1956 Austin Healey - Reader Ride

By: Nisbet Marshall

Date: 15.01.2018

Nisbet Marshall's Austin Healey crossed the Pacific to get here and now it's ready to cross the continent

Nisbet Marshall's 1956 Austin Healey

This Healey was found in a shed in America on the other side of San Jose. It had been languishing there for 27 years and the engine was seized solid.

For these cars, 90 per cent of them went to America. When you buy them, you try to get them from California or another dry state. The car hadn’t travelled very far from where it was delivered, which was San Francisco.

Basically it was a rust-free car and it’s now been fully restored.

The engine has had a lot of work, including Cosworth pistons. There are a lot of Denis Welch Motorsport components in there as well – valves, reduction gear starter, electronic ignition. Basically what it’s for is bolt-in reliability. I can jump in and press the button, it will start and I can go to Perth or wherever I like.

The brakes and tyres have been upgraded – we’re living in 2017 now and you need to do this. It has discs in the front and it has a booster.

I’ve always loved Austin Healeys. They’re an elegant and beautiful car.

It’s great to drive. My son drives it harder than me – we’ve had it at track days and it does 100mph (160km/h) no worries. But I’m not so keen on having fresh sets of tyres burned up!

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