Description

1954 Sunbeam Alpine MkI Special

Rare Special model with ERA tuned engine; one of only c.90 made and perhaps 25 surviving; ex-James Hull/JLR Collection; only 1,400 miles since full restoration by Alpine guru Ken Sparkes and in show-winning condition throughout; driven 75 miles to the sale

Launched in March 1953, the Sunbeam Alpine two-seater sports roadster was inspired by a one-off open rally car built by Bournemouth Sunbeam-Talbot dealer, George Hartwell. The production version was based on the existing Sunbeam-Talbot 90 saloon but with styling input from Raymond Loewy to add the sparkle needed to attract the all-important American market. 

The 90’s chassis and running gear were retained, the former suitably stiffened to compensate for the reduced rigidity of the open-topped body, while the bodies were hand-made by Mulliners of Birmingham. To enhance the Alpine’s sporting credentials, the 2,267cc four-cylinder ohv engine (from the Humber Hawk) received a power boost to 80bhp courtesy of a revised cylinder head which gave it a top speed of 95mph.   

However, a high performance ‘Special’ version was also available, aimed principally at customers with competition driving in mind. Easily identified by its ‘S’ chassis number suffix, the Special was developed by ERA and had a modified cylinder head with larger inlet valves and an 8.0:1 compression ratio producing 97.5bhp. Other engine modifications included the exhaust and inlet manifolds and a twin choke Solex 40 PII carburettor, complete with centrifugal air cleaner with fish tail inlet. A Burgess straight-through silencer was also fitted and overdrive was standard.

Initially for export only, the new Alpine did not reach the UK market until the autumn of 1953, but before then the new model’s launch had been enhanced by a blaze of publicity following successful record-breaking attempts at Montlhery and Jabbeke where Stirling Moss achieved a maximum speed of 120mph.

On its first competitive outing, an Alpine driven by Sheila van Damm also won the ‘Coupe des Dames’ in the 1953 Coupe des Alpes, and in 1955 another Alpine took a starring role when driven by the Grace Kelly character in the Alfred Hitchcock film 'To Catch a Thief'.

Only 1,192 Alpines were made (801 LHD and 391 RHD) before the MkI was replaced by the MkIII in September 1954 (there was no MkII version). Of these, only around 90 were ‘Special’ versions and it is thought that fewer than 30 survive today (compared to around 200 of the standard models). 

According to documentation on file, this Alpine Special was built in July 1954 and was sold new via W Waters & Sons of Hatfield, Herts, to first owner Mr NW Derrick of Roestock, St Albans, in September of that year. It was finished in Alpine Mist and bore the registration number TAR 121, a transferable number that it retains to this day.

A buff logbook shows that by 1956 it was owned by a Trevor Grant of HMS Ganges, a Royal Navy training ship in Shotley, near Ipswich. In March 1958 it was acquired by a Margaret Hayes of London SW6, who kept it until April 1965 when ownership transferred to a Christopher Barker of Hampshire, the purchase apparently being funded by his grandmother as it was his first car – lucky boy!

Mr Barker repainted the car Opalescent Silver Blue and only ran it for a year or two (reporting that it ‘went like a rocket’) before it was laid up in dry storage where it was to remain for the next 45 years.

In 2011 Mr Barker listed the car for sale on eBay as a straightforward restoration project: ‘engine turns; will need the odd bit of welding and body work but nothing serious’. The winning bidder was Dr James Hull, owner of a famous collection of over 500 cars. Dr Hull promptly sent the car to Alpine guru Ken Sparkes of Huntingdon for a full restoration which reputedly cost over £58,000 including a repaint in the original Alpine Mist. Although there are no invoices to substantiate this, the car speaks for itself and is now in superb condition throughout.

In 2014 the entire James Hull Collection was sold to Jaguar Land Rover for an undisclosed sum (reputedly well north of £50m). Some of the cars were later sold on, including TAR 121 which was acquired by our vendor from JLR in late 2019. He has since carried out some light recommissioning, as detailed by invoices on file (Solex carb, water pump and starter motor overhauled; one new core plug; full service with various new parts; new set of Michelin X tyres etc).

In 2020 the Alpine won ‘Best in Show’ at ‘A Classic Affair’ in Huntingdon and in 2021 it won Second Place at the inaugural Moto Fest Concours in Coventry against some seriously stiff competition, being beaten only by an exquisite 1939 Daimler DB18 Dolphin Tourer.   

Since the Ken Sparkes restoration was completed, TAR 121 has only covered 1,400 fine weather miles and we are told that it drives beautifully, cruising comfortably at the motorway limit with plenty more in hand when no one is looking! Indeed, it was driven some 75 miles to the sale, the vendor reporting that it is amazingly tractable, pulling sweetly in 4^th gear from very low speeds, flicking the overdrive in and out to maintain smooth and rapid progress. It has certainly been starting promptly and running very sweetly indeed as we have moved it around on site, with good 75psi oil pressure.   

In highly original specification throughout (even retaining its original 1954 ACE number plates), this wonderful Alpine Special has been restored by the best man in the business and must surely be among the finest of the handful remaining – if not the finest.

For more information contact James on 07970 309907 or email [email protected]