Other Makes : Sunbeam Tiger MKIA

My father purchased this car in 1974 in Vernon. British Columbia. At the time. it was painted white. and had some repaired accident damage on the right side of the car. and it needed a new clutch. After pulling the engine and transmission to replace the clutch. he decided he really liked the car and wanted to fully restore it.  Unfortunately. he didn't have the money at the time. so he started slowly working on it and collecting parts.

In the mid 2000s. he started to seriously work on it. and in 2009 he was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer.  The family decided that we need to finish restoring the car for him. and so in the spring and summer of 2009 he had it professionally restored. The car is an original Tiger. and not an Alpine conversion. However. I've not had the opportunity to have it STOA Certified.

The original 260 was swapped out before my father purchased it. The current engine is a 302 Windsor V8. which I believe to be from a 1973 Gran Torino. based on the D3- engine number. We had this engine professionally rebuilt by The Block Shop in Edmonton. with a mild cam installed.

During the restoration. we decided to convert the car into an Automatic. using a C-4 transmission so that my father could have the opportunity to drive it. Unfortunately. by the time we were finished he was too ill. but did get to ride as a passenger. After his passing we had the T-4 Toploader professionally rebuilt and reinstalled. In order to fit the automatic. we had to cut and knock back the transmission tunnel by a half inch or so in one spot. but there is no visible difference unless you tear the car apart again.

The steering arms and rack were replaced with MG Parts. a popular conversion that improves steering performance.

We moved the fuel pump into the spare tire well (the one left over from the Alpine body style. not used in the Tiger) and built a battery box under the rear seat. for safety reasons (the original location was directly above the exhaust pipe. and could potentially leak fuel onto the hot exhaust.

The car was dipped during restoration. and the body damage from the pre-1974 accident fixed. The car had sat in storage with no paint on it from ~1990-2009 and had only very minor surface rust which was easily removed.  The only structural rust was one dime-sized spot on the crossmember. which was cut out and reinforced.

The car runs like a top and is a dream to drive.  The top fits wonderfully.

There are a few minor issues:
The carburettor has a manual choke. so we've installed a manual choke cable. Unless it is quite cold out. though. you almost never need to actually use the choke.
Because we upgraded to an electronic (Pertronix) ignition. the original tachometer does not work. The tach can be modified to work with the electronic ignition. but I've not had the opportunity to do this yet.
The fuel gauge recently quit working. I've not been able to take the time to investigate why. but it was working after rebuild (with the original gauge).
During the transmission swap and rebuild. we've discovered that the gearing for the transmission/speedometer is off. and thus the speedometer is not accurate. This should hopefully be a simple fix. but replacing the speedo gear on the cable that goes into the transmission.
There are two small burn marks in the carpet (from a trouble light).  They are both on the the pieces of carpet on the floorboards that go under the seats. These two pieces are easy to replace. or you can put a floor mat overtop of the burn marks if you are concerned.
For some reason. we are missing the original center console and I've not been able to find a replacement.   The original trunk inside liner lid (that sat over the spare tire and original battery location) was in too rough shape to restore.
With the Minilite-style wheels and larger tires. the tires can rub on the valence when the wheel has hard over and you're in reverse. It's an annoying noise. but otherwise isn't much of a problem.

The car is located in Edmonton. Alberta. Canada. You will need to arrange transportation but I will assist in any way I can.  Please don't hesitate to contact me with further questions. Despite what the auction says. I am willing to help arrange transportation to Canada and the United States (not just Canada). but the buyer will pay all applicable fees.

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