What to do with Alger

michael-king

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The car is wearing Alpine tags.. thats the best thing that could have been done. Its a true legit conversion.

You cant stop people in the future trying to do the wrong thing.. even if the body gets stamped someone can hide that so unless you x-ray or remove paint you wont know.... and if you follow the logic put out by some.. then you should save the alpine body and crush the Tiger specific parts: tunnel pass throughs top hats etc... and leave it as an alpine shell again... that doesnt make sense.

I would say sell it openly and honestly..... as you have always done.. and if you know the original Tigers VIN get it listed as destroyed.. the 'box and rear end might help ID that with some assistance from Norm.

I do not believe crushing the car is a good solution.. if it were going down that path.. cut it up in repair panel sections.

the rach and mechanical bits are worth some money... but i would guess the car as a whole is worth more... unless you have things like the filter housing and some other bits like shroud, header tank etc.. that can be sold off for decent $ indvidually.
 

the_tool_man

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196
Is the body still an Alpine or have conversion bodyworks been done? Inner fender well hats? Exhaust passages? Tunnel and shifter cuts? Some things can be easily reversed to produce another fine Alpine.

All of the above, and more, were done. If they hadn't, I wouldn't be worried about it. As others have said, it would be just another Alpine shell.

And just to narrow down the options, I have no intention of scrapping the shell. Quite frankly, I don't even know why that was brought up. I will cut it up for replacement panels before I'd crush good Sunbeam metal.
 

Jeff F

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Let's turn this into something more constructive.

For the record, I have a real Tiger and an Alger in progress.

While I realize that everyone is concerned about the value of their Tigers and are concerned about fakes, I think it is short sighted to think that any Alger should be cut up or crushed. They have their place, and I see a number of good reasons for them:

1. An Alger can potentially keep a real Tiger from being modified to the point that it is permanently "disfigured". Some people are going to do whatever they want and get pretty wild with removed heater boxes, modified trans tunnels, etc. Would you rather they do it to the real thing? My reason for building the Alger is so I can satisfy my itch to modify it while keeping my real Tiger original.

2. The Algers broaden the parts market for both original-style and aftermarket parts, which bring the cost down and make some of the projects feasible. Would the TKO conversion kit or Dale A's suspension be commercially viable without Algers?

3. It brings down the price of entry for enthusiasts who could not afford a Tiger. While many of you were around when the Tigers were new (I wasn't), some will be, ahem, exiting the market in the coming years. For this community to continue doing all the great things it does (TAC program, reproduced parts, technical help, events, etc.) we need new, enthusiastic people to take an interest in the cars. A guy in his 20's buying an Alger is the guy that will be interested in a real Tiger later when he can afford it.

That said, the proliferation of fakes is a concern for everyone. So here is a question to think about:

How could we come up with a well publicized, voluntary process that would make an Alger easy to identify without affecting the function? What part of the body could we designate to remove or modify? As an example, maybe if an Alger body had the spade-shaped depression, it could be cut out and replaced. Or maybe one of the stamped reinforcing ribs in the tunnel could be cut out and replaced. I don't know the cars well enough to know what would be best, just throwing out ideas.
 

leepear

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299
I stand by my original comments. Sell the package and feel no guilt. You have already showed a high level integrity and the future of that car will evolve to whatever happens, out of your control. The people that need to know about this car already know after you post a few pictures. The discussion was interesting but controls are already in place and you cannot stop flippers trying to scam and cheat. That is how they make their money. Ideally someone with buy the whole package and create a car they will love for many years. Lee
 

cobrakidz

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2,289
If this was a witch hunt and any replica/fake were to be destroyed then you would have 10's of thousands of Cobra owners running for the hills. I only suggested cutting up the body and selling as replacement parts is because the owner does not feel comfortable selling the body as is. He asked us for options to a specific question and that is what we are trying to do here. There are many options but he has a small window to play with.
I have no problem with replicas as long as they are presented as such----I had a GT350, 427 Cobra and now my Alger. All were fun and were never passed off as the real deal. In fact when I got my original GT350 most thought the replica was real and the real was a replica, that's how good it was. :)
 

Warren

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3,872
Ridiculous

Path... cutting up good non rusty body

When I had advertised parts cars, the result was horrible. 5 out of 5 were requests to cut the arches out the wheel wells out of perfectly good panels I refused every one. The other buyers would barely offer to pay enough for the cutting materials and time to do the removal.

Jeff how about a Red A pinned on the wing it worked for the original colonists:) Oh wait, that was something else that started with an A.

