Cult 1-18 1964-1967 Sunbeam Tiger 260 diecast model car review

The Sunbeam Tiger is a high-performance, V8 version or the Rootes group’s Sunbeam Alpine roadster, which had first been introduced in 1959. Rootes realised that the Alpine needed more power if it was to compete successfully in world markets, but the company lacked a suitable engine, and the resources to develop one.

It was the F1 champion, Jack Brabham, who proposed fitting the car with a Ford V8. Having first checked that Ford’s 260 V8 engine would fit, Carroll Shelby was asked to build a prototype. The engine was a tight fit: “There was a place for everything, and a space for everything, but positively not an inch to spare”.

All Rootes products had to be approved by Lord Rootes. So, when the prototype was ready, he drove the car himself. He was so impressed that he immediately phoned Henry Ford II, and negotiated the purchase of 3000 engines. He then told his team to have the car ready for launch at the 1964 New York Motor Show, just eight months later. Shortly before its unveiling, it was decided that the car should be named the Tiger. Shelby had wanted to build the car, but eventually Rootes elected to have the cars assembled at the Jensen facility in West Bromwich.

Although twice as powerful as the standard as the Alpine, the new car weighed just 20% more. The new 260 engine developed 164 bhp, which was sufficient to deliver sixty miles per hour in under nine seconds, on the way to a top speed of 120 mph.

Versions of the Tiger competed in the Le Mans 24 Hours, but never finished the race. The car did, though, achieve some success in European rallies. It was also, for two years, the American Hot Rod Association’s record holder over a quarter of a mile.

In 1965, Motor Sport magazine concluded that “no combination of an American V8 and a British chassis could be happier”.

Dealers were able to offer a number of engine upgrades, as the standard engine was considered to be only mildly tuned. Some versions delivered up to 245 bhp. During its production just over 7,000 cars were produced, many of which went directly to the North American market. A Mark 2 version, which was fitted with a 289 cu. in. engine, was released in 1967; the last year of production.

Nearly all of these cars went to America, although six rhd models did find their way into the hands of the Metropolitan Police.

Production of the Tiger came to an end in 1967, soon after the Rootes Group was taken over by Chrysler, as the new owner didn’t have a suitable engine to replace the Ford V8.

This is another great subject for Cult. In the past, some subjects we have felt were not really worthy, so to speak, of a replica at this kind of price point. The Tiger, by contrast, very much is; and the model maker has done a terrific job in bringing us a truly authentic replica of the classi example of Anglo-American automotive co-operation.

Today, it is incredibly difficult to find genuine, unmolested examples of the Tiger 260, but for those who have never seen one in the flesh we can confirm that Cult’s 1:18 replica is the next best thing. Well almost!

Click Cult 1-18 1964-1967 Sunbeam Tiger 260 to order.