and carpets are both in virtually new condition. The gauges are very good, with a bit of aging to the finish on the face of the speedometer. The original switches and controls are present and functional, including steering wheel-mounted turn signal, choke switch, and bonnet release. There is a small amount of overspray on the instrument panel.

The engine compartment is clean but not freshly restored. It is honest and generally correct in appearance. The trunk is very clean with excellent upholstery and spare tire still in place. The car runs and drives well. The engine is properly tuned and starts easily. The choke works correctly and the car shifts well. The overdrive works properly as well. The brakes and suspension work properly and overall the car is an entertaining and evocative reminder of why these cars were so popular.

This is a great opportunity to acquire a lovely early Healey that retains the purity of the earliest cars while providing meaningful improvements in the form of 4-speed gearbox and larger brakes. A wonderfully solid long time California car, this example has a nice older restoration with much recent mechanical and cosmetic freshening, making it an ideal car to use and enjoy. Thanks to its 1956 build date, it is widely event eligible, making it among the most affordable eligible entries to prestigious pre-1958 and pre-1961 events such as the California Mille and Colorado Grand.

The above vehicle information is complete and accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time it is posted to this website. Corrections or additional information is always appreciated. All advertised prices exclude government fees and taxes, any finance charges, any dealer document preparation charge, and any emission testing charge. Vehicles are subject to prior sale. All advertised to be true but not guaranteed. We assume no liability for errors or omissions.

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Fantasy Junction  •  510-653-7555  •  1145 Park Ave, Emeryville, CA 94608