1967 Austin Healey 3000

Convertible

6 - Cyl.

Manual

HBJ8L41320

Gasoline

1967 Austin Healey 3000 Mark III QUICK HIGHLIGHTS: 52k original miles! Real metallic golden beige car! Air conditioning! Toyota 5 speed trans conversion! Several safety upgrades Great looking dressed up engine bay Mechanically excellent Everything works Looks great, runs great, drives great Lots of new parts and updates For sale here is a 1967 Austin Healey 3000 – Mark III, Phase 2 (BJ8). It’s among the last of the “Big Healeys”. It's a real “anniversary edition” metallic golden beige car, as documented on the Heritage Certificate, which makes it one of only 551 ever made. All numbers match. As best I can tell, this Healey has NEVER BEEN RESTORED! Yes, it's been repaired, maintained, upgraded, and at least once repainted, but I don't think it's ever been "restored". The paint inside the engine bay I believe is the original 1967 paint. GENERAL CONDITION: The body is in superb shape for a car that's never been restored. It's not “perfect”, but you'd be hard pressed to find flaws without serious scrutinizing. I'd consider the panel alignment to be “ordinary”. I suspect that the gaps and fits are probably as good as they were when it left the factory. There are no major issues or obvious problems though. Nothing you'd notice unless you were really looking for it. Given the paint's age (I'm guessing around 15 years), it's in fantastic condition. As with the body, it's not perfect (if it was, I'd be asking a lot more for the car), but again you'll have a real hard time finding the imperfections without going over the car with your eyes about a inch from the paint. And if you did, you'd find that there are no bubbles in the paint showing anywhere, no bodywork creeping back out... none of that. The paint job, and the car as a whole, shows absolutely brilliantly. I have taken the car to many car shows, and it's always a center of attention. From a couple feet away the car appears virtually flawless, showing superbly and impressively from any angle. The engine bay is equally impressive with its polished aluminum theme. I have actually gotten ooo's and ahhh's on occasion when popping the hood at a show. And the coolest part is that the engine bay appearance is literally one of a kind. There's no other Healey like it, and I went through great effort to maintain a “period correct” feel about it. The interior is fantastic. I've done very little to it - it looked like that when I bought it. I don't know what's original and what's not, but I do know that it looks fantastic, with no rips, tears or obvious defects. The underside of the car is black, but after much study, I believe this is because the car was undercoated - possibly by the dealer back in 1967 (the car was originally from MA, so it would make sense)... at least that's what it used to be... and then what's happened over the years is that people have "touched up" the undercoating with black paint in areas where the coating may have started to deteriorate, to keep it looking "uniform". Despite the black color, however, it's easy to tell that there is no body rot or other problems (plenty of underside photos to come below). Let me try to detail out everything that's been done to the car... REPAIRED / MAINTAINED / FIXED SUSPENSION: New rear leaf springs, link assemblies, all new bushings and new wheel hubs. The leaf springs were custom arched to get the exact correct ride height for a '67 model - not too high, not too low (you’ll notice that many late 60's restored Healeys sit way too high in the back... this is due to incorrect aftermarket springs). The front has new tie rods, new wheel bearings and seals, new grease cups and other misc. small parts, and the idler arm has been rebuilt and re-sealed. BRAKES: Mostly new brake lines (none of them really "needed" replaced - I just did it for appearance), new brake calipers and premium pads up front, with high performance drilled and slotted brake rotors. Rear brake drums have been professionally balanced by Hendrix Wire Wheel. New brake servo, new genuine master cylinder. TIRES: Federal SS657 tires were professionally installed on the 72 spoke chrome wire wheels by Hendrix Wire Wheel - with new tubes, spokes adjusted, and the assemblies 100% balanced and tires shaved. ENGINE/TRANS/COOLING: I've never touched the internal engine. It's only got 52k miles on it, after all, and runs like a top. I did, however, upgrade and replace a few things external to the engine: Added a true rear crankshaft oil seal Updated to spin-on oil filter New water pump New thermostat Pertronix module in the stock distributor to eliminate points/condenser Lucas Sport Coil and high performance plug wires Carburetors completely rebuilt, tuned and balanced... new jets, jet bearings, jet springs, floats, seals, Grose valves, etc. Updated to a high torque mini starter Since I already mentioned some cooling system items, here’s a few more: Brand new up-rated radiator from AH Spares in the UK Texas Kooler fan Additional thermostat-controlled electric fan (ultra high output!) Custom fan shroud for better air movement (Healeys originally had nothing) All new hoses Added a polished stainless coolant overflow tank, with correct radiator cap to make it work I should mention that the engine does leak a little oil. It's a classic British sports car, after