History & Provenance
The Final Chapter of a Racing Dynasty
From the workshops of Warwick to the mountain roads of Sicily and the sun-baked tarmac of Florida — the story of the last Healeys.
The Healey Legacy
Donald Healey built his reputation on one simple principle: a light, nimble British sports car could outrun almost anything on the right circuit. From the Big Healeys of the 1950s to the Sprites that dominated their class through the 1960s, the Healey name became synonymous with punching above its weight.
By the late 1960s, the company was winding down its racing program. The Austin Healey name was being retired from production. But Donald Healey and his son Geoffrey were not finished. They commissioned two final prototypes — cars that would carry the Healey racing spirit into a new decade, and onto two of the world's most demanding circuits.
The People
Key Figures
Donald Healey
Founder, Donald Healey Motor Company
One of Britain's great automotive visionaries, Donald Healey built a company that produced some of the most beloved sports cars of the postwar era. His partnership with BMC created the Austin Healey — a car that won races, broke records, and captured imaginations worldwide.
Geoffrey Healey
Son of Donald Healey, Racing Director
Geoffrey Healey oversaw the company's competition program through its final years, commissioning the two prototype cars that would become the last chapter of the Healey racing story. His engineering instincts shaped both cars' mechanical specification.
Janet Guthrie
Racing Driver — Sebring 1970
A physicist turned racing driver, Janet Guthrie would go on to become the first woman to qualify and start both the Indianapolis 500 and the Daytona 500. In 1970, she led a team of women drivers in the Healey prototype to a class victory at Sebring — a result that resonated far beyond the race result itself.
The Circuits
Where They Raced
Madonie Mountains, Sicily — 1969
Targa Florio
The Targa Florio was unlike any other race in the world. Held on 44 miles of public mountain roads in the Madonie Mountains of Sicily, it demanded a car that was light, reliable, and supremely well-balanced. The Last Sprite prototype was built expressly for this event — and it delivered.
Circuit length
44 miles
Year competed
1969
Sebring, Florida — 1970
Sebring 12 Hours
The 12 Hours of Sebring is one of the oldest and most prestigious endurance races in the United States. Run on a circuit carved from a former World War II airfield, it is notorious for its rough surface, relentless heat, and the attrition it inflicts on both cars and drivers. In 1970, both Healey prototypes competed here — and the Ring Free car took a class victory.
Race duration
12 hours
Year competed
1970
Why These Cars Matter
More Than Race Cars
These two prototypes represent the end of an era. When the Austin Healey name was retired from production in 1971, these were among the last cars to carry the Healey racing spirit onto the world's great circuits. They are not merely historic vehicles — they are primary documents of a pivotal moment in British motorsport.
The Ring Free car carries additional significance as a piece of women's motorsport history. Janet Guthrie's class victory at Sebring in 1970 predated her Indianapolis and Daytona appearances by seven years — and this car was part of that story from the beginning.
Both cars have been fully restored to race specification. Their mechanical fuel injection systems and dry-sump engines — extraordinary technology for their era — are operational. They are not museum pieces. They are racing cars, ready to be driven.
Explore the Cars
Each car has its own story. Read the full history of the Guthrie prototype and the Last Sprite.