Steamworks Report No. 7: 1963 Sunbeam Rapier

Filed in archive Concours by Philip Powell on September 6, 2006

It's no secret that I have a soft spot for british cars, even those that followed the American design fad of adding fins to the rear fenders. So this 1963 Sunbeam Rapier quite naturally caught my eye when I spotted it at the Steamworks Concours. Sunbeam, once a proudly independent producer of sporting automobiles, had been taken into the Rootes empire, after which it slowly turned into a badge-engineered Hillman, though not before giving us the exquisite Sunbeam Alpine of movie fame. The Rapier was one of those Hillman take-offs, adding colorful paint jobs, upgrade interiors, and its own unique grille. In hardtop guise, as seen here, it's as pretty as it is rare.

Related Entries:

Steamworks Report No. 1: 1953 Fiat V-8 - 02 September 2006
Steamworks Report No. 2: 1937 Horch 853 - 04 September 2006
Steamworks Report No. 5: 1913 Peerless 6-48 Torpedo - 06 September 2006
Muscle Cars Star in 2007 Steamworks Concours - 05 September 2007

« Steamworks Report No.6: 1... | Main | How We Got to Ride in a S... »

Permalink: Steamworks Report No. 7: 1963 Sunbeam Rapier

Tags: 1963 Sunbeam Rapier Alpine Hillman Steamworks concours classic vintage antique collector old car car

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Vote for Steamworks Report No. 7: 1963 Sunbeam Rapier:

Currently 6.25/10
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Rating: 6.25 out of 4 vote(s) cast.

Response from: Alfred Opp (09/20/06 9:49am)

More than the joy of owing and seeing these wonderful Automobiles is the friendship with people associated with it. I'm so fortunate to be part of both. Nigel cerainly is a leader in keeping that Vintage vehicle spirit alive; its a dream come true.
The car has a picturebook history which involves timeles moments.The romance on it will never leave our soul.

Alfred

Response from: Jeff Hawkins (01/13/07 5:07pm)

This is an excellent photograph- color, focus, background, lighting,completeness, lack of partial limbs of passersby... great job!

Thanks! --
-- Philip