After reading all the e-mails about TAC, I never realized that this
was such a sensitive subject. The first I heard of it was through
this list. My opinion is that a program to roote (there I go again)
out bogus Sunbeam Tigers is worthwhile. What that program should be,
I am not sure. My experience with Tigers is very limited when
compared to Tom Hall, Curt Meinel, Norm Miller and the rest. I bought
mine a little over two years ago and it appears that I got the real
thing. But then again, mine doesn't have a TAC sticker on it either.
The current program almost gives the impression of elitism or
snobbery. Methodology is secret, inspectors have to pass an oral and
written exam, localized mostly on the west coast, senior ranking
within inspectors. A Tiger is not real unless someone from TAC
certifies it as real. And if it is certified as real, then more $$$
can be asked for it when sold. This doesn't give a good impression.
It assumes everything is bogus unless a TAC inspector says it is not.
What is needed is a national program where prospective buyers have
some resource to go for advice before they lay out cash for a Tiger.
Forewarned is forearmed. Getting your Tiger certified after you buy
it is like closing the barn door after the horse got away. If you get
screwed by an unscrupulous seller what recourse do you have other than
suing? When a buyer can check some database and determine if the car
he is buying was built on the Jensen assembly line instead of a
yahoo's garage, then you have done a service for the unknowing.
Jeff
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