Jay Leno shows off his restored 1959 Austin Healey Sprite automobile.

Jay Leno says his favorite cars are original and unrestored. His 1959 Austin Healey Sprite, featured in the latest episode of "Jay Leno's Garage," falls into that category.

You can tell the Sprite is unrestored because it is a bit rough around the edges. Nevertheless, Leno notes in the episode that it is in better condition than when it was pulled out of the garage after 50 years of neglect, if not concours-ready.

Since the Sprite was a one-owner car, Leno thought it was better to keep it original than to fully restore it. Leno's store cleaned up the car, repaired a few dents, and rebuilt the engine.

The car's inline four-cylinder engine displaces only 948 cc and produces about 40 hp, but the car weighs less than 1,400 pounds. It shows what was possible when luxuries such as roll-up windows, external door handles, and a trunk were eliminated. Back then, if you wanted more power and comfort, you chose a "big" Healey like the 100-6.

The lack of power made driving on the highway a bit risky, Leno notes, but the Sprite was in its element on quiet canyon roads. Marketing of the modern Mini aside, the Sprite delivers true go-kart handling, he says.

With its small size and no-frills driving experience, the Sprite represents a classic era of British sports cars. Leno's car was the first model, nicknamed the "Bugeye" or "Frogeye" because of its distinctive round headlights mounted above the hood. Later versions were based on the MG Midget and shared most of the sheetmetal with the more orthodox looking sports car.

Another advantage of the Sprite was its cheapness. Priced so low when new, they were long considered worthless as used cars, says Leno. It also meant that many examples had been abused or heavily modified, and completely original versions like this one were rare.

And because this car is not in pristine condition, Leno says he can enjoy it without worrying about scratching anything. It's quite a bargain.