In a message dated 12/24/09 5:48:51 PM, healeys-request@autox.team.net
writes:
>
> Gary, my understanding has been that the special arrangement enjoyed by
> the
> Donald Healey Motor Company with BMC (that gave DMH exclusive rights to
> market the cars to U.S. forces in the UK) applied only to Austin-Healeys.
> Do you (or anyone else) know if that is so or not?
>
No exhaustive research here, but five minutes with Donald Healey/Peter
Garnier My World of Cars found this (p. 109):
Part of the Austin deal was that we should have the sale conscession in the
UK for Austin-Healey cars, that we alone should sell the first batch. As
well as the small showroom-cum-drawing office we built at The Cape, we opened
a showroom at the Austin servce Centre in West London. There was so much
pressure from the big Austin distributors, however, that Austin finally
persuaded us to allow the Austin-Healey to go out through their normal Austin
outlets, in return for which they gave us an Austin franchise. My son Brian
took
over the retail side." (emphasis mine)
The period he's referring to, of course, is 1952-1954. So from the very
beginning of the Austin-Healey relationship, Donald Healey Motor Company had an
Austin franchise, which would very soon have become a BMC franchise.
I didn't search other books, but I know I can find a picture from later on,
of the converted movie theatre in Warwick which DHMCo acquired as their
retail showroom when they expanded beyond The Cape.
I'm sure other people on this list can confirm that the Healey family had a
BMC franchise.
Gary
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