RE: Spotted: Talbot Sunbeam Lotus
Discussion
72twink said:
crofty1984 said:
Also, I want one of those. If one were to have a Lotus 912 engine lying around, I wonder how much work is involved in taking a regular Sunbeam and converting it?
Plenty - the sump on a 911 engine is unique to the SL, a 912 has it right where the Sunbeam crossmember lives and that's after you've struggled to find a sound standard car in the first place.
Finding a donar Sunbeam will be the hard part.
Fitting a 912 into it isn't such a big deal as long as you arn't trying to make a 'fake' road car
Plenty of competition rally and race cars have been done this way as you usually are dry sumping the engine anyway.
Back in those days and before, I used to frequent (regularly) Rootes(as it was then) Chrysler/Sunbeam/Talbot garages (for Imp parts mainly).
During the changeovers some real bargains could be had.
Brand new Imp transaxles at up to 70% discount and so on.
What's this got to do with the good old Talbot Sunbeam Lotus?
Well, at least the one for sale (or now sold) has the correct one-off alloys, and not what you usually see, Minilite lookalikes.
There was oversupply of these special alloys for the TSL and at the time I was building a particular kit car, I mentioned in the Chrysler dealer (which still had alarge cardboard cutout of singer Petula Clark who'd been telling you to put a new Chrysler Sunbeam in your life a few years earlier). I was after some alloys. My lucky day... batches of the TSLoti alloys were stacked up in the Chrysler/Talbot Spares Dept - new, shiny, boxed and going ...for a song!
Just the right pcd to fit the kit car in question.
I think I paid just 30 quid for the set!!!
Wonder what a set of these original alloys fetch now?
In fact, the Petula Clark cutout is prob a collector's item now too.
Here's the proof of the alloys on the car in 1983.
During the changeovers some real bargains could be had.
Brand new Imp transaxles at up to 70% discount and so on.
What's this got to do with the good old Talbot Sunbeam Lotus?
Well, at least the one for sale (or now sold) has the correct one-off alloys, and not what you usually see, Minilite lookalikes.
There was oversupply of these special alloys for the TSL and at the time I was building a particular kit car, I mentioned in the Chrysler dealer (which still had alarge cardboard cutout of singer Petula Clark who'd been telling you to put a new Chrysler Sunbeam in your life a few years earlier). I was after some alloys. My lucky day... batches of the TSLoti alloys were stacked up in the Chrysler/Talbot Spares Dept - new, shiny, boxed and going ...for a song!
Just the right pcd to fit the kit car in question.
I think I paid just 30 quid for the set!!!
Wonder what a set of these original alloys fetch now?
In fact, the Petula Clark cutout is prob a collector's item now too.
Here's the proof of the alloys on the car in 1983.
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C122322
this one is not bad either
I had a normal 1.6 sunbeam as my second car (allegro the first) and I loved it, used to really shift and was good fun to drive. I did a lot of miles in mine and although the head gasket went, lovely car. Crashed it in the end and sold it for scrap
this one is not bad either
I had a normal 1.6 sunbeam as my second car (allegro the first) and I loved it, used to really shift and was good fun to drive. I did a lot of miles in mine and although the head gasket went, lovely car. Crashed it in the end and sold it for scrap
I had one for over 7 years, great fun to drive but they were poorly built even compared to the competition of the time. Had the engine rebuilt 3 times. Thats Lots of trouble usually serious living up to it`s reputation. Still many years of tail out fun. Easy to drive on the limit, providing you didn`t grow up with front wheel drive.
Back in the day I loved the Sunbeam, even if it was the base 1.0 that I was admiring after getting my license. Sadly I don't think there was a single one in the blackpool area in the mid 80s that hadn't almost completely rotted to pieces.
Few years later, a colleague living near Reading had a Sunbeam Lotus. Absolutely stunning car, but the repair bills were scaring him. So he sold it and got a 205XS instead. Shame in
Ayrton Senna apparently owned one when he lived in the Reading area when he first moved over to the UK. Which did give my old mate some thoughts as to the previous ownership of his Sunbeam.
Few years later, a colleague living near Reading had a Sunbeam Lotus. Absolutely stunning car, but the repair bills were scaring him. So he sold it and got a 205XS instead. Shame in
Ayrton Senna apparently owned one when he lived in the Reading area when he first moved over to the UK. Which did give my old mate some thoughts as to the previous ownership of his Sunbeam.
NGK210 said:
Four cylinders, 2170cc and 152bhp - and 19mpg. 
Even worse if you add 'only' 960kg, 2172cc, 152hp and 19 mpg 
150hp was an 'insurance' hp figure, almost all of them were higher than that.
And, mid 20's was the norm for mpg unless you were driving it like you stole 100% of the time.
30+ was easily achievable on a gentle run driving like Miss Daisy (which wasn't often
)Great car but way overpriced and needs a set of proper stripes fitting.
There are better examples out there for the kind of money where you wouldn't be scared to use it.
Fast Car cover car was DAC 89Y, August '88. (There were about 120 "DAC" registered cars all sold by the same dealer, these being the last cars to leave Talbot.)
Oh, and the cars seen on SLOC stands at shows usually are pretty but - with a couple of exceptions over the years - very much used and enjoyed by their owners as well.
There are better examples out there for the kind of money where you wouldn't be scared to use it.
Fast Car cover car was DAC 89Y, August '88. (There were about 120 "DAC" registered cars all sold by the same dealer, these being the last cars to leave Talbot.)
Oh, and the cars seen on SLOC stands at shows usually are pretty but - with a couple of exceptions over the years - very much used and enjoyed by their owners as well.
I always liked this blue more than the more obvious black. Also, I'd forgotten the rear wiper pivots above the window, like an original Rangie.
There was one of these sat outside a Lotus specialist near me for weeks a while ago, it didn't look like it was for sale, more waiting for work. Always looked twice as I drove past.
There was one of these sat outside a Lotus specialist near me for weeks a while ago, it didn't look like it was for sale, more waiting for work. Always looked twice as I drove past.
It makes me recall fondly the Lotus Sunbeam when delivering newspapers in my yoof to an affluent area in the early 1980's.
One guy owned two of these & i often used to drool over them on his drive. Once a month he would have a magazine delivered dedictaed to the Lotus Sunbeam and i used to read it sitting on my bike before delivering it in a sommwhat rather dog eared state by the time he got around to opening it.
Great cars of the era
One guy owned two of these & i often used to drool over them on his drive. Once a month he would have a magazine delivered dedictaed to the Lotus Sunbeam and i used to read it sitting on my bike before delivering it in a sommwhat rather dog eared state by the time he got around to opening it.
Great cars of the era
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