all... I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s been this way since it left the dealer lot in 1967. I think the oil leak is from the front timing cover seal (around the balancer), and it only seems to leak when you first shut the car off and the oil is draining back into the pan (not while driving when the oil pressure is up). It leaks very little... I hardly ever check it. I had figured that I would just worry about it sometime in the future, maybe a few years from now, whenever I decided to pull the motor and rebuild it. Nevertheless, I’ve subtracted $1000 from my original asking price as compensation for the leak. ELECTRICAL: As strange as it may sound for a classic British sports car, it has zero electrical issues, and the only parts of the electrical system that aren't original are the parts I've upgraded. The only other thing I've ever done to the electricals is replace a few connectors that looked a little corroded. I also ran all new up-rated battery cables from the battery, mainly as a “preventative maintenance” safety measure. OTHER/MISC: New badges front and rear New trunk liner complete kit installed New gas tank New SU fuel pump (modern electronic version) with special insulators added to the mounting bracket to quiet it down a bit New period-correct Moto-Lita steering wheel Added front accessory bar with period correct fog lights Convex mirrors on both sides of the car for enhanced rear visibility New convertible top boot Several new bits of weather stripping here and there High output Odyssey dry cell battery Thermo-tec heat control mat lining the interior floor, including an extra lining on the underside of the transmission tunnel (done to help with the infamous “hot cockpit” problem that Healeys suffer from) Added a mirror riser with clock for the center dash mirror Spent a lot of time and money dressing up the engine bay with a polished aluminum theme – custom alloy valve cover from England with original style tags, polished alternator, compressor, water pipe, polished stainless water neck, lots of other items replaced, restored, etc. My goal was a “period correct” look with a bit more bling - like what it might have looked like if it had been done up back in the 60's. Also worth noting... The original from-the-factory tonneau cover is also included (though I’ve never used it) The original owner's manual is still there in the glove box UPGRADED / ENHANCED AIR CONDITIONING: It’s one of the best looking installations you’ll find, having a real “period correctness” about it, but looking (and working) far better than what the dealer installed systems looked like back in the day (there were no factory-installed A/C Healeys). It does a great job keeping the car cool and enjoyable to drive on those hot days. This is a high end sports car, after all... you shouldn’t be sweating while driving it! The system is a R134a system mostly based on Vintage Air products. TOYOTA 5 SPEED TRANSMISSION CONVERSION: An entirely bolt-on conversion, if you’ve ever driven an original transmission Austin Healey, then you’ll immediately recognize the significance of this upgrade. I can’t even put into words how much nicer the car is to drive with this transmission instead of that original non-synchronized trans/overdrive horribleness. I consider this to be the best thing I ever did to the car. TALL? If you’re really tall, this is the Healey for you! Modifications have been made for more leg room (the seat can adjust back further than stock)... but none of the modifications affect or change anything if you're not tall. MECHANICAL BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH: A mechanical brake light switch has been added for safety, put in parallel with the original brake light pressure switch for additional redundant safety. If you know anything about those antique pressure switch setups, you’ll immediately recognize how important this upgrade is. From a safety standpoint, this is probably the most important thing I’ve done. CUSTOM EXHAUST: This is basically a modification of an original system. The original leak-prone flex sections were replaced with modern accordion style stainless steel equivalents, the rear resonators were removed and rear pipes rerouted, and the whole system was welded up and pressure tested. Sounds awesome!!!... but I should warn you – it’s a bit loud inside the car. I love it, but some people might not. Knowing this, I’ve subtracted $1000 from my original asking price as consideration for additional exhaust work to suit your taste. CUSTOM DOUBLE BRAKE LIGHTS: Another upgrade I did to improve safety (and because it looks cool) was to create more brake light presence in the rear by doubling the brake lights. The top lenses, which were originally amber and only for turn signals, are now red and serve a dual purpose – they still blink for the turn signals, but they also act as brake lights, coming on in addition to the original lower brake lights. This was my way to improving safety without adding a third brake light setup (which look pretty horrible on these cars). This is an awesome upgrade! It looks cool, and significantly improves rear brake light presence for safety. I was actually featured in the Feb 2011 issue of the “Healey High Roads” publication for this upgrade. ELECTRICAL: With A/C, electric fan and big battery, the car now has a 115 