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Cars & Trucks |
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Custom built by Wallace McNair, Straight 8 Restorations, in Hamilton, New Zealand, this car is a special created in 1998 – 9 using vintage Sunbeam components and in the manner of Sunbeam’s Land Speed Record cars built after WW1. The engine is a Sunbeam Maori V12 built in 1917; 12 litre quad cam with 48 valves. It is a direct descendant of the 1914 Sunbeam GP cars which were 3 litre 4 cylinder, but of the same configuration. The Maori produces 270hp @ 2100 rpm and was considered Sunbeam’s most successful aero engines. There were close to 1000 of these built before the close of hostilities in 1918, only 3 are known to exist today.. The chassis is a 1924 Sunbeam 24/60 with a close ratio 4 speed gearbox driving back to a 1.9 :1 rear axle giving 55 mph / 1000 rpm in top, i.e. 1800 rpm = 100 mph with the engine redlined at 2400. Since going on the road in 1999 it has toured extensively in NZ and in April 2008 completed a 10 day tour of Tasmania. It has also taken part in a number of Hill Climbs in NZ. Aero engined cars have become very desirable over the last few years, particularly those with WW1 engines. Sunbeam with their heritage of building GP cars and of taking the Worlds Land Speed Record 5 times were World leaders in Motor competitions in the Vintage years. |
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Sunbeam V12 Special |