Austin Healey 100-6 & 3000

Description

In nine eventful years – 1957 to 1965 – the six-cylinder-engined Austin-Healey evolved into a formidable and increasingly specialized rally car. By any standards, it was the first of the "homologation specials" — a type made progressively stronger, faster, more versatile, and more suitable for the world’s toughest International rallies. This book lists each and every success, each and every notable car, and traces exactly how the machinery developed, and improved, from one season to the next. Over time, the "works" cars not only adopted aluminium cylinder heads and body panels, much-modified chassis, transmission and exhaust systems, but they also became supremely strong and could withstand a true battering on the world’s toughest events. This book relates how the cars were improved by the engineers, how the drivers came to love their heavy and sometimes sell-willed steeds, and how the management team got the most out of everything — machinery, personnel, drivers — and regulations. In every respect, the "works" Big Healey was the very first of the "homologation specials", and this book tells exactly how it was achieved.

After a varied career in the automotive industry, Graham Robson has gained a worldwide reputation as a motoring historian, and has more than 160  books to his credit. Born in 1936, and educated at Ermysteds Grammar School in Yorkshire, Graham then went on to study Engineering at Oxford University. He  joined Jaguar Cars as a graduate trainee, becoming involved in design work on the Mk II, E-Type and Mark X. Beginning as a hobby, he became a rally co-driver, eventually joining the Sunbeam 'works' team in 1961, and took part in rallies up to International level (once with Roger Clark), but stopped rallying by 1968. During this time, he joined Standard-Triumph in Coventry, in 1961, as a Development Engineer, mainly on sports car projects. He then ran the re-opened 'works' motorsport department from 1962 to 1965, this being the period of the birth of Spitfire Le Mans cars, TR4, Vitesse, Spitfire and 2000 rally car developments. Graham Robson’s writing began with rally reports for magazines which evolved into a job with Autocar from 1965 to 1969. He was recruited back to industry at Rootes to run the Product Proving department, then after a brief period in 1972 as technical director of a safety belt company, became an independent motoring writer. Graham has lived 'by the pen' and 'by the voice', not only writing but commentating, presenting and organising events of all types.
 

Australian Classic Car, March 2008Australian magazine It’s hard to imagine an Austin-Healey 3000 as a top notch rally car. But the 3000 formed an integral part of the British Motor Corporation’s Competition Department during the 1960s, and were thrashed from mountain top to river valley over the most inhospitable of road surfaces. This new book by the prolific Graham Robson is one of a series in his ‘Rally Giants’ collection. The rallies of the ’60s are very different than today. Back then, they were events of endurance when the cars and drivers would be hard at it for days on end. While it was the Big Healey that really put the BMC Competition Department on the map, under their direction, the Austin-Healey evolved from a quick road car into the first homologation special. Read how its suspension was beefed up, carburetors changed and the car became lighter and stronger. Writer Robson includes a chapter on the personalities involved – including those behind the scenes and the drivers – before looking closely at the events and Big Healeys used from year to year. There are a number of books covering the Works Austin-Healeys, but there is always room for another good one.

Classic Sports Car, February 2008UK magazine ‘Austin Healey 100-6 3000’ is the latest in Veloce’s handy Rally Greats [Giants] series. The prolific Graham Robson briefly covers model development and competition history to match the wealth of photos, including plenty in color. Even so, $29.95 is a little steep for a 120-page paperback. For more information or to order see www.veloce.co.uk.

Healey Marque, January 2008 Review by Baird Foster
Official publication of the Austin-Healey Club of America
UK publisher Veloce has just introduced a new series of publications titled ‘Rally Giants’, and ‘Austin Healey 100-6 3000’ appears at the top of the list. Graham Robson, author of the series, holds a worldwide reputation as a motoring historian; indeed, he has long been close to the sport of rallying as a team manager, competitor, reporter, and observer. For the series he has chosen those cars which offered something unique in their time in comparison with their competitors – cars that raised rallying’s standards far enough to consider them Rally Giants. Of the A-H 100-6, Marcus Chambers, BMC’s first competitions manager, is quoted as saying, "We needed a car with long, hairy legs to stride over the mountains and great lungs with which to rush up the hills …".
‘Austin Healey 100-6 3000’ reveals how the BMC Competition Department brought the six-cylinder ‘big Healey’ to be a formidable and specialized rally car in the era from 1957 to 1965. The Austin-Healey 3000 became the world’s first ‘homologation special’, and as such, it started a trend of development and refinement of the total car to take advantage of whatever regulations or categories that were offered by motor sport at the time. The reader learns how the original 100-6 engine of 102 BHP became a fire-breathing 210 BHP rally winner in only five years.
The rally events and the personalities behind the big Healey rally cars, including noted drivers Pat Moss, Donald Morley, Rauno Aaltonen and Timo Makinen, come alive with Robson’s memories and descriptions. Many of the 100 well-captioned photos are published for the first time.
‘Rally Giants: Austin Healey 100-6 3000’ provides a richly detailed description of an important part of this marque’s history – the big Healeys were outstanding rally cars of their era. Whether you are a casual observer of Healey history or an ardent student of the marque and its rallying successes, this tidy little title will yield a fascinating read and must be on your bookshelf.

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