Lot Ended
Description
Wonderfully original 'fat boy' Sunbeam in regular use; one of
only 2,100 made and perhaps 15 surviving in roadworthy condition; nice period
literature; transferable number plate
Following BSA’s
takeover of Sunbeam in 1943, the Redditch factory continued to produce a range
of luxury touring machines based on designs taken from BMW as part of war
reparations.
Designed by Erling Poppe using a
captured BMW R75 for inspiration, the S7 was Sunbeam's flagship model aimed
at the ‘gentleman tourer’ and was a radical departure from traditional British
bikes.
Introduced in 1946, it had an innovative
all-aluminium 500cc in-line parallel twin engine mated to a shaft-drive gearbox
with car-type clutch and a single overhead camshaft. The engine was
rubber-mounted to reduce vibration, a pioneering feature for a British
bike.
The S7's styling was equally unique,
characterized by its ‘balloon’ tyres on 16-inch wheels, large telescopic front
forks and plunger-style rear suspension. Only available in black, it was a heavy
machine and majored on comfort rather than performance which was modest compared
to other 500cc machines of the time.
These
quirks, plus a fragile worm gear in the final drive and handling issues with the
balloon tyres, meant the S7 was never the great success that BSA had hoped for
and only around 2,100 were sold.
In an effort to bring costs down and to
give the machine more mainstream appeal, an S7 De Luxe model came out in 1949
which was available in rather more cheerful Mist Green, alongside a ‘sportier’
S8 version, both with redesigned frames, more conventional suspension and
thinner section tyres.
These were rather more
successful and both remained in the catalogue until 1957 by which time around
5,550 of the S7 De Luxe models had been sold and around 8,300 S8 versions.
Despite its short production run and low sales,
the expensive and over-engineered S7 is now the most sought-after by
collectors due to its rarity, groundbreaking design and
distinctive ‘fat boy’ styling, well-attuned to today’s custom
trends.
Dating from 1948, this wonderful S7
appears to be in totally original condition throughout. Little is known of
the bike’s early history but in 1989 in was acquired by a Mr R Fairbrother of
Hampshire by which time it had fallen off the DVLA radar, having been off the
road for many years.
This led to a bit of a
tussle with the DVLA who initially refused to register the bike under its
original Kent-issue KKN 862 number plate so Mr Fairbrother enlisted the help of
Sunbeam authority, Stewart Engineering of Market Harborough.
In September 1989 they wrote a letter stating
that the S7 was: “Only produced from 1946 until 1948. It was made to a new and
unique design (many features of which have never been copied) straight after the
war, and most of them were exported.”
They went
on to assert that they were the world’s leading authority on Sunbeam motorcycles
and knew the whereabouts of virtually all the surviving S7 models, stating that
KKN 892 was one of only 25 known to survive in the UK of which 10 were in a
dismantled state, although they did allow the probability that a few more might
survive overseas “but these are not likely to ever return to this country”.
The letter thunderously concludes: “Surely
you cannot get much rarer than approximately 15 original machines of a unique
design, BRITISH made left in the entire country? We can see absolutely no reason
why this machine should not retain its OWN number.”
County Council records were also produced showing that KKN 862 was
sold new via BSA agent GE Tunbridge of Kent in June 1948 (copy on file). Their
dealership logo is still affixed to the rear light 77 years on, which
is a nice touch.
This combination did the trick and DVLA rather
grudgingly responded: “Because of the very special place your Sunbeam has in
British Motor history it has been decided, very exceptionally, for the vehicle
to be registered under the number KKN 892. This will of course be subject to
satisfactory inspection of the vehicle”.
A V5C
was duly secured and Mr Fairbrother kept the S7 for the next 24 years, finally
selling it to a Mr R Oliver of Windsor in 2013 who clearly used the bike,
judging by a few invoices for routine service items and an old 2014 tax disc on
file.
Our vendor acquired the bike from Mr Oliver in 2022 to join his
collection of highly original vintage machines, the invoice showing that he paid
over double the guide price suggested here. He describes
the Sunbeam as follows:
“This is a totally original untouched bike.
It’s been beautifully maintained and starts and rides really well. I rode it a
lot over the summer and found it a great machine to ride. It comes with some
nice accessories including a pillion seat, lugs and a hand pump and
mounting kit [items in store].
The
literature in the history file incudes an original sales brochure, an authentic
owner’s manual (along with an updated copy) and a book on Sunbeam maintenance by
DW Munro, regarded as the bible to Sunbeam owners.”
As you can see in the photos, this is a great-looking 'fat boy'
S7 with that wonderful patina that only comes from decades of careful use.
The icing on the cake is the hard-won Kent-issue number plate, KKN 892, which is
transferable and doubtless has a significant value of its own. Not that you
would though, would you?
Consigned by James
Dennison – 07970 309907 – james.dennison@brightwells.com