Tiger starts after 20 years

[Bud & Donna Elliott]

There is a fellow here in Jacksonville named Bill Byrd who looked me up at a car show a couple of months ago. Bill has a MK1A that was disassembled 20 years ago. The motor was rebuilt and dropped in the car and the body was painted but the work stopped there and the car sat while he raised his children. Bill now has the time and a budget but he has limited knowledge and tools and was looking for help.

I gave him a fairly large shopping list and we went to work. We got wiring, hoses, fuel system, cooling system, etc. done, and finally cleared a badly clogged fuel line and started the car for the first time today. Talk about a great moment. I don’t know which one of us had the dumbest grin on his face. The "New" 20 year old carb was screwed up and the fuel line clogged again after a while but it ran strong and sounded great. It was way cool.

Bill is not a TEAE member but has promised to join the club. With luck, we will get the hydraulics working in the very near future and he will be on the road before the end of the summer. I will finally not be the only Sunbeam at the local shows.

[Eric and Bonnie and Bonnie Gibeaut]

That’s a great story Bud! I think there are still a lot of cars out there just like this Tiger that are sitting and waiting for a chance to get back on the road. Good of you to help him out and also to recruit a new member and car show participant. Didn’t he come to the Daytona United? Eric

[Bud & Donna Elliott]

He didn’t make it to Daytona. I don’t think he made the commitment to reassemble the car until after it was over. He is enthusiastic about the project. I just hope we don’t hit any of those
Oh-My-God problems that can bring it to a stop. I still have vivid memories of taking a 6 month detour to fix things I hadn’t thought needed fixing.

The first goal was to get the motor started. My personal goal is to get it to the point where he can drive it to my house so I can use my own tools. He lives all the way across town and it is a big town.

[gtsmrt]

I agree, that is one great story and shows the true meaning of a car club. Hopefully Bill will allow you to post some pictures of his Tiger.

Regards, Robin.

[anonymous]

How about an article with photos for the newsletter?

Fred Baum

[Bud & Donna Elliott]

I will talk to Bill and ask if an article is OK with him. I know he has some photos and like every Sunbeam, there is at least a partial history for the car. He called me last night. Part of his homework was to pull the fuel line between the tank and the pump and clean it out again. It had been badly clogged and I was certain it was clogged again and that was why we stopped getting fuel after a few minutes of running. I probably lost a bit of credibility with him on that one. Turns out we had not put much fuel in the tank and we had just run out of gas. Oops. Hey, I was looking at oil pressure and temp and checking for leaks. That’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it.

[Carl and Vonda Moon]

Bud,

If Bill’s internet usage is low, how about printing a club registration form off the TE/AE website and giving it to him next time you are together. I have to agree, there is nothing like bringing an old dormant motor to life. A couple of weeks ago I helped start a 1924 Harley that was last run in 1993.

You can tell from my girlish voice I was excited.

Thanks,
Carl Moon

[Author]

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