Fuzzy Dunlop
Banned
So have the Sunbeam Alpine/Tiger Series be as successful as it's MG and Triumph rivals especially in the US.
Would selling the V8 powered Tiger much earlier help?
Much obliged!
If William Lyons chooses to sell the tollings for the V8's to Rootes because what he really wants was the Daimler factory to expand its business, I can see Rootes putting the engines to good use.
Jaguar developed a 5 l V8 from the 4.5 l, so a 3 l developed from the 2.5 l seems doable and a good base for an American market strategy that could be very profitable.
Sunbeam Tiger V8, 2.5 and 3.0, cabriolet and coupe
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Humber Hawk V8 3.0 l, saloon and estate
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Humber Imperial V8 5.0 l, saloon and estate
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Its possible that Rootes could pick up an Ogle prototype and develop the Sunbeam Scimitar coupe and shooting break with the 4.5 V8 , made of steel by Jensen like the Tiger.
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It's a possible that a range of vehicles using two brands (Humber and Sunbeam) , V8 engines and Borg Warner automatic transmissions, could be successful and provide Rootes with a steady income to balance the finances of the group and maybe prevent the demands of the british government that forced Rootes to produce the Imp in Scotland.
Front-end styling of the coupe reminds me of the '61-'63 Ford T-Birds.... always one of my favouritesI'm liking the 'coupe' and the 'Ogle' prototypes 😍 😍 😍 😍 😍
Front-end styling of the coupe reminds me of the '61-'63 Ford T-Birds.... always one of my favourites
Suppose the BMW/Rootes merger proposed in the early 1960s went through, and the merged company uses the then-current BMW V8 engine?
As with most Automotive things British, it gets vastly improved with an American V8.
Would selling the V8 powered Tiger much earlier help?
Well, Chrysler could have used their OHV version of the old Ford Baby Flathead that they gained with SIMCA and being produced in Brazil in the '60sThat would at least have avoided the troubles of the Sunbeam Tiger, which could fit a Ford but no Chrysler V8 engine and had to be discontinued after Chrystler took over Rootes
As with most Automotive things British, it gets vastly improved with an American V8.
but here we do something a little different
So rather than going with the Ford 260 V8, they go for the Aluminum 215 from Oldsmobile, that wasn't exactly like the Buick, built a bit beefier
So Rover still gets the Buick, but they would be following what Rootes had already done.
So the Tiger gets a four barrel 215 at 185HP, or even the turbo version if wanting to live on the bleeding edge.
with either engine, it's lighter and 20 more HP than the 260 had, up to 60 while the Turbo engine kept running.
When desired, it's not had to get it to 300 cubic inches when the HP wars really take off
Was the Old V8 as narrow as the Ford Windsor? The 221-260-289-302 had a very low deck height making it very narrow and therefore able to fit where the Chev and Chrysler small blocks couldn't. I don't think I've ever seen an Olds V8, is it wide like the Chev and Chrysler or narrow like the Ford Windsor, because if it's wide it won't fit the sunbeam without major (read expensive) surgery.
V8 Engine | Width | Length | Height | Weight |
Buick/Olds 215 | 26 | 28 | 27 | 320 |
SB Olds | 26 | 28 | 27.5 | 560 |
Ford Windsor | 27 | 29 | 27.5 | 460 |
Ford Flathead | 24 | 30 | 26 | 450 |
SB Chev | 26.5 | 28 | 27 | 575 |
Mopar LA | 29.5 | 29 | 30 | 550 |
V8 Engine Width Length Height Weight Buick/Olds 215 26 28 27 320 SB Olds 26 28 27.5 560 Ford Windsor 27 29 27.5 460 Ford Flathead 24 30 26 450 SB Chev 26.5 28 27 575 Mopar LA 29.5 29 30 550
Now there are some differences from manifold and accessory designs, so all these are approximate
I don't think I've ever seen an Olds V8,
as mentioned, the accessories and manifolds make a big difference for actual fitmentThe SB Chev is narrower than the Ford Windsor? That doesn't sound right, the Windsor is tiny, my brother had a 302 in an XB Falcon and it looked smaller than the 6 cylinder.
Race
Wouldn't that need Shelby himself not to have such close ties with Ford? Especially given the Cobra is roughly contemporaneous...Maybe have Shelby American do the Tiger instead of Jensen, maybe Shelby give the Tiger a different shine than Jensen did and it gives more people a chance to own a Shelby.
The width numbers I've seen put the SBC at 22", same as the 302 Ford, & the flatty at 26"... I got the sense those were for the bare block, so headers would vary it.
V8 Engine Width Length Height Weight Buick/Olds 215 26 28 27 320 SB Olds 26 28 27.5 560 Ford Windsor 27 29 27.5 460 Ford Flathead 24 30 26 450 SB Chev 26.5 28 27 575 Mopar LA 29.5 29 30 550
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