6 Attachment(s)
AHS3504 - an early 100S sold new to actor Jackie Cooper
Jackie Cooper owned an raced the 100S " AHS3504 " - the fourth customer Chassis number car released in February 1955.
Briggs Cunningham got AHS3501. ## This car was White with a Blue ' central ' Stripe a colour scheme he used from 1951 on with his Team cars
Jackie's car was British Racing Green - where many [ most ] AH 100S were white/ivory over blue [ lobelia blue ] and there were a few black and red cars in the 55 produced [ 50 " customer " cars and the 5 works cars ].##
The car was shipped to the USA in early 1955 among 5 others - all destined for the Sebring 12 Hour Race, in Florida.
In later 1955, Jackie Cooper [ who had Roy Jackson-Moore as his co-driver at Sebring ] entered the BEMC [ British Empire Motor Club - Toronto ] races at Edenvale in Canada.
Cooper featured in the article in " Sports Car Illustrated " magazine in October 1955.
The Car ;
Attachment 70617
BEMC Programme Cover for the Canada event;
Attachment 70618
The track was an Airfield - quite common in the USA, the UK and as we know in New Zealand too in the 1950's
- [ Ardmore, Ohakea, Wigram ].
Attachment 70619
The SCI article with a photo of Jackie in the 100S - there was another 100S and several 100/4s in the event
Attachment 70620
Attachment 70621
At the previous races at Edenvale on 26th June 1954 there were Sports Cars and two classes for " Production Cars " which included a rather unusual car, not a Healey but a " Hillman V8-60 " - would have been an " allcomer " in New Zealand
Attachment 70622
In the June 1954 results is Fred Allen in an Austin Healey - Fred Allen bought one of the early 100S cars and was also at Sebring in 1955 - this 1954 event would have been in a 100 the original production 4 cylinder.
6 Attachment(s)
Sebring 1955 - some details;
Thanks to Ken H for the link to the website on Sebring 1955 - on the John Lacko photos thread.
I had seen some information from Geoffrey Healey's books " Austin Healey - The story of the Big Healeys "and also his third book " Healey - The Specials ".
There were Seven 100S entered, 6 " customer " cars AHS3501 to AHS3506 and " SPL258BN " the works car which was a 1954 " Special Test Car " known by its Registration OON441 as noted by Ken H
Chassis Numbers and details of AHS3501 on from the book " Austin Healey - The story of the Big Healeys ".
Attachment 70682
Entry list for Class D - the class the Austin Healey cars were in AH 100S, AH 100M and some just AH 100;
Attachment 70683
The Chassis numbers and race numbers ;
AHS3501 Race No 40 drivers Bill Cook, Steve Lansing, George Rand finished 16th - the Briggs Cunningham car
AHS3502 Race No 41A drivers Robert Fergus Sandy McPherson and Harley Watts - car did not start.
AHS3503 Race No 43 drivers Jim Ferguson and Rowland Keith from Canada - finished 32nd
AHS3504 Race No 42 drivers Jack(ie) Cooper and Roy Jackson-Moore finished 41st
AHS3505 Race No 46 drivers Fred Allen and Gus Ehrman - car did not start.
AHS3506 Race No 45 drivers Wm Brewster and Bill Rutan
SPL258BN Race No 44 the Donald Healey Motor Company Special test car - drivers Stirling Moss and Lance Macklin - finished 6th - First Austin Healey home.
Names in ' bold ' were the named purchasers of the cars in February 1955 - from the Geoffrey Healey book
The cars being loaded for Sebring in February 1955 The race was in March 1955.
The cars despatch dates are listed in the first image above - from the Geoff Healey book.
Attachment 70684
Attachment 70685
On the look out now for more race photos;
This is Stirling passing a Porsche 550 ; The results First Six cars plus all the Austin Healey finishers
Attachment 70687
There was also a Nash Healey entered - credit on the photo;
Attachment 70686
Among the 100M Healeys a car from the Bahamas of Sir Sydney Oakes and Greta Oakes - with Juan Fernandez as the third driver.
