1951-1954 Nash-Healey: First American Postwar Sports Car

I'll begin by qualifying this post's title.  The Nash-Healey, for sale in 1951, was the first post- World War 2 sports car offered by an established American car maker -- the Nash-Kelvinator Corporation.

Some background can be found here, here, and here.

Nash-Healeys had Nash motors and drivetrains, Healey chassis, suspensions, etc., and bodies by other vendors.  The 1951 cars had bodies designed by Healey and built by Panelcraft Sheet Metal of Birmingham, England.  For 1952 and later, bodies were designed and built by Pinin Farina in Italy.  Farina also contributed ideas for the restyled 1952 Nash passenger cars.

As the links mention, in part due to shipping costs (USA to England to Italy to USA) and the low-production semi-custom bodies, Nash-Healeys were expensive -- production being limited to slightly more than 500 cars.

Gallery

This is the 1950 Nash-Healey prototype.

The prototype's grille is similar to that of the 1950 Nash NXI concept car shown here.

Production 1951 Nash-Healey.  Its grille is that of the 1951 Nash sedan with the Nash emblem placed on its center, as was used on 1952 Nashes.  The body design is pleasant and in the fashion of contemporary sports cars.  That is, the hood is fairly low and the fenderline is flowing with an up-kick abaft of the door.  The main clashing element is the windshield, whose strongly rectangular form is not related to the curved body lines.

Rear quarter view of the very first 1951 Nash-Healey in an auction photo.  Pleasing, but not distinctive.

Factory photo of a 1953 Nash-Healey Coupé by Pinin Farina.  The 1952 Farina design abandoned the use of a stock Nash Grille, though 1955 Nashes got grilles similar in concept to the one seen here.  The 1952-54 Nash-Healey design seems fussier than Healey's 1951 version, particularly the front end and the use of a separate rear fender.  On the other hand, the design is more distinctive, a plus factor in marketing terms.

Rear quarter view of a 1953 Nash-Healey auctioned by Mecum.  This shows the one-piece backlight.  I think the two-tone paint scheme detracts from the design by adding yet another  fussy element.

1954 Nash-Healey roadster, Hyman auction photo.  The curved, one-piece windshield is a better solution than the initial two-piece, flat glass windscreen of 1951.

1954 Nash-Healey Coupé, again via Hyman, Ltd.

Same car: For 1954 the back window became a three-piece affair similar to backlights on American hardtop convertibles of the early 1950s.  A distinctive feature of Pinin Farina's design is the upkick / mini-tailfin at the aft of the rear fender.  This and the grille incorporating headlights were key identification features on 1952-54 Nash-Healeys.

1953 Buick Wildcat show car whose fender line previewed that of 1954 productions Buicks.  Note the same sort of aft up-kick seen on the Nash-Healeys.  Surely Buick stylists were aware of that Farina touch, but borrowed it anyway.