At 12:11 PM 3/13/97 -0500, you wrote:
...
>I say, baloney.
The members of the STOA TAC committee are all volunteer members. The club
sensed a vacuum in this area of concern a few years ago and decided to fill
it. If you feel our efforts are meaningless that is your right. We have
attempted to build consensus in this marque for years with no meaningful
progress. In the late 70's several Clubs tried to form an umbrella
organization known as STAC. I haven't even heard any one mention this name
in years.
Preservation of the value of our cars is one of the primary functions of the
program. "Genuine" always seems to bring more inherent value and price than
"reproduction" or "counterfeit". We feel it is important for concerned
owners to be able to buy and sell Tigers with some degree of confidence that
they are getting what they pay for. This is the service we are attemping to
offer.
I beg to differ that there is no standard. We have spent considerable time
examining and documenting the differences. If we told the world the details
of what we know, it wouldn't be long before the physical evidence of the
differences was no longer observable, and the program would be pointless. I
presume this is the result you seek. STOA formulated the authentication
procedures specifically to avoid the potential for corruption, and frankly I
tire of attempting to convince you of anything. If you feel it is necessary
to impune my integrity, the integrity of my fellow STOA members and my 25+
years of trying to help other Tiger owners, I'm not going to bother with a
responce.
The service is free to members of STOA. If you choose to join, it cost you
only the price of membership. If you choose not to join, the fee is $30, of
which the entire amount goes to the club treasury.
Switching the VIN Identification plates between automobile bodies is not
legal. Don't take my word for it, check with your local authority.
The TAC program is self serving for STOA. It was designed to enhance our
position as a Marque club, and hopefully increase our membership. We like
to think of it as a benefit, something we can offer our members in return
for their dues. If you don't like our program or our club, feel free to
start you own. We'll see if your still around in another 25 years.
Tom Hall
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