amp polished CS130D alternator. It’s also got high output halogen headlights with hard wiring and relay added (properly fused). Every electrical modification works perfectly and was done correctly (for example: the generator light in the dash still functions correctly). As I mentioned above, very little was done to the electrical system beyond the changes involved during upgrading. Everything else is in great original shape. ORIGINALITY If you are more of a purist and don’t like much deviation from absolute originality... or even if you think it may be important to you someday in the future... no worries! I still have all the original parts should someone ever want to put the car back to original condition. This was very important to me, and I took great care to insure all my upgrades were minimally invasive (and really, it’s not like the car is “ultra customized” or anything). So the option is there... the original transmission, prop shaft, mint condition steering wheel, generator, canister oil filter, heater, stock valve cover, various brackets, even the original radiator... they all come with the car (if you want them). However, if you drove the car, you'd quickly come to the conclusion that you'd never want to change anything back :) I obviously wasn't out to "hack up" a classic car with the upgrades and enhancements I've made. My primary goal was to update the safety, comfort and reliability for modern driving enjoyment. My secondary goal was to personalize things a bit in ways that were as period correct as I could make them. I don't know about you, but if you've ever been to an Austin Healey car show, it's pretty darn boring looking at a row of cars that are all exactly identical except for color. I just never understood the appeal of being just like everyone else. I'd rather stand out a little... just like most of us petrol heads would have done back in '67 if we'd bought it brand new. It’s just my opinion of course, but this car is quite possibly the most enjoyable-driving big Healey you'll find. It's an absolute blast to drive.... The Toyota 5 speed transmission is exponentially better and more enjoyable to shift than the original non-synchronized trans/overdrive junk... the A/C makes for a pleasant drive when it's hot out... the suspension is tight and firm... it’s totally reliable, runs fantastic and sounds awesome.... the headlights, power and brake light upgrades make it much safer to drive, day or night... and the cooling system keeps the car within reasonable temps – even through 105 degree Texas summer days (seriously!). To me, this really is the ultimate driver’s Healey. If you want an Austin Healey to drive and enjoy... that also looks fantastic sitting in a car show... that also has low mileage... that is also in superb survivor-like condition... that still stands out in a crowd even if you're surrounded by other Healeys... and that's also way safer on the road than your average Healey... then this is your car! This car was built to be driven and enjoyed... to show off and have fun with. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask! The car is pretty much an “open book” on my website. Go there and you can see a ton of photos and read all about the work I’ve done. I dare you to find a Healey for sale out there right now that you can “get to know” better prior to purchase than this one! The website is at: http://www.astraldimensions.com/healey/index.html ADDITIONAL PHOTOS - OUTER Click on any thumbnail for a larger version! ADDITIONAL PHOTOS - INNER Click on any thumbnail for a larger version! ADDITIONAL PHOTOS - UNDER Click on any thumbnail for a larger version! ABOUT THE SALE / DISCLAIMERS If you're interested in this car and want to see it in person before making an offer, I'd be happy to show it to you. I am located just 15 minutes north of the DFW airport (zip code here is 75028). Please contact me to work out arrangements if you want to come see it. If you want to ship the car, I will not arrange shipping for you, but will be happy to drop the car off anywhere in the Dallas/Fort Worth area at your direction. If you're planning to drive it home, I can't think of anything that would concern me about taking it on a long road trip, even if you're going all the way across the country. Please don't make me an offer unless you're serious. Making an accepted offer does not entitle you to come inspect the car and then decide if you want to buy it - an accepted offer is an agreement of sale and is binding and final. A $1000 deposit via PayPal is due within 24 hours of offer acceptance, no exceptions. The remaining balance is due within 7 days after that via certified check, and it is expected that the car will be picked up within 14 days (though I can work with you if you need more time to pick it up). I have made every attempt to create a complete, accurate, thorough description of this car. I've tried to include everything I could think of, but please remember that this vehicle is being sold as is, where is, with no warranty expressed, written or implied. It is the responsibility of the buyer to have satisfied him/herself as to its condition and value prior to sale. I assume no responsibility for any costs after sale, such as repairs or damage during shipping, nor for any errors, flaws or problems you find after sale. Everything I know or did is in this ad.