More to follow on the story;
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Talking of Nash Healeys - ERC's comment - question ?? ..
Quote:
Originally Posted by
ERC
Talking of Nash Healeys, did you catch last night's 'American Pickers' on Choice TV?
They came across an old boy and his son, who formerly ran an AMC dealership - a building which they still own, but what a shambolic run down place it was/is, but they had 4 of them, plus a spares car. They bought two off them. One was almost totally overgrown and as at last night's episode end, they were still struggling to free it.
Ray, No I missed it,
Would have been a good view - I don't get a lot of TV time for my interests, so Pickers and motoring take a back seat..
Thanks for the information ..
Did however find this of a very scruffy Nash Healey- another racer they were not pretty by the time the US Racing guys got hold of them..- this one with a Packard Motor that started a lot of questions about the motor ;
Inline 6, Vee 8, or ... ??,
Ray Bell may know !.
Attachment 70689
My late great Uncle Frank Bell [ 1892 - 1929 ] was a Nash Man at one stage he had a big 1920's Sedan and his wife, my Great Aunt Mary Bell [ 1890's - 1964 ] had a Nash Coupe ..
This is Mary, known as Aunty Dolly sitting in a Nash in the 1930's. The family do not know if she owned it..from a family archive of Uncle Eddie Dowding [ 1919 - 2018 ].. recently found by my cousin John Dowding
Attachment 70690
PS ; there is a story behind the number plate as in the 1930's they used ' X ' in place of ' 10 ' when they needed a bigger range of numbers ..
6 Attachment(s)
Sebring 1955 - some details; as posted on the John Lacko Ken H thread
Details from the Austin Healey 100S Registry from Ken H
" SPL 226B 1B136878 7, 25 green green 100/100M/100S Donald Healey Motor Co. England Healey Motors NOJ393 Scott, Jack U.K.
SPL 258BN SPL258BN 23, wht/blue, spgrn rebuilt spruce green Donald Healey Motor Co. England Healey Motors OON441 OON441 Moore, Frank Brisbane Qld. Aust.".
SPL226B is the 1955 Le Mans car [ the race in June ] and SPL258BN, the Moss, Macklin car at Sebring in March 1955.
Here is the car SPL258BN of Moss and Macklin, Race #44 from the " Racing Sports Cars .com " website on the event - as extracted by Ken H.
Attachment 70702
A view in the Pit garages on one of the 100s [not an S ] in company of others.
Attachment 70703
Attachment 70706
View of the start - views of actually.
Attachment 70704
Attachment 70705
Poster for the event ;
Attachment 70707
6 Attachment(s)
Sebring 1955 - The Programme and event schedule ;
The Programme Cover ;
Attachment 70708
The Event Schedule ;
Attachment 70709
The Track Map ;
Attachment 70710
The full Entry List - in three parts ;
Attachment 70711
Attachment 70713
Attachment 70712
Thanks to Ken H for the link to these images.
6 Attachment(s)
Sebring 1955 - the Healey AH and an NH
Photos from the Racing Sports Cars gallery - taken by a variety of photographers but Louis Galanos seem to be the only one using colour film.
The Nash Healey - had the Nash L6 [ inline 6 ] and was supercharged.
Attachment 70741
Austin Healey 100M, Race #38 [ and #39 in background ].
Attachment 70742
Austin Healey 100S - some of them.
Race #43, 44, and 45
AHS3503
Attachment 70743
SPL258BN the Donald Healey Motor Company works car - driven by Stirling Moss and Lance Macklin
Attachment 70744
AHS3506
Attachment 70745
#45 was photographed in recent years at a Car Show in the USA - but there was some confusion with the chassis number on those photos.
** More to come on Race #45 AHS3506 .. The car show was in Des Moines in 2017, and the photographer is a Car Guy, with his main interest Triumph Sports cars - owns an early 70's Mark 4 Spitfire and a late 60's TR4A [ sound familiar to this guy ].
Austin Healey 100M of Sir Sidney Oakes from the Bahamas
Attachment 70746
Photographer Credit on the images;