Seeking Tiger

[tirechip]

Hello All!! Newbie to the group. Tring to make smart decisions in acquiring a Tiger..... A couple of vehicles have my interest, and wanted to get some of the group's opinions. First vehicle has what appears to be a pristine restoration, super clean paint, hardtop and few modifications that I can determine. Second vehicle has some paint chips, rust present in door sills(looks superficial), aluminum valve covers, headers, alternator conversion, some engine work, lots of spare parts, and maintenance records. Second vehicle has soft top only.

I plan to ask Lemon Squad to inspect one or both vehicles prior to pursuing either of these. And requesting info on maintenance records/paperwork on first vehicle. I'm several thousand miles from both cars present location, so it's not easy to personally inspect them. Both vehicles are on West Coast, I'm on East Coast.

Whatever I purchase, it will not be a daily driver, but a toy and source of pleasure cruising. Not racing, maybe some car shows, definitely attending meets and gatherings of other like minded car nuts!

Is the hard top something that I should want? I know it was an option. Please share your thoughts, resources, suggestions and opinions. I do have some background in European antiques....73 Bavaria and 73 3.0 CS coupe.

Thanks

Chip

 

[michael-king]

I'd post the VIN as there are quite a few that collect the data on the various cars and can perhaps give you the history of these cars.

Also a TAC certificate is useful.. make sure it's an actual Tiger not a re-shell.

What do you want.. an original car.. lightly modified.. do you want to do some work yourself/ha e work done...

There should be a big price difference between a rusty car and a non rusty one..

Also who did the body work on the restored one...photo records.. there was a guy who bought one recently that had a "no expense spared restoration"... Car is not only badly sorted .. but a rebody... so proceed with caution ... More knowledgeable eyes are better than a generic inspection

 

[65beam]

There currently are a couple nice Tigers for sale on the east coast. If you pull up the Tigers East / Alpines East site you should be able to open up a sample of the news letter. This month's issue has two for sale. It's all a matter of what you want to do with the car and funds available that determines what you buy. You might try contacting some of the folks from TE/AE for more info. There are phone numbers and e mail listed for officers and directors of the club as well as regional reps.

 

[tirechip]

1st car-B382001568LRFE JAL 661511 engine 6467 colour 92 B19KC
2nd car B382002020LRFE JAL 662022 engine 6385 colour 86 B19KC

 

[65beam]

The car once owned by DiBattista is a well done car and was in the central Pennsylvania area when Anthony owned it. Many of us have seen it over the years and it was restored by a well known shop on the east coast.

 

[tirechip]

Which car? Is it one that I listed with data plate info, or another vehicle?? Thanks

Chip

 

[tirechip]

I'm seeking a vehicle that will not be a daily driver and not a concours level car. As dependable as possible, modifications for performance are fine. A 302 or re-worked stock engine, headers, and as rust free as possible. I'm comfortable with a budget up to $60K, but that is a driver that needs next to nothing done.

 

[0neoffive]

I'm seeking a vehicle that will not be a daily driver and not a concours level car. As dependable as possible, modifications for performance are fine. A 302 or re-worked stock engine, headers, and as rust free as possible. I'm comfortable with a budget up to $60K, but that is a driver that needs next to nothing done.

With some astute shopping your budget should be close enough. Keep in mind that these aged critters still enjoy maintenance.

 

[65beam]

Which car? Is it one that I listed with data plate info, or another vehicle?? Thanks

Chip

It's the car listed for 75K CDN which may be Canadian dollars. At today's exchange if it is listed in Canadian currency it's less than 58K U.S. dollars. There are no VIN numbers or other numbers listed in the add for either car so I've not bothered to dig further. I've seen the car many times over the years so like many long time TE/AE members I know what it was like when I last saw it. You haven't mentioned where you are on the east coast so you might want to contact some east coast owners to see if they know of any nice cars for sale.

 

[Austin Healer]

The best possible advice is to pay someone who does have the knowledge (and preferably is bonded, or a TAC inspector/recognized expert) to look at the cars in order to determine if they are really Tigers. I fly all over the world looking at cars for my clients and I tell them,... a couple of thousand spent to ensure a factual representation is money extremely well spent.... there is NOTHING worse than paying a ton of money for an Alger, thinking it was a Tiger.

 

[65beam]

The best possible advice is to pay someone who does have the knowledge (and preferably is bonded, or a TAC inspector/recognized expert) to look at the cars in order to determine if they are really Tigers. I fly all over the world looking at cars for my clients and I tell them,... a couple of thousand spent to ensure a factual representation is money extremely well spent.... there is NOTHING worse than paying a ton of money for an Alger, thinking it was a Tige

The car that was owned by DiBattisto is not an Alger. It does have a TAC.

