Cars We Love: Sunbeam Tiger

Who wants to ride a Mustang, when you can tame a Tiger? So thought the sales manager of Rootes American Motors in the 1960s, who kick-started the Sunbeam Tiger concept. Unfortunately, only true connoisseurs ever fully acknowledged this inconspicuous pocket rocket…

Hence the little Sunbeam Tiger never sold on the scale of the much larger Ford Mustang, which – and this is the reason for the comparison – was powered by the same 4.7-litre Ford V8. Inspired by the success of the Shelby Cobra, Ian Garrad, sales manager of the Rootes Group for the West Coast of the USA, sent an Series II Alpine to Carroll Shelby and another to Ken Miles, a former Shelby employee and racer. Both fitted a V8 under the bonnet of the relatively tiny two-seater that was less than four metres long, and just over one and a half metres wide. The prototypes were sent to England, where Sunbeam boss Lord Rootes liked them so much that he commissioned Jensen Motors in West Bromwich to produce a series. Between 1964 and 1967, around 7,100 were built.

Undercover V8

The V8 muscle-car version of the Alpine was no different on the outside from the tame-looking, four-cylinder model – and part of the fun of owning a Sunbeam Tiger was the element of surprise when that powerhouse of an engine fired up. Whether it housed the 4.3-litre V8 with 166HP or the 4.7-litre with 200HP, the sound of the engine was a spectacle in itself, since no one could have guessed that a fully grown tiger lurked under this sheep’s clothing.

Wild about Harry

In the early Sixties, the so-called Le Mans Coupés with fastback bodies were built by British coachbuilder Thomas Harrington. New safety standards and racing ambitions were the reason for these prototypes, and all the bodies rode on Alpine underpinnings – with one exception: ‘Harry’, the only Sunbeam Le Mans Coupé based on a Tiger. This unique car appears in the photographs and, early next year, will be put up for sale by RM Auctions in Arizona. Don’t know about you, but we’re already wild about Harry.

Photos: Matt Jacques ©2015 Courtesy of RM Auctions

This and other Sunbeam Tigers and Alpines can be found for sale in the Classic Driver Market.

Unusual vintage watches, newly interpreted

There are very few established watch manufacturers that aren’t attempting to surf on the vintage watch wave. Despite many attempts, only a handful are successful; here are our favourites…

Baume & Mercier Capeland Chrono

Baume & Mercier produces numerous versions of the vintage-styled Capeland Chrono. In our opinion, the satin-finished brown dial variant with matching leather strap is the most elegant design – all 42mm of it.

Bell & Ross WW1 Guynemer

French watchmaker Bell & Ross is famous for producing aviation-themed watches. The latest offering is the WW1 Guynemer, which pays tribute to legendary French pilot Georges Guynemer, and is inspired by the simple designs he and his fellow aviators might have sported at the time. 

Glycine Airman No 1

Just last year, Glycine brought back the famous Airman, 60 years after it was first introduced. For 2014, it has released the Airman No. 1, which boasts a modest 36mm case – the exact same size as the original and with the same secondary 24-hour display used by US Air Force pilots crossing multiple time zones.

Panerai Radiomir 1940 Chronograph

Panerais have traditionally been put to work not high in the sky, but rather at daunting depths. Drawing inspiration from the circa-1940 case, the latest Radiomir chronograph uses a Minerva movement and retains the simple, honest lines of its vintage forebears.

Zenith Montre d’Aéronef Pilot Type 20 Tourbillon Moonphase

The top model of Zenith’s Montre d’Aéronef Pilot collection is not one for the narrow-wristed: the steel case of the Type 20 Tourbillon measures no less than 48mm in diameter. Those that can carry off a watch of this size will enjoy a classic pilot’s watch with a rare twist – the Moonphase variant is limited to just 25 examples.

If only original vintage watches take your fancy, you can find plenty in the Classic Driver Market.

Motardes..........

Márquez remporte le Superprestigio DTX /Marquez ends 2014 with Superprestigio DTX win / Lorenzo triomphe en endurance à Abu Dhabi /Lorenzo triumphs in Abu Dhabi endurance event

Marc Márquez a conclu l’année avec une superbe victoire au Superprestigio DTX samedi soir à Barcelone. Le Champion du Monde MotoGP™ s’est imposé devant Jared Mees, Champion en titre de l’AMA Grand National, et Kenny Noyes.

