I got my first Sunbeam in 1984. The car (67 Alpine) was originally purchased by my sister but found it difficult to drive. My father then ended up with the car and let it sit for about 4 years undisturbed in his garage. I then asked my dad if I could buy it from him if he would help me get it running. Amazingly, we got it running within an hour after some fresh gas. I drove it for about two years then ran out of money to fix it (college). My dad ended up with it again and it sat for about another 6 years until sold. I was sad to see it go but it needed too much work for my budget and wasn’t in the best of shape even when my sister had it. I did what I could afford to keep it going.
Fast forward to present, I purchased another 67 Alpine with the mission of restoring it since I couldn’t do so many years ago. Since I sold the Alpine back to my dad, I’ve had a British Car bug ever since. I’ve restored many cars over the years and now feel that I have the experience to tackle the Alpine right. The car I purchased was advertised as needing “TLC” – It’s amazing how liberal some people are with that term! Anyway, it’s now running well and I’m having the chrome redone and plan to tackle the paint within a month. There is very little rust on the car (amazing in itself) and the major stuff has now been taken care of. I guess this is my way of making up for the one I couldn’t afford to fix in my younger years.