 

[Austin Healer]

it was GENERAL advice, not specific to any single car...

 

[65beam]

Your comments are right on if the person looking to buy is expecting to flip the car in the future and make a profit or break even. If it's a Tiger and has a TAC number then it's not a problem.

 

[michael-king]

Chip,

Both cars you are looking at are MKIa ..is that a specific model you are interested in? Are you aware of the difference between MKI and IA ?

 

[tirechip]

First, I'm so appreciative if the responses and questions. I have inquired about a Canadian car, but have not pursued it for a few reasons. The dealer says he has no written documentation on vehicle. Also, it seems to be a complex process to import a vehicle into US. Additionally, Original hard top, engine and other original and spare parts will need to be crated to ship separately or with car. This vehicle is reportedly a Tiger II.

Admittedly, I do not know enough about the differences in models and designations to differentiate between them. I need more education on that. Currently, the TEAE webpage has issues with their membership application process, so I will mail a check to them to join. I am certainly willing to have a pre-buy performed; with a model expert would be even better so the potential pitfalls be avoided!

Chip

 

[michael-king]

First, I'm so appreciative if the responses and questions. I have inquired about a Canadian car, but have not pursued it for a few reasons. The dealer says he has no written documentation on vehicle. Also, it seems to be a complex process to import a vehicle into US. Additionally, Original hard top, engine and other original and spare parts will need to be crated to ship separately or with car. This vehicle is reportedly a Tiger II.

Chip

Chip.. the vins you posted are :

1st car-B382001568LRFE JAL 661511 engine 6467 colour 92 B19KC
2nd car B382002020LRFE JAL 662022 engine 6385 colour 86 B19KC

A MKII Tiger would have a vin B3821...

 

[tirechip]

 

[Austin Healer]

First, I'm so appreciative if the responses and questions. I have inquired about a Canadian car, but have not pursued it for a few reasons. The dealer says he has no written documentation on vehicle. Also, it seems to be a complex process to import a vehicle into US. Additionally, Original hard top, engine and other original and spare parts will need to be crated to ship separately or with car. This vehicle is reportedly a Tiger II.

Admittedly, I do not know enough about the differences in models and designations to differentiate between them. I need more education on that. Currently, the TEAE webpage has issues with their membership application process, so I will mail a check to them to join. I am certainly willing to have a pre-buy performed; with a model expert would be even better so the potential pitfalls be avoided!

Chip

It's actually incredibly easy to import a Canadian car into the US. I recently bought a Mk2 (463) Tiger out of Ontario. All I needed was the registration, Canadian cars do not have titles, I also needed a notarized bill of sale. The person who sold me the car had his local city administrator notarize for him. It doesn't get much more official than that! There was one form to fill out at U.S. Customs which they did for me. I just had to sign that and then pay 2.5% duty on the purchase price.

The car you are looking at B382100611 is one of the very last Mk2's built, 633 being the last one. 611 was built June 5, 1967. The last 2 MK2's were built on June 27, 1967.

We could not get a shipper to bring the car from Ontario to Washington state where I live. Part of the problem was that it wasn't a running/driving car and there were lots of loose parts and the other problem was that it was the height of Covid. The seller brought the car in an enclosed trailer from Ontario to Summerland, B.C. which is a short distance from the Washington/Canadian border. I met him there with another enclosed trailer and we transferred the car and parts from his trailer to mine. An hour later I was at US Customs. I drew a border guard with incomplete knowledge of the process, so had to ask him to get his superior. Once that was done, the process went fairly smoothly. In addition to the documents I had to provide and the one supplied by customs, the only other requirement was to have the chassis plate number on the car verified (visual confirmation). Once the supervisor got involved it was about 15 minutes. you'll have to pay for the duty fee by either check or cash. They wouldn't take a credit or debit card. It's 2.5% so easy to figure out before hand.

Make sure you get a detailed bill of sale which includes a detailed list of any parts not attached to the vehicle.

 

[tirechip]

https://liquidators-auto.com/listing/1966-sunbeam-tiger-mk-1a/

I'm learning what to look for........ and look out for. If it sounds too good......

 

[Austin Healer]

The above listing is very likely a scam. All of the pictures were lifted directly from an Ebay listing in June of 2021. It failed to sell after being bid to $58K. Previously it was on Hemming's site at $100K. If this business does actually exist it's one of 2 in Houston Tx. with the same name... One thing is for certain, it is a real Tiger with a quality restoration that is priced way too cheap to believe. Especially considering the car that sold on BAT a couple of weeks ago for nearly $60K. The white car is many magnitudes of order nicer in every respect. When I first saw the pics, I expected an asking price nearer to $80K