My current ride is a 1965 Sunbeam Tiger. I purchased the car in the summer of 1974 from the father of my girlfriend who was off to college and did not want to take the car with her. It had 88,000 miles on it, and it was my everyday ride for several years. With the engine in need of a rebuild, the weather stripping worn out and parts almost impossible to find, I decided it was time for a change. Besides, I was tired of getting wet when driving it in the rain, sorting out all of the peculiarities associated with owning a British car and making it to school or work on time.

After starting a family in 1987, my priorities changed and the car went into storage. In 2003, at the request of my wife, Linda (well, more like "when are you going to do something with that car?"), the Tiger went through a major reconditioning. The engine, brakes, interior, chrome and the paint were all completed. Almost all of the hard-to-find parts were now available from several companies specializing in the restoration of these unique vehicles. Little did Linda know how much money and time would be spent getting the Tiger roadworthy again, but I believe she would agree it was well worth it.

Often mistaken as a Triumph or MG, the Sunbeam Tiger was quite a different beast. With its small block Ford V8 and dual exhaust, it did not sound like the mild-mannered British cars it was mistaken for. The Tiger was named after the supercharged V12 model that set the land-speed record of 152 mph in 1925. One of the first two Tiger prototypes was built by Carroll Shelby - the well-known automobile racer and designer who created the Cobra - in 1963. Dubbed the "poor man's Cobra," the Tiger was built along the same lines as the Cobra. Taking the four-cylinder engine out of the Sunbeam Alpine and replacing it with the Ford 260 V8 and a Ford top-loader transmission, the Tiger was born.

With the top down and the sweet rumble of a small block V8 in my ears, I really enjoy driving this car. Even with the extra weight of a small block V8 under the bonnet, the Tiger handles very well. With plenty of power on tap, this car is an absolute blast to drive on almost any type of road. I only have to concern myself with the sunburn I get on the top of my now-almost-bald head and, of course, keeping my speed out of the triple-digit range.

Production of the Tiger started in 1964 and ended in 1967 with 7,067 cars built. The Jensen Brothers plant in England handled the special modifications of the Alpine body, which needed numerous tweaks to handle the additional horsepower the Ford V8 provided. Although they may look similar, the two are two completely different cars. As the values of these special cars increased, clones (a.k.a. fake Tigers) started to show up on the collector car market. To protect the value of the real ones, a group of experts from the Sunbeam Tigers Owners Association was formed to document the originals.

Some of us older folks will remember the Sunbeam Tiger as the spy car that Maxwell Smart drove to CONTROL headquarters in the opening sequence of the television series "Get Smart" in 1965. With its cannon under the bonnet and ejector seat, it was Agent 86's version of the James Bond cars of that era. The Tiger is also Maxwell Smart's car in the new "Get Smart" movie that was released last summer.

The Tiger always seems to garner the same questions from other car nuts: "How did you get that big engine in that little car?" My favorite comment, however, is "I thought Sunbeam only made blenders."

Thanks go to my family for their help and understanding my disappearing act for two years while assembling the car. Special thanks go to Norman Miller and Bill Martin of Rootes Group Depot for their assistance.

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