| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| littleblue |
Posted - 30 Nov 2012 : 18:24:38
Hello all,
I'm going to go and view this series Rapier at the weekend. Can you tell me anything particular that I should check for?
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C323250#
thanks
Simon |
| 15 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| classic mike |
Posted - 28 Dec 2012 : 17:59:34
This car is for sale again on Car and Classic .Com
Priced at £5,000 or offers invited.
Looks like they are getting desperate to sell it at that price.
Without looking at it but listening to comments made about the car it is well over priced.
Classic Mike.
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| classic mike |
Posted - 23 Dec 2012 : 01:28:35
I would like to add my twopence worth.
I rang the owners of the Sunbeam Rapier mentioned in this article and was told they were people of the cloth,clergy (religious) and wanted to donate the sale proceeds to the local community.!!!
Perhaps they thought this would sway a sale from me.
I have just found a very solid and original Sunbeam Rapier series V 1966. A lovely blank canvass.
It needs a very good quality respray back to its original colour,new carpets and few other cosmetic jobs...but the best bit is it had new wings,front panel,new sills,inner wing repairs etc in the late seventies before being laid up in a garage until today.
The dashboard is perfect..quite rare if stored a long time
.
Nobody has got to the car and bodged it to make a quick profit ..its up to me now to improve it correctly,which I will.
It came at very fair price,plus a van load of spares from a broken car dismantled years ago.
Classic Mike
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| Tony Fearn |
Posted - 18 Dec 2012 : 23:58:52
Hello Simon.
Have you bought your series Rapier yet?
Tony.
Tony Fearn
P.S. Where are you in the UK? |
| pruyter |
Posted - 16 Dec 2012 : 11:58:38
Hi Douglas,
I am very happy to read that you first checked this car out before making a bid. It is a great pity that this kind of swindlers are goin on victims. That what made me suspicious in the first place was the fact that the Rapier was parked in a nice dry garage while his Jaguar E-type, 12 cylinder was parked outside while he was not using it because of the high petrol prices. This Jaguar was worth many times more than the Rapier. So I thought: the Rapier is probably not waterproof which was the case. On that moment I did not trust the seller anymore. The reason of checking the engine was the fact that the seller wrote most proudly how he managed to get the Rapier up to 100 miles an hour. If you do that whit a car which was used for years and years by an old man up to in his nineties than you take a very big risk in destroying the piston rings.
I like the idea of meeting some time in Scotland. I have never been there. The most north I have been in Great Britain is Consett near Durham where I bought my Tiger from Brian Postle the secretary of the Sunbeam Tigers Owners Club.
Keep enjoying your Rapier, I am happy for you.
Regards,
Peter |
| Douglas Macallister |
Posted - 14 Dec 2012 : 16:44:46
Hello Peter, this is very interesting as it is indeed the same car. I recognise the same faults and in particular was very disappointed to see the de-lamination of the dash on the right hand side as the on line pictures were taken from an angle that eliminated that. Like you I also noticed the loose windows and the poor standard of weld that you mention. The car was carrying a UK plate OGU 310D, which I believe was it's original UK number in 1966 before being put on a private plate and then exported to France.
It sold on E bay for £5,600 in January this year, just after I viewed it. I was on the point of making a blind bid, but am glad I went to London to view it first, as I would have been disappointed to have paid that kind of money for it.
As I mentioned, I found a very straight S4 with a believable 43,000 miles, none of these problems and an excellent interior in Edinburgh for a lot less money. I have been very happy indeed with it, adding a stainless steel exhaust and improving the performance a bit by simple tuning.
If you're in Scotland at some point, it would be good to meet up.
Best wishes
Douglas |
| pruyter |
Posted - 13 Dec 2012 : 06:25:58
Hi Douglas,
The name of the owner of this particular Rapier is John Yonge and he lives in Richmond near London. He is a professional writer and very much able to produce an advertisement that gives one the impression to be lucky to get the chance to buy his car.
I estimate the value of this Rapier aproximately 2000 GBP. To give you an impression of the faults I discovered I will mention the following:
Exhaust needed to be replaced by a new one;
The clutch needed to be replaced (was in very high position;
The windows were very wobling,probably caused by worn out glass channels;
There was blistering at the front of the bonnet,which means at least e respray;
Not functioning breathing system of the engine, parts were missing;
Probably an engine overhaul, the pressure of the engine was very high when I checked when the engine was idling and the oil filler cap removed;
The valves needed to be adjusted, they were very noisy;
The tachometer was not working;
3 decals with the sign "1725" needed to be replaced;
The water temperature was reading real high, nearly 100 degrees Celsius;
All the windowrubbers were perished;
The driversside of the wooden dashbord was in the right corner completely destroyed;
The window frame was repaired in a way that it showed all around bad welding;
The left front wing was full of filler and the sill line was not visible as it should be;
The rear bumper needed to be rechromed.
