The Sterling story starts in 1960s London with two friends, Richard Oakes and Phil Sayers. Oakes was particularly smitten with the Lamborghini Miura; one story says he spent lunch breaks gazing at a Miura – housed in a nearby auto repair shop – that was wrecked by the drummer for The Who. Oakes was already working for a kit car company; with that experience and his conviction that a supercar-type kit would find a ready audience, he formed Advanced Automotive Design with Sayers in 1971 to build what became the Nova – an arrow of a car based on the VW Beetle pan. The reception was overwhelming, and the small company could barely keep up with orders. When Car and Driver featured the Nova, US demand spiked. Oakes and Sayers didn’t pay much attention to anything other than producing the Nova’s fiberglass panels, ignoring the opportunity to expand. Meanwhile, in California, two enthusiasts named Norm Rose and Cecil Robertson tenaciously pursued Oakes, offering to buy the rights to make the car in the US. When no response was forthcoming, Rose and Robertson flew to England to plead their case. The pair formed California Component Cars (CCC) and after settling on a new name since Chevrolet owned the rights to the “Nova” nameplate, Sterling production was underway by 1973. Here on eBay is a 1975 Sterling with a buy-it-now price of $19,995. The car can shuttle you home from Phoenix, Arizona.
While Sterlings have been known to house all sorts of engines in their tails – from Corvair sixes to V8s – the tried and true powerplant is an air-cooled VW flat four. This one looks quite spiffy, but no details are forthcoming as to which of the many VW fours it is – only a vague reference that it is built as a “speedster replica”. The seller does mention that the front end is sourced from a Karmann Ghia. Disc brakes are an upgrade from the usual build, but it’s unclear if those are installed on all four corners. The car has a four-speed manual transaxle.
Oddly, despite the Sterling’s home in the US, this car was built with right-hand drive. Aside from that, the interior is extremely clean – matching the overall condition of the engine bay and the exterior. The lights have been upgraded with LED bulbs, and all are said to be in working condition. I’m not crazy about the tall gearshift, but I’m being picky: there’s not much to complain about here.
The fighter-jet canopy actuates remotely. Only the nimble need apply: climbing through that opening and over the broad sill – and out again – might be tougher than playing Twister. Fewer than 900 Sterlings were made, with production by CCC ceasing in about 1977. Continuation cars trickled out of the molds beyond that but in vanishingly small numbers. Price is in the eye of the beholder: very few comparables exist. But if you’ve yearned for a Sterling, you’d be hard-pressed to find a cleaner example. And if you do step into Sterling ownership, you won’t be lonely; check out the registry here.
I started that National club back in the early 2000s. I can’t see the serial number in the photos else I might have the previous owner(s) history. In any case, looks like a very clean example. Headlight covers are odd.. I’d like to see them either off or “up” if they’ve been converted to pop-ups. Right hand drive is easy to convert to with VW parts imported from the UK; I’ve always wanted to do that to my car! A unique twist to a classic kit. Price is somewhat optimistic but there isn’t much description of what was done. Ghia disc brakes are a common swap to the front in place of the usual drums; rears are probably still drums.
I believe the kit # is 101 for this car. Maybe Michelle could confirm this. I purchased 101. March 17, 2018 from Rodger Cleye and sold it December 12, 2018
Cool ride but the sound of a VW engine just doesn’t work for this design . Car deserves a better engine
Tell us all about your C8 Don … I’ll wait.
I like it a lot but a couple of things stand out. The mechanicals of a conversion to LHD may be straightforward but the dash is going to be a problem. Because it’s not symmetrical the gauges won’t transfer over.
Also, the four lug wheels with chrome wheel nuts scream “wimpy on the inside.” I don’t remember from my VW days if a swap to five lug is an easy thing to do.
There are adapters available to go 5 lug VWs.
Sort of like the Pontiac Fiero Ferrari’s haunting garages around the country.
Twister is right Michelle! It could be part of the reason for the small sales numbers.
Beautiful car to look at, elegant yet simple, maybe the designers of the C8 Corvette should’ve consulted these guys
Much higher build quality than I have seen in most kit cars, really well done. The RHD build makes this undesirable to me – I couldn’t imagine being on a secondary highway trying to pass, with a car designed to look like this. I’d bet it would sell for a higher price, faster, in a country where the driver is on the dividing line.
