This 1974 Triumph TR6 is a project sitting in a garage in Dallas, Texas. The odometer reads 93k miles when the engine and transmission were removed and the car has been sitting since. The Triumph TR6 is listed here on Craigslist for $5,000, which is what the seller has invested in it. The project was started by the seller’s father who passed away and the car is available for someone to finish it. The ad for this sports car has been posted for about a week.
Almost 95,000 TR6’s were produced from 1969 to 1976. As can be seen above, the 2,498cc inline 6 cylinder engine has been removed and comes with the sale but the engine is disassembled. From the factory, these little engines produced 104 hp and 142 ft/lbs of torque. For this one, power was sent to the rear wheels via a four-speed manual transmission before that was removed too. Since the car has been off the road and the owner is passed, there maybe some risk to buying this car without a thorough inspection.
This TR6 is painted in an attractive blue. Some research online stated that TR6s painted Royal Blue were only offered up through 1971. So this may indicate that this car has been painted a non original color. One can see the unattractive black bumperettes or over-riders that were safety requirements. These can be removed but the bumper may need to be rechromed or polished. There are no up close photos of the interior but a few pictures of the parts that go with the car.
These cars are fun to drive. While the horsepower figures on paper are not impressive, the fantastic suspension and lightweight make this a sports car that everyone should at least take one ride in. The purchase of this car comes with a new convertible top. Also, new floor pans which suggest that they will need to be installed due to the original floor pans being rusty. Do you think the seller will get their investment back?
Here you have a car with lousy pictures taken in a dark garage, main mechanical parts scattered around, obvious chance of underside rust based on the looks of the engine compartment, and an asking price that will put the buyer upside down before he/she gets it home. What else could go wrong?
The site is called “Barn Finds.” Barns are dusty and dirty. The implication is finding a hidden gem in a barn, i.e., finding a hidden treasure.
The idea that a car would be dusty, dirty, and perhaps in pieces shouldn’t be a surprise, and in fact, it’s a positive from my perspective.
This was the shortest read of my life. The car itself is overpriced. Insanity.
I agree! This is a $1,500 car with the information provided. The floorpans in the CL ad don’t help the cause either. Would be great to see pictures of the rockers, trunk floor and any rust underneath. At least it has factory wheels and redlines but those are probably dry rotted. :(
Sapphire was the color that replaced Royal Blue and I’ll bet that is the color.
Nobody will take on that task without paying a visit.
Got one just like it in my barn… same year even… same level of disassembly. Except mine doesn’t need new floors. Sometimes stuff happens…
I don’t think the seller has invested anything in the car. Just clearing out the estate. I’m sure he would just want it gone.
LS3 conversion ? Or a V-8 from a TR8 ?
I’d go with the 215 V8 from the Rover. Other than keeping it in the family (sort of), the light weight of that aluminum block will help to keep the understeer within limits. It might even weigh less than the I6 that it replaces! Edelbrock makes four-barrel intake for the Rover V8 as well, because before it found a second life in Rover/British Leyland iron, it was a GM mill, used in 1961-63 Y-Body compacts (Buick Special, Olds F-85 Cutlass, Pontiac Tempest).
This is not too far from the price of a rough and rusty runner. If the body was rust free it might be worth investigating, but nobody buys new floors unless the old ones are rotted out.
True, and rather than patch the floors, complete body shells are available (see link below):
https://www.revingtontr.com/tr6cf/triumph-catalogue/22-01
Much like Dynacorn for American muscle cars from the 1960’s & ’70’s, these guys have purchased the tooling to stamp out every panel in a TR-6, and they took it to the next step by making jigs and welding the stampings together to form complete replacement bodies. Add an aftermarket frame from tonyratco, which is both stronger and lighter than the stock frame, and you’re on your way!
https://www.rat-co.com/home
Triumph by Revell…
or
Theseus’ paradox…
I know it’s a bit different but I’ve seen a few V8s installed in MG-Bs. Popular swaps are Rover aluminum V8 or small block Ford. My Brother did the 5.0 Ford with roller cam and aluminum heads ahead of a T-5. Holy cow, what a rocket ship! Lotta torque-steer when you stab it though. Might this Triumph be as lucky? Just a thought.
