November 15 2008
Great combo: 1973 Jensen-Healey with TVR 3.9 V8
Service at ClassicCarHunter has been interrupted a bit by the arrival of a wee boy. We hope to resume regularity of posts as soon as possible. From now on, we should really be looking for cars with at least some space for a toddler in the back, but we couldn’t help liking this Jensen-Healey for sale on ebay UK through a trader.
Making an originally rather bland classic look a bit more attractive and contemporary is never an easy task, but in this case the result is not too bad really. The Compomotive wheels might not be to everybody’s taste, but we quite like the low-profile tyre look on this Jensen-Healey. We’re not convinced about the colour, but the overall combination is appealing enough to consider putting in an offer.
The real attraction about this car though can be found under the bonnet. It has the original 2-litre Lotus twincam replaced with a bit more grunt. Instead the car has a 3.9-litre V8 lump from a TVR 390SE. This is in essence a Rover V8, developed for TVR by racing tuner Andy Rouse to develop 275bhp at 5500rpm. The fuel injection has been converted to a Holley carb on an Offenhauser intake manifold. The engine has been linked up to a custom prop shaft driving the original Jensen rear axle. The exhaust comes in true TVR fashion and must sound incredible.
The interior is a nice black leather and the car comes with a hardtop. It is for sale out of London here on ebay and comes with a Buy-It-Now of GBP5950. Not too bad. We’d like to test drive it though …
Check it out as ebay item 200271750101 (from last week) you can see the engine. The trader could have used his own words though. Good luck to him that’s what I say. I’ve driven it and the noise is remarkable and while the tyres might not look the part, the engine will light them up with ease in almost any gear – you really don’t want the power going through standard tyres!
HI R
We’ve been out of circulation for a couple of weeks, so many thanks for the link. That says enough really. Shame the seller has omitted everything about the new floor, sills etc.