1912 | Sunbeam 16/20

1912 Sunbeam 16/20 4. 0 Litre Tourer.

Car number 2331
Engine Number 2433
Registration number LF4900

The cars specification is as follows:

Engine: Four-cylinder monobloc. L-head. 90mm bore. 160mm stroke. 4072cc. Bosch magneto ignition. Claudel-Hobson carburettor. Transmission: cone clutch. 4-speed and reverse gearbox with right-hand change. shaft drive to bevel back axle. Chassis: pressed steel. 10'3 1/4" wheelbase. 4'7" track. semi-elliptic springs front. 3/4 elliptic springs rear. right-hand drive. Brakes: metal to metal internal expanding from side lever on rear wheels and internal expanding from foot pedal on transmission. Wood wheels. tyre size: 820 x 120mm beaded-edge. Right hand drive.

LF 4900 was supplied new to Viscount Enfield (Later Sixth Earl of Strafford) by C. S. Sadgrove & Co of London. SW. in the summer of 1912. as a plate on the dasboard confirms. The car seems to have had only limited use as the Stewart speedometer/odometer reads only 39097 miles. That this figure may well be accurate is supported by a statement in a private letter written in 1977 by the respected motoring historian Michael Sedgwick who had inspected the car. He commented: 'Lord Strafford never drove. and was in fact completely disinterested in cars. '
One of if not the only surviving roadworthy 4. 0 Sunbeam. This car was rescued from the motor house belonging to the Late Earl in 1999 & was purchased at auction for £38,900 pounds by the previous owner. The car emerged from the garage in an utterly original albeit dilapidated state. missing only its magneto & rear lights. Thus the basis was there to begin a painstaking restoration to the as new standard we find the car in today. exactly duplicating the features the car started with when new.

LF4900 has undergone one of the most painstaking restorations I have seen taking several years. The body was removed from the chassis as was every single other component. The chassis then bead blasted & repainted to as new. Each & every component was then rebuilt to as new with incredible attention to detail. The car as we find it today is as close to new as one may find & runs perfectly. The odometer now reads just 40,299 miles.

Over £200,000 was initially spent during the restoration plus the cost of the car at auction!!!. Since then some 10's of thousands have been further spent by the current lady owner to make the car as perfect as possible.

There are extensive photographs of the restoration including the engine & gear box dis-assembled prior to being rebuilt. The original Claudel-Hobson carburettor is retained & works very well. To drive the car is to gain an idea of what these cars drove like when new. The engine is smooth & silent. starting instantly & running simply beautifully. The body is the original sunbeam body fitted to the car. It sits on beaded edge tyres mounted to wooden artillery style wheels. Twin spares are mounted on the running board.

The lights are acetylene units complete with an acetyline generator to the running board. At some stage early on the lights were converted to electricity. but in such a manner that either source of lighting may be used. A brooks motoring trunk is fitted to the rear.

The car is finished in Mint & Dark Green with deep green button upholstery; all in perfect concours condition. All brasswork is in superb mirror polished order & the engine bay absolutely pristine. This car is a serious contender to win a concours d' elegance anywhere it is entered. It starts instantly & runs beautifully.