| 1966 Sunbeam Tiger |
Here are some pictures of my 1966 Mk1A Sunbeam
Tiger. This has some of the LAT options including hood,
Sway bars and rear axle overrides. Has the CAT roll bar
and a few other things. The motor is a stock 260, with
Ford Toploader and a Dana 44 rear. All powertrain
numbers match up
I have a 302 Dart Aluminum Block with TWM fuel injection
that will likely find a nice home in 'Tony'. Likely a lower
compression and smaller cam version of the Ripper's
engine. Mock up at the bottom of the page.
Someone with some background in Tigers mentioned
that the VIN may be one that was from Woodbridge Ford
that may have been slated as one of their race cars.
Which would be very interesting as that is where 'The
Ripper' was once campaigned in the mid 60's
Notable Quote ...
Shelby’s A.C. Cobra wasn’t the only British sports car to
benefit from Ford V-8 power. The Sunbeam Tiger boasted
genuine Carroll Shelby involvement, and could be
regarded as a sort of “Cobra junior.”
Tiger. This has some of the LAT options including hood,
Sway bars and rear axle overrides. Has the CAT roll bar
and a few other things. The motor is a stock 260, with
Ford Toploader and a Dana 44 rear. All powertrain
numbers match up
I have a 302 Dart Aluminum Block with TWM fuel injection
that will likely find a nice home in 'Tony'. Likely a lower
compression and smaller cam version of the Ripper's
engine. Mock up at the bottom of the page.
Someone with some background in Tigers mentioned
that the VIN may be one that was from Woodbridge Ford
that may have been slated as one of their race cars.
Which would be very interesting as that is where 'The
Ripper' was once campaigned in the mid 60's
Notable Quote ...
Shelby’s A.C. Cobra wasn’t the only British sports car to
benefit from Ford V-8 power. The Sunbeam Tiger boasted
genuine Carroll Shelby involvement, and could be
regarded as a sort of “Cobra junior.”
 | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  |
| A couple of picture of the car from the seller. These were the EBay photos. |
| The planned engine is a Aluminum Block Dart 302 Stroker Motor. Click on the picture below for more of that. OR Click Here |
| Simple fire extinguisher mount for the Autopower Roll Bar. This will mount on the diagonal bar behind the driver seat. Simple to build. Or Click Here |
| Tiger Projects |
Visually similar to the concurrent Sunbeam Alpine, the Sunbeam Tiger shared the Cobra’s 260" Ford V-8, but in milder tune than that
260-hp bomb. Still, its 164 hp was more than twice what the Alpine had and, at 9.5-seconds 0-60 mph, it was nearly twice as quick.
The live axle and four-speed gear box were Ford’s, but the chassis was Sunbeam Alpine’s modified by Shelby with a stiffer
suspension and rack and pinion steering. Brakes remained front discs and rear drums. Handling, road holding, and ride comfort
earned high marks, though the skinny tires and torquey V-8 added up to axle hop and poor traction off the line.
The Sunbeam Tiger boasted a Ford V-8, which gave it plenty of muscle, but ultimately spelled its doom when Sunbeam was acquired
by Chrysler, who did not want a Ford-engined car in its lineup.
At $3499, the Sunbeam Tiger found 6495 buyers before an improved Tiger II went on sale in 1967. It had Ford’s 289-cid V-8 rated at
200-hp and badges that read “Sunbeam V-8” instead of “Powered by Ford 260.” Zero to 60 times fell two seconds and top speed rose
five mph. Most Cobra speed equipment could be fitted, including dual four-barrel carbs for up to 300-hp.
260-hp bomb. Still, its 164 hp was more than twice what the Alpine had and, at 9.5-seconds 0-60 mph, it was nearly twice as quick.
The live axle and four-speed gear box were Ford’s, but the chassis was Sunbeam Alpine’s modified by Shelby with a stiffer
suspension and rack and pinion steering. Brakes remained front discs and rear drums. Handling, road holding, and ride comfort
earned high marks, though the skinny tires and torquey V-8 added up to axle hop and poor traction off the line.
The Sunbeam Tiger boasted a Ford V-8, which gave it plenty of muscle, but ultimately spelled its doom when Sunbeam was acquired
by Chrysler, who did not want a Ford-engined car in its lineup.
At $3499, the Sunbeam Tiger found 6495 buyers before an improved Tiger II went on sale in 1967. It had Ford’s 289-cid V-8 rated at
200-hp and badges that read “Sunbeam V-8” instead of “Powered by Ford 260.” Zero to 60 times fell two seconds and top speed rose
five mph. Most Cobra speed equipment could be fitted, including dual four-barrel carbs for up to 300-hp.
| Tiger Information |
| This was a Dana 44 Watts Linkage that was for the Tiger. I captured the picture from Ebay a while ago. Doesn't look all that hard to make. Strength might be a question, but hard to tell from the photo. This might be the product from a U.K. Tiger specialist. This might be a Jaguar cover due to what looks like the speedometer pick up port in the back. Can't be the filler hole as it looks way too low. |
| This is a shot of the NEW front suspension as done by Mike Hokanson. The Silver part is a rolling stand to display it on that I was able to get from Mike. For more info on the suspension click here or on the picture. |
| Anyone know who did this dash for the Tiger? It is a thick Aluminum plate with a lot of work done. It would be nice for a race car except for the stereo cut out. Anyone have pictures of it in a car filled up with switches and gauges?? As a minimum could be used for a template for a wood dash down the road. Too bad I already have a nice one from Sunbeam Specialties. |
| Click the picture of the oil pan or Click Here |
| The Tiger's drivetrain is to include a David Kee built Toploader. Dana TrueTrac Differential, McLeod clutch and flywheel, and a Tilton Hydraulic Release Bearing. The click here or the transmission for the drivetrain page |
| This is an interesting cover that I found for drag racers and 4x4 Dana 44 users that were looking for bearing supports for the D44. What is interesting is that this part looks like it could be very easily modified to be used as the center pivot like the above, but most of the work looks like making a bracket instead of welding to a flimsy steel cover. The casting weights in at around 7lbs and the link to the manufacture is TA Performance And seems to be about 160 bucks and includes the nuts bolts and gaskets as they used to say... Thickness is 3.5" Gasket Flange to top. Note : I purchased an cast aluminum cover from Speedway Motors, but sent it back due to poor quality casting and a warped sealing surface. Must have been surfaced while still hot as it was warped about 1/8" side to side. They were nice and returned it no questions. So just purchased the TA Performance cover. Day and nice in the quality, the cover is heavy and well machined. No leaks and will make a good base for a Watt's link with some modifications. A solid, well machined and quality part. |
