1966 Sunbeam Tiger Mark 1A - Jay Leno's Garage 

In the early 70's, we (four guys from Detroit) had just parked two Tigers in front of Harrah's in Reno, NV. Jay pulled up to go to work in the club. On the way in, he stopped and looked at our cars for a few minutes. He kept saying, "I always wanted one of these." Nice guy! He put us in the front by the stage and picked up our tab. I guess it was shortly after that he went out and bought the beater he was talking about in the video.

In 1966 as a five year old, my dad owned the local Rootes dealership. He had a Tiger as his personal car. One late autumnal English evening, the roads were damp, we were driving home on a winding A road in a fairly spirited manner, the rear inevitably broke loose and we spun three or four times ending up facing the way we had been going and hitting nothing. I was pretty scared my dad looked at me and very calmly but seriously said, don't tell your mother, lol. I kept my silence.

I love Jay's stories about the cars he had before he had money. Reminds me of my own 2nd car, a 1967 Alfa Romeo GT Veloce, fuel gauge didn't work, holes in the floor, my date would walk home leaving me and the car at the side of the road, couldn't keep it. The car is worth $75,000 today.

It is so nice to learn about the cars in Jay's collection. He is such a nice guy who is not full of himself. He is just down to earth and I enjoy his comfortable, knowledgeble style.

Talk about bringing back great memories. Just like Jay I bought a Tiger in 1973 for a whopping $950.00 . On the way home from the North Hills of Pittsburgh to my home in the South Hills it was all over the road.. I was heartsick, just blew our tax return on this thing and I had a wife and new born infant to take care of. I replaced the bias ply tires with a set of radials and installed some heavy duty Red Ryder shocks. It was like the difference between night and day. When I returned to pick up a box of parts and a shop manual from the previous owner it was his turn to be heartsick. He had no idea how nice the car could handle with the proper tires and good shocks. I went on to enjoy it for a year or so ,then with a second child on the way and an incident of going over 100 miles an hour one night, well I got the ultimatum, "The Tigers gotta go !" Wisely I chose my wife over the car, 42 years later I'm still glad for my decision.... But I must admit, I still miss my Tiger ..

My spent part of his military service in England where he had bought a Sunbeam Tiger. He then brought it home, eventually returning to Phoenix AZ. In the hot summer weather the car overheated and backfired noisily; but it was a blast for an 11 year old to ride around, sitting squeezed in the area behind the seats (I was quite skinny then) and we road around at night when it was cooler for the engine and for us humans. His car was red. Enjoyed your video.

My father had one of these when I was a kid, it was an immaculate 66 convertible, 289 V8, red with black leather interior...it was just such an amazing experience being in that car, everybody just looked at it as you went down the road, it was a fast little thing too. I lovingly gave it the nickname, the "rocket propelled paperclip"..it was just amazing...and I was a very sad boy when he sold that car. :( Seeing this video brought back a lot of memories.

My ex brother in law had a 67 tiger I got to drive a few times back in '71. I was a senior in high school. What a fun car to driver. Power for days. I remember changing the spark plugs, not for the faint of heart. I still have the scars. Brings back great memories

My Granddad sold them, one day he was pulled over by a cop for speeding. He told the cop to take it for a drive, and dared him to see if he could keep it at the speed limit. The year was 1967..the cop took the wheel and while smiling ear to ear (over the speed limit..) he told my Granddad " Well..you were in the right lane..the fast lane" and let him go! Ah the GOOD OLE DAYS....!!!! ✍️)))

Great how Jay is so enthusiastic about peoples cars, and the work they have put into making the car right.

I like how respectful of other peoples cars Jay is. He never takes liberties, and has the owner do things like open the hood and so on.

Considering Jay's comedy background, I'm a little surprised that he didn't mention that Maxwell Smart drove a Sunbeam Tiger, haha!

Thanks for a great video. My Uncle that lived in South Pasadena had one and he let me drive it. I was a teenager, and had just gotten my license. It was in great shape when he sold it, so it is probably out there in the collector universe, Great memories.

I purchased one off the showroom floor in '67, right out of college. My fav car ever.

I've always loved these cars since I found out they existed. I like how this one with the more modern gearbox, exhaust, and gearing makes it sound somewhat like a foxbody Mustang.

