1963 Sunbeam Venezia (Touring)

Having been signed off in 1961, the Carrozeria Touring-styled Sunbeam Venezia, which was aimed at the more fashion-conscious Continental buyers, was finally unveiled in September 1963. Most appropriately the launch took place in St Mark's Square, Venice, the stylish two-door coupé being transported there by gondola. 'The car of today - and tomorrow' proclaimed the Turin Show publicity material for the new 100mph, disc-braked fixed head.

As with Touring's other classics, such as the Lamborghini 350GT and Aston Martin DB4/5/6 series, their new GT for Rootes employed the traditional Superleggera method of construction with tubular steel frame clad in aluminium body panels. The Venezia was based on the well proven Sunbeam Rapier floor pan, shared with other Rootes models, but bodied and completed by Touring in Milan. Hand built and necessarily expensive, the Venezia struggled to find buyers. By 1965 a mere 203 had been produced with only seven allocated to the UK. Just over 40 years later, only 26 Venezias are known to survive, fewer than half a dozen of them in this country.