Vehicle Description
THE VEHICLE IS CURRENTLY ON A LIVE AUTOHUNTER AUCTION. IF
INTERESTED, CHECK OUT THE LINK BELOW:
https://autohunter.com/Listing/Details/29893297/1966-SUNBEAM-TIGER
1966 Sunbeam Tiger (MK1A) - 260ci V8 - 4 Speed Manual Transmission
- Red Over Black Interior - Black Vinyl Top - 85k Miles Shown -
Certificate of Vehicle Authenticity The early to mid-sixties seemed
to be the years of the tiger in the automotive industry. Esso began
using an ad campaign which declared that by using Esso gasoline,
consumers could put a tiger in their tank. The likeness of a tiger
was also added to Esso's marketing efforts. Pontiac also began
using a tiger in GTO advertising, declaring that, There is a Live
One Under the Hood. With the introduction of the Pontiac GTO came
another automotive related Tiger brand, which has lasted
generations. The Uniroyal Tiger Paw tire line was introduced. Right
along with all that tiger nostalgia is the little sports car from
Sunbeam, and you guessed it, the car is called the Tiger! As a way
to boost Sunbeam sales, a US West Coast Sales Manager came up with
the idea of shoehorning a V8 under the hood of the Alpine to
eventually create the Tiger. The story goes that he had a service
manager carrying a yardstick around measuring V8 engines from many
manufacturers before the Ford 260 ci V8 was deemed okay to squeeze
into the engine bay. Racing driver Ken Miles was said to have
offered some input to the Tiger project, and Carroll Shelby played
a huge role in the development of the car. Good 'ol Shel was even
paid a royalty for each vehicle built, after his company was not
awarded the contract to build them. Bright Red paint is perfect for
a little sports car, especially a car that was built to perform.
You can't miss this car as it's cruising down the road. The low
slung stance gives the car an aggressive look, and as soon as the
exhaust note is heard, it's clear that this car has a little extra
power under the hood. The paint color, called Carnival Red by
Sunbeam, looks to be the original color, although the trim/data tag
which is typically under the hood, is not there. The paint and body
present well with glossy and even paint, proper trim, and nice
panel fitment. The chrome on the front and rear bumpers have some
micro-scratching/swirls and the rubber trim at the tops of the
doors doesn't quite fit right. As a MK1A, this beautiful example
has the correct rounded door corners and rounded boot and bonnet
corners. The MK2 cars went to squared off doors, bonnet, and boot.
Another easy identifier to differentiate a MK1A and MK2, is that
the MK1A cars, like this one, had a vinyl top boot rather than a
metal cover. The heart of this car is a 260ci V8 sourced from Ford.
A manual transmission handles gear selection. A tidy engine bay is
a plus, and allows us to easily see the finned Ford Racing valve
covers, and that an aluminum radiator has been added. A little
extra power has been eeked out of the 260ci V8 thanks to the
Edelbrock intake manifold and a Holley 4 barrel carburetor. It's a
similar setup to the Los Angeles Tigers kit which was offered for
those hoping to modify their cars a little bit. It sounds a bit
tacky to say it, but this Tiger has a nice roar! A close look at
our photos of the engine bay show the correct markings to look for
when considering the purchase of a Tiger, which are a portion of
proving that a vehicle is indeed a Tiger. The first bit of evidence
to look for is in the engine bay, on the passenger's side fender
well, where a shovel-shaped depression was added by Jensen during
the assembly process for alternator clearance. The holes used by
the factory for mounting the tools that were used to re-shape the
fender well are also visible in our photos. Also, additional steel
can be seen on the strut towers, which were also added by Jensen
during the production process. Other items to look for in order to
tell a Tiger from an Alpine are the batte
