BRENTON LEE’S 1956 AUSTIN-HEALEY 100/6

Back in 1984 Brenton began considering the purchase of an Austin-Healey, a marque he was introduced to in the ‘70s when his then brother-in-law owned a red over black 100/6, closely followed by a wonderful BRG 1967 BJ8 finished in British Racing Green.

His first car was a Fiat 500D followed by an MG TF1500 and a Wolseley 4/44. For a time, he also owned a Jaguar XJ-S “until it became obvious the maintenance bills would bankrupt me!” Brenton is also a keen motorcyclist and has several classic/vintage motorcycles to keep him entertained.

But back to that early desire to own a Healey – in the early 1980s these cars were hardly plentiful in New Zealand, so Brenton had to work with what he could afford and what was available, and the Healey he ended up owning was basically a stripped-down assembly of parts, some still attached to the chassis. A full rebuild was required and he would later discover that many parts were missing.

After a false start on the restoration due to problems with the first panel beater who worked on the car, Brenton was forced to begin all over again.

“At this point I had to start again as the previous work was totally below standard,” he said. “After much stress and more money, I was finally able to put the car back on the road in 1997 to attend a club rally held in the Nelson district.”

Due to the condition of the car when purchased there was no point trying to make it all original, instead the aim was to end up with a great road car that would take Brenton and his wife Vivienne around New Zealand, something it has since done on many occasions.

As the engine as purchased was fitted with extractors (no manifold came with the car) and a Healey 3000 head, this was enhanced with an improved camshaft profile, increased capacity radiator, an oversized front roll bar and replica Minilite alloy wheels to aid the car in being more usable in modern traffic.

The Healey’s Heritage Certificate states that this was built in December 1956 for the UK market. However, the record of ownership in New Zealand only dates back to 1978, with Brenton being the third Kiwi owner.

“It’s fun for me to drive, being quite a visceral experience, but Viv is not that keen, so I’m the pilot while she enjoys the ‘underfloor heating’ as a passenger/navigator,” said Brenton.

“Our next major outing for the car is the Club’s 50th celebration tour from Auckland through to Bill Richardson’s Museum in Invercargill, and when coupled with the inevitable detours we should notch up about 4000K, and that’s how we like to use our Healey.”