I bought a 1966 Tiger way back some time ago and owned it for about 3 weeks before I sold it again, doubled my money too. I saw it a few years ago at British Car Day in Bowie Maryland and it was completely restored, my god it was just magnificent to see again. It was green in color too, I never got to drive the one I bought because it had been sitting in the garage for about 10 years, it originally came from the West Coast so zero rust issues and the man was the second owner too. I wish I could find it again to see it. I sold it to a guy that lives in McLean Virginia and lives on Leigh Mill Road. What memories to see Jay drive one!

Jay, you sir have stupendious taste! Thank you from Great Britain for appreciating our true overlooked classics. :)

My 1st car was a Sunbeam. In 1968, a couple months older than Jay, I wanted a fast car but age of majority 21 so needed parents permission as still a minor. Mom approved purchase as speedometer only went to 80. That 80 was on the tach for 8,000 RPM and so not to risk truth being known phoned buddy upon arrival home and we high tailed it back down to the Rootes Motors Dealer in Ann Arbor Michigan and bought the car cash!! What Mom never knew apparently never hurt her!!!

While in college in 1972, I spotted a '66 Forest Green Alpine with a removable hardtop, sitting in a campus parking lot, full of leaves. I found out that the owner (another student) had abandoned it because it didn't run. Lucky for me, we settled on a price based on my bank account, as opposed to the value of the car. $200. I got it running and drove it through graduation where I hooked it to a U-Haul to move to Minnesota in 1975. 9 months later, I got a job selling cars so I filled the tank and the Alpine went into a 12-year hibernation. After 12 years, I didn't have to worry about changing out the old gas because 100% of it had evaporated! After cleaning up the points and adding some gas, it started right up with the use of a spare battery. I rebuilt all of the hydraulics so it was once again road worthy and in 1988, I sold it to a fellow from Wyoming for 7 times what I had paid for it in 1972. I think his plan was to convert it into a Tiger. Those were the days.

Jay is the absolute best dude and I love his car channel.

Just saw my absolute favorite car. That thing is awesome.

Jay, Jay, Jay...let the gentleman speak. I know you're enthusiastic about the car, but patience . Great video... great car.

What a "garage"! More a gigantic showroom with tools, really! And it's nice to hear that Mr. Leno had his humble debuts as well... Makes him that much closer to the ordinary folks most of us are... Thanks again, Mr. Leno, for taking the time to share all this with us...

Manufactured in WOLVERHAMPTON. Very proud. Also the birthplace of Robert plant.

Saw one of those at a Mecum auction a few years ago, Blue with a hardtop and it had a 302 in it. Drop dead gorgeous car.

My neighbor on Governors Island in New Hampshire had a Sunbeam. In 1970 I purchased a new MG MGB roadster for $3,250 brand new. Life was so good back then. Thanks for a little drive back in time. Happy Trails

My father bought one new when we lived Europe. All these other sports cars had 4 cylinder engines and the original Sunbeam did too. That one was called an Alpine and except for the taller back tails to the brake and signal lights they looked the same. He used to enjoy passing back and forth with Triumphs (sp?) Mgs, Austin Heallys, Alpha Romeos, my spelling sucks today. He'd finally hit the gas and leave them far behind not realizing we were in a 260v8. It was fun. I have to go for some spelling lessons... later, StepheN

I have watched a good few of Jay's videos. I love the camera angles on this one: seeing Jay from low angle in the driver's seat; seeing the car profile from the low belt-line shots on the drive. Videographically, this outing suits the car so well. I remember these from 'back in the day' but I never knew much about them. For me, this video is a welcome 'catch up' time!

Bond..James Bonds.. first car..I've had 3 Sunbeams (no Tigers) a 62, a 64, and a 68 but when the 68 blew the engine I installed a Rotary 12a with headers and 4 speed trans . much more fun..Jay the Tiger is sweet thanks for the eye candy..

Speaking as an Englishman, we did and still do manufacture cars with larger engines [look at the history], but also felt that smaller more reliable [and less thirsty] engines were more readily accessible and far more practical. The common British driver wanted to enjoy driving his/her car on our much shorter and narrower roads without spending most of the time on the petrol station forecourt filling the thing, particularly as fuel in the Uk has always been far more expensive than it is in the USA. Motoring is so much more than balls out power.

I am pleased to say I own a tiger I bought new in 1966 for $3025.00. It is original with a 260 engine with a 2 blr carb. a few years ago I had a engine compartment fire. I had the engine compartment restored to original condition. It is fun to hear about a California owner . I intend to keep it a drive it. Thanks Charles Jinks

I have always wanted a Sunbeam Tigre ever since seeing one on "Get Smart" andddd loving it!!

Hi Jay, in the 60's I had a Sunbeam Alpine... it was and still is my favorite car.

