1951 Healey Silverstone Recreation

Description

A highly convincing replica built on a Healey Tickford chassis with the correct Riley RM Big Four engine and gearbox; aluminium body; leather seats; only 100 miles on rebuilt engine

Unveiled in 1949, the Healey Silverstone was a dual-purpose road/race car produced by the Donald Healey Motor Company of Warwick. As with other Healey models like the Westland, the Abbott and the Elliott, it used Healey’s own chassis, designed by ex-Maserati and Alfa Romeo engineer Sammy Sampietro, onto which was mounted an aluminium body designed by Benjamin Bowden and built by Abbey Panels of Coventry. It was powered by Riley’s 2.5-litre Big Four twin cam engine as used in the RM Series.

On its first competitive outing, a Silverstone driven by Donald Healey and Ian Appleyard came second overall and first in class on the 1949 Alpine Rally, an excellent achievement on this gruelling 1,800-mile event which instantly cast a halo around the new sportscar. Popular with club racers, the Silverstone went on to notch up many more wins in subsequent events. Only in production for 14 months, the Silverstone was shelved in September 1950 by which time 105 had been sold and survivors are highly prized today.

This particular car is a faithful copy of the original, using the correct Healey chassis (donated by a 1951 Healey Tickford) and the correct Riley Big Four engine mated to a 4-speed floor-change Riley RM gearbox. It is fitted with an aluminium body which is also a faithful copy of the genuine factory-built cars.

We are not quite sure when the car was built, our vendor acquiring it from a deceased estate in 2016. When he bought the car, it was fitted with a Jaguar 2.4 XK engine but this was such a tight fit in the engine bay that it proved difficult to work on so this was replaced by a fully rebuilt Riley Big Four engine with RMF camshafts and cylinder head and twin SU HF4 carbs. A Revotec electric cooling fan was also fitted, along with an electric water pump, and the whole car was completely rewired.

The 4-speed floor-change gearbox is a Nuffield unit as also used in the RM series and gives the car long-legged performance (30mph per 1,000rpm in 4^th), the vendor reporting that it easily keeps up with modern traffic and lopes along happily at 70mph – 80mph.

The V5C records the car as a 1951 Healey Sports and it is classed as a Historic Vehicle so it is free to tax and MOT-exempt. The history file contains a few recent invoices, a Healey 2.4 instruction manual, various period road tests of the Silverstone and other Healey models, wiring diagrams, Healey Club magazines, plus much useful technical literature about the model. There is also one old MOT from 2011 at which point the odometer was showing 95,217 miles, now 97,424 miles. A canvas tonneau cover is also present.

As you can see in the photos, the car is in good condition throughout with quality Blockley tyres and smart beige leather seats. It has only covered around 100 miles since the engine was rebuilt so it will benefit from some gentle use to begin with and an oil change within the next 500 miles. It will also benefit from a precautionary check-over before returning to the road as it has been unused and in storage for the last few years. Although it runs and drives with good 55psi oil pressure, the petrol in the tank is stale and well past its best.  

Only reluctantly for sale due to illness, this convincing Healey Silverstone replica will turn heads wherever it goes and is on offer here at a very attractive guide price. 

For more information contact James on 07970 309907 or email james.dennison@brightwells.com