Modern Classic: 1953 Sunbeam Alpine Sports

To qualify as "modern classics," we're choosing vehicles that are comparatively affordable now and that we think will increase in value over time. These are cars that many people would love to have: head-turners, trend-setters in their time, cars that people still see that make them smile, cars that were definitive in their own right, stylish and fun to drive. We're focusing on cars that are at least 25 years old so they can be registered and insured cheaply and aren't subject to annual inspections.


Tastes may vary, as may peoples' own definitions of "affordable." Our theoretical limit is $50,000 for a car in good to excellent condition, which rules out many of the traditional exotics. This month's selection is the 1953 Sunbeam Alpine Sports.

History
Not long ago, I was overtaken by an enthusiastically driven, pale ivory '53 Sunbeam Alpine Sports. The handsome two-seater's long, louvered hood, raked windscreen and smartly tapered tail brought back memories of Peter Satori's back-cover ads in 1950's-era issues of Road & Track. Grace Kelly and Cary Grant drove a Sunbeam Alpine in "To Catch a Thief." While few early Sunbeam Alpines were actually sold here, they had, and still have, a distinctive presence.


Britain's Rootes Group purchased Sunbeam-Talbot-Darracq in 1935. Starting that year with the Talbot Ten, Rootes issued "diluted Talbots" based on Hillman and Humber components. In 1948, the new Sunbeam-Talbot 80 and 90 Mk. 1 drop-head coupes and four-door saloons had rather mundane mechanicals: solid axles, 1.2-liter, 47-bhp and 2.0-liter, 64-bhp OHV versions of pre-war side-valve fours, and a four-speed column shift. But Donald Healey had massaged the chassis, Raymond Loewy studios designed the art-deco interior, and Rootes' chief stylist, Ted White, penned lovely fade-away fenders, while retaining the classic Sunbeam upright grille.


In 1953, the improved Sunbeam 90 Mk. II became the basis for a dashing Raymond Loewy-designed roadster, the Sunbeam Alpine Sports. There was a new box-section frame—the beam front axle was re-placed by twin wishbones & coil springs and close-ratio gears and overdrive were added, although the column shift was retained. The wheels were drilled for cooling and the oversized Lockheed brakes used competition linings.