Wel Douglas this is what I remember after 1,5 year. There was more but I don't remember it.
I know that I was not going to buy a new car, but....for 7000 GBP I expect the very very best!
I like to warn future victims: the chassisnumber of this Rapier is
B 325002052 and it used to have the following French registration 3477 KV
Regards,
Peter |
| Douglas Macallister |
Posted - 11 Dec 2012 : 22:21:08
Peter, this is an interesting post, as I think that I went to see the same S5 Rapier in London in January this year. It had recently been re-registered in the UK. The seller had it on e bay but was looking in the region of £5,500. The car (if the same one) was not bad but nowhere near as described, and certainly not worth what the guy was looking for. This cost me a day off work and a train ticket from Glasgow.
To conclude the thread, I found a really excellent 43,000 mile S4 at a realistic price in Edinburgh. Car is completely straight with beautiful wood and interior and I'm really happy with it.
Rather than lose confidence in English sellers, try buying in Scotland instead !
Cheers |
| pruyter |
Posted - 11 Dec 2012 : 06:19:45
Hi classic Mike,
I have seen your message and I will reply on it this evening. I am at work now and I have to wait until I am at home.
Thanks for your message!
Regards,
Peter |
| classic mike |
Posted - 10 Dec 2012 : 08:52:42
Hello Peter Ruyter,
I have sent you a message,please let me know if you have received it.
Classic Mike. |
| pruyter |
Posted - 07 Dec 2012 : 16:33:37
Hi littleblue,
perhaps as a comfort to you I made in august 2011 a trip by plane from the Netherlands to England in order to view a Sunbeam Rapier Series 5 which was described as superb. The fotos on the internet were marvelous, but ......viewing the car it was a great disappointment to me. I need more than an A4 to summ op all the faults.
I wasted money on a flying ticket, some petrol to drive 100 km to Schiphol airport plus a hole day. This guy is still adverting this horribel Rapier for 7500 GBP. The car has a French license number, so be warned and don't buy it.
I should lose nearly confidence in English sellers, but the truth is that in 1995 I bought in England a splendid Sunbeam Tiger which was worth the money. I still own it.
In the meanwhile I am still looking for a splendid Rapier Series 5 or 4a. I am willing to pay a very good price, but finding them seems almost impossible.
I wish you a good hunt!
Regards,
Peter Ruyter |
| classic mike |
Posted - 04 Dec 2012 : 09:22:54
This car has been on the market for a very long time 6 months. I phoned about the car when the price was dropped from £7,000,down to £6,000.
They told me that was what they had paid for it from a dealer and wanted the same money back from the sale of the car.They told me they were in the clergy or local pastors and wanted to give the proceeds to their community.?
You would have thought you could trust their word.
I told them it was overpriced and if they lowered the price a lot I might take a look.
As you say it is not as described in the photo`s.
It looks like a washboard along the side.
I might know of one for sale.
Message me and I will tell you more.
Classic Mike
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| JPSH120 |
Posted - 03 Dec 2012 : 12:44:45
All too common now I'm afraid with people having strange opinions on the value of a car!
When you find another one see if there is someone local to it who is happy to view for you.
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| Jon |
Posted - 02 Dec 2012 : 23:26:12
Looked full of kag to me on the pics. Rootes motors and rot,dont they just love it
Hillman Avenger MK1 GT,
Commer PB Pick-Up,
Commer PB Panel Van,
Commer Auto sleeper,
Triumph Stag MK1,
Chevette HS x2,
Lancia Delta Integrale,
Fiat Mk1 Uno Turbo,
Rapier Fastback,
MGZR Xpower grey MK2,
MK6 Ford Escort LX 1.8d van,
MK5 Transit 2.5td 150,
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| littleblue |
Posted - 02 Dec 2012 : 17:58:07
Went all the way to he south coast to see this car today.
It is a Sunbeam Rapier, but one that's hanging on to it's originality by the skin of it's teeth. Worth something, but nowhere near the 5K the seller was asking.
Just a pity he couldn't have described it honestly in the advert and saved me 5hrs driving.
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| JPSH120 |
Posted - 01 Dec 2012 : 23:09:45
Good stuff, looking forward to hearing a report post viewing!
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