1956 Austin-Healey 100M BN2 Roadster
The Austin-Healey 100 is a sports car that was built by Austin-Healey from 1953 until 1956.
Based on Austin A90 Atlantic mechanicals, it was developed by Donald Healey to be produced in-house by his small Healey car company in Warwick. Healey built a single Healey Hundred for the 1952 London Motor Show, and the design impressed Leonard Lord, managing director of Austin, who was looking for a replacement for the unsuccessful A90. Body styling was by Gerry Coker, the chassis was designed by Barry Bilbie with longitudinal members and cross bracing producing a comparatively stiff structure upon which to mount the body, innovatively welding the front bulkhead to the frame for additional strength. In order to keep the overall vehicle height low the rear axle was underslung, the chassis frame passing under the rear axle assembly.
Lord struck a deal with Healey to build it in quantity; bodies made by Jensen Motors were given Austin mechanical components at Austin’s Longbridge factory. The car was renamed the Austin-Healey 100.
The “100” was named by Healey for the car’s ability to reach 100 mph (160 km/h); its successor, the better known Austin-Healey 3000, was named for the 3000 cc displacement of its engine.
Following full-competition 100S, Austin Healey offered a upgraded road-car known as the 100M. The package mainly consisted of engine modifications which raised power from 90 to 110 bhp and exceeded the performance of the later six-cylinder models.
To achieve this modest power increase a high-lift camshaft was fitted, along with larger carburetors, higher-compression pistons, a free-flow intake manifold, a special distributor and a cold air box.
Other upgrades included larger anti-roll bars, while the louvered bonnet was retained by a Le Mans-specification leather strap.
This 1956 Austin-Healey 100M BN2 roadster is the first of 640 100M examples produced by the Longbridge factory over a 10-month span and was completed on September 5, 1955. The car was restored by British Motor Corporation of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and it is finished in Carmine Red with a black soft top over matching leather upholstery. Power is from a 2,660cc inline-four mated to a four-speed manual transmission with overdrive, and features include a louvered hood with a leather tie-down strap, a folding windshield, Lucas front fog lamps, Breitling stopwatches.
Silver-painted 15” wire wheels are secured by two-eared knock-off spinners and mounted with Dunlop tires.
The seats are trimmed in black leather with red piping, and black carpets line the floors. Additional equipment includes a dash-mounted rearview mirror, rubber floor mats, and twin Breitling stop watches located below the dash. A wood-rimmed three-spoke steering wheel sits ahead of a body-color dashboard housing Smiths instrumentation that includes a 6k-rpm tachometer, a 120-mph speedometer, and auxiliary gauges.
Attention has been lavished upon its engine, driveline, brakes and suspension with the intent of creating a fast, reliable, comfortable 100 M Le Mans for long distance events and tours.
This may be the most thoroughly prepared and developed Austin-Healey 100 M Le Mans extant and is ready to be driven and experienced in the many events for which it is an avidly sought participant.
You won’t just find another 1956 Austin-Healey 100M BN2 Roadster like this one sitting around. A mere 640 of these were built, so each one is precious. If you want a chance at putting one in your garage, now is the time to think about this.
