Vehicle Description
1969 Austin-Healey Sprite Mark IV (Please note: If you happen to be
viewing this 1969 Austin-Healey Sprite Mark IV on a site other than
GarageKeptMotors.com, it's possible that you've only seen some of
our many photographs of the car due to website limitations. To be
sure you access all the more than 145 photographs, including a
short walk-around-and-startup video, please go to our main website:
GarageKeptMotors.) Austin-Healey's Sprite is... brilliant, and very
much within reach - Hagerty, April 2021 The people at Hagerty
described the Austin-Healey's origins: In the 1950s, as America's
cars grew ever larger and chrome became the national color,
Englishman Donald Healey saw an opportunity. He was convinced
Americans, still glowing with postwar optimism, were ready to buy
small British sports cars in real numbers. A partnership with Nash
Motors in Wisconsin bore the Nash-Healey in 1951, and the following
year, Donald Healey debuted his own Healey 100 at the British
International Motor Show. Named for its top speed, the two-seat
roadster caught the eye of Austin's chief, Leonard Lord, and a deal
went down. The Donald Healey Motor Company Ltd. would be
responsible for development and design, and Austin would handle
production and sales. First launched in 1958, but after two
model-series improvements, in 1966, the Sprite reached its
most-developed form in the Mk IV. Hagerty noted the Mk IV debuted
with the 65-hp, 1275-cc engine from the Mini Cooper. Sprites graced
our shores until 1969. Offered here in white is one of those
last-imported Mark IV Sprites, a 52-year-old survivor in largely
original condition. The sports car's exterior wears a
driver-quality re-paint in pure-white (believed to be the car's
factory color) over a chocolate-and-tan interior under a black
vinyl hardtop. The paint's condition is very good overall, with
good gloss and consistency across body panels. The first owner must
not have popped for the optional wire wheels, so painted steel
wheels with undecorated chrome center hubcaps do that job. The
car's badges-the handsome Austin-Healey logo in the front grille
and the simple-but-tasteful script Sprite on the rear deck-remain
in good condition and properly mounted. The removable
black-vinyl-covered hardtop extends the car's usability for cooler
or inclement weather. Original chrome bumpers front and rear show
well; lighting lenses and cabin glass are clear and free of cracks.
Inside, chocolate-colored door and lower-dash trim mixes with the
black carpeting and dashboard. A Grant GT® sport steering wheel has
been added; it frames an array of original Smiths instruments (and
a replacement fuel gauge). The floor-mounter 4-speed manual
transmission shifter wears an Austin-Healey logo. Added for a
definite improvement in comfort, high-backed bucket seats in tan
have been installed. The cargo compartment behind the seats is
fully trimmed out, and the somewhat spartan trunk-home to the spare
tire-is well-kept. Under the hood, the car's original 1,275cc,
inline 4-cylinder, Healey powerplant-still wearing its original
factory color-is centermost in a clean and tidy engine bay.
Replacement engine-air-supply ducting and hood insulation is in
place. For those who might question how sporty the driving
experience might be, Hagerty answered that question for the lesser
Mark I Sprites: You wouldn't think 48 horsepower, a 0�€"60 mph time
of 20.8 seconds, and an 80-mph top speed would draw praise, but
R&T was impressed by its 'surprisingly good performance.' Motor
Trend's editors liked the Sprite's 'willing engine, which revved to
6000 rpm, and its tossability. 'Just the slightest trace of
oversteer at high speeds helps break the rear end loose and the
resulting slide is easily controlled. Exceptionally flat cornering
lends a feeling of security.' With nearly 25% more horsepower and a
top speed of 100mph, the Mark IV Sprites delivered even more
thrills. As they say, driving a slow car fast is the real
