Sunbeam Tiger ex-works rally car AHP 294B

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A muscle car version of the Rootes Group’s Sunbeam Alpine Roadster, the Tiger was dreamed up not in Ryton-on-Dunsmore but on the West Coast of America. 

Inspired by the success of Carroll Shelby’s AC Cobra which saw a big American V8 shoehorned into a dainty British roadster, in 1962 Los Angeles Rootes Group dealer, Ian Garrad, asked Shelby to weave the same magic into the humble Alpine. The result was the Thunderbolt, a Shelby-designed prototype which was shipped back to England for further development by the boffins at Rootes.

The fruit of this collaboration was the Sunbeam Tiger which was launched in 1964 with a 4.2-litre Ford V8, later to become a 4.7-litre in the MkII version of 1967. Hand-built by Jensen in West Bromwich, the Tiger was a totally different animal to its Alpine lookalike and, with up to 250bhp on tap, was in a different league when it came to performance. Only 7,083 Tigers were made in total before the Rootes Group’s new owners, Chrysler, pulled the plug on the project in 1967, virtually all of them ending up in America.

By far the most potent machine in the Rootes Group stable, the Tiger was quickly earmarked for competition use and made its international competition debut in September 1964 in the San Martino di Castrozza Rally in Italy. Only seven works cars were ever made by Rootes (and one ‘semi-works’ car) of which only five survive to this day.

Probably the most campaigned of all these cars, and arguably the most historic, AHP 294B was first registered by Humber Ltd on 1st July 1964. It made its international debut on the Geneva Rally of October 1964 where, driven by Tiny Lewis and Barry Hughes, it not only won its class, but led home two more Tigers to take second place in the prestigious Team Prize. AHP 294B finished 11th overall and 1st in the GT Grand Touring Class.

After being used by Andrew Cowan/Robin Turvey as a recce car for the 1965 Monte Carlo Rally, AHP 294B went on to compete in that event, leaving the Paris start line in the capable hands of Maurice Gatsonides with co-driver Albert Ilcken. Unfortunately, due to the appalling weather conditions that year, most of the Paris starters did not finish the event and Gatsonides eventually got the Tiger stuck in a snow drift, high in the Alps. The London starters fared better and Peter Harper took his Tiger, ADU 312B, to a superb 4th overall in that prestigious event.

With the Monte Carlo Rally over, Gatsonides asked the Rootes Group if he could use AHP 294B to promote the launch of the new Tiger road car at the forthcoming Amsterdam Motor Show. The intention was to take the Tiger and attempt endurance records at the international racing circuit at Zandwoort. With Robbie Slottermaker and David Van Lennop at the wheel, it managed to shatter several Dutch National Records. For example: three hours endurance record at 76.54mph; six hours at 76.14mph; 12 hours at 75mph and 24 hours at 75.47mph. Despite suffering from overheating problems, the car thundered into the pit lane on a regular basis and was topped up with fresh water. The car so impressed Maurice Gatsonides that he christened it ‘Thunderbus’ – a name which has stuck with it to this day.

After the successful record attempt at Zandvoort, Thunderbus went on to compete in the 1965 Tulip Rally with Peter Riley and Robin Turvey at the wheel. Unfortunately it ran out of time after being slowed by unseasonal snow when on racing tyres. In an effort to find some grip, Riley attempted one of the special uphill sections in a most bizarre manner, engaging reverse gear and driving the entire stage backwards! Sadly, such heroics were not enough and AHP 294B was scratched from the event.

Later in 1965, now back with the combination of Tiny Lewis and Barry Hughes, AHP 294B was again forced to retire from the Alpine Rally when the car caught fire. A rear brake shoe failed and the resulting debris damaged the hydraulics sending a jet of highly flammable brake fluid onto a hot brake drum with inevitable results. In the ensuing blaze, all the fire extinguishers were used up to quell the flames and the resulting damage is part of the reason why the car was returned to the Competition Department at Rootes and re-shelled with a brand new body later that year.

AHP 294B was prepared alongside FRW 667C – Andrew Cowan's car for the Monte Carlo Rally. It is interesting to note that Des O'Dell described Andrew Cowan's car as the "best Tiger that we ever built". Somewhat strange really because both cars (AHP 294B to be driven by Peter Harper), were prepared in an identical fashion.

In addition, new regulations for rallying had come into force in 1966 whereby bonnet bulges and cut-outs to the wings were no longer allowed and a car’s silhouette had to mirror the production model. With the new regulations in mind the factory carefully prepared the two Tigers to a slightly different specification than had been used before. Engine preparation for the cars was close to the usual build, but with a high-lift cam, polished ports, etc. The major change was the fitting of a two-choke Ford modified carburettor and a cast-iron 289 inlet manifold, which replaced the four-barrel carburettor and alloy manifold and reduced engine power output to around 200bhp.

Subsequent testing at the MIRA test track revealed, however, that performance was little affected – when tested in August 1965, AHP 294B (built to the same standard as FRW 667C, and later 668C), was only 0.5 seconds slower to 60mph and 1.5 seconds slower from 60-80mph in top gear than the 1965 Monte Carlo car, ADU 312, had been when tested in February 1965. Where the alterations really showed however, was in the breathing at higher revs. In the 0-90mph time the car was some 4 seconds slower, although what was lost in terms of acceleration appeared to be regained to some extent in flexibility, as the 60-70mph time in 3rd gear was similar.

Regarding the transmission and suspension, the usual 3.77 differential was fitted with a limited slip diff and both the front and rear spring rates were revised, along with the damper settings. As in the previous year’s Monte, the promise of cold and snowy conditions prompted the fitting of a heated windscreen and an alternator to help with the extra power loads, which also included the four extra forward-facing lamps.
A tyre contract with Dunlop had been negotiated and the car ran either with partly studded or fully studded SP44's or SP41's depending on the iciness of the sections.

