Live Tiger 1965 Sunbeam Tiger • Apr 26, 2008
With the engine in and cooling problems resolved, our Tiger was nearly complete. The next step in our restoration was to wire our car and get it running
We ordered a Tiger Mk II wiring harness from British Wiring. Although our car is an Mk I, we wanted to run an alternator to increase charging efficiency and to rob less power from the engine. Alternators also weigh a lot less than a generator. There was a reason that Ford and pretty much every other manufacturer moved away from generators in the mid-‘60s.
We found a concours quality early Ford alternator at National Parts Depot in Ocala, Florida, for about $150. Rootes Group Depot had a beautiful aluminum mounting bracket that we modified slightly to fit our Tiger.
With the alternator installed and the wiring harness in place, it was time to make sparks fly. One system at a time, we went back through our disassembly notes with an original Mk II wiring diagram as a guide. Finally, we had all the electrical systems working.
From there it was a matter of turning the key and seeing if our project—which we had spent the last two years restoring—would run for the first time since it had blown its engine in 1974.
With 421 horsepower on tap, the whole garage shook and the neighbors came running. Success at last.
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