Paul Gwizdak’s 1964 Mark 1 Tiger

The Sunbeam Tiger, based on the Sunbeam Alpine platform, was produced from 1964 to 1967. The Tiger was conceived by Carroll Shelby and Ken Miles not surprisingly squeezing a small block Ford V8 into the compact roadster. The car ultimately was manufactured by Jensen in England and Shelby received a royalty on every Tiger produced.

Paul Gwizdak is the proud owner of this gorgeous example of a 1964 Mark 1 Tiger. The car is #1214 of 3762 produced in 1964. Combined production of the Mark 1, Mark 1A and Mark II Tigers totaled just over 7000 resulting in the Tiger being a highly coveted ride. The Mark IIs are the most sought after with only 536 produced.

Paul's Mark 1 was originally Forest Green. The car was restored in the late 80s and repainted in a color very close to Ford's Springtime Yellow which contrasts beautifully with the tan leather interior. Paul and Mike Grotto just finished a complete refresh of the Tiger including a rebuilt motor, rebuilt transmission and rear end, completely new interior, stem to stern wiring, exhaust including cutouts, and dash/gauges. The end result is stunning both visually and from a performance perspective.

Now that the car is complete, Paul plans on using it for road rallys as well as Tiger events including those sponsored by the Bay Area Tiger Club. We look forward to seeing Paul's Tiger at future events in Calaveras as well!

Upgrades:
289 block with Iron port matched heads
Roller lifters
Adjustable valve train
Comp cam
Long tube headers with cutouts on dual exhaust
Buckskin tan leather interior and wool carpet
Gauges rebuilt by Momo Mfg in new burl wood dash
Panasport wheels soon to be upgraded to 13" Minilites with Avon tires
New wiring harness