K.A.S. KILMARTIN AUTOMOTIVE SHEETMETAL Pty Ltd.

Geelong Revival Sprint 2016

This certificate was awarded for the 1/4 mile sprint with cold start.

Below is footage of that run.

YouTube - John Strick Healey 6000 at the Geelong (Eastern Beach) Revival Sprint 2016

The Healey 6000 Story

The seeds were sown some time around 2006, when John Strick and I decided it was time to get on with the building of two purpose-built highly modified Healeys. It had long been a regular topic of conversation between us, with various ideas being bandied around. The common ground we shared was that the body should be as close as possible and practical to the original body with only subtle changes. In our opinion, this is the most endearing point of a Healey and the reason behind not just simply going out and purchasing the latest Alfa Sports Car etc. The lines and ageless styling of the Healey body are yet to be surpassed; however, after 50 years it was considered that other areas of the car could be improved to take the car closer to current motoring expectations.

Some of the early prerequisites included:

Modern power plant with substantially increased power

Chassis and drive train that could handle the increase in power

Good brakes

Improved handling

Air conditioning and improved cockpit comfort

Aluminium crate Chev 6 litre L98s were decided on: 50 kg lighter than the 3 litre Austin motor and a tad more power! This was to be mated up with six-speed T56 Tremec gearboxes.

It was also decided early on to go with computer-controlled fuel injection.

Once the motors had been purchased it was a case of positioning the motor on a new stock KAS chassis and working out what inner body changes would be needed and where the ancillary items could fit in. Engine mounting position was worked out, with the motor angled slightly sideways to give clearance for the air con compressor and also helped with corner weight distribution.

The transmissions were sent off to Mal Wood in Queensland to have Camaro extension housings fitted. This placed the gearshift as close to original as possible and, at the same time, was short shifted.

How do we get the power to the road was the next question. The decision was made to go with a 5 link setup and fully adjustable coil-over shockers and a Ford 9 inch LSD with a lightweight centre.

The front suspension was designed and built by McDonald Bros. Melbourne: a fully adjustable top and lower wishbone and adjustable coil-over shock absorbers.

Steering design adopted was the proven setup that the Healey Factory, Melbourne utilise in most of their modified builds: Subaru rack and Triumph collapsible column. Zero bump steer was achieved after careful positioning of the rack.

Ford Falcon XR8 brakes were used with a twin diaphragm booster, remembering that this setup is used for normally pulling up an 1800 kg car. The Healey tipped the scales at 1200 kg. Wheels chosen were 17 inch x 8 inch front and 17 inch x 9 inch rear, shod with sticky Yokohama performance tyres.

Driver and passenger comfort was enhanced by moving the dashboard and steering wheel forward some 3 inches. An extra 2 inches of footwall width was achieved by offsetting the inner sill from the A pillar outwards, while still being able to mount the front guard, wing or fender without any modification.

An extensively KAS modified chassis was then built up, which included V webbed chassis rails, beefed up chassis outriggers, cross members, rear hoop/cage to accept the rear coil-over setup and an extra cross brace under the sump of the motor.

PWR were commissioned to build an aluminium crossflow radiator specifically designed to have a similar capacity that the motor is used to running with.

Bodywork was done by John; painting was done by Gary Watts (Grub) in Ballarat and the car trimmed by Garry Blackman Melbourne.

John's car has now been completed since April 2015.

The good points have been:

• Excellent comfort due to improved driving position.
• Exhilarating power, combined with the ability to get the power to the road which is testament to the combination of rear wheel weight bias, correct setup of the 5 link rear suspension and 9 inch sticky tyres.
• Predictable handling.
• Fuel economy that puts a smile on your face when filling up next to regular Healeys.
• Engine cooling setup that has performed faultlessly, running "liquid intelligence".
• Computer engine management has certainly helped out.

Bad points to rectify include:

• Differential noise entering the cockpit. We have tried different diff centres to try and overcome this, but to no avail.
• Our next step is to try bigger and softer bushes on the trailing links, endeavouring to isolate the noise from travelling along the links.
• The upper links are at hip height and are mounted in close proximity to the gearset, and it is suspected that the noise may be entering from this point.

Another source of the transmission noise could be the roll bar, so the next step is to fill the tubes with expander foam.

Getting the cruise control operational and minimising the likelihood of speeding tickets!

We would like to think we have come some way in bridging the gap of a mid-sixties sports car with a current sports car.

OK, it may not have ABS, stability control etc.; however, it is a modern driver's car with performance to match anything on offer today, and maybe, dare we say, would have raised a twinkle in Donald's eyes if he were still alive today.

Greg Kilmartin