I was 16 in 1966 and loved these Couldn't even afford to fill the tank Ended up with 1932 Morris 8 Drove it till it dissolved into iron oxide and loved it to bits I am 65 now and have a 1954 upright Ford pop

Jay Leno's garage is a religion to me, and it all started with this video

Jays drivin everything and still gets excited 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 True Car Guy !

I love all your vids, this was a great idea. I had a sunbeam tiger in 81. strait line going thru the gears took thought and real control

Great looking car and a very nice guided tour. Thanks Jay and Mike!

Hi Jay, left school 78, spent next the next 25 years in vintage, veteran and classic restoration in the UK. Had some involvement with most in that time, Jag, Rolls, Bugatti, Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini etc. including a couple of wild Tigers! Sorry to say, but I took a lot of it for granted as a cocky teenager! This Tiger was the only one with torque. The addition of an V8 made a pretty looking car into something worth having. We used to joke there was a rope in the trunk in case you need to tow a truck out of a ditch! Love your site, brings back good memories. Save your pennies and maybe one day you will have enough to by a fixer. Good luck, Martin.

1967, San Francisco, my girlfriend had this car in light blue… remember coast highway drives along the Pacific to have lunch in Santa Cruz. Lot of fun and plenty of power… the Sunbeam was hot too.

OMG that Tiger sounds beautiful!

The first car that I ever rebuilt was a 1959 Sunbeam Alpine. We started at the front and worked our way back to the tail, inside and out. It took us about 6 months but the project came out great and the car ran better than new. I am still sorry that I sold that car so I know how Jay feels.

There are a lot of tales of things that went on in the 60's when nearly every English car and motorcycle manufacturer was struggling just to stay afloat. According to an acquaintance whose Dad worked at Chrysler back then, Sunbeam did fit a couple with 273's, but the engineering was more "cut the car away where the engine and transmission hit" than a proper re-design, so that when they tried to drive the first one, a front wheel collapsed just outside the garage door. Sunbeam tried to patch it together but it kept breaking, so the project was cancelled and any good parts from the cars went back onto the assembly line. For certain there were two 273 drivetrains shipped to Sunbeam, but nobody can really verify anything after that. As I said, lots of tales, so mine may be just another one- take it or leave it. The main problem with the Tiger was the two different concepts of what the car was about. The English thought "sporty" was about fun and handling, while the Americans thought "sporty" was acceleration times in a straight line. Given the tires of that era neither was happy with the results so even though the Tiger could do both well in the right hands, it went unloved and poorly marketed by the American dealers who couldn't figure out how to sell it to Americans who wanted a Mustang, Corvette, or GTO. Kind of like the Pantera, we just weren't ready for it, so it never caught on and more's the shame of that.

One day we drove up to Solvang, CA and they were having a car show. I saw this MGB sitting on display, and the I noticed the side emblem which read; MG Tiger. It gave me a warm feeling because sure enough there sat the 289 in the engine bay.

when those repo Minilites were spinning at different speeds, was for me, the most beautiful thing ever

I remember seeing one in Sacramento in about 1979 or so. Beautiful car.

Jay "Can we take it for a ride?" "Sure." "COOL!!" Sounds like he's a teenager who was given the keys to the family car.

This was my first sportscar. Was shopping for a Cobra but could not afford the 6K(used for 4.5K). Got a powder blue Tiger for $2600. Payments were $63/mo. The good old days! Had to sell her a few years later after we had our second child. What a great little car!

Now this is a cool car. Makes me wish we could've had cars like the TVR Griffith 500 here in the states.

I remember these cars. A guy down the street had one and I admired it.

Jay as an actual real guy in Hollywood (rare) you should get together with the real Top Gear crew and produce the proper British Top Gear show. It was the most watchable show ever!

Always wanted the Tiger. Bought a red Alpine in my Junior year in high school in 1968. Love, love, loved it. Got 9 friends in it and drove all over town (Claremont, CA). Did a lot of rallies, lost my virginity in it, drove it hard. Use to beat MGBs, TR4s and Spitfires all the time racing on Ortega highway. Wish I still had it. Replaced it with a Jaguar Mark IV. Loved that, too. A little sluggish on the acceleration, but the red leather, burled wood and 78 rpm record player was way cool. Wish I still had that one too. Loved it. But I still love the Tiger. One just sold at Barrett/Jackson for $100k. Beautiful.

Maxwell Smart Car.....!

