As an attempt at reinventing the classic British sports car for the safety- and emissionsminded 1970s, the JensenHealey looked like a credible product in 1972. With two revered names on its tail, A power source courtesy of Lotus and rational, off-the-shelf Vauxhall underpinnings, here was a modern yet traditional 125mph open two-seater with scintillating acceleration and tidy handling. At a fraction over £1800, it should have picked up where the Big Healey left off.
a new twin-cam, 16-valve Despite misgivings about its raucous engine and the flimsy, wind-noise-inducing hood, the press reaction to the car was cautiously positive. While taking the fight to the Datsun 240Z, the car that had filled the void left by the demise of the Healey 3000 in the North American market, the Jensen-Healey should also have appealed to MGB and Triumph TR6 owners looking to trade up. Even S1 and S2 E-type devotees, feeling alienated by the complexity of the new V12 Series 3, would have seen the newcomer as a worthy alternative.
Sales forecasts of 10,000 units a year did not seem unreasonable. True enough, its new unitary body was no ravishing beauty, yet, as a means of walking a fine line between good looks and increasingly demanding American Federal legislation, the rather unremarkable shape managed not to offend the eye.
Between 1972 and the demise of Jensen Motors in 1976, almost 11,000 customers must have at least come to terms with the car's styling, even if they couldn't fall in love with it. That rather suggests the problems lay elsewhere: in the well-documented cases of poor finish and underdeveloped engines, and a simple inability to produce enough cars to satisfy the initial enthusiastic demand.
この記事は Classic & Sports Car の April 2023 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は Classic & Sports Car の April 2023 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
Mick WALSH
'Had someone said that this worn-looking titan would win the most famous old-car event, we would have laughed'
ALFA ROMEO STELVIO QF
Rewriting the rulebook on what an SUV can do, and how it can make you feel
FLOATING INTO THE FUTURE
Citroën's DS-replacing CX was at a cutting edge so sharp it still looks fresh today, and it had the drive to match - as five superb survivors reveal
"It's a car for posing in really"
Broadcaster Michael Buerk reflects on more than three decades with his beloved Jaguar E-type S1 3.8 fixed-head coupé
HONDAS DECK THE HALL
The Japanese firm's Los Angeles collection is now on public display for the first time in two decades
ABSOLUTELY buzzing
Honda's Si Civics brought agile, cheap fun to motorists long before the Type R name got anywhere near a hatchback
THE FEMININE TOUCH
In 1955, General Motors styling guru Harley Earl brought 11 talented women into the male-dominated world of automotive design. What was their lasting impact?
Out on a limb
Panther's innovative Solo 2 was something completely different, both for its maker and the sports car market
Restyles with substance
Panther Westwinds blended a passion for pre-war designs with modern-era mechanical usability and remarkably fine coachbuilding
Dead ringers
The Maserati Kyalami and De Tomaso Longchamp share much, having emerged from the same stable, but are poles apart at heart