Last updated on November 26, 2025
Today’s car is a 1955 Sunbeam Alpine Series One Roadster, owned by Charlie Meister, which I photographed at the Golden Cove British Cars and Coffee event in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA. This is the same model Alpine made famous by Grace Kelly in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1955 classic To Catch a Thief, co-starring Cary Grant. In one of cinema’s most iconic scenes, Grace Kelly piloted the Alpine along the winding corniche roads above Monaco, cementing its image as a glamorous continental sports car.
The Alpine was produced by the Rootes Group between 1953 and 1955, with just 1,582 examples built, making it exceptionally rare. Export was a major focus, with 961 cars shipped to the United States and Canada, where the postwar sports car craze was in full swing. Originally priced around £1,200 (roughly $3,000 in the U.S. market), the Alpine was positioned as a stylish but attainable roadster. The Series I Roadster was discontinued in 1955, largely due to high production costs, as each body was hand-built by Mulliners of Birmingham before final assembly at Rootes in Coventry. Today, only about 200 cars are believed to survive worldwide, with just seven known in Southern California.
Charlie’s connection to the Alpine goes back to 1984, when he saw To Catch a Thief on his first date with his wife. He leaned over and told her, “I’m gonna buy you this car.” She laughed and called him an idiot, but Charlie never forgot. Years later, he tracked down a barn-find example in Camarillo, CA. It was badly rusted, but the body was salvageable, and Charlie took on the restoration and had it painted in Beverly Silver Lake Blue—the closest shade he could find to match his wife’s eyes—and finished the interior in Jaguar Ivory leather.
To make it reliable and enjoyable on today’s roads, Charlie upgraded the running gear. Under the hood now sits a Chevrolet 283 cu. in. V8 with an Edelbrock 4-barrel carburetor, paired with a GM TH400 Turbo Hydra-Matic 3-speed automatic. Power is handled by modern disc brakes at all four corners. The suspension features independent wishbones, coil springs, and shocks up front, with a live rear axle on semi-elliptic leaf springs in the back.
The Sunbeam Alpine Series One Roadster is more than just a rare postwar sports car, it’s a personal love story, a classic film star, and a piece of British motoring history all rolled into one. The perfect car for a British/European show, your local Cars & Coffee, or a relaxed drive up the coast for a picnic on the beach.
Thank you for riding along.
Frank