Clearly the Tiger tags valve cover are the only thing needing to be recorded with both registry here and in the U.K.and then slipped into the recycle bin. Plus recording the vin number here and other sites will tar and feather the car as sent off to recycler many moons ago. Any Tiger buyer with 1/2 of a brain seeks advice from those in the know, or can Google the vin.

It has a Alpine title an Alpine vin tag and if that doesn't pull the e brake for a future buyer when he sees the title you can't help the helpless.

Look at the SACOA thread on an Alger sold for $25,000 on eBay then for $60,000 at auction in Anaheim Ca. "It was described as the Alger by which all others shall be judged." not on auction but by the Alpine guys on their forum

Please pardon the drooling of the mine and the general forum. Since it's so popular to never be responsible for your own actions anymore, no matter what. My excuse is I can't get much done with knee surgery soon.
 

XTIGERX

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501
Wasn't aware from original post that Alpine shell had been converted so much to Tiger. Kind of shoots my SAOCA suggestion down. I was thinking it was still more Alpine and they might put to good use.
 

Jeff F

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Jeff how about a Red A pinned on the wing it worked for the original colonists:) Oh wait, that was something else that started with an A.
Warren, how about I leave it like this. Too obvious? :D
attachment.php
 

Jeff F

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Thanks for the tip. This part wasn't my work. Sure is handy to have the real thing to compare to.
 

Cdntiger

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120
In my opinion for what it's worth, you have an old Alpine that's been converted to a V8 with Tiger parts, so be it.
How many Mustangs out there born with sixes now have eights? How many Corvettes born with small blocks now have big blocks? Shelby clones anyone?
As long as you are not misrepresenting what the car is, and you say not to be, what's the big deal?
We've been hot-rodding cars for ever, sell it as is and move on, no harm no foul.

My .02 cents.

Paul
 

the_tool_man

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196
Here are some photos of the more interesting parts. First a couple of body pics. The car was originally red. The blue paint has a little too much flake in it for me. The brown top is from another car, obviously; though it may have originally been red also.





Next up, the engine bay:









When I bought the car, the engine was installed. So I know it fits. Here is the trunk, with battery cable, but no provision for mounting as a real Tiger would have.



Interior shots, starting with the battery compartment cover I made in 1992ish. The fuel pump is under there:



Instrument panel, with Alpine tach:



Transmission tunnel:



To be continued...
 

the_tool_man

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Driver side footwell showing part of the tunnel:



Moving to the underside, here is the driver side floor, showing exhaust pass-through. Bracket in photo center appears to have been hacked off. I assume this is a remnant of something Alpine:



Same spot on passenger side:



Axle number is B66 552 (or maybe 558). In an attempt to get a clear shot of the axle, I accidentally got a clear shot of the fuel pump:



X-brace from rear of car. Note the Alpine exhaust passage is still there, too:



Sorry for the blurry cell-phone photos. That's all I can do for now.
 

michael-king

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OMG...the back up lights!

I've seen several alpine sin the UK and Au that have used the lucas beehive lights for reversing lamps in the same spot. Not my preference.. but i guess it is a period corrrect look.

I have also seen the escort WIPAC rectangular ones mounted so they go above the bumper in a similar locaiton whihc would probably provide good illumination and warnign to those behind... but also not for my tastes.
 

Warren

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3,872
Round corner

The cars has more value as it has round corners. It has been told to me that some of the pro Tiger restorers will pay more for the doors hoods and panels.

It looks way too nice to cut up and there are plenty of faux paws on it. Isn't it interesting how the Alpine script and the Tiger script have the same mounting holes...

When looking at a project Tiger I inventory the parts and do a hi and low parts price accounting. When you have a incomplete car the choice to go modified is easy, but you are always circling looking for the parts to complete your car.

This can be moved to the for sale section and posted to Alpine site and T.E.A.E. many of us post there. Let me know if you'd like a hand with any posting or moving.
 

the_tool_man

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196
Just for the sake of closure, now that this thread has been moved to "for sale"...

I am slowly selling off the aftermarket and Tiger-specific parts, as time allows. I've got a few items on Ebay. I'll put together a dedicated parts post here soon. I have two semi-local potential buyers for the shell, both of whom want to use parts of my car to repair theirs. I plan to take my time stripping the car, and use the money to supplement my "savings plan" for my next car; either something running, or that comes with instructions (think Factory Five 818).

What's a rust-free shell worth? As much as I wish I could extrapolate from this:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/221600889939?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

I know better, lol.
 
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