New Era For Jensen

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 32274, 17 April 1970, Page 11

New Era For Jensen

Jensen Motors, the British specialist car manufacturer who put the world’s first four-wheel-drive luxury car on the market, has been taken over by an international group led by Mr Donald Healey, designer of Healey cars. Mr Healey, aged 72, who becomes chairman of Jensen, has spent a lifetime in the specialist sector of the British motor industry. He was responsible for a long line of ears carrying the Healey badge and also for the orginal design of the cars which bear the Austin Healey name. Originally produced and marketed by the British Motor Corporation, the surviving Austin Healey, the Sprite, is now built and sold by British Leyland The group which Healey leads has gained a controlling share of Jensen Motors from a British merchant bank, William Brandt, Sons and • Co., Ltd, which took control from the Norcross Group two years ago. Since the take-over, Jensen has been led by the American "company doctor," Mr Carl Duerr. When he joined Jensen the company was making just three cars a week. Last year Jensen made more than 600 Interceptors and four-wheel-drive FFs, and is now producing 15 cars a week.

Cold Hands Face-level fresh-air vents, which are a standard fitting on almost all new cars these days, are certainly an excellent idea—but most designers should give them rather more thought In almost every case, the driver’s side vent directs a jet of cold air directly on to his right hand, where it grips the steering wheel, and if you want to have ventilation and hold the steering wheel properly, you just have to put up with a frigid right hand. Even on a hot day, the concentrated draught can be irritating. Rover’s Answer So far the most successful answer to the difficulty has come from Rover, which in its 2000 and 3500 models has the fresh-air vents positioned directly in front of the front seat occupants, with the driver’s vent blowing on to the upper part of his body from directly behind the steering wheel. But with many dash layouts, this would be hard to arrange. Triumph’s idea of putting the “eyeball’ vents

To increase exports, the company created a European marketing operation based in Switzerland. More recently the company has been looking to the United States as an important new market for its Chrysler VB- - cars.

The international group which has assumed control of the company aims to increase exports, concentrating on Europe and the United States. Carl Duerr will remain with the company. He will hand over the running of the factory and will be responsible for creating and developing a new company to establish the car in Europe.

In addition to Donald Healey, his son Mr Geoffrey Healey will join the board, together with a representative of Brandt’s; who retain a minority shareholding. Another newcomer to the board is Mr A. Vickers, formerly managing a Rolls-Royce engineering factory in Scotland, who will take over the day-to-day running of the Jensen, Midlands, factory. Apart from the capital injected into Jensen by the new consortium, the new all-British board of directors will also be assisted in long term financing by William Brandt's.

It has been reported that among the new ventures

contemplated by the new board is the construction of a new sports ear range. This, it is said, will be designed to appeal to the sector of the market once filled by the Austin Healey 3000, which although designed by Donald Healey, and marketed by British Leyland Motor Corporation, was built by Jensen.