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At 15 years old I had a paper route I’d been working since I was 12, so I had a little money in the bank. In a local PennySaver I found an ad for a 1962 Austin-Healey Mark II Tri Carb Roadster. The asking price was $900, so I talked my mother into taking me to look at it while my father was at work. We liked it, and I ended up paying full price for this car. Then drove it home 10 miles with no license which infuriated my father when he got home.

Neil’s first Austin-Healey

The car needed work but it was all there. It had been repainted green, which looked horrible, and someone installed a saddle interior. This was my first car and I had it for three years before I sold it for $1,200.

When I started my family some time later, I asked my wife if I could buy another one. This time I got a 1967 Mark III green with black interior, and it only had 35,000 miles on it in 1982. This second Healey cost me $20,000, a bit of a price increase from $900. I had this one for 10 years before I sold it. I’ve had tons of cars over the years including Corvettes which I still own and Shelbys, you name it and I’ve had it.

I love all vintage automobiles, but have a special place for the Austin-Healeys. My third Healey was a 1963 Mark II. Hindsight is 20/20, and I really should have just kept the ’62.

-Neil B., Pennsylvania

Source: www.classiccars.com