Immediately after the Second World War, British manufacturers were desperate to export vehicles. The fact that many American servicemen came home with MG TCs wasn’t lost on Sir John Black, head of Standard-Triumph, and the result was the Triumph 1800 and 2000 Roadsters. This one looks like it could be a terrific project to put back on the road. This particular one is a 1946 1800 and John in Des Moines, Washington is only looking for $2,000 for this rare British roadster! If you’re interested in making it yours, use the form at the bottom of the page to contact John.
From John: Triumph’s first post-war vehicle, designed as a family sporting car. Seats five with three in cabin’s front bench seat and two in rear Dickey seats with their own windshield. All major body panels included with many of the hinges, brackets, and glass along with a TR3 engine. No tranny or prop shaft available. This is a great opportunity for someone wanting a ground-up restoration project on a rare and beautiful vehicle.
Here’s the chassis, which looks pretty darned solid (although not terribly sophisticated!) Now while the TR3 wet-liner four-cylinder engine won’t be original for the car, the visually identical 2000 Roadster used an earlier version of that engine and I’ve seen many TR engines transplanted into Roadsters. A TR transmission won’t be hard to find, although if you prefer the “on-the-tree” arrangement of the original, the shifter mechanism might be a bit of a challenge.
The majority of the body on this car is aluminum, with the large front fenders being steel (and frequently far, far rustier than this one). There’s lots of club support even on this side of the Atlantic, and that “rumble seat” or “dickey seat” never fails to capture people’s attention. I’ll be happy to hook you up with all the relevant Triumph clubs if you are interested — so why not send John a note below and start your Triumphant journey! And if you have a classic that needs a new home, please consider listing it here on Barn Finds!
Asking Price: $2,000
Location: Des Moines, Washington
Mileage: not available
Title: Clear
I love these things. I’ve had a few Triumphs in my day, but never one of these.
“Eat your heart out F-150″! LOL…. Triumph was using
aluminum bodies far before it became ..”fashionable”.
Looks like a fun car,and must be pretty easy to wrench on.
I hope new owner is really into these,as
they would have to really know these cars well, to take this on,
but it is really cool,and will be the star of the local car show when done.
Sold already and I can see why. So much of the work already done, this was a good deal.
Seats five with three in the cabin’s front bench seat? Maybe in 1946, I think two would be a squeeze today. Cool car, glad it was snagged. Best of luck to the new owner!
Good to see a quick sale, likely helped by appearing here on BF. Congrats to John & the buyer.
I am also working on one (TRA 1643) It will be a complete restoration . The hardest job is to find someone who can weld wood . This car appears have been driven in the Ontario winters.I am also doing a 1950 Standard Vanguard .They are a stem cell for the roadster . The vanguard has been upgraded to a TR 6 overdrive transmission but I am staying with the original engine . The car has sat for most of it’s life having only covered 10,000 miles .We are hoping to trailer it to Texas for the winter . I also have a parts Vanguard . Any other Vanguard owners out there?
Believe it or not their are wood welding machines. Used one for over ten years at my work.
I was just being silly. I have obtained a set plans from the Roadster club in England
Kem, I have a 1956 Standard Vanguard Sportsman, the only one ever officially imported to the USA. :-) Post a picture of your cars, love to see them!
Glad the car sold, it looked a very good deal and there is a following. Roadsters are not too bad partswise, good club support but very expensive and time-consuming to restore,
Unfortunately, based on cars a couple of friends ran in the 70s, I have nothing else good to say about Triumph Roadsters, so shall leave the room…..
Love this car. My Grandad had a Triumph 4 dr after ww2. I never saw the car but my mum had pics of him and Granny with it pulling a small caravan.(small house trailer)
That was a STEAL!!!
The bones on this one looked pretty good.
I’d like to refit just about anything bigger than the original, but would probably keep it stock.
Great price.
They were built from aluminum because it was the remaining stock from aircraft production in WW2, the dicky seat screen for example was aircraft grade wood with aircraft grade rivits to hold it together. The long hood and fenders are a challenge to get right / straight. The hood frame is also a challenge. Mike