- Seller: Michael Y (Contact)
- Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Mileage: 24,079 Shown
- Chassis #: TPVDV8AT214214
- Title Status: Clean
- Engine: 3.5-Liter V8
- Transmission: 5-Speed Manual
UPDATE – The seller has added videos of their TR8 below!
This 1980 Triumph TR8 Convertible has spent its life in a dry location, helping to keep it rust-free. It runs and drives well, and has a genuine 24,000 miles on the clock. A recent list of mechanical work ensures that its only needs are cosmetic, which the buyer could tackle at their leisure. The owner has enjoyed this classic, but feels the time is right for the Triumph to find a new home. Therefore, he has listed this British survivor exclusively with us at Barn Finds with an asking price of $12,500.
Triumph released the TR8, a more powerful derivative of its TR7, in 1980. Initially available solely as a Coupe, the Convertible joined the fray mere months later. This first-year example is a survivor that has spent its life in Texas, where the state’s dry climate has protected it from rust. It is worth scrolling through the image gallery to discover how clean the underside is. It retains its original paint on the floors, with minor surface corrosion on some mechanical components as the only signs of age. Externally, the paint looks tired, with a few minor bumps and bruises. The seller also states that a previous owner drilled twenty-four small (⅛”) holes in the body to attach trim. However, eliminating these during an exterior cosmetic refresh would be pretty easy and rewarding. What makes it particularly attractive is that the Triumph is rust-free and presentable as-is; the work could occur at the buyer’s leisure. The soft-top is new, while the trim and glass are in good condition. The owner updated the headlights to LED, while the original 13″ wheels have been powder-coated silver with a clear top coat to present in as-new condition.
The performance of the Triumph TR7 was considered quite underwhelming, but the TR8 eliminated that criticism in one stroke. Triumph ditched the 1,998cc four-cylinder motor and replaced it with Rover’s glorious all-aluminum 3.5-liter V8. The beauty of this motor was that it added no significant weight over the front axle, so the car’s handling remained crisp and sure-footed. However, the true strength revealed itself when the driver planted the right foot, because the V8 produced a very healthy 148hp and 165 ft/lbs of torque. With a curb weight of about 2,650 lbs, the TR8 delivered impressive performance without the driver needing to row the five-speed manual transmission. This TR8 is a gem, having covered a mere 24,000 miles. The owner recently replaced the tires, the water pumps, and the belts. He fitted new clutch master and slave cylinders, while the brakes also benefit from a new master cylinder and other components. Add new shocks, struts, plugs, wires, tie rod ends, and transmission fluid to the equation, and it is easy to see why this TR8 is a turnkey proposition for its new owner.
The TR8’s interior is trimmed in vinyl and plaid cloth matching the soft-top color, and its condition is quite impressive. The tops of the door trims are faded, but they aren’t split or cracked. The remaining upholstered surfaces look excellent, which is consistent with the mileage claim. The dash and pad are crack-free, and the carpet, console, and plastic show no evidence of problems. The owner confirms that the air conditioning is inoperative, which is the only known functional issue. Of course, some potential buyers won’t worry, because dropping the top will provide plenty of cool air. The factory radio has been replaced with an aftermarket stereo, which is the only visible modification.
Although it isn’t perfect, this 1980 Triumph TR8 Convertible is a rock-solid survivor presenting acceptably in its current form. It would really pop with a fresh coat of paint, and the relative rarity of these early Convertible variants makes that process worthwhile. However, the new owner can take their time to contemplate their next move because there is no rust to attend to. The asking price is extremely competitive, making this TR8 worth a closer look.
Triumphs of this era commonly have very low miles for all the wrong reasons.
That being said, lots were from inadequate maintenance, as they were no Celica, that is for sure. Owner groups have created a better car than the factory put out, in many cases. Loving that interior, bring out your inner Jackie Stewart.
I don’t believe they made a TR8 in 1978. It looks more like a 1980 1/2 because of the gray dashboard. Prior to that it was black. Had an 80 1/2 TR7. Great car, even drove it in the New Jersey winters without a problem. Of course, weber downdrafts carbs w/ manual choke, headers, cat delete plus all pollution items removed. Always passed inspection.
Triumph should’ve made an (o)ff-(r)oad version, called it the TR8OR.
Sure like the idea of a small V8 in this little package. I think the engine could be modernized for better & more reliable power, maybe balance it for a sweet, sweet 7000RPM redline. I see a few restomods that look fantastic.
