[Healeys] "100-M" for sale

[Harlan Polk]

This 100M discussion is fascinating reflecting the changing attitudes toward
Healeys and 100Ms in particular. I come from the perspective of a long time
owner. My father bought my 100M new in 1956. He gave it to me in 1960. I got
about 10 traffic tickets in it in 2 years. To me the 100M was a lightly
hot-rodded 100, and after the unobtainiable100S the best handling, and best
driving, sportiest Healey ever; yes, IMHO, even better than the tri-carb
BN7. When I grew up with the 100M it was considered rather ordinary among
the top tier girl catching cars a high-school kid could drive. The corvettes
were higher status, as were GTO's and Chevelles among the auto shop class
crowd. The status winner, at least for me, was the Dentist's son who drove a
300SL. My father's Chevy 409 with a 3-speed stick on the column was rarer
and farther away from a standard Chevy than the 100M was from a 100. So to
me the 100M was just another car to hot rod. And I did. And yes, I threw
away the factory tools and roll because they were poorly made and too heavy
to carry in the boot. The idea that a 100M would become a semi-sacred object
was inconceivable to me. The smart guys were installing Ford 289's inspired
by Caroll Shelby's work with the AC chassis. The dumber ones turned them
into drag strip cars. I don't remember any purists then, you either modified
or didn't care enough to modify.

So I have a quandary. Restore my 100M to factory original, an original I
then and now believe can be much improved upon so the market and the Healey
community will treat the result with respect. Or 'improve' my 100M to my
liking at the risk of the Healey community finding a bugler, a snare
drummer, and a parade ground to hold my drummed out of the corp ceremony?
Logic and good sense as in $'s says restore it to factory original warts and
all. Chris put it best for me, the value is in the paper, not the metal.