10 Fastest British Cars of the 1950s—and What They Cost!

Number 10. The cheapest ticket into this countdown still bought you a long hood, a straight six, and enough speed to make that little cockpit feel very exposed. Introduced in 1959, the Austin-Healey 3000 carried forward the familiar shape of the 106. The important changes were underneath. Its larger 2.9-liter engine produced 124 horsepower, while new front disc brakes gave the driver a welcome upgrade when it was time to slow down. With the optional overdrive, the early 3000 could reach around 115 miles per hour. Getting to 60 took a little over 11 seconds. That sounds leisurely today, but consider the setting. Low doors, a thin steering wheel, and removable side screens instead of proper roll-up windows. You were very much part of the experience. And what did that experience cost? In Britain, the starting price was approximately £1,175, including purchase tax. Overdrive, wire wheels, and even a heater added to the bill. In America, the BT7 version, with its tiny rear seats, carried a base price of $3,051. That was the Healey's appeal. You could buy something beautiful and genuinely fast without reaching into the price bracket of the hand-built luxury cars further up this list. Number 9. Before AC became famous for the Cobra, it built something you could take on a long journey without packing your luggage around a folded canvas roof. The Asseco was the elegant coupe companion to the Open Ace. Its flowing aluminum body enclosed a surprisingly practical cabin, complete with wind-up windows, wood trim, and a rear hatch that opened over the luggage compartment. It looked special, but you could actually imagine living with it. In 1956, the arrival of Bristol Power gave that beautiful shape more muscle. The compact 2-litre straight-6 traced its design back to the pre-war BMW 328. With three carburetors and up to 128 horsepower in 100d2 specification, it helped the Asseco Bristol reach approximately 116 miles per hour. When it debuted in 1956, the luxurious Asseco Bristol cost around £2,378 new in Britain, including purchase tax. Buyers were paying for its hand-built construction, fine materials, and the character of a small British manufacturer. Number 8. In 1952, this Bentley cost nearly four times the price of an average British house, and looking at that sweeping body, you can almost understand how someone with enough money might justify it. The R-Type Continental was built for wealthy owners who wanted to drive themselves across Europe. Four seats, room for luggage, and the sort of comfort that made another 100 miles seem like a good idea. H.J. Mulliner's fastback body gave it that unmistakable shape. Aluminum construction helped control weight, while careful attention to aerodynamics helped a large Bentley cut through the air. Under the hood, a 4.6-litre straight-6 produced 153 horsepower, paired with a four-speed manual transmission. Imagine settling into that leather seat and finding a clutch pedal. This was a Bentley that expected you to get involved. Its performance approached 120 miles per hour, making it the four-seat car of its day. During development, the prototype averaged 118.75 miles per hour over five laps of France's banked Montlary Circuit. Then came the bill. £6,928 new in Britain. Only 208 R-Type Continentals were built. Few people could afford one, but the idea behind it would become central to Bentley's identity for decades. Number 7. You might need a moment to decide whether you like the face of this car. That wide grille, those raised headlights, the little fins at the back. It's a lot to take in, but the engine gives you a very good reason to keep looking. Daimler unveiled its new sports car in New York in 1959, hoping to attract American buyers. It initially wore the name Dart, until Chrysler objected. The replacement name, SP250, sounded rather less exciting. Fortunately, Edward Turner had supplied something special under the a 2.5-litre V8 producing 140 horsepower. Turner was already famous for his motorcycle engineering, and his compact eight-cylinder engine gave this unusual roadster a wonderful voice. With a fiberglass body and four-speed manual gearbox, the SP250 could reach around 120 miles per hour. Four-wheel disc brakes helped bring it back down again, an impressive feature in 1959. New in Britain, it cost £1,395 including purchase tax. Coming straight after that £6,928 Bentley, the Daimler suddenly looks like a tempting way to join the 120-mile-per-hour club. Number 6. By 1954, the XK120 was approaching the end of production, but it still looked like something you would stop walking to admire. Originally conceived as a showcase for Jaguar's new engine, it attracted far more interest than the company expected. Early aluminum bodywork gave way to steel as Jaguar prepared to build the car in greater numbers. Beneath that long hood sat a 3.4-litre straight-six with twin overhead camshafts producing 160 horsepower in standard form. It was handsome enough to make opening the hood part of showing someone your new car, and the performance justified the attention. The XK120 could exceed its namesake speed, with Jaguar's heritage records crediting the roadster with approximately 125 miles per hour. The British price had reached £1,602 by 1953. That was still serious money, but for a car with this appearance and performance, you can understand why buyers were interested. Number 