so i got another car...

[DustinsDuster]

long story short, my dad left this car to me, and i was supposed to get it when i was 16. that side of my family was convinced i was going to ruin the car at that age, so they decided not to let me have it. a while back, my aunt told me if i didnt get the car out of her garage, she was going to sell it, so i had to go get it.

the car hasnt run in about 15 years, but the car is pretty damn clean (save for the dust i need to clean off of it). i am pretty excited about it, it looks like it'll be a fun little cruiser.

around the time Corrol Shelby took an AC Cobra and put the HiPo 289 in it, Sunbeam started doing the same thing with these cars. they commissioned Ford to supply 260ci V8's to put into these cars, which were then dubbed theSunbeam Tiger.

at first, i might try to get the little 4 cylinder running, but future plans are to find a 302 to mildly build up with a T5 5 speed (the shifter comes out in the stock location!). i am wondering what to do about the wheels though. they are real wire wheels, so they dont have a conventional hub. i'll have to do some research on that whole situation to see if maybe i could convert it to a conventional hub set up. anyway, heres some pics to give you an idea how good of shape the car is in, and how tiny it is!

[Luminatorz34]

LMAO its sooooooo tiny that its cute. hahahaha. thatd be quite a wicked lil car with a 302 in it. haha...good luck with her man, let us know what happens with it

[warchild145]

nice little car. Reminds me of an aston martin.

Bet your going to have fun shoehorning in a 302, looks lie its going to be tight.

[fbodyguy]

Where does the V8 Go? In the trunk :)
Nice car Dustin, take good care of it, it might be worth some money in original condition.
Hemmings motor online has a couple for sale, the tiger your talking about restored sells for 50K
http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/search

[DustinsDuster]

yeah, i have already decided that i am not going to modify it all in a manner that cant be reverted back to stock. i will not chop the car up at all. i even like the color, hehehehe

[ZEE]

Put the 302 in. It's same size as the 260, I think. Of course it might be kind of rough finding V8 parts for it. Traction could be a problem.

[krustindumm]

lucas electronics...ouch. Looks fun though.

Oh, and you are not allowed to drive the car unless you wear that hat.

Shouldn't take much to get it running from looking at those pictures, it is clean as hell. If the fuel wasn't drained maybe a carb rebuild and a fresh battery.

[DustinsDuster]

lucas electronics...ouch. Looks fun though.

Oh, and you are not allowed to drive the car unless you wear that hat.

Shouldn't take much to get it running from looking at those pictures, it is clean as hell. If the fuel wasn't drained maybe a carb rebuild and a fresh battery.

yeah, i have heard from a few people that the wiring in these cars was known to go bad a lot, so we'll see what i am up against. from what i can see though, it hasnt been cobbled up at all, so thats a plus.

as far as getting it started, yeah it doesnt seem like it will take much. drop the gas tank and replace it all with new gas, rebuild the carbs, change all the fluids, maybe prime the oil pump just to be safe, and it should be good to go.

it has no brakes at all, so without getting it in the air and checking it out, i am assuming the rubber lines dry rotted and leaked all the fluid out, so that shouldmt be too bad to fix; as long as i can hunt down the parts for it...

[TURBOWHT]

Nice so you actually got the car you have been talking to me about a while back.

[allgo]

Dustin not being a smartass here but that car is so you!!

[OldSkoolRCR]

As much as I hate to say this...But I agree with Allgo on this one, that car fits you and your personality perfectly...Good luck with your new car :bigthumb:

[DustinsDuster]

i cant wait to get a V8 in that thing, then it will REALLY be me.

i dont know, i think its because when i first showed up around here, all i talked about was my Duster and other domestics, thats why i kindof got dubbed a "domestic" guy, but i think more than anything, i am just into cars in general. i might not be REALLY into most import cars, but i enjoy going fast, and just enjoying cars, regardless of where they were designed or made...

[Drifte]

thats sweet. is it worth a lot as a collectors item?

[DustinsDuster]

Tony said earlier in the thread that original Sunbeam Tigers were selling for $40-$50k, so i guess it has the potential to be, although it isnt a Tiger, it's just an Alpine. either way though, theyre not very common cars, so even if i alter from stock, it should still be worth something.

doesnt really mean much to me though, i dont know if i could ever sell it since my dad left it to me....

[ZacFields]

it looks remarkably like my grandfather's triumph spitfire. Same size and everything.

He used to take me for rides in it....it feels like you're riding around in a go-cart. It's fun! He still has it and it's in pristine condition. Those cars are keepers.

(example, this isn't my grandpa's but looks just like it)
http://www.hchg.co.uk/uf/cars/car27-lg.jpg

I know you'll take good care of it Dustin. Sounds like that car's really important to you, and it should be. Congrats!

Zac

[DustinsDuster]

yeah, my dad had a couple triumphs and spitfires throughout his life as well. he just loved those little cars! which is kindof rediculous considering he was a good 4 inches taller than me (6'5"!) i dont think he ever drove them with the tops on, his head stuck up over the windshield!

[brown7]

Yay! the hood opens the RIGHT way!

[DustinsDuster]

Yay! the hood opens the RIGHT way!

yep, no worrying about it flying open and hitting the windshield!

[krustindumm]

yeah, i have heard from a few people that the wiring in these cars was known to go bad a lot, so we'll see what i am up against. from what i can see though, it hasnt been cobbled up at all, so thats a plus.

You know why the british drink their beer warm? Becaus lucas builds their refrigerators.

[tylers88]

it looks like you won'teven need much paint work just was it up real good and buff it a little bit maybe even a small amout of wetsanding and you have a real looker even if its a 10 footer for no money into the paint then you could keep the original paint

[DustinsDuster]

[quote="DustinsDuster";p="126135":da5a2]yeah, i have heard from a few people that the wiring in these cars was known to go bad a lot, so we'll see what i am up against. from what i can see though, it hasnt been cobbled up at all, so thats a plus.

You know why the british drink their beer warm? Becaus lucas builds their refrigerators.[/quote:da5a2]

so i'll spend $150 on a new universal wiring harness. ive decided its going to stay carbureted, so all it needs to do is get juice to the distributor, run the gauges and the lights....