As a long time Healey person who has had the pleasure of seeing BOTH
BN.3s I can tell you we are talking chalk and cheese.
Not only are there two different cars, but a result of two completely
different strategies.
The car found in Canada has a very vague history . It is now in the
Dutch Healey Museum. The Pat & Caroline Quinn car in Australia has
a very well documented history showing regular ( for a Healey with
colourfull history ) use by several owners.
The Canada car is a non-Healey chassis that has a sedan car front
cross-member and suspension resulting in a wider track and caused the
wheels to be just covered by packing out the bottom of the front fender.
According to the Healey books it was also tried with a De-Dion rear
suspension but there is very little sign of how this may have been
attached and it was not fitted when I viewed the car. This car when I
saw it in UK unrestored had definite signs of having been on the road.
ie. choke cable and a crude soft top. Without its body panels it would
be almost unrecognisable as a Healey 100. To me it was an engineering
exercise to see the impact of several requests from I think Austin to
cut costs and/or inrease appeal????
The extra length to accomodate the 2 + 2 was covered in the body panels
by increasing the distance between the rear of the door opening and the
rear wheel opening.
Pat and Caroline's car is basically a pre-production car based on a
completed 100 car modified to show a 2 + 2 configuration with six
cylinder engine and gearbox.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Me, I have a BJ.8 with phase 1 alloy panels, dropped down chassis, no
production grille, a flat alloy dash black vinyl covered and alloy doors
fitted with sliding side screens. No grille or bumpers were fitted. No
door linings or creature comfort. Almost permanently fitted with a
'works' hardtop. All factory fitted and verified by Geoff Healey
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