Until acquired by Rootes in 1935 this North Kensington business had manufactured "thoroughbred" high quality Talbot cars and limousines.

[4] in late 1934 S T D Motors was obliged to sell Wolverhampton's loss-making Sunbeam and North Kensington's then profit-making Talbot and they were bought by the Rootes brothers.

[8] Until the Second World War Sunbeam-Talbot cars were made in the Clément-Talbot premises in North Kensington, London with its aging machinery.

Those works repaired aero engines during the war and, though production of the prewar models resumed in London, in Spring 1946 Sunbeam-Talbot production was shifted to Rootes' new factory at Ryton-on-Dunsmore, Warwickshire and the North Kensington buildings became a Rootes administration and service centre.

The Sunbeam-Talbot 2 Litre was introduced in 1939 and was based on the Ten, though it used the 1944 cc sidevalve engine from the Hillman 14 later Humber Hawk.

All Sunbeam-Talbot production was suspended though Rootes continued to build the Hillman Minx and Humber Super Snipe for military use.

(In 1987 the outside of the old London administration block in Barlby Road, W10, was transformed into the set for the Thames Television programme, The Bill, which was filmed there between 1987 and 1990.)

The headlamps were raised by three inches to meet American regulations and the front driving lamps were replaced with a pair of small air intake grilles.

After twenty years of potential confusion with the French Talbot that name was dropped in 1954 and the final revision was badged Sunbeam instead.

In the 1952 Alpine Rally cars won three Coupes des Alpes, Manufacturers Team Prize, 1st 2nd and third places in the 2 to 3-litre class and a special cup for an outstanding performance.

The first Alpine is a two-seater sports-variant its body specially made by Mulliners of Birmingham from the standard 2¼-litre 4-seater drophead coupé.

The day before its announcement it was awarded the RAC Dewar Trophy for setting new speed and endurance records on the Jabbeke autoroute and the Montlhéry circuit.

The two seater Alpine variants proved to be very effective rally vehicles with notable International successes by drivers Sheila van Damm and Stirling Moss.

Sunbeam Rapier is a Raymond Loewy designed two-door hardtop variant of the Hillman Minx available from October 1955.

From 1959 to 1968 a quite different 1½-litre car with the same name and an up-to-date prominently finned Transatlantic shape for its body was made on a modified Hillman Husky chassis.

Under Chrysler ownership and continuing the old Sunbeam-Talbot Ten and Sunbeam Rapier formula a two-door fastback variant of the Hillman Hunter Minx replacement was sold under the Alpine name from 1969 to 1975.