Pas moins de dix Champions du Monde de différentes disciplines étaient réunis en piste samedi soir au Palau Sant Jordi de Barcelone pour la seconde édition du Superprestigio DTX, une compétition de dirt track qui s’est conclue sur une finale de 12 tours à laquelle participaient les meilleurs pilotes des catégories Superprestigio et Open.

Dans le premier virage, le Français Thomas Chareyre et Márquez ont perdu du temps dans une collision avec d'autres pilotes tandis que Kenny Noyes, le vainqueur du FIM CEV Repsol Superbike, prenait l’avantage. L’Américain a néanmoins été battu par Márquez et Mees en fin de course mais montait sur le podium du Superprestigio pour la deuxième fois. 

Gerald Bailo, Dani Ribalta, Oliver Brindley, Bradley Smith et Chareyre complétaient le Top 8 de la Superfinal. L’Américain Brad Baker, vainqueur de la première édition du Superprestigio et Champion de l’AMA Grand National 2013, avait été contraint au forfait après s’être luxé l’épaule gauche en tombant lors des essais libres. Esteve Rabat et Álex Márquez, les Champions du Monde Moto2™ et Moto3™, participaient aussi à l’évènement, tout comme Scott Redding ou encore Johann Zarco.

Marc Marquez has ended a spectacular year in style by winning Saturday night’s Superprestigio DTX in Barcelona. The MotoGP™ World Champion came out on top following an entertaining battle with Jared Mees, the reigning AMA Grand National Champion, as Kenny Noyes completed the podium.

A star-studded line-up consisted of no less than ten World Champions from various motorcycle disciplines around the world, with the competition being split up into the Superprestigio and Open categories as well as featuring talents of the future in the Junior tier. At the end of the night, eight top riders from across Superprestigio and Open went to battle in the 12-lap Superfinal, with proceedings taking place in Barcelona’s Palau Sant Jordi for the second time within the space of a year.

Contact into the first corner saw France’s Thomas Chareyre taken down in a multiple-contact collision which also involved Marquez, as FIM CEV Repsol Superbike Champion Kenny Noyes took advantage to seize the lead. As the race neared its closing stages, the Barcelona-based American was overhauled by both Marquez and Mees who proceeded to go head-to-head. To the delight of the Catalan crowd, it was Marquez who came out on top around the 200-metre dirt track lap by just 0.298 seconds, with Mees and Noyes completing the top three; this marked Noyes' second consecutive rostrum result in the event, coming through a Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ) round just as he had done in the January edition.

The rest of the top eight was rounded out by Spaniards Gerald Bailo and Dani Ribalta plus Great Britain’s Oliver Brindley and Bradley Smith (Smith having won two of his earlier heats), while Chareyre recovered to eighth place. Last year’s winner Brad Baker (2013 AMA Grand National winner) was ruled out of action earlier in the day, having dislocated his left shoulder in a practice crash. The event also featured Moto2™ and Moto3™ title winners Tito Rabat and Alex Marquez, as well as Scott Redding who was making his debut in the Superprestigio.

Le Majorquin s’est imposé dans sa catégorie sur Ferrari 458 GT3 à l’issue d’une épreuve de 12 heures disputée à Yas Marina.

Jorge Lorenzo pilotait une Ferrari 458 GT3 Challenge Evo samedi dernier à Abu Dhabi, sur le circuit de Yas Marina, pour une épreuve d’endurance de 12 heures. Le double Champion du Monde MotoGP™, qui portait son numéro 99 et les couleurs de Monster Energy, s’est imposé dans la catégorie ‘Gentleman’ avec le team Kessel Racing et ses équipiers Liam Talbot, Marco Zanuttini et Jacques Duyver.

« C’était une expérience incroyable et nous avons même gagné dans notre catégorie, » a déclaré Lorenzo, qui a fini 18e au classement général. La première place a été prise par Michele Rugolo du team AF Corse, qui a bouclé 315 tours et évoluait aussi avec une 458 GT3.

Jorge Lorenzo played a successful role in a 12-hour endurance event over the weekend at Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina circuit.

Driving a Ferrari 458 GT3 Challenge Evo, the double MotoGP™ World title winner demonstrated his four-wheel skills once again to come out on top in the ‘Gentleman’ category of the event. Carrying his 99 livery and with the backing of Monster, Lorenzo triumphed for Kessel Racing, accompanied by teammates Liam Talbot, Marco Zanuttini and Jacques Duyver.

“It was an amazing experience and we even won in our category,” said the Spaniard rider, who finished 18th in the overall standings. The outright winner was Michele Rugolo, who completed 315 laps for the AF Corse team, also driving a Ferrari 458 GT3.