See more photos here (external link).

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The key words to describe this Tiger are UNIQUE and ACCURATE.

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Why UNIQUE:

• Early black vinyl dash (398 Produced) short shifter car (Approx 1,713 Produced)
• Relatively rare paint code 53 Wedgewood Blue. Upholstery Black with Light Blue Piping.
• Rare Original White Soft Top with matching Original White Tonneau Cover
• Very rare Sparto round reverse lamps for 1965-66 Cars. Produced for Rootes by the same company that made the map lights.
• Correct original 12 piece Mark I tool kit, w/ original vinyl tool roll.
• Optional Cigar Lighter, Sun Visors, and Hard Top.
• Original first run LAT 70 Wheels for safety and enhanced looks.
• Original hub caps & Cross Hatch Beauty Rings.
• Original Steel Wheels (5) Foam White Outside.
• Original “Aremic” SS wiper arms & Lucas double blade rubber inserts.
• Never any body damage or repairs.
• 95,000 total miles in 60 years.

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Why ACCURATE:

• Quite possibly 100% correct fasteners throughout the car top and bottom. A lot of time, money, and knowledge was spent by Bill Martin at Rootes Group Depot to accomplish this. Not to mention the huge cache of correct bits to source from.
• Quite possibly 100% correct coloration of fasteners, clamps, brackets, castings, and small parts. This would be an insurmountable task without the efforts, and more importantly the knowledge of Bill Martin at Rootes Group Depot.
• Original correct part numbers throughout engine compartment. No after market, or performance parts in the engine compartment or the suspension, except for the highly acclaimed Maverick A/C fan. No traction bars.
• Correct original engine block, trans and rear differential, specific to this car, per the Book of Norman.
• Reproduction Tiger mufflers and exhaust pipe system, correctly welded together and painted black. NOS original color Koni Shock Absorbers, Front and Rear.
• Very few reproduction parts ( except for soft consumables like hoses and weather stripping ). A good example is the reproduction Lucas type 56 battery with the extra large Lucas vent able caps. The vent hose is original. The Oil Filter Hoses are Sean Johnson composite reproductions, utilizing the stock Tiger flared tubing.
• Original AC (England) Paper Air Filter Element # A141125.
• Correct original Aremic SS Wiper Arms with Correct Lucas double blade rubber inserts. These are rarely seen, as the wiper arms disappeared as soon as new rubber inserts were required.

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History of the Tiger:

The ownership and location history of #375 has been derived from conversation with the son of the second

owner, and the third owner. Both provided oral information and documentation. I was also able to contact

Tony Borroz, the son of owner number two, who provided additional insight into his father’s period of

ownership. The ownership time period of owner one and two may not be split exactly correctly, but is

believed to be pretty close.

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The Anecdotal Story goes like this:

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‍The car was purchased new somewhere on the Northwest coast and went to live in the Portland, Oregon area. The first owner was said to be a mature adult who did not auto cross the

car or modify it in any way. I was unable to document his name.

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The second owner Joe Borroz, moved to Vancouver, Washington in 1950 where he worked 30 years for Alcoa

Aluminum as a tool and die maker. Joe was in his late 40’s when he bought the car from owner number one.

According to Joe’s son Tony, Joe did not believe the car should be modified, but rather maintained as stock.

Joe regarded himself as the “Caretaker” of the Tiger, rather than the “Owner”. In 1995 Joe moved to Sierra

Vista, Arizona, taking the car with him. Again, a very mature second owner that also was not a hot rodder or

auto-crosser.

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The car was always a Sunday car, never a daily driver, which kept the mileage down. To this day the car only

has 95,000 miles, which is very low for a 60 year old car. It rains a lot in Oregon and Washington, which also

probably helped keep the mileage low.

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Fourteen years later in August 2009 Jeff Kane bought the car and relocated it to the Bay Area. The car was

very complete and unmolested, retaining all the normal Tiger pieces that typically have been lost and

replaced. That’s why Jeff bought the car, as you rarely see unmolested Tigers. Because of its age and unusually

low mileage, Jeff commissioned Rootes Group Depot to totally restore and freshen the car. The suspension,

brakes, interior and under carriage were redone. The engine was not rebuilt but carb, generator, distributor

and radiator were redone. It is very likely that a valve job was performed.

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Jeff had another Personalized Tiger that he drove primarily, leaving #375 to sit more than is good for them.