I prefer these in coupe form, but the ‘vert is more common, I think. Have always liked the angular wing-shape of the body, but the wheels & tires always seemed kinda tiny.
How about a license plate “TR8OR” with an American flag on the hood? LOL!
My thought would be a full on swap of a GM 3800 Series 2 Supercharged V6. Same basic engine, 2 cylinders less, but 3.8 Liters. The stock normally aspirated 3800 Series 2 mill puts out 205 HP at 5500 revs, while the Supercharged 3800 is good for about 245 HP in a stock tune. And remember, the Eaton M-90 Gen 3 Blower is spinning, along for the ride, until the PCM gets the correct signal signals to dump the air into the intake manifold (instead of recirculating it), where it becomes boost and HP hits between 245 and 250 HP. And it’s frugal enough to get nearly 30 mpg.
Amen to that, 133 or even 148 hp out of a 3.5L V8 seems pretty tame, kind of in-inspired, though the decisions being made within British Leyland are not business school test cases.
I also really like the 3800, but it’s an iron block right? Wouldn’t that throw a bunch of extra weight into the front end? That Rover V8 is pretty ubiquitous in the UK i believe, I think there are many go-fast parts for it – and really, for me, a V8 sounds better than a V6.
Do that with a TR7 with a toasted slant 4 (no shortage of those)… but why with the rarer (and quite capable / tunable) TR8…
Any chance the usual set of videos will be posted? (walk around, cold start, driving,…)
Should be gone by now! ?
Nice for the price.
I can take a video of it running and a walk around today when I get home thanks for your input. I forgot all about doing that.
Mike, any progress on some videos??
I have submitted videos to their website twice now, and they have not come through yet very disappointed in their response to things
I think they just uploaded the videos yesterday morning
I have replied to you, but evidently it’s getting tangled up on the barn fine system. I just sent you another reply. I have tried to post a video, but somehow the barn fine system won’t allow me to do that.
Probably in a minority here, but I’ve always loved that period plaid interior…
“the V8 produced a very healthy 148hp ….”
Carbureted cars like this one were rated at 133 hp, not 148. The 148 rating was for the 50-state fuel-injected cars (1981s).
As a longtime Sunbeam Tiger owner I’ve always found these cars interesting in a “more modern Tiger” kind of way. C&D (or maybe R&T) even cited the Tiger in its original road test.
Saw this in the High School parking lot today.
I’ve seen it drive by our house before.
I think that it’s cool to see a high schooler driving
a car like this.
Ready to be driven out to a field to detect for metal.
?????
Not familiar with “The Detectorists”? One of the main characters drives a TR7 coupe:
https://www.peterjamesinsurance.co.uk/top-10-classic-cars-on-the-small-screen/
Seen it? – I’ve never even heard of it.
I’ve had a 3B and a 4A, loved them. I bought my wife a used compact last week. If this ad had come up before I bought her the car, I would be driving the triumph. It’s even in my area where it’s rare to find a deal like this.
I think something is wrong on your site. Posted yesterday, nothing.
No posts today from anyone.
Ok this proves the shut up and take my money crew destroyed the older cars market. Personally I see a $3k maybe $4k car here. $12k…. Come on people
Cars are no different than anything else… their worth is what people are willing to pay. And today, condition 3 TR8s are fetching $9k to $12k all day long. Pristine examples will go for 2 to 3 times that… $3k to $4k wouldn’t get you a barely drive-able Spitfire in today’s market.
You can’t buy ANY car this clean for $3000!!!! Even a Yugo that was in such nice condition would go for more than 3k! Buying a roadworthy vintage car for $3000 is a fantasy.
Market price? Decided by avid buyers, but here is what I see.
Decent shape TR7 is a 3-4k car.
Aluminum V8 rebuild 4-5k.
A paint job is 5k getting off easy (paint this whole thing in a quart, not a gallon!
Interior plus top fitting…
I don’t see 9-12k so outrageous, especially with what looks like OEM interior.
Previous Triumphs were long and narrow.
This suddenly had wheelbase and track width almost equal. The race teams tossed these into corners and had some pucker moments, unlike those models that came before. There are Group 44 team examples of these, but they did not do well. Seemed like an unstable platform when pushed Hard.
“There are Group 44 team examples of these, but they did not do well..”
