Converting SIV automatic to a V6

By Jim Ellis
Published: April 23, 2009

Converting the SIV Automatic to a V6
Or, How I Spent My Halloween Vacation

“The SIV Automatic is the best car for the V6 conversion because of the wider transmission tunnel.”

Ever heard this statement before?  I certainly did.  It was repeated frequently on the old Forum, and it makes sense.  Widening the tunnel is one of the key steps in the conversion process, so starting with a wider tunnel should make the process easier.  The only problem is that it turns out that no one had actually done it, at least not with V6 Jose’s kit, until I inadvertently volunteered to be the first guinea pig. Continue reading “Converting SIV automatic to a V6”

More Air for a V6 Alpine – Fan Conversion

By Dennis
Published: April 23, 2009

Trimming the Volvo Fan For The V6 Conversion

Fan Conversion for a V6 Alpine

I’ve sold quite a few of the aluminum adapters for mounting the Volvo fans on the Jose V6 conversion. Through some trial an error over the last few years, this application has proven to be a fairly simple, inexpensive and worthwhile solution to overheating experienced by some of us. Each time I sell one of the adapters or adapter fan set ups, I explain to the buyer the process of trimming the blades. So here goes, the parts and process. The parts are shown in the first photo and are, from left to right; Continue reading “More Air for a V6 Alpine – Fan Conversion”

Hub removal

By Jim Ellis
Published: December 23, 2008

Hub Removal by Jim Ellis

Hub removal is a problem at least that is what I hear. In my experience as long as you have the right puller it is not bad, you just need to get a good straight pull and they will pop off every time…. Well there was the one Tiger hub that required a blowtorch but lets not go into that one…

For most of us the main reasons to pull hubs are ditching wires or leaking seals, will go into the leaking thing more later, but for my S3 the conversion to Continue reading “Hub removal”

How to clean and seal gas tanks.

By Jim Ellis
Published: December 23, 2008

How to clean and seal gas tanks.

Have you done yours yet?

You may be getting around to this job sooner or later if you or the DPO has not yet done it. In my case the DPO had done a poor job of sealing the tanks, which resulted in making the job even harder for the current DO. Here is what I found and did:

Upon removing the tanks from my SV I found they had been sealed at some point in the past. At first I thought, “Oh joy! I can skip this and carry on with other parts of the project.” But no. The previous seal job was botched. The tank had not been cleaned well before sealing and the sealer was starting to come off. Continue reading “How to clean and seal gas tanks.”

Sunbeam Alpine V6 conversion.

By Jim Ellis
Published: December 23, 2008

Sunbeam Alpine V6 conversion

From the day the first Alpine rolled off the assembly line it cried for more power, the little four just does not have enough oats to make the car a nice mover and the early cars spit rods like they were designed to fail. While later versions of the engine were better the cars are still known for spinning the number three-rod bearing.

Rootes may be to blame for starting the Alpine power plant conversions when they shoe horned the Ford 260 in a S2 car then put the creation into production, thus the Tiger was born. But even Shelby could not over come the tight confides of the Alpine engine bay and the car lost its wonderful steering when it received the little Ford V8. Not to mention the firewall and tunnel Continue reading “Sunbeam Alpine V6 conversion.”

The Moss/Pickering Alpine

By Sunbeam74
Published: February 1, 2008

The Moss/Pickering Alpine

Sterling Moss, Ian Garrad, and Jack Brabham discuss strategy for the 3 hour enduro.

By Steven Silverstein and Scott Christie

If you know your automotive history you’d agree that almost every automobile marque has produced a few specific cars that seem to be shrouded in mystery, enticing today’s collectors and enthusiasts. Be it a special prototype, a one-off show car, or perhaps a specially prepared race car, these mystery vehicles simply vanish, absorbed by time and never seen again. Continue reading “The Moss/Pickering Alpine”

Alpine ST vs. Alpine GT

By alpineian
Published: January 1, 2008

In some ways the all-new Series 3 Alpine, introduced in March of 1963, was a radical departure from the current Alpine’s design. Modifications such as dual gas tanks for increased capacity, more upright windshield design to accommodate fixed quarter lights, and adjustable seats and steering wheel added up to an attractive package. (click here for additional S3 information) As if this wasn’t enough change, the Series 3 also introduced two different trim levels from which to choose – The Sports Tourer (ST) and the Gran Tourismo (GT). Both the ST and GT trim levels were continued through the entire SIV and SV production runs, though the Series V GT was not officially available to the U.S. market. This article will explain the differences and offer some insight as to which may be rarer. Continue reading “Alpine ST vs. Alpine GT”

Factory Alpine Radio Consoles

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. Continue reading “Factory Alpine Radio Consoles”

Wheels & Tyres

Wheels & Tyres
By alpineian
Published: October 24, 2007

Wheels & Tyres

Steel wheels

The standard configuration for an Alpine is the 13″ steel wheel with chrome trim ring and hub cap (Nave Plate). Every Alpine up to B94102172 came equipped with 5 wheels and 5 trim rings, but only 4 hub caps. Each Steel wheel is date stamped and should match the year your car was built. Beginning with the ’59 Sereis I, all steel wheels were color matched to the car’s body. This continued on until shortly before B9107291 during the Series II production run. It was at this time that the holes changed in the steel wheel from 12 smaller oval shaped holes to 8 larger more oblong shaped holes. During this short period, Series II’s came equipped with the early wheels, painted white Continue reading “Wheels & Tyres”

Tool Kit

ByIan Spencer
Published: October 24, 2007

The Complete Alpine Tool Kit

For some time now, I have been reading and contributing to discussions about the evasive Sunbeam Alpine tool kit. These little rascals must have been the first thing to have been lost from most Alpines and are today, quite a rare find. Sort of the “Holy Grail” of all Alpine parts. I have tried to make some logical sense out of this by documenting actual kits the way they came from honest Continue reading “Tool Kit”