Vehicle Description
In 1951, Nash introduced America's first post-war sports car. This
stylish little car was the result of an unlikely and chance meeting
of two men at the polar opposite ends of the automotive industry.
While aboard the England-bound Queen Elizabeth, the rather
conservative Nash-Kelvinator president, George W. Mason, and
British sports car builder Donald Healey met and found they got
along quite well. Healey was fresh from an unsuccessful meeting
with GM where he was attempting to procure a run of Cadillac V8
engines to drop into the Healey Silverstone sports car. Cadillac
wanted none of it. George Mason wanted a halo car to lift the
somewhat stodgy Nash lineup, so a deal was made to supply modified
Nash Ambassador six-cylinder engines, transmissions and axles to
the Donald Healey Motor Company in England and the Nash-Healey was
born. Early cars featured an alloy body designed by Healey and
built by Panel Craft in England. Cars were assembled at Healey and
shipped back to the US. The first Nash-Healey was a lovely little
car with brisk performance, but for 1952, it was restyled to
incorporate a more cohesive look with the rest of the Nash lineup.
So yet another unlikely partner was brought in; Pininfarina of
Italy was contracted to handle the design and construction of the
new bodies. Now, drivetrains were sent from Nash in the USA to
Healey in England where they were mated to modified Silverstone
chassis, then sent off to Italy for body fitment and final assembly
before being sent back across the pond to their home market. As one
would expect, this was a very expensive endeavor and the 1953 Nash
Healey cost $5,908 compared to the Corvette's $3,513. Healey soon
moved on to focus his efforts on the home grown Austin-Healey and
sales of the Nash sagged. Despite the addition of an attractive
coupe to the lineup, the Nash-Healey did not survive past 1955 when
the last few leftover �54's were sold off. Only 507 were built in
total, including the 90 LeMans coupes. This outstanding 1954
Nash-Healey Roadster is from the final full year of production and
is one of only 314 Pininfarina-built roadsters. In our 25 years of
experience with Nash-Healeys, this is by far the best example we
have ever had the pleasure to represent. This is a restoration done
right, staring with a solid and complete car; never rusty, crashed
or considered a project. It was treated to an extremely high
quality restoration by the current owner, who did the work
alongside Pebble Beach winning restorer Jacques Harguindeguy.
"Frenchy", as he was best known, won the Best in Show award at the
2000 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance with a Delahaye he restored
and his level of expertise is evident throughout this Nash-Healey.
As per any high quality restoration, paint and panel fit are
exceptional. The black paint over red leather interior is a
striking combination and beautifully suited to the Pininfarina
styling. Chrome trim and brightwork are beautifully finished. The
expertly trimmed interior is finished off with a black canvas
convertible top, all crafted to a very high standard. It retains
the original radio, overdrive, and the original Nash engine still
wears scarce original alloy cylinder head. Original dual Carter YH
carburetors sit on a correct original manifold. For most
Nash-Healey's, the alloy head was often swapped out for a cheap
standard iron Ambassador head during service, making the original
alloy head a very rare component. In addition, it is fitted with an
original heater, tool kit, proper quilted spare wheel cover and
overdrive kickdown. Few Nash-Healeys survived so complete and
correct, and fewer still have been restored to such a high
standard. Immaculate from the bottom up, this will surely be a
welcome addition to any collection, and would make an ideal show
car or a fine choice for touring and events.
