There are two categories of Algers. The first one is the problematic type where
the car receives a Tiger VIN plate, as well as a number of other Tiger parts, as
part of it's creation. It's hard to argue the point that this gets done for any
reason other than to pass the car off as a genuine Tiger, which is fraud. The
other type of Alger is where someone does an engine swap on an Alpine, and the
donor engine is a Ford smallblock. There is little or no intent to convince
anyone about the car's origins, the result a 'hot rod' in every sense, and if
anything serves to enhance the value of genuine Tigers by bringing these cars to
the attention of more people. The second type is more equivalent to the Cobra
clone situation. The Cobra doesn't have a nearly identical production chassis to
a much less valuable car, and any of the kit cars can usually be readily
identified as such.
The Tiger-Alger frauds are more like the Mustang - Shelby GT350 situation, where
a few transferred pieces of identification, sheetmetal, and mechanical bits can
fool the unwary.
Theo
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