Jay, I like what you are doing with this series of videos. It allows me to get closer up and personal with many fine cars. There are times when owners of their cars have really interesting things to say only to be cut short by you.

Such a beautiful car, and dark green, styling to me that is nicer than a Cobra convertible.

I love the optical effect those wheels give!

I worked on one of these when i did Auto Body work when i was in my 20's. It had the small block Ford 260 V8. It was an animal and could burn some serious rubber.

I LOVE it! My family has a 1961 Sunbeam Alpine; the 4 cylinder car; which is still waiting to be restored.... But the good news is that it's been in a semi-climate controlled garage since 1972! I'm really excited to get her running and driving again. :)

Damn , that's one big engine for that car , i can't imagine the pain of changing the spark plugs or the oil filter...

I (my Dad) had a ‘64 MG-B. We had a header made for it and tuned dual exhausts. We had it bored and stroked and not much else. It had real “Wire Wheels w/ Knock Offs” brass hammer in the tool kit. Dad and I raced in “time & distance” rallies. I wanted to do more of the things that they did with the “Tiger”, but Dad put his “foot down”. I loved to drive it in the “Homecoming Parade” even though there was only one class ahead of our’s. The Class of ‘65. It was a brand new high school. It was in Rancho Cordova, California. I was in the Class of ‘66. I had sold my Canary Yellow ‘55 Chevy w/327ci fuelie out of a wrecked Corvette. I bought a 1966 Pontiac GTO. I kept it in my Moms name because, insurance was unbelievable for a seventeen year old. When I went to Vietnam, my little brother was driving it. He wrecked it in a street race. Such beautiful cars. I loved the “B”. I always loved that time. Being able to brag that it won its ‘Class’ at LeMans. With the GT-40s & The Ferrari’s going at it.

The Roots Group LTD ... Sunbeam Alpine (I4) and the Sunbeam Tiger (V8) were popular convertibles in the early to mid '60's era. .. The television prime time comedy series Get Smart began each episode with a fast paced bright red Alpine squealing its tires rounding a city block corner to an abrupt stop. Maxwell Smart and the Cone of Silence .... Hilarious.

Love this little...tigers.

He who rides a Tiger, can never dismount.

Fantastic. I liked this episode as you can tell the guy who owns the Tiger knows his shit and can step in the area with Jay when it comes to knowledge about cars.

I remember when they dropped a Ford 260 V8. They were beating the Corvets in the 1/4 mile in Portland Oregong.

Jay is living the Car Guy's Dream with a big smile on his face. Great work Jay ! Congratulations to U Jay ! THANK U JAY ! PARTY ON JAY !

Maxwell Smart's ride of course. I think he kept a spare key in his shoe ,right?

This was One of Two of my "dream cars" ... In my eyes, the Tiger, still looks "contemporary'" - Beautiful ! The Other was (TVR's) 'Griffin' - also a 289 Ford Small Block. That Car had a published weight of 1800 lbs. !

Have a Sunbeam mixmaster in the kitchen. Does that count?😁

My grandpa had serial number #69, A 1965, originally with a 260 and when the 289 came out He couldn't wait to put one in. We went to Detroit and picked up a brand new 289 crate engine from Gratiot Auto Supply. We took it home and Gramps installed a "Racer Brown" cam and kit, a brand new Edelbrock intake and a Holley 4 barrel. Then He ordered a "tuned" exhaust from some outfit in St. Louis. That was His pride and joy, I learned how to drive a standard transmission in that car, it was the first car I ever drove by myself. It was a sweet ride, sounded so good and many years later I discovered it would get a nice "chirp" in all four gears LoL. He would let me take it out on dates but I had to have it home at midnight, and, yes He'd wait up till I got it home and safely in the garage. When I graduated in 1979 I left Ohio and moved South, Gramps died in 1987 and Dad and Uncle wanted to know if I wanted the Tiger, I did but I had no where to keep it in Texas and I knew the Texas weather would destroy it in due time. So they sold it in Hemmings Motor news to a guy in Florida for 6,800 bucks. I've looked for it since but I've never been able to locate it. I have Lot's of fond memories, It's an awesome little car and that sound from the drivers seat is Heaven.

I think that GET SMART had a SUNBEAM TIGER at the beginning of the shows intro

Sounds like Jay really LOVED his pet Tiger !!

I had a Sunbeam bicycle for 40 years!

I love that car. The 289 just ups the cool factor. I'd take that over a Cobra any day of the week. I love the style.

I would love to see a Porsche 928 reviewed.

