Description Used Cylinder Block – Lotus Sunbeam Includes Main Bearing Housing Images are example only. Blast cleaning now available on all used parts (see before & after photos) please contact us for more information Cleaned: £2,000 vat History: Chrysler commissioned the sports car manufacturer and engineering company Lotus to develop a rally going version of the Sunbeam. The resulting “Sunbeam Lotus” was based on the Sunbeam 1.6 GLS, but fitted with stiffer suspension, a larger anti-roll bar and a larger transmission tunnel. The drivetrain featured an enlarged, 2,172 cc, version of the Lotus 1973 cc Type 907 engine, a 16V slant four engine (the Sunbeam version being the Type 911, along with a ZF gearbox, both mounted in the car at Ludham Airfield, close to the Lotus facility in Hethel, Norfolk, where the almost-complete cars were shipped from Linwood. Final inspection, in turn, took place in Stoke, Coventry. In road trim, the type 911 engine produced 150 bhp (112 kW; 152 PS) at 5,750rpm and 150 lb⋅ft (203 N⋅m) of torque at 4,500rpm. In rallying trim this was increased to 250 bhp (186 kW; 253 PS) The Sunbeam Lotus was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in April 1979, but the road-going version of the rally car was not ready for deliveries to the public until after the rebranding, and on launch was sold as the “Talbot Sunbeam Lotus”. At first these were finished in black with silver side stripes, although later models were also available in an alternative scheme of Moonstone Blue with silver stripes. The car saw not only enthusiastic press reviews, but also much success in the World Rally Championship – in 1980, Henri Toivonen won the 29th Lombard RAC Rally in one, and, in 1981, the Sunbeam Lotus brought the entire manufacturer’s championship to Talbot. Six Sunbeam Lotuses were acquired by Greater Manchester Police for their Traffic Area Support Services (TASS) unit in 1980 in a bid to combat car crime across Greater Manchester, operating alongside the Ford Capris being used by GMP at the time. The six cars were modified to appear as regular Talbot Sunbeams, being painted in regular Talbot colours and having exterior Lotus badging removed while also being equipped with a Britax magnetic blue light, two-tone siren horns, police warning signage on the tailgate lid and a VHF police radio. Throughout their service during the 1980s, five of the six Sunbeam Lotuses were operated interchangeably across various parts of Greater Manchester, often deployed in high-speed stolen vehicle pursuits and also issued with a total of three registration plates and corresponding tax discs each to operate more discreetly. The Sunbeams were replaced by Ford Escort XR3is and Ford Sierra RS Cosworth’s in the late 1980s
