[Healeys] Revelations and Questions, Cinema

[Simon Lachlan]

I was in Warwick years ago, helping a friend pick up some ghastly old wreck
which we had to tow +/- 150 miles with virtually no brakes. Anyhow, I went
to the Cinema which was in the final throes of closure as a business. I had
a BT7 MkII at the time, so I went to the spares desk. Looked like where
they'd have sold popcorn. And there was a typical old gent in a brown
warehouse coat. "We're closed", says he. "Nothing left."
"Nothing? Could you have a look? I need virtually everything..."
Off he went and returned with a parts book, the right one, and the little
knob that push/pulls on the heater control slider. He charged me something
nominal for the book and nothing for the knob which, being so small, had
been overlooked.
Simon

-----Original Message-----
From: healeys-bounces at autox.team.net [mailto:healeys-bounces at autox.team.net]
On Behalf Of Jackson Krall
Sent: 08 November 2013 14:45
To: austin.healey at gmail.com
Cc: healeys at autox.team.net
Subject: Re: [Healeys] Revelations and Questions

Well, I said it was "almost shocking" and usually I keep the Golden books on
a different shelf but here is Peter Brownings quote from Graham Robsons book
'Austin- Healey 100 & 3000 Series' page 164.
 "The car was probably the most powerful road- going 3000 ever built. An
all- aluminum engine [this was basically the same as planned for use in the
MG MGC GTS race cars] was fitted, bored out to 2,968cc, with three 45 DCOE
Weber carburettors, giving a power output of nearly 200bhp at the wheels."

Perhaps "basically the same" is not "the same" which would make the quote
ambiguous, however, the fact that a lot of development had gone into the new
MGC engine by this time and it was known that 3000 production was ending but
the future of the MGC was an unknown in 1967, not to mention the fact that
Mr Browning had to be "persuaded" to lend his personal car PWB 57 for the
event, makes the scenario plausible. It sounds like a project an
experimental shop or 'Works' dept could get into and in fact, it would seem
odd if no one at BLMH tried such a conversion at that time.

Several 3000's and MGC' s have passed through my clutches and I've never
heard this before either which is the reason I bring it up. Certainly, the
current owner or Mr Chatham, who also bought the GTS spares, would know the
answer.

And another thing I found interesting... The Donald Healey Motoring Center
at the old cinima in Warwick was first opened on a birthday of DMHs and it
was torn down on the day he died. RIP Best JK


------------------------------
On Fri, Nov 8, 2013 5:25 AM EST Chris Dimmock wrote:

>Jackson,
>I suspect you've mixed your Walt Disney, Little Golden book and Healey 
>literature up? ;-) The alloy Head for Healeys would overhang an MGC block.
>Some (one?) of the remaining alloy blocks cast to be used in PWB are with
John Chatham.
>Dave Woodhouse (DMD) has built new Healey Alloy block. 
>http://www.healeyfactory.com.au/dmd/original-works-alloy-block/
>http://www.healeyfactory.com.au/dmd/development-manufacturing-process/
>
>Maybe BMC contemplated using an alloy Healey engine in an MGC?
>Maybe BMC put an alloy Healey engine in an MGC?
>Maybe the idea and the money to cast the alloy Healey blocks came from 
>MG, who may have been  looking for a new engine for the MGC??
>But it's a Healey engine, not an MGC engine Best Chris
>
>
>Sent from my iPhone
>
>On 08/11/2013, at 5:57 AM, Jackson Krall <jackson_krall at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>> I've been pouring over my meagre collection of AH literature lately and a
few things of interest have come up.....
>> 
>> ....The aluminum block engine used in the last "works" built competition
car, PWB 57, for the illfated 1967 RAC rally, and I found this almost
shocking and deeply ironic,  was actually an MGC engine built for the GTS. I
did not know that.
>> 
>> So there you have it.
>> Best
>> JK
>> __________________________
$12.75
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