Dore & Rees
Lot 18
1966 SUNBEAM TIGER MARK 1 Registration Number: SLG 882D Chassis Number: 9472959.HRD.FE Recorded Mileage: 6,061 miles - In current family ownership since 1969 - Subject to older restoration, will now benefit recommissioning In part designed by sports car legend Carroll Shelby and racing supremo Ken Miles, the Cobra-killing Sunbeam Tiger was the real deal - a full-fat, high-performance version of the Rootes group’s popular Alpine sports car. The Rootes Group had ambitions to move onto the global stage with their products, which, in the US at least, meant they needed bigger engines with more power to challenge the big boys. Rootes initially approached Ferrari to redesign their standard 4-cylinder engine, hoping to trade on a ‘Powered by Ferrari’ moniker. Ultimately discussions with Ferrari were fruitless, however an alternative presented itself when Grand Prix driver Jack Brabham suggested a Ford V8, inspired no doubt by the success that British company AC had with the Cobra. Sunbeam asked Carroll Shelby to produce one functional prototype, which went to Great Britain for evaluation alongside one built on home turf. The Shelby-developed car was the clear winner! Development and production of the new “Tiger'' was then contracted to Jensen Motors Limited. Rootes made two series of the Tiger, Marks I and II, with 260cu and 289cu V8 motors respectively. The Tiger was popular with the public at the time, however due to financial difficulties for the parent company the model was ultimately doomed. When Rootes were bought out by Chrysler in 1967, the thought of producing a car with an engine supplied by a major competitor was just not palatable, and so the Tiger ceased production in 1967. This low ownership example was first delivered in the summer of 1966, finished in light blue and registered to Wood Lane Garage of Hale in Cheshire. A year later the Tiger was in private hands, selling once more in 1967 to Lancashire Cheshire Car Rentals. Our vendor’s father acquired the Tiger in August of 1969, enjoying it for a number of years before handing the car down to our vendor in 1987. It was decided a few years later that a restoration was due, and so the Tiger was comprehensively restored by the family in 1992, covering very little mileage since. Finished in a bright shade of red, with a stainless exhaust and Minilite wheels, the original steel wheels with trims are available, as is the hard top and tonneau cover. The Tiger has been garage-stored in recent years and will benefit from recommissioning, attention to the braking, and minor cosmetic improvement to the paintwork and trim. The Sunbeam is complete with a number of MoT certificates from 1992 to 2022, original logbook and current V5C, workshop manual, and photographic record of restoration. A true classic of the 1960s, with a little further TLC this open-topped hotrod will be ready to tear up the streets once more!