What??? The Group 44 TR8 dominated the SCCA B Production class… national championship in 1980 and forced the SCCA to hand the car weight penalties to level the playing field…. won its class and finished 7th overall in its debut at the 1979 Watkins Glen 6 Hours… Over the 1979–1980 seasons, the works TR8 chassis achieved eight class victories, resulting in a second-place finish in the IMSA GTO points championship…
…and a *decent* TR7 for $3k to $4k??… Where?… Maybe 20 years ago…
Glad you corrected me, that is part of the community learning environment.
I was way off base on wherever I picked up that errant info.
Keep them coming, I need to be schooled!
What would be really fine, is if someone redid these, Ala :Singer,Ruf;or Eagle in UK.
Hmmm.
Cyan Cars : Volvo P1800. They (re)make beautiful Volvos.
https://www.cyancars.se/
I never heard of those, so I checked it out. Built out of a true P1800. Can’t be cheap, but neither are Singers, Eleanors, etc.
Based on what I’ve read in the recent past, the Cyan P1800 price ranges from $500,000 to $700,000… exceeds my toy budget.
Interesting that the company even needs a donor car to start, as virtually every part is replaced…
LOL oh yeah, those are “lottery-win” territory cars for me. Carbon fibre bodies, up to 420HP from that I4. They look great, and from what I have read, are fantastic performers. I’d settle for restomodding an original to look like one of their finished cars.
@Danno: Agree. Forgot about them.
This is a pretty decent example. The Poseidon Green color only adds to its desirability.
ALL Convertible TR8s that were destined for the USA market ( I can’t speak for the 400 pre-production hardtop coupes that were also brought here in late ’78-’79to’80), had FED. MANDATED 85 MPH Speedometers.
It was common practice to swap the 85 mph Speedo out for the earlier 140 mph Speedo given the TR8s capability to reach an honest 135 mph! This 130 Speedo was a late seventies version for the TR7 and the aforementioned TR8 coupes.
It is important to find out if the owner has the original 85 mph speedometer and if the 130 mph speedometer that’s in there had the correct mileage professionally set to the original speedos odometer. Documentation here would be important . This is the most certain way you can be sure that the mileage you see on this speedometer is correct for the car, otherwise it is truly an unknown. It certainly looks like a low mileage original, but if you want to reinforce the collector value of TR8s, you need to be mindful of the actual mileage.
I’m not trying to single this particular car out. This is a constant discussion over on a “competitor trailer” auction site about these TR8s and it gets argued often that you can’t really be truly certain of the mileage because the real deal USA TR8 Convertibles all had the 85mph Fed mandated unit.
Now for 12 Grand, maybe this doesn’t matter much but if you’re looking at this car as a limited production car, which it is and for its future value, then yes, you need to take this into consideration. If that doesn’t bother you, then I say this is a worthy car of exterior restoration and can be enjoyed with regular owner involvement in its maintenance.
These are highly underrated cars and really offer a great bang for the buck. WAY Better driver than a Sunbeam Tiger. Truly a bargain these days. Don’t let the naysayers fool you into thinking it’s just a malaise product that had tons of issues back in the day. Of course they did, but people knew this was the end of the line for Triumph and a decent number of the 2,750 (or so) made are still around! If they made it this far to be around today, I’m sure someone can take care of them and continue to keep them going. There are a couple of very good resources that offer parts for these cars.
Best of Luck in the sale on this TR8!
Thank you for that info on the speedo. I didn’t know that they came with a 85mph speedo. I quess I just always saw this speedo.
I always thought that triumph built their own V8 and it had some quirks
They did… a 3 liter, iron block, aluminum head, single overhead cam (per head) V8… The only car they ever put it in was the Stag… of which very few came to the States. But I had one… a ’71, 4 speed. I never had an issue with my engine in the 9 years I owned it (it was not my daily driver), but they were reputed to have overheating problems… largely due to the water pump being mounted high in the block causing stubborn trapped air resulting in poor coolant flow. There were also stories of the engine casting process leaving crud in the water passages… again impeding coolant flow. Outside of a way over assisted power steering, I loved my Stag… had the best exhaust note of any car I’ve owned…
This is such a cool car but I just cannot justify owning it in New England
I don’t know what TR8s are worth, but for a small Brit V8 sports car in what looks like good condition, $12.5k seems reasonable. But,13″ wheels?
Dare to be different, and even after paying for a good paint job, this will be a great long-term buy that you can enjoy for years.