Lot details Registration No: YKE 115 Chassis No: A3500004/9NCB Mot Expiry: July 2009
Launched in July 1948, the Sunbeam-Talbot 90 was essentially a reworking of the company's pre-war 2-litre chassis design. However, the newcomer's adoption of overhead valve gear leant it a surprising turn of speed. Quick to capitalise, the Rootes competition department hastened the model's development. Thus, the 90 MKII of 1950 boasted not only a new chassis with independent front suspension but also a capacity increase to 2,267cc. By the time the Sunbeam MKIII arrived four years later (Talbot badging had since been dropped), power and torque were up to 80bhp and 122lbft respectively. In combination with a column-mounted four-speed gearbox, this resulted in a 95mph top speed and spirited acceleration (attributes that came to the fore when a MKIII won the 1955 Monte Carlo Rally outright). Entrusted to Thrupp & Maberley for final body preparation, the MKIII convertible was only available for a single season.
Finished in Spectrum Green with tan leather upholstery, this particular example is variously described by the vendor as being in "good" (engine, electrical equipment, chassis, wheels / tyres) or "excellent" (interior trim, bodywork, paintwork) condition. Though, he notes the car has "a tendency to pop out of first and reverse gears which may or may not be a matter of linkage adjustment". Reportedly "the oldest of just seventeen Supreme Convertibles known to have survived", 'YKE 115' was found languishing in a Norfolk barn some nineteen years ago. Entrusted to acknowledged Rootes Group specialists, Cambridge Classic Cars Services of Fulbourn, its 'ground up' restoration took fourteen months to complete. A former S.T.A.R. outright concours winner, there is speculation among the accompanying paperwork that the four-seater was also a 1954 Earl's Court Motor Show car (but sadly no hard evidence). Undeniably early - MKIII production began at chassis A.3500001 - this wonderfully evocative Supreme Convertible is offered for sale with tools, handbooks, spare spark plugs, ten old MOT certificates, history file and fresh MOT certificate.
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