By accessing/using The Crittenden Automotive Library/CarsAndRacingStuff.com, you signify your agreement with the Terms of Use on our Legal Information page. Our Privacy Policy is also available there.

Austin-Healey Sprite

Sprite
Vehicle Model

Topic Navigation
Wikipedia: Austin-Healey Sprite Page Sections History Images

A small sports car produced by Austin-Healey from 1958-1971.

---

History

The following section is an excerpt from Wikipedia's Austin-Healey Sprite page on 16 August 2020, text available via the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

The Austin-Healey Sprite is a small open sports car which was produced in the United Kingdom from 1958 to 1971. The Sprite was announced to the press in Monte Carlo by the British Motor Corporation on 20 May 1958, two days after that year's Monaco Grand Prix. It was intended to be a low-cost model that "a chap could keep in his bike shed", yet be the successor to the sporting versions of the pre-war Austin Seven. The Sprite was designed by the Donald Healey Motor Company, with production being undertaken at the MG factory at Abingdon. It first went on sale at a price of £669, using a tuned version of the Austin A-Series engine and as many other components from existing cars as possible to keep costs down.

When the Mk. II Sprite was introduced in 1961 it was joined by a badge-engineered MG version, the Midget, reviving a model name used by MG from the late 1920s through to the mid 1950s. Enthusiasts often refer to these later Sprites and Midgets collectively as "Spridgets." The MG-badged version of the car continued in production for several years after the Austin-Healey brand ceased to exist.

---

Images

	Subject:  A Spritely St. Nick Artist:  Ken Eberts Car:  1958 Austin-Healey Sprite Source:   View "A Spritely St. Nick" - 1958 Austin-Healey Sprite - 87KB
	Car:  #147 - 1960 Austin-Healey Sprite Mk I (967cc) Driver:  Lawrence Shaffer Photographer:  Nathan Bittinger Event:  2004 Zippo United States Vintage Grand Prix License:  Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 License View photo of 1960 Austin-Healey Sprite - 234KB
	Subject:  1961 Austin-Healey Sprite Photographer:  Bill Crittenden Event:  Barrington, Illinois Cruise Night: 19 July 2007 View photo of 1961 Austin-Healey Sprite - 1,178KB
	Subject:  1969 Austin-Healey Sprite Photographer:  Bill Crittenden Event:  2009 Meadowdale, Motorsports & Memories View photo of 1969 Austin-Healey Sprite - 4,278KB
	Subject:  1969 Austin-Healey Sprite Photographer:  Bill Crittenden Event:  2009 Meadowdale, Motorsports & Memories View photo of 1969 Austin-Healey Sprite - 4,753KB
	Subject:  1969 Austin-Healey Sprite Photographer:  Bill Crittenden Event:  2009 Meadowdale, Motorsports & Memories View photo of 1969 Austin-Healey Sprite - 4,485KB
	Subject:  1969 Austin-Healey Sprite Photographer:  Bill Crittenden Event:  2009 Meadowdale, Motorsports & Memories View photo of 1969 Austin-Healey Sprite - 3,705KB
	Subject:  1969 Austin-Healey Sprite Photographer:  Bill Crittenden Event:  2009 Meadowdale, Motorsports & Memories View photo of 1969 Austin-Healey Sprite - 3,943KB
	Subject:  1969 Austin-Healey Sprite Photographer:  Bill Crittenden Event:  2009 Meadowdale, Motorsports & Memories View photo of 1969 Austin-Healey Sprite - 3,946KB
	Subject:  1969 Austin-Healey Sprite Photographer:  Bill Crittenden Event:  2009 Meadowdale, Motorsports & Memories View photo of 1969 Austin-Healey Sprite - 3,724KB
	Subject:  1969 Austin-Healey Sprite Photographer:  Bill Crittenden Event:  2009 Meadowdale, Motorsports & Memories View photo of 1969 Austin-Healey Sprite - 4,775KB

---