Austin Healey purists should read no further, just skip right to the comments section and do your worst. This Healey has a (gasp!) 327 V8 in it. In the mid 196o’s we did several conversions like this in the auto sh0p at school in New Mexico. The 327 swap was actually lighter than the big six it replaced. This example is listed on eBay in Emeryville, CA with a BIN of $12,500. Thanks to Charles H. for finding this and sharing it with us!

The owner says the body is aluminum and the flares are fiberglass (“UPDATE: just the flares are fibreglass. the body is aluminum”). That is odd. Only a few (100?) race versions were built with aluminum bodies and these had disk brakes all around. (This one seems to have drum brakes) I don’t see any visible rust in the pictures.

The interior is ratty, but install some seat cushions and it would be usable. There’s no top, so you might want to find a top or a tonneau cover.

The engine is said to run well, however the clutch slave cylinder needs a rebuild. Those fender flares need to go away. The temporary gas tank is interesting, to say the least. What would you do with this, other than walking away? These Healeys are so nice, it wouldn’t seem right driving it looking so ratty. It looks more abused than worn.

Would it be possible and worthwhile to restore it somewhat and replace the drivetrain with something more authentic? Or would you leave the V8 alone and just make the car look closer to original? A decent driver would cost $35,000 to $40,000. We’ve seen rusty shells go for as much as $15,000, so this could actually be a great deal.