Little Beast in the Northland

[Randy Zimmermann]

When I was a kid growing up in the 60’s, my older brother brought home first a red 61 Sunbeam Alpine, then a green 65 Tiger while he was in the service. He didn’t keep them long and moved on to the popular all-American muscle cars of the day. Years later I was looking for a restoration project and stumbled upon a 67 Tiger for sale in the Chicago area via the internet (this was 1995). It was in rough shape but with amazingly little rust for a Midwest vehicle.

I trailered it home to Minnesota and began what I thought would be a 3-year restoration project. Ten years, 3 kids and a couple of job changes later, I finally got it back on the road. The rebuilt Ford 260 V-8 is paired with a stout 4-speed toploader that gives the little beast plenty of get-up-n-go. My goal was to return it to stock condition and, as you can see in the pictures, it’s looking pretty darn close to original.

Only by coincidence is it the same green color of my brother’s Tiger from some 40 years ago. Now living in northern Minnesota, it gets out to stretch its paws only about 3 months a year. Guess that helps preserve it’s value for my kids who hopefully will be the next generation to preserve this rare example of Anglo-American automotive history.

[impbarn]

Hi, Randy. You do some nice work there. Your Tiger is looking very original. Its nice to see a stock machine. That’s one of my favorite greens too.

Nice picture, what body of water is behind you there?

Have you got all your electrics and the soft top sorted out?

[Randy Zimmermann]

Thanks, Eric. It’s been a long journey but being able to drive it the last couple of years and attend some local shows has provided some very satisfying rewards.

Yes, for the most part the electrical and soft top issues have been resolved. My summer task list includes continuing to fine tune my carb situation–I got fed up with my Carter AFB 650 and swapped it out for a Holley 485 at the end of last summer– and installing an audio system in anticipation of making some longer road trips. Of course, if a hardtop ever became available in my region, I’d love to add that to the list, too. In these parts, having the hardtop would extend my driving season by at least two months 8)

Cheers from the shores of Lake Superior!

[Robert and Mariet Jaarsma]

Hi Randy,
You must be the one in Duluth? Sorry I didn’t know all this, I past through there last year, when we decided to take the Northern route back East. Beautiful country but fairly desolate once you get beyond Thunderbay.
Robert

[Randy Zimmermann]

Hi Robert,

Yes, I’m at the north edge of civilization here. Will be heading up Thunder Bay way later this month for the TB Vintage Sports Car Club sponsored "Rendezvous." Will be the longest and first cross-border venture since the Tiger’s been back on the road.

Randy

[Author]

Posts