Mark Laifman suggested some of us relate we got our Tigers, so here goes.
In the first part of the summer of 1988. I read a current edition of the local
WantAdvertiser, a Boston-based classified ad booklet that comes out weekly.It
has ads for everything, including categories for sports cars, parts cars,
convertibles,
and classic cars.
Listed in this issue was an ad for a Tiger for $3,500. The ad mentioned that
motor was out of the car, and the car could be seen in Westford, about 45
minutes
from my then home in downtown Boston. Ads run for two weeks before they must
be renewed. This ad ran all summer.
I decided sometime close to Labor Day to call the owner and see how hard up
he might be to sell. The following weekend, I drove north to see the car. I
met the owner at the basement garage door. There behind his mint '67 Chevelle
SS396, and against the back wall, was a dusty black Tiger with the hardtop in
place.
The bumpers were removed, the drivers side rear quarter panel was painted hot
rod red primer, and closer inspection revealed that the original quarter panel
was replaced with one from a Carnival Red Alpine. The front fender was creased,
and the cause seemed to be a hit to the left headlight and sidelight area. The
hood/bonnet was unbolted but covering the engine compartment. When I lifted
off the hood(which sported a custom scoop with the opening to the rear)the
engine
was indeed out of the car, as well as the transmission. Things like the heater
hoses, master cylinders, horn and wiring were still installed.
In the interior, the instrument panel, steering column and wheel, seat tracks
and console were still installed. It looked like someone cut holes near the
top of the transmission tunnel to get at the top bell housing bolts. The hole
for the shifter access was elongated, and the stock cover was missing.
I checked the V.I.N plate. It was B382000048 LRXFE. The owner told me that the
car had been unregistered and off the road since 1972, and been in this basement
for the last six years. He said he had most of the parts I couldn't see, but
he was pretty sure that he threw out the original air filter housing.
After asking a few questions, I told him I would think about it. I wasn't in
a big hurry to buy, and he didn't seem in a hurry to sell. Shortly afterwards,
I look at another one, this time a Mark 1 in driveable, running condition, but
much more rust, and I passed on the this second car.
A few months later, I called the owner of car #1. He told me that he still had
the car, but had decided to keep it and finish restoring it. Mentally, I doubted
he would finish it, but I asked him to keep may phone number, should he change
his plans. I continued to keep up on Tiger club events, but I forgot about car
#1.
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