1965 Sunbeam Tiger Mk1 4.2-Litre

A muscle car version of the Alpine Roadster, the Sunbeam Tiger was conceived on the West Coast of America, inspired by the success of the AC Cobra - the result of inserting a small-block American V8 engine into the British-designed AC Ace. The West Coast Sales Manager of Rootes American Motors Inc., Ian Garrad, realised that the Sunbeam Alpine's image was that of a touring car rather than a sports car, and he saw the potential for performing a similar operation on the stylish but rather pedestrian Alpine, replacing its humble 1.5-litre four with a big Yankee V8. Carroll Shelby was hired to develop the prototype, and Ford's 4,261cc (260ci) Windsor unit was the power unit of choice. George Boskoff was the project engineer tasked with shoehorning the V8 into the Alpine's engine bay, which he managed by moving the firewall back to create additional space, and redesigning the rack-and-pinion steering and the exhaust system.

A total of some 7,085 Sunbeam Tigers were eventually produced, including 536 of the, now, very rare 4.7-litre Mk2 versions which arrived in 1967. The final cars rolled off the lines in 1968, production being shelved when Chrysler took over the Rootes Group, their new bosses unable to sanction a car powered by their arch-rivals, Ford.

The Sunbeam Tiger Mk1 offered here was first registered in 1965 and was converted to competition specification in the mid 1990s. Work included taking the bodywork and hardtop back to bare metal and preparing them for several coats of Forest Green, an unusual colour for a Tiger. The interior was retrimmed in black with black leather bucket seats piped in green and a roll hoop was fitted. The car then underwent a comprehensive documented mechanical overhaul including the engine and transmission. The engine is a 260 CID Ford OHV V-8 with a single Holley 4-barrel carburettor accompanied by a 4-speed manual gearbox. Suspension and running gear were appropriately modified with its planned use as a rally car in mind.

It was issued with FIA GTS-12 papers in 2009, and in more recent times, the Tiger has been maintained by specialists Don Law Racing and Pearson Engineering and has been regularly campaigned. As with any competition car, it's important to check the currency and suitability of any safety-related equipment (roll-hoop, seats, belts, extinguisher etc.).

Offered for sale with an interesting history file including invoices, previous MOT Certificates and other records. Potentially eligible for various exciting historic competitions worldwide and still road-legal with a V5, this looks like a good value V8 sports car ready for its next lucky owner.