I have the car described in the title and am wanting to find a good home for it. Yes, it is a basket case but it is (from my limited knowledge of Sunbeam Alpines) the rarest of the rare, so may have some value in this community. Being someone who appreciates classic cars, it is important to me that the car find someone with the means and desire to put this back on the road rather than to strip and scrap.
The story as I know it:
My father purchased this car in '75/'76 at his first duty station in Utah. It then went into storage for a year or so, re-emerging to become my uncle's first car in SoCal (Whittier) in '79. He painted it in what he thought was the original color (light blue... It may be but there is some evidence in the layers of paint it may have been metallic green). I just found out that the rear passenger side had suffered a significant impact prior to us buying the car. He drove it for a while and in that time the car started popping out of gear.
From there it was shipped to HI in '81. We started stripping the paint and doing some bodywork but that stopped when the engine spun a main rod bearing. It ran, but knocked.
The car was parked and never really addressed again with any sort of care. It spent a few years under a tarp in the driveway at Ft. Belvoir, VA from '82-'89. It was started once or twice during that time. Then my parents moved to Williamsburg, VA where it was garaged until 2013 when I was told to come get it or it would be taken to the junk yard.
I drove out to VA and moved the car to my sister's property near Richmond, VA. It was supposed to have been covered and on a hard surface, but I found out that it was instead parked in a field... worse, they managed to yank the front bumper off while dragging out around which damaged both fenders.
The whole thing makes me feel sick. I loved this car more than anything, and it was the only thing my father and I could communicate about without fighting. It is truly heartbreaking to see this car in this state.
The car is complete, except for a bit of trim, though badly aged and degraded. There is a replacement steering box and a replacement gearbox in the trunk. The spare is included and I believe the knockoff kit is also present (but I'm not positive). The hardtop is with the car as well, but has no rear window.
It isn't worth much of anything via the appraisal I just had performed, and I was fully expecting it to be worth less than it was priced at; presumably the rarity is a consideration. I'm not liking for this to line my wallet, and I'm under no delusion that the car is worth its weight in gold.. Honestly, it is probably a liability to all but the collector with copious time, means, and a desire to have this particular car.
This is one of those 'to a good, responsible, capable home' ads. I will post photos of the carnage this evening.
The story as I know it:
My father purchased this car in '75/'76 at his first duty station in Utah. It then went into storage for a year or so, re-emerging to become my uncle's first car in SoCal (Whittier) in '79. He painted it in what he thought was the original color (light blue... It may be but there is some evidence in the layers of paint it may have been metallic green). I just found out that the rear passenger side had suffered a significant impact prior to us buying the car. He drove it for a while and in that time the car started popping out of gear.
From there it was shipped to HI in '81. We started stripping the paint and doing some bodywork but that stopped when the engine spun a main rod bearing. It ran, but knocked.
The car was parked and never really addressed again with any sort of care. It spent a few years under a tarp in the driveway at Ft. Belvoir, VA from '82-'89. It was started once or twice during that time. Then my parents moved to Williamsburg, VA where it was garaged until 2013 when I was told to come get it or it would be taken to the junk yard.
I drove out to VA and moved the car to my sister's property near Richmond, VA. It was supposed to have been covered and on a hard surface, but I found out that it was instead parked in a field... worse, they managed to yank the front bumper off while dragging out around which damaged both fenders.
The whole thing makes me feel sick. I loved this car more than anything, and it was the only thing my father and I could communicate about without fighting. It is truly heartbreaking to see this car in this state.
The car is complete, except for a bit of trim, though badly aged and degraded. There is a replacement steering box and a replacement gearbox in the trunk. The spare is included and I believe the knockoff kit is also present (but I'm not positive). The hardtop is with the car as well, but has no rear window.
It isn't worth much of anything via the appraisal I just had performed, and I was fully expecting it to be worth less than it was priced at; presumably the rarity is a consideration. I'm not liking for this to line my wallet, and I'm under no delusion that the car is worth its weight in gold.. Honestly, it is probably a liability to all but the collector with copious time, means, and a desire to have this particular car.
This is one of those 'to a good, responsible, capable home' ads. I will post photos of the carnage this evening.