5. Introduced in October 1954, the XK140 kept those familiar sweeping curves, but brought several useful changes. Moving the engine 3 inches forward freed up passenger space, while rack and pinion steering gave the driver a more precise connection to the front wheels. Outside, heavier bumpers and a 7-bar grille helped distinguish the new arrival. You can debate whether the extra chrome improved the shape, but the additional muscle under the hood was easier to appreciate. The 3.4-litre twin-cam straight-six now produced 190 horsepower in standard form, up from the original XK120's 160. A four-speed manual handled the shifting, and the open two-seater could reach 125 miles per hour. Despite the bigger number on the badge, 140 miles per hour wasn't part of the promise. In Britain, the roadster cost £1,598, 8 shillings and 4 pence before extras, yet only 45 found customers in the home market. America was the main destination for this open-air Jaguar, and it remained a proper roadster. If the weather turned, you fitted removable side screens. There were no windows to wind up. A four-seat Jensen with an Austin engine might sound like an unlikely car to outrun a Jaguar. Then you look at what happened when Autocar tested one in January 1958, 127.5 miles per hour. At the time, it was the fastest four-seater the magazine had ever tested. The 541R arrived in 1957, building on Jensen's earlier fiberglass-bodied Grand Tourer. Its rounded nose and flowing roofline gave it an unusually clean shape, while aluminum doors helped complete the lightweight body construction. Under the hood sat a four-litre Austin straight-six. In the early DS7 specification tested by Autocar, it produced 150 horsepower. A four-speed manual with overdrive made that big engine well-suited to covering long distances. The R referred to another useful improvement, rack and pinion steering. Disc brakes on all four wheels helped complete a remarkably capable package. New in Britain, the 541R carried a price of roughly £2,866. That was a substantial step above the Jaguar we just covered, for a relatively small increase in maximum speed. But Jensen offered four-seat touring comfort and the appeal of something built in tiny numbers. Only 193 examples were made. Number three. By 1959, Jaguar had spent a decade developing the XK formula. The XK150S showed just how much performance was still waiting inside that familiar straight-six. The shape had grown fuller, with a wider grille and a single curved windshield replacing the Inside, there was more room to settle in. This was a car you could imagine driving a considerable distance, even before you discovered what the little S badge meant. Under the hood, the 3.4-litre engine gained three SU carburetors and a straight-port cylinder head, helping lift its advertised output to 250 horsepower. Four-wheel disc brakes gave the driver some welcome reassurance when it was time to slow down. In its June 1959 road test, the motor recorded 132 miles per hour and a 0-to-60 time of 7.8 seconds. It was the fastest closed car the magazine had yet put through a full road test. The British test car cost £2,110, including £623 in purchase tax. That put it comfortably below the Jensen's price, while delivering stronger acceleration and a higher maximum speed. Imagine having unsold racing cars sitting at your factory and deciding to give them windshields, passenger doors, and license plates. That's essentially how Jaguar created the XK-SS. After withdrawing its factory racing team at the end of 1956, Jaguar had D-types left in stock. Converting them for road use offered a way to sell these extraordinary machines to American enthusiasts. The changes were surprisingly modest. The tall tail fin disappeared, along with the divider between the seats. A full windshield, a folding roof, and small chrome bumpers made the car more suitable for the street. Underneath, the racing character remained. A 3.4-litre straight-six breathing through three Weber carburetors delivered around 250 horsepower. With a four-speed manual and remarkably little weight to move, the XK-SS had a commonly quoted top speed of around 149 miles per hour. The original American asking price was around $6,900. Only 16 original examples were completed after a devastating factory fire destroyed nine cars intended for the program. Before customers saw the DB4GT at the London Motor Show, Sterling Moss had already shown what its prototype could do. In May 1959, he drove it to victory at Silverstone, setting a new GT lap record along the way. That's a convincing introduction for a car you're about to put on sale. Aston Martin shortened the DB4's wheelbase by five inches and reduced its weight by around 185 pounds. The covered headlights gave the nose a purposeful look, but the biggest attraction was waiting underneath the hood. Its 3.7-litre straight-six used three twin-choke Weber carburetors and two spark plugs per cylinder. Advertised output reached 302 horsepower, delivered through a four-speed manual gearbox. The commonly quoted maximum speed was 153 miles per hour. In 1959, that put an extraordinary amount of performance beneath your right foot. New in Britain, the DB4GT cost approximately £4,534. You were paying for a car developed with competition firmly in mind, yet still suitable for the journey home. Only 75 examples with the familiar touring-style body were built, separate from the later Zagato version.