When I auto crossed my 02 wrx back in 02-04 there was a guy with a green sunbeam tiger that raced in our little local group in the vintage stock class but with littler slicks all around it . OI thanked him for bringing it out when ever he did . Most times he ran against modified miatas because so few cars locally. He had 260 ci. Love me a Sunbeam Tiger.

That's amazing. An English car with a Ford engine sold by Chrysler. I love that. 🙏

jay treated this man with utmost respect , if you people dont like jay then dont watch his videos , no one in the world does more for car culture than jay. and if you think all he cares about is money your ignorant. he dosnt buy cars to show what a high roller he is he buys them because he loves cars.

Jay - my father - Richard Hovis - designed the Tiger +++

"Want to thank Michael" & his family for his service. Well revitalized auto!

Always liked these little v8 machines..I would own one but Im too tall..hahaha

I knew a guy who lived in a town called Brigintine, NJ--Who worked on, repaired -sold parts for his own business called Team Tiger-Now this is back in the late 60's early to mid 70"s-they were idenical looking cars to Jay's.

In 1968 my Dad bought a 1967 260 Tiger in blue, like new with few miles on the clock - guess who drove it at every opportunity? Loved that car, and even that little V8 had a ton of power compared to the British sports cars like MG, Triumph TR etc. I was used to. At the time I ran a Lotus Cortina Mk1 which was a good performer but not even close to the Tiger! Happy days!

Always wanted one. Jay, you should try a Triumph TR-8. They handle & ride so good. I had one for about 10 years and what shocked my the most was how great it handled but did not ride hard or harsh. Put on headers and a small holley with the cam & she ran really good. 15" Panasports with modern rubber really help too. Thanks for all the great vids.

when I was a kid in the fifties , I had a newspaper round 2mls from where I lived was a village ,and I used to get there at 7 in the morning, there was this long drive I used to wait at the bottom of the drive and jaguar used to come down , window would open and I would hand over his news paper it was Sir William Lyons the owner of jaguar at Christmas i got, a pound tip wow wow the paper round paid about 25 cents us happy days of long ago

Genius. The ability to pull off double denim. And a sound knowledge of motors.

Jay love your channel. But you've missed one of the greats. The MGB and it's GT variant is a great car. Can't believe you don't have an example.

I sometimes wish Mazda would give their Miata a retro job to make their Roadster more like it came from the 50's. I'm loving the British racing green on this Tiger.

Really a great Sunbeam. But modern compared to a Triumph? Try putting on the softtop on this and a TR6 while it's starting to rain and you know which one is more modern. In the TR you can manage alone with one pull and two klicks on this sunbeam you need two people 15min...But never the less the engine makes up for that :) Great car

😻Jay is EXCITED about this Tiger😻

Maxwell Smart drove a '65 Tiger :)

Jay thanks for this new series I really appreciate your outlook on cars!

Great car! I loved these as a little boy back when they were being made. I think Maxwell Smart's car was a Tiger, wasn't it? Or was it a standard Sunbeam? Thanks for the post, Jay.

Very nice ,all built by Jensen in West Bromwich .Always quite rare in the UK .The original Sunbeam Alpine with its modest I725 cc 4 cylinder was a best seller tho.Tiger was a bit small for that huge lump imo.From I970 the one v8 sports car that was very popular here was the Triumph Stag .

please do a video on that 550 in the background.

My 62 Sunbeam had two carburators on a four cylinder engine. It was perky and got good mileage. The seats had a lot of leg room and the back seat very little, but it was there. The top was redone and worked well. Cream yellow, not my favorite. We redid the upholstery. The generator was failing, I put paper wedges behind the copper brushes. The brake cylinder had bad seals but I could drive it by down shifting it. It was so well alligned I could steer it down a straight road by leaning left or right. I left it with my Uncle in Dalheart Texas and after he died my aunt gave it away to a local auto parts dealer manager who sent it to New Mexico to be restored. I had the title and key until last Halloween when a house fire took everything I had almost. I will never see that car again but I hope it was restored and giving someone a lot of fun.

Yes,during one of Get Smart seasons this car was in the show`s intro,some other seasons he had the VW Karmann convertible coupe.

You mentioned the heat factor--when I was in college, I drove to Florida nonstop from Connecticut to Key West with a buddy in his new 1971 A-H Sprite--the floor got so hot, we both got blisters on our right heels from the gas pedal

Maxwell Smart (Get Smart) drove a red one.

A chap I worked with used to drive old cars all the time - he said that he had one of these and that it was the only car that he'd ever owned that truly terrified him!