I've been having lots of problems getting messages through the server, so if
you see multiple postings from me, please forgive me. On to my message...
I believe the level of interest in cars like the Tiger is directly related
to the amount of information available on them. I9m a Porsche guy, and have
had many 911s since the early 1990s. I have had only one Tiger (the one I
now have and plan to keep). One of the reasons I shied from the Tiger for
so long was my fear of the unknown. What if something went wrong? What if
I need a part, information or help? All unavailable for the most part. It
took me a long tome to find this list, and even here, sometimes questions
are met not with good, useful information, but with harsh responses.
Porsche has similar issues as the Tiger too, with people worried about fakes
being made. I mean, to own a 911T is one thing, but to own a 911RS is quite
another, in terms of value. The 911T can very easily be made to look just
like a 911RS, which explains why there are so many RS clones out there.
It's the very same fear people seem to have about Alpines being made into
Tigers. Yet, copious information on all models of Porsche is available, and
the interest in Porsche remains huge. Sure, the 911 is still produced to
this day, so one might say it's apples to oranges when compared to the
out-of-sight-out-of-mind Tiger, but when was the last time you saw a 1972
Porsche 911 on the road? Not often to be sure. And why would anyone want a
1972 911 when the new car has almost three times the power and is also
beautiful? Well, I have a new model and a 1972. They both offer great
things, but are night and day from each other. I guess that the interest in
the old model has to do with its history, folklore, discussion and copious
information, which is available at anyone's fingertips. Hardly anything is
available on the Internet about the Tiger in comparison, although there are
a good number of the cars out there, the drive train is not exotic or
complicated like a Porsche, and it seems like there are a lot of Tiger
owners willing to get their fingernails dirty wile doing their own work on
their Tigers. So why so little information and discussion on the Internet?
People always say the same thing, that the Book of Norman is the Bible, and
they seem to keep its contents secret, which is not a good thing (in my
opinion).
The Book of Norman must be an amazing book, but that people are willing to
spend insane money on it, and therefore are not willing to share its
contents means the Tiger community is truly broken. This is not normal at
all, and is really bad for the marque. Extensive previews of just about any
book you can think of are available on websites like Amazon -- but nothing
anywhere for the Book of Norman. Well, I can't afford that book, so I won't
even worry about getting it. Anyway, even if I had that kind of money, I'd
rather spend it on important things, like what's needed to keep my car on
the road. Finally, I would be (and am) more concerned with the pure, crazy
profit that people are making on that $25 book than the concern people have
with the TAC program being driven by concern for car values. One is normal,
in a way, the other is not. And the keeping of this book as if it were the
Holy Grail and sole source of good information on the tiger absolutely and
gravely hurts the interest in the Tiger without doubt. That particular book
should be re-published, I believe, and new ones should be written and
propagated all over the world. OK, I'm done... Thanks!
Mauro
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