THE SPRITE THAT ONCE WAS Bill Meade AND COULD HAVE BEEN… Watsonville, California Contributing Editor Not everyone is aware that the Austin-Healey Sprite, originally designed by Gerry Coker, was to have been a sleek and aggressive-bodied sports car. The car was planned from the beginning to be econom- ical enough for almost anyone to own, and Donald Healey wanted this car to be a great choice for the young weekend racer on a budget. Even though Donald gave Gerry a very limiting proposed chassis around which the body had to fit, Coker’s design was outstanding in its original concept. The car was not allowed an opening trunk and the bonnet had to be a simple full tilt. These limitations were intended to keep the cost low, and the budget restrictions affected what the design could be. The genius of Gerry Coker’s design ability came through in a shape that embodied a Testa Rossa- inspired front grill, combined with classic, rounded shapes in the front fenders and the rear end. The hood was long, smooth and sloped to the forward-angled front grill. The headlights were to be re- cessed and mechanically raised. In simple terms, the car was a knockout! Unfortunately, the reality of production costs caused BMC to abandon the design elements that were the heart of the car’s sharp look. First to go were the recessed headlights, and in there place the infa- mous “bugeye” light pods were permanently affixed. Next, the shark-like grill was set upright, giving the car a milder, “smiling” look. 28 WWW.HEALEYCLUB.ORG HEALEY MARQUE Between the time that he did the original design for the Sprite and its introduction as a production car, Gerry had accepted a position with Ford in the USA, and so he was not aware of the changes made to his original design. He said that he “nearly croaked” when he first saw the production car in a Detroit show- room after he had moved to America. No longer a low-slung aggressive- Gerry Coker’s original design drawing. looking car, but a perky, friendly, “bugeye” that faced lots of criticism when it was first introduced. Perhaps the design was allowed to be downgraded because there was fear it might upstage the bigger Healey? Or maybe it was just that BMC didn’t have the best design sensibilities? Either way, the Bugeye was to face a rocky reception. Luckily, the sheer fun of driving this The original design drawing colored in by Coker. little sports car (and the low price) won many people over in its day. Today the Bugeye is loved in spite of its looks and by many because of the quirky look. The drawings with this article show Gerry Coker’s original design for the Sprite plus a hand-colored version done by Gerry himself. The title photo shows the prototype body built in Birmingham Eng- land, and a Photoshopped picture below shows the body as it would have looked as a finished car, with a few touches making it suitable for competition. With the magic of Photoshop the car is painted in Ferrari red, just as Gerry wanted it in 1957. The Photoshopped version is made from the exact original prototype car photo. The envisioned fin- ished car has Mini-Lite wheels installed, typically used for racing in the 1950s and 60s. The car is lowered an inch or two due to uprated competition springs. There are also Raydot racing mirrors and small front bumper guards in- stalled. This photo clearly shows the attractive look that could have been. Perhaps some Sprite re- storer will be inspired to com- plete their car with the original prototype look. All it would take is a few inches exten- sion to the angled grill, a little modification to the grill itself, two rear Sprite bumper guards installed at the front, and in- stallation of two salvaged early Miata recessed lights. I can hardly wait to see the first one on the road! MAY 2008 WWW .HEALEYCLUB .ORG 29.