Description
Author: Graham Robson, Hardbound, 208 Pages, ISBN: 9781852239411, 1st Edition, 1996
THE SUNBEAM ALPINE AND TIGER were in many ways revolutionary cars, coming as they did from a British manufacturer with no history or reputation for sports car design and from the start being aimed squarely at the North American market. The Alpine remained in production for nine years; the remarkable V8 Tiger for scarcely one third that period, and yet theirs is a fascinating story in British motoring history.
Graham Robson begins this detailed book well before the Alpine I of 1959, with the rise of the Rootes Group and the man who drove it forward — the characterful first Lord Rootes. The Alpine idea began during development of the early "Audax" cars, and drew heavily on the Hillman Husky outline.
Sharing running gear and parts from other Group cars wherever possible, and scrutinised and modified by the Rootes family at every design stage, the Alpine was launched in July 1959. Four more Alpine models continued its success to the Mk V of 1965, just one part of this intriguing history as barely was one model launched before Rootes began tinkering with details for its successor. The story of the 14 month design and production of the Ford V8 engined Tiger is an even more remarkable read. Also included is a look at the realities of Rootes' participation in the demanding endurance races and rallies of the 1960s, as well as the sideline developments like the Harrington special conversions.
The story ends with the fateful sale of Rootes to Chrysler in 1967 which resulted in an almost immediate end to production of these very attractive Alpine and Tiger sports cars. This history is fully illustrated throughout with a wealth of black and white and superb colour photographs and full specifications for each model. With numerous panels detailing the personalities, events and places that determined the Alpine series, this comprehensive and entertaining book is a must for anyone interested in British sports car history.
GRAHAM ROBSON was competitions manager at Standard Triumph and later worked for a period in the Engineering Division at Rootes/Chrysler UK during the 1960s, before becoming an independent motoring writer. He has contributed to magazines and newspapers all over the world, and has written over eighty books, including Austin-Healey — 100 & 3000 Series, Jaguar XJ Series, Triumph TRs and Triumph 2000 &2.5P1 in the Crowood AutoClassics series.
