By AlpineIan
Published: December 2, 2007
Factory Optional Radio Consoles
Below I have a collection of factory radio consoles with correct period radios installed. It has been a very difficult (and expensive) project to track down these radio consoles and determine the order in which they appeared in production. The best way I have been able to identify an order of succession has been to search through old road test articles. Rootes was well known for supplying road test drivers for magazines with well equipped cars. Many of these magazines featured interior shots that show radio consoles fitted, therefore making it some what easy to verify which series Alpine had which console.
1.) The Series I console fitted with the Radiomobile Model 52T. Notice how the speaker box is set back about an inch from the face plate of the radio. The speaker box also has a square cornered chrome grille and a wedge shaped box.
2.) The Series II console fitted to a 30,000 mile unrestored Harrington LeMans. Equipped with the Radiomobile “His Masters Voice” Model 500T push button radio. Notice on this console that the speaker box is flush with the face plate of the radio. This speaker box is rectangular in shape and had a speaker grille with rounded corners.
3.) Is this the correct Series 3 console?
4.) The Series IV / Series V console fitted with the Radiomobile 525T radio with Rootes logo. This unit is the most common of the Rootes consoles and is found with many different radios installed.
5.) The late Series V console is a much shorter face plate on the top unit?and has a smaller plastic speaker box that hangs below.?The correct radio has the? letters “Sunbeam”with the Chrysler logo on the face plate. These?metal radio consoles do show up quite often, but are always missing the speaker box and radio. These are correct on very late SV and MKII Tigers.?
Radio consoles are very hard to obtain options and are expensive to buy. Price can vary based upon how complete the unit is and which radio is installed.
Factory Optional Radios
This list below is from Rootes documentation showing radios supplied by factory order. It is unknown if all of these radios would have been fitted with the Rootes or Sunbeam?face-plate. However, I doubt?if they all had it. Most common factory installed radios were the Motorola units.?Seems that this list is inaccurate because I have seen other models used with Rootes logo that don’t appear on the list?such as the 525T. Please PM AlpineIan with pictures of your Radios.
EKCO
- CR915 RF – (Available on: SI, SII)
- CR917 RF – (Available on: SII, SII)
- CR921/M2851 – (Available on: S3)
- CR922/M2851 – (Available on: S3)
- Aerial – CA224/1??
PYE
- TCR 2000 ALP – (Available on: SII, S3)
- P2000T/M2738 – (Available on: S3)
- Installation kit – 089166
- Aerial – Various
RADIOMOBILE
- 500T SOU 4 – (Available on: SI, SII)
- 600T SOU 4 – (Available on: SI, SII, S3)
- 620T SOU 4 – (Available on: SI, SII, S3)
- 60T SOU 5 – (Available on: SIV, SV)
- 970 SOU 5 – (Available on: SIV, SV)
- 980 SOU 5 – (Available on: SIV, SV)
- Aerial – Various
Radiomobile 500T
Radiomobile 622T
Radiomobile 525T
