1958 Austin-Healey 100-Six “Goldie”
Purpose-built to create excitement on the Austin-Healey stand at the October 1958 London Motor Show. With precious little time, a regular-production 100-Six roadster was plucked from the assembly line and prepared in secret after regular working hours.
The cockpit was similarly flamboyant, with the seats, dashboard, inner doors, and side panels all trimmed in reversed Champagne Connolly kid leather. Luxurious Champagne Diadem Mink by London furrier Lorna Doon Snow adorned the inserts and back squabs of the bucket seats. Appropriately rounding out the incredible package, the Austin-Healey even included a gold-plated ignition key and key ring, complete with a solid-gold scale replica of the car itself!
A special ivory paint finish was applied, and all brightwork was plated in 24-karat gold right down to the tiniest trimming washers and screws: the wire wheels, disc brakes, bumpers, and instruments were given the same treatment.
Not just flamboyantly liveried and tailored, the car was fitted with Dunlop four-wheel disc brakes, making this the only non-competition Austin-Healey so-equipped. Brake servos were also fitted; these would not become standard on Austin-Healeys until 1964.
Valued at approximately ₤4,000, nearly four times the price of a regular-production 100-Six, the Earls Court car was dubbed “the most flirtatious car in the Motor Show” by the Daily Express. A steady stream of press reports and excitement around the “Super Austin-Healey” contest, in addition to hordes of onlookers, provided a massive public relations coup for Healey that normal advertising techniques never could.
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