Austin Healey produced many successful race cars during its short lived 20 year production. Austin Healey 3000 series cars, better known as the "big " Healeys were heavily raced in the United States and abroad competing at tracks at Sebring(USA), Le Mans (France), and also in the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, Australia. In 1953, a custom designed Austin-Healey set several land speed records at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. Other "big" models produced National Championships in D and E production classes which led to these cars becoming recognized by the Sports Car Club of America. The Austin Healey BJ-8 3000 was perhaps the biggest racing success produced by the British Motor Corporation and it took home many trophies at the European Rally in the 1960's.
The success of the BJ-8 3000 came as no surprise. The BJ-8 featured a 3000cc inline straight six cylinder engine capable of producing up to 150 horsepower and reaching speeds upwards of 120 miles an hour. By today's standards, those speeds may not seem very fast, but the BJ-8 was certainly an innovation for its time. The BJ-8 and other "big" Healeys are still raced today by collectors.
Of course it wasn't just the "big" Healeys that found racing success. The Austin Healey Sprite better known as the "Spridget" became popular on the racing circuit after winning the 1000cc class in the 1958 Alpine Rally. The Sebring Sprite, named for the racetrack in Sebring, Florida was the most successful of the smaller race cars. The Sebring was designed by saloon race car champ John Sprinzel and was first introduced in 1960. The Sebring featured all wheel disc brakes providing better stability and increased stopping power.
The Sebrings were also the first Healeys to feature aluminum alloy and fiberglass chassis. The lightweight qualities of these new chassis maximized the handling and allowed for greater wind resistance, providing the Sebring with much greater acceleration. Later an additional carburetor was added which only served two increase power and performance. Later those carburetors would be swapped out for larger versions which were then synchronized.
While the Healeys were racing giants during the mid 1950's and 1960's, their success couldn't save the Healey brand from its ultimate demise. Donald Healey left the company in 1968 following British Motor Corporations merger with Jaguar and moved to Jensen Motors who had been producing the bodies for the larger models. Despite their short lived run, Healey race cars remain popular today among collectors and racing enthusiasts alike.