Austin-Healey 3000

Manufacturer	Austin-Healey
Production	1959–1967 42,926
Assembly	Abingdon, England
Class	Sports car
Body style	2-door roadster
Layout	FR layout
Engine	2,912 cc (2.9 L) C-Series I6
Wheelbase	92 in (2,337 mm)
Length	157 in (3,988 mm)
Width	60 in (1,524 mm)
Height	46 in (1,168 mm) (Hood down) 49.5 in (1,257 mm) (hard top)
Curb weight	2,550 lb (1,157 kg)

The Austin-Healey 3000 is a British sports car built from 1959 to 1967, and is the best known of the "big" Healey models.

History

Jensen Motors created the car's bodywork, and the vehicles were constructed at the BMC Abingdon plant. In its prime, the 3000 was a popular car that won its class in several European rallies, and it is still raced by fans today. The Austin-Healey 3000, which replaced the Austin-Healey 100-6, was debuted in 1959. Despite the naming change, the differences between the original 100 and the 100-6 were rather small. The wheelbase and body remained identical, and two variants, a 2+2 and a two-seater, were available.

The 3000 was an unrivalled export success: of the 51,315 cars built (including some 100/6) between 1957 and 1968, 45,596, or 88.8%, crossed the Atlantic and ended up in the United States.

The Mk III will also be the last Austin-Healey of large displacement: the continuous mergers between the British car groups meant that the Austin-Healey brand had "in-house" rivals, such as MG and Triumph . To replace the 3000 Donald Healey proposed to mount a 4-liter Rolls-Royce engine and Borg-Warner automatic transmission on a chassis and an enlarged Mk III body by 15.24 cm . However, this solution proved costly to implement and inadequate for the American market due to the safety regulations that would be introduced in 1968 . Without American customers, the Healey -Rolls-Royce operationit would certainly have been a failure and so the 3000 legacy was taken up by the MG C , an MG B adapted to accommodate the Austin-Healey six-cylinder engine.

The engine power was calculated, as for almost all British sports cars of the time (except the MG and some Triumph models), with the American method SAE Society of Automotive Engineers , which gave an engine more powerful than on the road, since measured on the bench, without the accessories that absorbed power, such as mufflers, carburetor filters, etc .;therefore 10/15% must be removed from the SAE power to obtain the actual horsepower, defined with the DIN (CV) method, ie with cars on the road.

The Austin Healey 3000s have had a long and important history in racing and raced in the most important rallies of the period and still continue to be used in historical reenactments today. The BMC racing department immediately used the 3000s (in all versions) in rallies until 1965 , when they were slowly phased out due to the regulation change favoring the more modern Mini Cooper 'S' . The best known factory pilots who achieved success with the 3000 were Pat Moss (sister of the better known Stirling ) and Ann Wisdom, the twins Erle and Donald Morley, Bill Shepard and Rauno Aaltonen .

In the USA, while the "old" 100 had set several land speed records on the salt lakes of Utah, the 3000 participated in numerous track competitions, thanks to permissive American regulations, including the prestigious 12 Hours of Sebring with John Gott, Clive Baker and John Chatam. 

Mark I

The original 3000 was built from March 1959 to March 1961 and became known as the Mark I only after the Mark II was released. Compared to the previous 100/6 the MkI is equipped with the same 6-cylinder in-line engine with rods and rocker arms but with displacement increased to 2912 cc (bore increased to 83.36 mm), compression ratio 9: 1 and 2 SU HD6 semi- carburettors. reversed, with 124 HP of power at 4000 rpm and 22.4 Kgm of torque at 2700 rpm (calculated using the SAE method ). With this engine (type 29D) the car reached 183 km / h. The other differences concern the brakes, with the Girling disc front .

Like the 100/6, it was initially available in 2-seater (internal code BN7) and 2 + 2-seater (internal code BT7) versions and among the options included spoked wheels, overdrive, laminated windscreen, heating, adjustable steering column, hard- fiberglass top and two-tone paint.

An automatic starter was adopted between July and November 1959 , abandoned because it proved unreliable, in December 1959 an oversized radiator was fitted, in June 1960 Dunlop RS5 tires were adopted as standard and in December of the same year the rear reflectors were revised and enlarged headlights.

In total, 13,650 Mark I (2,825 BN7 and 10,825 BT7) were produced

Mark II

In March 1961 the new 3000 Mark II was put on sale, like the MkI in both 2-seater (BN7) and 2 + 2 (BT7) versions.

The 3000 Mark II adopts 3 SU HS4 carburetors in place of the previous 2, a modification probably made to allow the adoption of 3 Weber carburetors in the race , and a re-profiled camshaft to obtain 132 HP (SAE) at 4750 rpm and 23 Kgm of torque (SAE) at 3000 rpm and reach 180 Km / h. The body was also modified with a new complete oval grille with vertical bars and seat belt attachments while from August 1961 the brake servo became available as an option, which significantly improved braking performance, and from November of the same year it was modified. the position of the gear lever, which became central instead of to the left of the transmission tunnel.

In January 1962 the new version of the 3000 was launched, the more luxurious 2 + 2 seater Sport Convertible (BJ7) which replaced both the BN7 MK II, in March 1962, and the BT7 Mark II, in June 1962.

The most important changes concerned the new folding top from the passenger compartment (until then the top could only be mounted when the car was stationary with a complicated procedure), descending windows and a more enveloping windscreen. The engine (type 29F) on which the triple SU carburettors , difficult to adjust, were replaced by two SU HS6, developed 131 HP (SAE) at 4750 rpm and 21.8 Kgm of torque at 3000 rpm which pushed the 'car up to 188 Km / h. The options were similar to those of the Mk I but when the BJ7 came out the factory hard-top was eliminated .

A 3000 Mk II BT7 with hardtop and overdrive , tested by the British magazine The Motor in 1961, reached a top speed of 112.9 mph (181.7 km / h), accelerating from 0–60 mph (97 km / h) in 10.9 seconds.

The BJ7 went out of production in October 1963 with the introduction of the 3000 MK III after 11,564 MkIIs were produced: 355 BN7 Mark II, 5,096 BT7 Mark II, and 6,113 BJ7. A total of 11,564 were made: 355 BN7 Mark II, 5,096 BT7 Mark II, and 6,113 BJ7.

Mark III

The 3000 Mk III (BJ8) was launched in October 1963 and remained in production until the end of 1967 although some cars were also completed in 1968 .

The Mk III was the most powerful and luxurious of all the Big Healeys. In fact, it has a 148hp engine and a new walnut-veneered dashboard, black-bottomed instruments, center console, key start, drop-down windows, and a new folding rear seat. The power of the engine (type 29K) was increased thanks to a new design of the camshaft and valve springs, 2 SU HD8 carburetors, and a new exhaust system; thanks to these measures 148 HP at 5250 rpm and 22 Kgm of torque at 3500 rpm were reached and the car reached 194 Km / h. The brake booster became standard and the price increased slightly.

The options remained the same except for the leather upholstery of the seats and the brake booster, which became standard. In May 1964 the set-up was changed, which gained height from the ground thanks to new rear springs with six coils.

In March 1965 the MK III "Phase II" was launched with separate direction indicators.

In total 17,712 Mark III (BJ8) were produced between Phase I and I

A Austin Healey 3000 MkIII in Heartbeat, TV Series (ITV)