1966 Sunbeam Tiger Mk1A

Designed in part by renowned American car designer and racer, Carroll Shelby, in an attempt to raise the declining fortunes of the Rootes Group, the Tiger was penned around the popular Sunbeam Alpine bodyshell with V8 motivation to compete successfully in world markets where larger capacity engines and sports car styling were at the forefront of late 1960s motoring. Codenamed 'Thunderbolt', the whole project took place without the knowledge of Lord Rootes and when he found out he got 'very grumpy' by all accounts, although he had the good sense to get a prototype shipped to Coventry and was deeply impressed with the car when it arrived. Shelby had envisaged assembling them in America as he had done with AC Cobras, however Rootes opted to pay him a royalty on each unit and use West Bromwich-based Jensen Motors to build the cars, as they had spare capacity having just ceased their Volvo P1800 assembly contract. 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 car presented here is a 1966 Sunbeam Tiger Mk1A (the interim model just prior to the commencement of the short-lived 4.7-litre Mk2) and we understand (from our vendor) that it was sold new in Germany, probably to a US service man (formerly LI-111250). It's accompanied by much period paperwork, showing it was imported into the UK in October 1970 (hence first registered here in November 1970 and assigned EPA 160J) by a prominent member of the Sunbeam Tiger Owners Club. According to a copy of its original UK green logbook, it passed through a few owners in the 1970s (Mr Michael Smith, a Mr Jonathan Webb). By early 1979 there are invoices to a Mr Green, these were perhaps on behalf of its owner, a Mr Paul Douglas, who used to treat the car to specialist parts he would order from the US - there are numerous invoices/receipts (for both Mr Green & Mr Douglas, often c/o The Sunbeam Tiger Club) in its history file throughout the 1980s for maintenance/upgrades (in February 1980 it was treated to a 2.88:1 ration LSD). Numerous old MOT Certificates (spanning from 1975 until 1993) attest to the engine upgrade, possibly happening in 1977/78.

By September 1983, it was owned by a Mr Derek Maunders before being bought (in December 1984) by a Mr John Burger – who kept the car right up until our vendor bought it in June 2021. Mr Burger ensured the car was in fine fettle, having it painted in January 1997, and then employing the skills of RS Cars Ltd. of Bedfordshire (in April 2009) to the tune of £11.984.98 for a thorough recommissioning, and then for more work in September 2011 (£2,179.90). Our vendor bought the car in June 2021 for £54,000 via Sunbeam Spares (who also carried out some work on the car) from Gavin Burger (who we believe is John’s son).

During our vendor’s ownership, he has fitted an Edelbrock fuel pump whilst also upgrading the car with a completely new braking system, including BCC dual-calliper brakes. The fuel system is also new, the tanks having been stripped and resealed. The wheels are brand new original 15'' Minilites shod with brand new (fitted July 2021/few hundred miles covered since) Yokohama Advan Fleva tyres. He has also fitted a new Moto-Lita steering wheel with a matching gear knob. The car has an indicated 28,596 miles which our vendor believes to be genuine, since it only covered a few hundred miles between MOTs for many years.

Tigers are becoming increasingly popular and are notoriously tricky to find in good order, making this a great opportunity to own a fully-restored example. With all the hard work and big bills addressed, just turn the key, enjoy the soundtrack and, if values follow the trend of other Anglo-American sports cars, this could turn out to be a rather smart investment.