He was looking for a smaller sports car that he could use to tap into the
steadily swelling prosperity. The Sprite was going to have pop-up headlights but due to cost
restraints these were quashed, so Healey simply stuck them on the bonnet, close together and
looking like a bug! This move instantly made the Sprite one of the most easily
recognised cars on the road. His thinking was on the ball as the cheapest sports
cars from major manufacturers cost over £1,000 (about £20,000 now) and many hard-up enthusiasts had
little choice but to run pre-war two-seaters or build their own kit cars, using old
or scrapped Fords as a basis.Sir Leonard Lord approached Healey with his idea in 1956,
however Healey and his chief designer, Gerry Coker, had already come up with a design
for a small sports car that suited Sir Leonard Lords requirements exactly. At that price,
the Sprite simply had no rivals with the cost of an MGA at £995 and
a Triumph TR3 at £1,050. It had a lot going for it and was the
cheapest two-seater made by a car manufacturer, and the fact it sold nearly 50,000 in
three years says it all. A huge one piece bonnet and wing section opened up
to allow excellent access to the engine. During Tn Requin the 1950s, brand-new sports cars were the
toys of the rich and wealthy but the arrival of the Austin Healey Sprite in
1958 would bring joy and an abundance of fresh air to a new generation of
sports car fans. A proposal to make the front and rear bodywork identical did not
come to fruition however all panels were kept as simple as possible with the inner
body structure made entirely of flat metal. The "Frogeye" nickname soon stuck and has never
been lost.The Sprite looked and drove like a true Sportster and it found many admirers
in the US due to its compact shape, great fun to drive and without any
real rival until the arrival of the Triumph Spitfire some four years later.In an attempt
to keep prices reasonable Austin removed any item deemed not absolutely essential to the optional
extra list, this included the front bumper and heater! With a top speed of 83mph
the Sprite could hardly be ranked as a hard faced performance car but the low
weight allowed it to out handle many standard sports salons of the day, until the
Mini Cooper arrived on the scene.The initial basic specification, poor luggage access and bug-eye look
led to the Sprite MK II, launched in 1961, with new front and rear bodywork,
a tn boot lid and a larger 1098cc engine. The car was based on the Austin
A35 and Coker, Healey and Healey's son, Geoffrey modified the first plans and the new
car became the Austin-Healey.The build of the new Austin Healey was way ahead of its
time with a stiff central unitary structure, similar to the Jaguar D-Type. The character and
charm of the original was lost with this over engineered version.Sprites were produced until 1971
with the last few off the assembly lines badged simply as Austin rather than Austin-Healey
due to a row over royalty payments between Donald Healey and BMC successor British Leyland.The
Austin-Healey Sprite (Healey himself chose the name) was a brave move into uncharted marketing territory
- its rivals being, principally, horrible, self-build, plastic kit cars. It had outriggers front and
back to support the drive train and suspension. Suzuki freely admitted its inspiration behind the
Cappuccino when it launched in 1991. Healey had a fantastic ability to recognise what people
wanted from sports cars.The end of World War 2 saw Healey go solo and by
the end of 1946 the Healey Westland was the fastest British four seat car of
the time being capable of 105mph. You also had the name of Britain's "Mister Sports
Car" himself: Donald Healey obviously linked with the car.Donald Healey began racing cars in the
1930's and would go on to work for Triumph where he designed such models as
the Gloria and Dolomite. The Sprite sold admirably with 21,500 sold in 1959.The Frogeye Sprite
still receives accolades. An agreement with the British Motor Corporation to create the Austin-Healey 100,
and later the 100/6 and 3000 models meant he could work on more exciting and
sexier ideas whilst leaving the tedious manufacturing side to Austin.The growing prosperity of 1950's Britain
was becoming a marketplace of great potential as far as the BMC chairman, Sir Leonard
Lord, was concerned. The side windows were little more than side screens, external door handles
were dispensed with, no boot lid was available and any luggage had to be squeezed
in behind the two seats.The headlamps have had their share of grumblings with their strange
set up. Austin launched the new sports car in 1958, at £660 including purchase tax.
And of all the "Spridgets" that have been built over 21 years, the Frogeye Sprite
remains the most captivating.Author Andrew Whitehead - a self confessed petrol head has owned numerous
classic cars from fully restored to basket cases! He now has a website to fuel
his passion in all things auto and if you're looking to buy an Austin Healey
Sprite then please visit http://www.americanautobid.com/blog/.
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