The issue of tyre choice proved critical to Andrew Cowan: on a road bend approaching Paris, Cowan lost control on black ice. The ensuing crash caused major damage and competition manager, Des O'Dell, was less than impressed with Cowan's performance. With Peter Harper at the wheel, AHP 294B had put in some excellent times but unfortunately, while travelling at speed on the 5th Special Section, the car hit a rock. This resulted in the engine moving forward, putting the fan into the radiator and causing the exit of one Sunbeam Tiger. This was to prove to be AHP 294B’s last competitive works outing for after serving as a recce car for the 1966 Tulip Rally in the hands of Peter Harper/Robin Turvey, AHP 294B was transferred back to the Rootes competition department for a well-earned rest.

But the story doesn’t end there. Shortly after the Tulip Rally, AHP 294B was purchased by Vic Halen who had a Rootes dealership in Antwerp, Belgium. Teaming up with his friend, Chris Tuerlinx, Halen entered AHP 294B in the 1966 Tour de Belgique, an international event that attracted major entries from all over Europe including the big works teams. Chris Tuerlinx won his class and took second overall. The following year they entered the Tour de Belgique again, this time taking 3rd outright place and a GT win.

Shortly after this success they had the audacity to enter AHP 294B into the famous Spa Francorchamps 1000 Kilometre race. This pitted the humble Tiger against giants like the Gulf Mirage GT40 driven by Ickx and Thompson, the Porsche 917 of Herman and Siffert and the Ferrari 330 P3 of Bianchi and Attwood to name but a few. Driven once again by Chris Tuerlinx, the car astounded the factory entries by finishing 13th overall and taking 1st place in the GT category – a great achievement given the calibre of the opposition.

Unfortunately, as the race took place in May 1967, it was too late to be of much use in the promotion of the Sunbeam Tiger road car, which was now on its MkII version. Despite this, the Rootes Group were delighted and sent a reward of £200 to Chris Tuerlinx. It should be noted that the Sunbeam Tiger's GT victory was the only victory in a World Endurance Event that year by a British built car.

AHP 294B went on to compete regularly in Belgian and Dutch events but perhaps the next most notable event was the 84 Hours de Nurburgring in August 1967. The 84 Hours was obviously an endurance event and although the Tiger initially did very well, it failed to finish.

With the Chrysler take-over of the Rootes Group in the late 60s, Halen switched his dealership to the Opel range which meant dropping the Tiger from his competition calendar. In the early 70s AHP 294B was purchased by Hugh Chamberlain of Chamberlain Engineering, a well-known name in the UK for engineering and world endurance racing. In 1989 he won the FIA World Construction Championship, with tremendous results at Monza, Spa, Daytona and Le Mans.

Chamberlain sold AHP 294B in 1988 and it was purchased by Edward Worswick, a Healey rallying specialist. The car at this stage was still in fantastic condition bodily, as Chamberlain had stored it in his garage from 1971 and the car had never been used, or indeed moved. However Worswick did send the car for an overhaul to a company called GRV – the same firm that had been responsible for preparing the one ‘semi-works’ Tiger (AHP 483B) driven by Reverend Rupert Jones in the 1965 Targa Florio.

The current vendor came into the AHP 294B story towards the latter part of 1980 and purchased the car outright in 1990. Since then, the ex-rally specialist Rosemary Smith has campaigned the car several times. Its first event was a return to the Tulip International Rally in 1993 where Rosemary drove the car to 20th overall and won the Coupe des Dames trophy. In 1994, the car was entered for the Classic Marathon from Paris to Marrakesh, without service crews. Rosemary finished in 9th position, again winning the Coupe des Dames. The following year, the car was once again entered for the Classic Marathon, traversing 13 countries in Europe and finishing in 10th place, racking up a third Coupe des Dames in the process. The last AHP 294B outing was at the Manx Classic in the mid-90s, driven by the editor-in-chief of Classic & Sports Car magazine, Mick Walsh.

Since then the car has been very little used but it remains in good running order with a current MOT and is due to be driven some 60 miles to the saleroom. Still wearing the same Rootes competition bodyshell it had in 1965, it also retains many period competition features including the 288 limited slip diff, the long-range saddle tank fitted in the boot, quick-rack steering, the original works hardtop badged “1966 Marathon de la Route”, period Halda rally instruments and the fly-off handbrake specially made for Peter Harper to aid his cornering technique. Indeed all the interior trim is original, including the driver’s seat which was specially tailored to suit Peter Harper’s long-shanked frame.

FIA-registered and with STOA Certificate number 251, AHP 294B appears in virtually every book on the Tiger and is on the front cover of Graham Rood's 'Works Tigers' published in 2007. It also comes with its original buff log book from 1964 when it was first registered to Humber Cars Ltd and only has one other recorded keeper since, the current vendor.

It is eligible for many historic events and should still prove a devastatingly effective tool in the right pair of hands. Rootes never developed the Tiger properly in period and it never showed its true potential, but today’s specialists have a much deeper understanding of what the car is capable of and well-prepared Tigers now routinely dominate virtually every event they enter.

As 2014 marks the 50th Anniversary of the Tiger, interest in the model has never been higher and prices of even standard road-going cars have risen markedly of late, especially in America where a fully restored MkI was sold by RM Auctions for £58,000 in August last year despite having no competition history.

Altogether this is a unique opportunity to acquire one of only seven works Tigers ever made with a documented history from new, eligible for many historic events and in exceptionally original condition throughout.