[Alpines] Tiger wheels

[rande]

Sorry to responding late.

Stu, the memo cautioning the use of Tiger wheels for competitive events is actually
on page 19 of the Sunbeam 260 Owners Handbook. To drive home the message sooner,
some handbooks had an additional sticker affixed to the inside of the front
cover with the same admonition, 'The standard tyres and road wheels fitted to
this car are not considered suitable for use in competitive motoring events...'along
with the warning not to take advantage of the valance aperture to hand crank
the (Tiger)motor, as the radiator is in the way. DA.

Gary, when I asked when the Rootes production line started using the Tiger road
wheel for Alpines, I didn't have any inside knowledge. It's just a common decision
with car makers that, given a change in specifications for a replacement part,
if a part is deemed to fit more models, it makes more financial sense to order
more of the replacement part and use it as well on the assembly line, and try
for a price concession from the supplier in exchange for the larger order. If
the car maker thinks there's a safety issue with the old part, that's even more
incentive.

There's always the possibility that, like the Ford 260 engine, they ordered
so many ahead of time that they chose to use up remaining stock on the Alpines
before ordering and switching to the Tiger wheel.

It would be interesting to figure out a definitive way to tell the difference
between what was supposed to be the  Alpine wheel and a real Tiger wheel, but
for most Alpine folks who haven't owned their cars for forty years, who knows
if the previous owner didn't swap wheels knowingly or not.