When Jeff passed away, I bought the car from Emily Vassos, his wife.

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The Freshen Up:

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Since the car was in the Bay Area, as is Rootes Group, I asked Bill Martin what it would take to make the car

exceptionally concours correct. At the time, Bill and other STOA members were using this car to write the

concours correct judging manual. Bill and I spent an entire afternoon going over the car with a microscope.

We filled 5 pages of a spiral bound notebook with small and not so small corrections to freshen and make

corrections. Bill spent 6 months blowing thru the list. The totality of the result was stunning. It was as if the car

was completely re-restored. After taking possession of the car, I did another 2 pages of “fixes”.

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The First Showings:

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The car was not finished when we took it to Tigers United 40 in 2019 held in Sacramento. CA. Unbelievably,

the car took first place in Stock Concour, and also won the Howie Award for Best Stock Tiger, and then won

the Peoples Choice Award.

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Due to Covid, the next possible outing was Suni VII, held in Indepence, MO in September 2021.

The Tiger easily placed First in the Stock Tiger class in the Concour Judging.

Recently, the Tiger was shown at Tigers United 41 in Santa Maria, CA in June 2022. The Tiger won Stock

Concour and for the second time won the prestigious Howie Award for best stock Tiger.

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Why LUCKY:

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So, to Unique and Accurate we have to add LUCKY. LUCKY, that the first two long term owners were very

mature. LUCKY they were not hot rodders or auto-crossers. Lucky that they lived and cared for the car far

away from the California scene, that destroyed so many cars. LUCKY, the car spent its whole life in favorable

climates. LUCKY, that in the car’s 60 year life, it has covered only 95,000 original miles.

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The car runs and drives like a new Tiger with very tight suspension and steering. This Tiger runs exceptionally

cool at both high and low speeds, and even stop and go. There are no oil leaks of any kind. Absolutely

everything works properly, as noted in the Functions test at the two events attended.

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PEDIGREE:

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‍This car was the example used by the concours committee to write the Stock Concours Judging

Manual, headed up by Bill Martin. Many others in the West Coast Who’s Who of Tigering contributed to this

effort over a period of approximately two years. The manual was then published and distributed to the various

Sunbeam clubs. All the North American Sunbeam Clubs use this manual for Stock Tiger Concours Judging.

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REFERENCES:‍

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Anyone interested in purchasing this car should very definitely discuss it with Bill Martin, who

built the car, and more importantly was and is, the Chief Arbiter of Correctness. The following Tiger Notables

Tom Hall and Patrick King are completely familiar and knowledgeable about this car and could be used as

references. Of course, the car has been TAC’d and authenticated.

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Special Note:

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This Tiger is an easy Lord Rootes Trophy winner, due to the following: Tigers that have won the Lord Rootes

Trophy are not eligible to win the award again. This Tiger has not ever competed for, or won a Lord Rootes

Trophy. Given, that this Tiger is pretty much assured a first place in the Concours…Placing second or third in

the Rally and the Autocross, would pretty much put you in Lord Rootes territory!!

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Build or Buy:

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Building, and especially buying a Modified Tiger today is an easy task. There are no rules, only your personal

opinion, desires, and pocketbook. Having any Tiger built today, is a formidable task, as Rootes Group Depot is

about the only place left to do full and partial restorations. Building or buying a Personalized Tiger is a way

more difficult task. Many Personalized Tigers lack a clear and consistent concept of what the car is supposed

to be, for example, a complete LAT car, or a highway touring only car. The highly regarded Personalized cars

are hard to find for sale and when found, are very definitely expensive. Finding any Stock Tiger to buy is

exponentially more difficult, because they are few and far between. Building a Stock Tiger that is part number

and fastener correct, without a lot of repro parts is a daunting task. Even with lots of contacts in the Tiger

community, sourcing all the correct bits could take years and become frightfully expensive. The only practical

way to build a Stock Tiger today, is to start with a very, very, complete and accurate car!! I also believe that

the best chance for “Stored Value” and “Capital Appreciation” lies with the best of the best Stock Tigers.

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Potential Spares:

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Potentially available spares not included in the purchase price are the following:

• $5,000 Tandem Axle Trailer; Electric Brakes, and Custom Winch, enclosed in a trailer box.
• 2:88 Posi built by Malibu Revue utilizing all Dana Spicer OEM parts.
• Normal compliment of operating spares.