The Sunbeam Car Club is celebrating the 50th anniversary of one of the Rootes Group’s most successful models — the Rapier — during the second and third weeks of November 2005. We gathered together a collection of Sunbeam Rapiers, and learned about plans for the Rapier’s anniversary celebrations

The first Sunbeam Rapier was introduced to the world at the London Motor Show in October 1955. A two-door sports saloon, the Rapier was derived from the Hillman Minx-based Californian hardtop coupe. The Rapier’s sporting debut came when Peter Harper was asked to drive the car on a Swedish rally. When Harper turned up to collect his ‘competition’ car he was dismayed to find that the Rapier was still sitting in the dealer’s showroom, showing no signs of having been prepared for rallying.

Harper had been a very successful driver within the Rootes rally team, having achieved notable successes in the Sunbeam Talbot 90. However, he was not confident that the new Rapier would be able to compete in a rally he knew nothing about — let alone complete the event.

That evening, the untried Rapier was subjected to what most mechanics would regard as a Stage One tune-up. The car was then taken out onto the road and driven hard in all gears — including overdrive — for around one hundred miles. After which it was checked for leaks and had the fan belt tightened. The following day, the Sunbeam Rapier not only completed the rally but won it outright — no doubt, the car was then returned to the
showroom floor as ‘having delivery mileage only, just running in!’

From that point on, Sir Billy Rootes decreed that the Rapier was to be the official works competition vehicle — and the old but reliable Sunbeam Talbot 90s were retired.

Rapiers and rallying

A single Rapier was entered for the 1956 Mille Miglia, the famous Italian road-race which encompassed 1000 miles (1609km) of flat-out motoring from Brescia, down the Adriatic coast, across to Rome and then north again through mountainous country for the return to Brescia. Italian roads were not that good in those days but the seemingly plain-looking Sunbeam not only completed the event — with Peter Harper and Sheila van Dam driving — but also won the Special Touring Class up to 1600cc at an average speed well over 105kph. This was a remarkable achievement with a small, 1390cc engine — although part of the Rapier’s competition preparation include the fitting of twin Zenith carburettors.

Another similar level of performance was achieved for the 1957 Mille Miglia — the final and most disastrous of these Italian road-races. The Sunbeam also scored a class win in the Tulip Rally, and these successes certainly spurred on sales of the Rapier. It was around this time that Andrew Cowan — famous for his London-to- Sydney exploits in a Hunter — purchased his first Sunbeam Rapier.

The Rootes competition department continued its winning ways, with Peter Harper scoring an outright win in his Rapier on the 1958 RAC Rally. There then followed a class win in the tough Liege-Rome-Liege Rally and third overall in the 1959 Alpine Rally. The Rapier’s success in these demanding events proved the car’s reliability. During the ’60s, Rapiers took class wins at Monte Carlo and were also raced successfully in touring car events in the UK and abroad. The mercurial Rodrigues brothers, and Peter Harper, campaigned Rapiers in the US, once again producing some class-winning performances. By this time the Sunbeam had been well developed, and included a larger 1.6-litre engine, alloy cylinder head, twin carburettors, all synchromesh gearbox and front disc brakes. Rugged and reliable over long distance events — although, by its ruggedness, rather overweight by modern rallying standards — the Rapier was finally eclipsed by the Sunbeam Tiger in 1965 as the Rootes competition vehicle of choice.

In much more recent years, Sunbeam Rapiers have returned to the rally arena — most notably in the hands of Ray Sanders and the late Jeff Parry on the Dunlop Targa NZ.

SUNBEAM RAPIER TIMELINE

SUNBEAM RAPIER SI (1955-’57)

Penned by Raymond Loewy, then in charge of styling at Rootes, it’s therefore no surprise that the Rapier looks faintly similar to the Loewystyled Studebaker Hawk. One of the Rootes Group’s first unitary constructed cars, the Rapier would sire the Hillman Minx and the Singer Gazelle. Always a two-door pillarless coupe, the first Rapier was powered by a 1390cc ohv fourcylinder engine. Overdrive was standard, and twin carburettors were introduced in 1956. Production total: 7477

SUNBEAM RAPIER SII (1958-’59)

New styling saw the introduction of a more upright front grille and fins. Engine size was increased to 1494cc, although no overdrive was available on these models. The steering column gear-shift of the S1 gave way to a floor-mounted change. Production total: 15,151

SUNBEAM RAPIER SIII 1959-’61)

Playing the facelift game, Rootes added further improvement for the SIII — including front disc brakes and a return of the Laycock de Normanville overdrive. Production total: 15,368

SUNBEAM RAPIER SIIIS (1961’-63)

Probably one of the most desirable of the early Rapiers, mostly due to better power and a further increase in engine capacity to 1592cc — with the engine now being topped off with an alloy cylinder head. For the record, the final Rapier convertible was made in 1963. Production total: 17,354

SUNBEAM RAPIER SIV (1963-’65)

For the SIV Rapier Rootes reduced wheel size, added more power and a brake servo. SIVs are easily identified by their lack of headlight hoods.
Production total: 9700

SUNBEAM RAPIER SV (1965-’67)

The rarest of all the Series Rapiers, the SV featured the alloy-head 1725cc engine that would later appear in the fastback Rapier, the Hillman Hunter, and a host of badge-engineered Rootes-mobiles. Production total: 3759

SUNBEAM RAPIER (1967-’76)

Unofficially the Arrow model cars are usually referred to as Rapier fastbacks. As with the original Rapier, there was evidence of Transatlantic styling influences — most notably the Plymouth Barracuda. However, under the skin this Rapier was based on the humble Hillman Hunter floorpan. Powered by the alloy-head 1725cc engine delivering 66kW (88bhp), the fastback also featured twin carburettors, front disc brakes and overdrive. Early cars featured a flat-look nose, later cars have a more pointed snout and veegrille. Tuned H120, with Holbay tickled motor, introduced in 1968 — with 78kW (105bhp), higher final drive, side-stripes, Rostyle wheels and
black grille. Rootes also revived an old name, the Alpine, for a cheaper version of the fastback — with a single carburettor, no overdrive and plain, painted sills rather than the standard car’s alloy covers. Production total: 46,206

Words: Allan Walton Photos: Jared Clark