66 Sunbeam Alpine
VIN: B395004609
Hi Group. I’m new to the group, having purchased my first Alpine last
year. I wanted to share how I got involved in the British Car hobby. A
friend of mine had this car at a local car show two summers ago. I told
him then if he ever wanted to sell it to give me a call. I thought the
car would be a great present for my wife. I have always been a gearhead
and a car nut, but only for American cars (I have a 1956 Chevy Nomad
wagon and a 57 Bel Air project car). Well, he called me out of the clear
blue sky last August, and said the car was for sale. We agreed upon a
price of $3500.00 US and the car was mine. He gave me the original bill
of sale from the factory, a factory repair manual and a history of
repairs. He purchased the car new in Great Briton, and had it shipped
here to Ridgecrest, California. He included the original British
license plate that was needed to drive it from the factory to the dock.
It is an original black plate California car. He rebuilt the engine and
transmission two years ago. It has the 1725 engine, dual Stombergs and
a 4 speed w/overdrive and the original light blue paint. It also has
the Chrysler emblem on the fender.
So far, I’ve loved every minute of driving it. It’s a very reliable
car, and hasn’t caused a bit of trouble. I keep it garaged with the top
up unless it’s a nice summer day. Anyway, it has two problems I need to
fix. I’d appreciate any input from you Alpine owners.
1. The power brake vacuum booster apparently leaked, and the PO
bypassed the booster altogether. I want to have it rebuilt, but from
what I’ve read it can be tricky. Can the group recommend a shop? Does
anyone recommend updating the booster to a newer model?
2. The second problem is the top. It is torn and ripped in places with
age. The PO purchased this one from J.C. Whipme several years ago, and I
DO NOT want to go that route again. I’ve already gotten some advise
from John Slade on where to purchase a new one (Classic Sunbeam or
Sunbeam Specialties). Did the Alpine come with only one colour soft
top?? (mine is black). I’m going to attempt to install it myself.
3. The hub caps are all there, but the car is missing one beauty ring.
I shouldn’t have much of a problem finding a good used one.
Thanks,
Paul Watson
Ridgecrest, CA
72 XJ6 (project)
56 Chevy Nomad
66 Sunbeam Alpine
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Tue Sep 05 2000 - 10:28:41 CDT