1955 Sunbeam Alpine Mk III

Mention 'Sunbeam Alpine' and most enthusiasts think of the compact 1960s sports car that rivalled the MGB & TR4. However, there was an earlier car during the 1950s that used the same name. This respected sports car had a separate chassis, a larger 2,267cc 4 cylinder engine, a bench seat and column gear change with overdrive. Around 3,000 examples were produced and it was rallied with success by Stirling Moss & others. This example is a 1955 Mk III and here the restored chassis is being built up with restored suspension, back axle and brake parts.

The chassis forms a support jig for the body restoration. No new body panels are available for this car so we fabricate them to pattern as needed. The unrestored engine and gearbox are temporarily installed in the chassis to load it up and ensure the final panel gaps are correct. They will be removed and restored later.

Here the rear of the body is being fabricated and assembled. This version of the Alpine is quite a long car with a lengthy but shallow boot. Again, no new panels could be purchased so we fabricate what we need to pattern.

The body is approaching completion here. The wings and (unrestored) doors are mocked up to check panel gaps and general fit. Later the doors will be restored but, for now, they are used as reference panels for the wings.

The front of the body is being checked for fit here. The radiator grille, auxiliary grilles and front bumper are fitted temporarily to check fit and alignment.

When the body is finished and the owner is happy with it, it has to be sprayed. Here it has been removed from its chassis and mounted on one of our wheeled workshop support frames ready for its journey to the spray shop. The front wings, bonnet, inner front wings, doors, bootlid and spare wheel cover are all sprayed separately and assembled later.

The sprayed body has been mounted back on the chassis in this photo. The bracing bar across the door aperture can still be seen – these are used when the body is off the chassis to stop the sills from distorting.

The rebuilt engine and gearbox is now installed in the car along with the restored engine bay ancillaries. The grille has been rechromed and a new wiring loom installed.

With new white wall tyres fitted, it really is a very handsome sports car. At the owner's special request, we fitted this car with power steering using an electrical unit. It worked very well and really made manoeuvring at parking speeds much easier.

Here the new hood is erected and we get a better idea of the length of the boot and bonnet. The interior is re-trimmed in red leather.