Lew Spencer experienced some problems with the Sunbeam tiger at laguna Seca in May 1964 even before he totaled it.
Photo: David Friedman
In 1953, the Rootes Group in England, which had acquired the Sunbeam Company in 1935, produced a handsome sports car, the Sunbeam Alpine.
Its styling promised more than it could deliver. With a wheelbase of 97.5 inches and an overall length of 168 inches, it weighed in at almost 3,000 pounds. Sporting the 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine from the Humber Hawk sedan that produced only 80 bhp, it was sadly underpowered in comparison to other sports cars of the time.
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