Austin-Healey 3000 Mark III

Manufacturer	Austin-Healey
Production	1963 to 1968
Assembly	Abingdon, England
Class	Sports car
Body style	2-door roadster
Layout	FR layout
Engine	2,912 cc (2.9 L) C-Series I6
Wheelbase	91.70 in, 2,329 mm
Length	157.50 in, 4,000 mm
Width	60 in, 1,524 mm
Height	50.75 in, 1,289 mm
Dry weight	2,335 1b, 1,059 kg

The Austin-Healey 3000 Mk III  is a British sports car built from 1963 to 1968, The 3000 Mk III (BJ8) was launched in October 1963 and remained in production until the end of 1967 although some cars were also completed in 1968 .

History

The Mk III will also be the last Austin-Healey of large displacement: the continuous mergers between the British car groups meant that the Austin-Healey brand had "in-house" rivals, such as MG and Triumph . To replace the 3000 Donald Healey proposed to mount a 4-liter Rolls-Royce engine and Borg-Warner automatic transmission on a chassis and an enlarged Mk III body by 15.24 cm . However, this solution proved costly to implement and inadequate for the American market due to the safety regulations that would be introduced in 1968 . Without American customers, the Healey -Rolls-Royce operationit would certainly have been a failure and so the 3000 legacy was taken up by the MG C , an MG B adapted to accommodate the Austin-Healey six-cylinder engine.

The Mk III was the most powerful and luxurious of all the Big Healeys. In fact, it has a 148hp engine and a new walnut-veneered dashboard, black-bottomed instruments, center console, key start, drop-down windows, and a new folding rear seat. The power of the engine (type 29K) was increased thanks to a new design of the camshaft and valve springs, 2 SU HD8 carburetors, and a new exhaust system; thanks to these measures 148 HP at 5250 rpm and 22 Kgm of torque at 3500 rpm were reached and the car reached 194 Km / h. The brake booster became standard and the price increased slightly, distribution of the  weight was  49.8% at front axle, and 50.2% to rear axle.

PERFORMANCE

• engine capacity: 177.69 cu in, 2,912 cu cm
• fuel consumption:19.9 mlimp gal, 16.6 mlUS gal, 14.2 1 x 100 km
• max speed:123 mph, 198 km/h
• max power (DIN): 150 hp at 5,250 rpm
• max torque (DIN): 173 lbft,23.9 kg m at 3,000 rpm
• max engine specific power: 51.5 hp
• power-weight ratio: 15.6 lb/hp, 7.1 kg/hp
• acceleration: standing 1/4 mile 17 sec, 0—50 mph (0—80 km/h) 7 sec
• max speeds: 47 mph, 75.7 km/h in 1st gear; 60 mph, 96.6 km/h in 2nd gear; 96 mph, 154.6 km/h in 3rd gear; 123 mph, 198 km/h in 4th gear

The options remained the same except for the leather upholstery of the seats and the brake booster, which became standard. In May 1964 the set-up was changed, which gained height from the ground thanks to new rear springs with six coils.wire wheels and knock-on hubs; hardtop; Laycock.de Normanville overdrive on 3rd (1.075 ratio) and IV (0.822 ratio). 3.910 axle ratio, speed In overdrlve/top at 1,000 rpm 23 mph, 37 km/h, max speed in overdrive/top 122 mph, 196.4 km/h.

In March 1965 the MK III "Phase II" was launched with separate direction indicators.

In total 17,712 Mark III (BJ8) were produced between Phase I and I

The 3000 was an unrivalled export success: of the 51,315 cars built (including some 100/6) between 1957 and 1968, 45,596, or 88.8%, crossed the Atlantic and ended up in the United States.

A Austin Healey 3000 MkIII in Heartbeat, TV Series (ITV)