G Smart Alpine

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Mal
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Joined: Sat Aug 02, 2008 5:39 am
Location: NZ

G Smart Alpine

Post by Mal » Fri Aug 24, 2012 7:47 am

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Other-Ma ... 564bf95fdc

There has been some discussion on the C.A.T site on this.



This is taken from our local Sunbeam club web site.



By Harold Wooldridge

(Borrowed from ‘Sunbeam Rootes’ the magazine of the Sunbeam Sportscar Owners Club of Canada)

I found the little red Alpine parked behind an auto parts store in Dallas in 1973. What I first noticed about the car was the two hinged panels on the right side of the bonnet. The car's interior looked strange, too. A panel with 2 large gauges was under the dash and sat on the transmission tunnel. A store employee told me the car had a blown engine and the owner wanted to get rid of it. I contacted him and bought the car for $100. He had bought it in California from the post-production auction for the series ‘Get Smart’. Someone else had already bought the companion Tiger used in all the chase scenes.


The Alpine, however, had all the "exotics" in it, including periscope, radar, front and rear spring-loaded bumpers, rear oil sprayer and a cannon that rose on hydraulics and pushed open two hinged flaps in the hood. The console mounted below the dash that had the two large fake gauges in it swung up revealing the controls, all the gadgets and the radar screen.
Behind the green plastic radar screen cover was a small light that rotated and randomly flashed, giving the appearance of working radar. The oil sprayer was mounted in the fuel cross-connect area, which required removal of the connecting fill pipe. The right fuel saddle tank was removed for an oil holding tank for the sprayer. This meant no fuel sender and no working gauge (a small price to pay).

The bumper guards were welded to some rods which were inserted into tubes behind the bumper. The guards had some strong springs behind them and looked and released with solenoid trips. The only way I found to re-engage them was to drive against a building (gently) and push them into their stored position.

The periscope was a little lens gadget brazed on the end of the radio antenna. It was electrically raised and lowered but apparently did nothing else. Though the cannon did raise and lower from the hood, it, like the periscope, must have depended on special effects for action. The car was red on the series, and I in all my mental midgetness, had it painted yellow.

Unfortunately, I cannot find a good photo of the car. I kept the spymobile for about a year before moving to Austin, Texas to attend college. I sold it in late 1974. I don't have the VIN #, but it would be fun to see if someone out there knows what happened to it or knows more about its history, either before or after I had it, or knows more about the Tiger that was its sister stunt car.
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