I just don’t get it. When and where did logic leave the equation with this thing? It has such great body and the interior is executed nicely. And then, they saddle it with one of the all time weakest engines! Why? Come on guys, you spend all this time and money designing a cool car and you leave the engine as an after thought? Even a hopped up inline four from any number of vehicles would be better.
To add insult to injury , there is the less than masculine exhaust note.
Dear Lord, save me from such disappointments. I’d rather drive a K car. At least they had a turbo option.
K car with wood sides. And a convertible top. Maybe with the luxo-leather seating. One of my fantasy cars.
YES! Plus they made a cool supercharger kit for those K cars
Well, it is a neat car to look at. I’ll even go so far as to say it is one of the nicest looking kit cars I have seen. But I lived in Arizonia and now Texas and without A/C in a car that the windows don’t even roll down in, you might get to drive it a couple weeks a year, if you’re lucky. Very cool looking and interesting car but not to practical. Maybe it’s just that I’m getting old, nah, can’t be that I’m only 68. Ya’ll have a great day!
Love the looks but what do you do if the top mechanism fails with you inside?Is there a manual override? I’ve looked at these before and wonder about removing the top altogether and have a Sterling Spyder….would be a cooler ride in Arizona where this car is from..120 degress inside this with no A/C . All that said..very cool with Muira hints.Easy to drop in a 1776 with twin carbs for much more ( reliable)power..
I love the design, if not the execution.
I used to live in a Corvair, and finished building a Bradley GT in the late seventies.
After some therapy over the years, I somewhat came to my senses.
Still, what a screamingly cool looking car.
This is screaming for someone to design a set of gull wing doors on this beautiful vehicle. that said, the engine doesn’t meet the expectations of how the car looks. Maybe a 302 would be more peppy? And yeah, AC is a must in AZ, otherwise you will cook inside this shell when it is above 90F!
Yeah, maybe a 302 would stand it on end!
Frankly, with AC the car is impossible to drive in Phoenix for at least 13 months out of the year . . .
So get a built VW engine. There are all sorts of things that have been done with the VeeDub engine, though I can’t remember hearing any of them. Or what the heck, go Porsche. There’s a guy near me has a 3.2 in a VW bus, plus suspension bits, etc.
The only way to go with one of these is an air cooled German pancake. Like the man said: How fast (cool) do you want to go (be)? How much do you want to spend?
I’ve owned over 20 air cooled VWs from stock 1500 single port engines up to a 2276cc that I regularly drove on the street. I love these engines. They can be V8 slappers as I and many of my fellow owners can attest.
It’s a kit cat. Based on a VW pan. So what’s the big mystery about why it’s been ” saddled” with a weak VW engine. It makes perfect sense.
No disrespect intended, but with this sleek body, the right suspension upgrades, and a strong Type 1 VW engine, this thing could be scary fast. And I’m sure fun to drive.
Best of good fortune with the sale!
I’ve owned over 20 air cooled VWs from stock 1500 single port engines up to a 2276cc that I regularly drove on the street. I love these engines. They can be V8 slappers as I and many of my fellow owners can attest.
It’s a kit cat. Based on a VW pan. So what’s the big mystery about why it’s been ” saddled” with a weak VW engine. It makes perfect sense.
No disrespect intended, but with this sleek body, the right suspension upgrades, and a strong Type 1 VW engine and transmission, this thing could be scary fast. And I’m sure fun to drive.
Best of good fortune with the sale!
Cool 😎 car. Good write up.
no fan of the maco shark (ruined good vettes) and a ve dub addition sure brings it down a notch.
A Karmen Ghia here or one of the IONIQ 6 might B better use of space?
I’m thinking a turbo Corvair or a twin turbo Subaru… Depends on the cooling required for the Subaru. Either would prove to be an upgrade from the stock looking VW. However, as stated, there are incredible options/upgrades for a VW engine. Then again, my 6-pack is now a kegger so getting in this would be impossible at best.
Convert to EV with a Tesla EV conversion kit and the Sterling would be a 🚀 rocket. They have EV conversion kits for all air cooled VW applications.