1983 TALBOT SUNBEAM Lotus

• Bought by our vendor in 1988 with just over 7,000 miles, lovingly owned and stored
• Fully verifiable 7,998 miles, serviced regularly by a specialist (including belts), last serviced August 2018
• One of its only journeys was to the Lotus Factory - where it won 1st prize in a Club Team Lotus Concours event!
• A remarkable survivor and a car for the true collector - it will not disappoint

The Talbot Sunbeam-Lotus was one of the most exciting hot-hatches to emerge from the 1970s. Chrysler commissioned Lotus to produce an effective entrant for international Group 4 rallying - to beat the dominant Ford Escort RSs at their own game. Lotus took a 1.6 GLS shell and installed a 2.2-litre ('Type 911' and closely related to the Type 912 found in the S2 and S3 Esprits) version of their 16-valve four-cylinder engine and a 5-speed ZF gearbox. The new Sunbeam-Lotus certainly looked the part - initially offered only in Black and Silver, with Marchal spotlights and tailored 'double four-spoke' cast-alloy wheels.
Launched in 1979, the high-compression 2174cc twin-cam engine breathed through two twin-choke Dell'Orto carburettors, developed 150bhp (but was easily tuneable to well over 200bhp for rally use), and delivered excellent performance, being rear-wheel drive and weighing only 960kgs, giving a 0-60mph time of just 6.6 seconds. Lotus wasn't just an engine supplier, it was also involved in designing the suspension and exhaust system.
As soon as it qualified for inclusion in international rally competition, the Sunbeam-Lotus proved extremely effective, finishing 1st, 3rd and 4th at the 1980 Lombard-RAC rally, Britain's round of the World Rally Championship. In 1981, the Sunbeam Lotus brought the entire manufacturer's championship to Talbot.
For the Series 2 cars in 1981, a big 'T' was placed in the middle of the grille, the engine was mildly tweaked, the fuel tank and headlights were enlarged, and the wing mirrors were changed. By 1982, Moonstone Blue was the only available colour. Only 1,184 right-hand-drive examples of the Sunbeam-Lotus were ever built approximately half the total number. However, today you'd be lucky to find 80 of these special cars according to the owners' club.
The car presented here is a 1983 Talbot Sunbeam-Lotus (Series 2) and is a very special example indeed, being in remarkably original and unused as-it-left-the-factory condition, with just 7,998 (fully verifiable) miles covered. It is offered from a true enthusiast and has survived in an 'as new' time-wrap state, still sitting on its original tyres. It was bought by our vendor in 1988, just 5 years after leaving the showroom, with just over 7,000 miles.
This particular car wears an evocative 'DAC' registration number which is synonymous with the final few examples produced. These were to be sold by ASOC Honorary Member Leon Gibbs at his Arbury dealership and were registered from DAC 2Y to DAC 150Y.
The car was delivered to its original owner, a Mr Brookes, on the 1st February 1983 and was regularly serviced three times at dealership 'C. & R. Bird' of Herefordshire from 1984 to 1988 (at 5,000 miles). During this time, it was sold to a Mr Peart, who's wife disliked driving the car, so after just four months of ownership, it was sold to our vendor on the 14th August 1988. He wanted the best example he could buy and intended to keep it that way. Hence, he assured the car was professionally stored, driven rarely, and has never seen any rain. He had the car serviced on the 16th May 1989 at 7,328 miles by Lotus specialists 'DayTune' of Cambridge, then again on the 24th May 1999 at 7,944 miles by Gerald Turner of 'GST Performance' and then again by 'GST Performance' at 7,995 miles on the 20th August 2018 (costing ú1,800). On each occasion, our vendor insisted on a cam-belt replacement.
He has only ever really used the car twice, firstly to go to Castle Combe for a Lotus Club meeting and secondly, in 1989, to attend a Club Team Lotus Concours Show at the Lotus Factory at Hethel, where Hazel Chapman presented our vendor with a glass decanter for the car winning 1st in class – the Concours label still adorns its windscreen!
The car is as special as you'd expect, being in the sort of condition which is wholly commensurate with the mileage and history, and still wears its factory paint, even in the engine bay, plus a spare wheel & jack that have never been out! Unsurprisingly, this truly exceptional car comes with its original and complete book-pack and a comprehensive history file, including numerous invoices for servicing, which support the mileage.
This is perhaps a unique opportunity to acquire certainly one of the best and most original Talbot Sunbeam Lotus you will ever find.