The Sleek And Ultra-Stylish Healey 100 by Caton Restomod

If I were to say to you “British roadster”, what would come to mind? What image would you be thinking of almost instantly? That of an open-top, lightweight and nimble car with an appealing design and a front-mounted engine sending power to the rear wheels, surely. Cars like the MGB, the Lotus Elan, the Triumph TR-series, and so on. Another that might be worth mentioning is the Austin-Healey 100, a two-seater sports car built in the mid-1950s that would evolve into the iconic Healey 3000 later on in life. While its bigger and faster brother gets most of the attention, the Healey 100 remains every bit a true British icon straight from the 1950s. But bring it to Caton, and it will be given a rejuvenating spa treatment otherwise known as; a Restomod!

The recipe is pretty straightforward; bring in an old car, spend some money and be patient for a while, and take delivery of a more reliable and overall better car compared to what you started with. And one that will likely look better too, but has retained its original soul, its character. That’s exactly what a restomod is, redesigning a classic car with respect to its heritage but simply making it technically more reliable and often (quite) a bit faster in the process. We’ve seen it with the Jaguar XK120, the Alfa Romeo 105 series, the Volvo P1800, the Ford Bronco, and yes, even something as outrageous as a Lamborghini Diablo!

It all starts with the Healey Hundred, a small open-top sportscar developed by Donald Healey based on Austin underpinnings. It was unveiled at the 1952 London Motor Show, and impressed Austin’s managing director Leanord Lord so much, that he decided to put it into production as the Austin-Healey 100. The body would be built by Jenson Motors, and the chassis and mechanical bits were to come from Austin. It was built as a genuine two-seater, but also as a 2+2 throughout most of its life.

The name for the car came from the top speed it could hit; 100mph, or roughly 160kph. Although it wasn’t exactly one that blitzed everything else on the road back then, it wasn’t exactly slow for the time either. The 2.6-litre four-cylinder engine pumped out 90bhp at first, which grew to 132bhp in later, more performance-oriented variations. It came with a three- or four-speed manual gearbox. Fun fact; the very rare 1955 Healey 100S (only 50 made) was the first production car to feature disc brakes in the front and the back! A 3.0-litre engine was also introduced, but that would be marketed as the Healey 3000 instead of the Healey 100, hinting at its engine capacity rather than top speed.

Bringing your Healey 100 to Caton means several things. For one, the engine is completely overhauled and bored out to a capacity of 3.0 litre and an output of 185 bhp. This makes it quite a bit faster than the original Healey 100, considering the fact it now has double the power. Its top speed is marked as “in excess of 100mph”, with a zero-to-100kph time of under 7 seconds. In terms of weight, you’re looking at 920 kilos so it will be great fun on twisty B-roads and alpine climbs! Stopping power comes from disc brakes all around, replacing the original drum brakes. What also changes is the gearbox, which is upgraded to a five-speed manual.

But it’s the exterior and interior that matter most when it comes to Caton’s work on the Healey 100. Using a blend of CAD software to tweak the design and traditional coachbuilding techniques to then shape and build it, the Healey by Caton looks extremely refined. Gone are the bumpers on both the front and the back, as well as the external hinges of the doors, trunk and engine cover. The rear haunches are more pronounced and overall, it just looks, better! The windshield is now a frame-less wrap-around windshield, upping the style even further. What has been retained yet finished with modernized components, is the iconic smiling face of the car. The signature grill, flanked by a pair of headlights unmistakably makes this Healey a Healey 100.

It continues on the inside as well, as the interior is fitted with high-quality hand-stitched leather upholstery everywhere you look. Sit down in the leather bucket seat and you’re greeted by a gorgeous wooden steering that’s just waiting to be thrown around from left to right. The gear lever has moved to the top of the transmission tunnel instead of awkwardly on the side of it ( a typical Healey 100 trait) and fitted with a machined aluminium knob. Newly designed yet period-styled gauges inform you about details such as speeds, revs and temperatures. It looks like a very pleasant and comforting place to sit in, but I wonder if my 2.01m tall frame will fit.

Even though all this looks mighty fine, Caton states there’s no limit to what they can do. They welcome you to their Coventry headquarters to discover the craftsmanship poured into every single build for yourself. You can spec it whichever way you want it, from one-off paint colours to unique materials and trim details, ensuring that your modernized motoring icon caters to your every desire! Just make sure to bring a chequebook, as this doesn’t come cheap (do they ever?). A Caton-built Healey 100 has a starting price of GBP 295,000. And that does not include the donor car!

For more information, please visit Caton.uk.

Editorial Note: The information and images used for this article are provided by and used with permission of Caton, with credits to Gunhill Studios for the photos.