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Tickford Nash-Healey

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HealeyRick

HealeyRick

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This previously unpublished photograph gives a tantalising glimpse of what a sports car developed by Donald Healey for the US market would have looked like.
The image, which was taken in 1950 and was unearthed by chance in an online auction, shows the Nash-Healey. The car was the result of a meeting between sports car guru Donald Healey and Nash Motors chief George Mason on board a UK-bound ocean liner in 1949, which led to the decision to collaborate.
Under the deal Nash supplied its six-cylinder engines for a Healey-built open two-seater car aimed at Chevrolet’s Corvette and Ford’s Thunderbird. Healey commissioned coachbuilder Tickford to produce something special and this handmade prototype – codenamed X-7 – was the result.
Yet Tickford’s stylish design was shunned by Nash, which instead chose Pininfarina to restyle the Nash-Healey. The X-7 remained a one-off rarely seen in public.
This period photographic print gives a fascinating pointer to the Austin-Healey 100, because the prototype for that was also built by Tickford a few months afterwards. The windscreen rake and front wing contours all preview the 100/4’s final form, while the grille shape, headlights and bonnet scoop all suggest the later 100-6.
Unlike many prototypes, X-7 was not destroyed. Today it’s owned by American collector Leonard McGrady, whose 80-strong cache of Nash-Healeys accounts for an incredible one-sixth of all 506 examples built.

https://www.classiccarsforsale.co.uk/news/classic-car-news/1505/healeys-lost-sports-car-revealed/
 
Interesting post. I really like the looks of the car except for the covered rear wheel wells.
 
Great car, interesting article. The photo has been published before, though. It is in Jon Pressnell's Healey book.
 
Lovely car. I had the pleasure of driving one of the Pininfarina Nash Healeys years ago and it was a lively car with very reasonable handling.

Although the Nash-Healey has been forgotten by most, I think these cars provided much of the capital and visibility Healey needed to create the Austin Healey. The Healeys built quite a few Nash-Healeys and enjoyed those early racing success at LeMans. It definitely put the Healeys on the map and Nash sent lots of dollars to Warwick to build racing and production cars.

Collectors have finally started to notice them, I wish I had gotten one when they were cheap....
 
Man I could make room in my garage for one of those even if I went broke trying.-:glee:
 
Pretty amazing American Pickers tonight. Pickers found a dying South Carolina Nash dealership with four Pininfarina Nash-Healeys in various states of decay. They bought two of the coupes, one with a Cadillac engine. I think they ended up paying 48K for the two.
 
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