To each their own, but don’t see the appeal of a V8 in a ‘6. The Triumph straight 6s are wonderful engines… with a wonderful sound. They’re simple, easy to work on, and its fairly easy/cheap to coax another 25 to 30 percent more horsepower if one is into that sort of thing. Installation of a V8 would be a massive undertaking in a ‘6, requiring skill that the average (although ambitious) weekend warrior probably doesn’t have. Rebuilding the standard engine would be sooo much easier/cheaper… …and if one is dreaming of massive increases in hp/torque… they would be wasted on the vintage and limited 6 chassis… requiring yet more dollars to keep that power (and car itself) on the road. And finally there is the value of the car once the conversion is (maybe) completed… Well maintained/restored stock cars will virtually always be worth more. Just one old guy’s opinion.
Totally agree – very little upside, tons of downside. The weak link in these cars is the rearend, so you’d need an entire chassis. I blew out my “pumpkin” just by installing the 150hp fuel injection system!
I can see both sides of the question, but unless you’re talking about the GM/Rover 215 aluminum V8, my natural inclination would be to keep the stock engine in it. There’s something about the sound and perfect balance of a straight six that’s hard to beat.
I think the vast majority of British car owners would agree that the best upgrade if you have to choose is more gears rather than more power.
There is no way I would put a V8 unit and NOT put in a 5 speed.
All that said I have a 1500 Midget and WISH I could afford to put a 5 speed in it.
The tonyratco frame can be ordered with the mounts for a Ford small-block V8 (289, 302, 347 or 351)for the TR-6. Another supplier has retrofit kits to adapt a Nissan limited slip rear differential to these, along with a five-speed gearbox. Here’s a link:
https://www.goodparts.com/
In the words of that rascally rabbit, Bugs Bunny: “M’m, could be!”
I have a 76 with a Ford 3.8 V6 and T5, it is over 100lbs lighter than the stock iron and had double the HP. Fun little go cart.
I’d agree that this one is about 4k over priced especially with the poor pictures and parts laying around.
A 302 swap !
It’s been done! I’d replace the stock frame if you do that, though, as the stock frame isn’t up to the extra weight and the torque increase from stock. Aftermarket frames can be ordered with motor mounts for a Ford or Rover small-block V8.
One of the main problems with Triumphs, is fairly flimsy chassis, etc.
Even though the chassis is fully boxed, the metal is quite thin.
I have seen the lower front A-arms ripped of the frame. And it happens enough, that kits are sold to reinforce that weakness. I put a set of Weber DCOEs and it managed to tear the diff mounts. As the mounts are just sheet metal thin. There are also kits to reinforce those as well. Dont get me wrong I love the TR6. But when a compleatly non rusty car has major suspension componants ripping off the car. That is a design flaw. But they do sound and look great
Technically the frames on these were fully boxed, but they weren’t made from box section tubing, they were two (2) u-channels welded together to form a box section. Worse the two u-channels weren’t welded all along the seams, but simply spot welded together at regular intervals. Worse, drain holes, to allow water to drain out of the inside of the frame, were conspicuous by their absence. This means that water could get inside the frame and stay there, allowing it to rust from the inside out. The tonyratco frames are made from 0.120″ thick box section square tubing, epoxy powder coated, then the hollow frame rails are filled with expanding foam insulation, to keep water out and act as a sound deadener. That’s why they are much stronger than the stock frames.
From my own experience, non-car guys posting car ads on CL don’t have much of a clue what the car guys are going to want pictures of. Most CListers will also probably expect a local to just come look the car over, so why bother getting too carried away with the pictures. For the BobHess question, they could be asking 10k instead of 5k!
Very true.
Maybe if the seller knew he would be getting world wide exposure in the car world, more attention would have been paid to the pic quality ;-)… But ya, this is most likely someone with no attachment to a car that was dropped in his lap, just wanting/needing to have it gone. I’ve seen this scenario many times… and its how I’ve wound up with a few of the vehicles in my fleet…
Having, like many of you, owned and driven a lot of Brit roadsters, the thing I like about these is the way the stern squats when you jump on the power, something I’ve never noticed elsewhere. Very enjoyable to drive these are.
The Triumph cars were always a cut above their MG corporate semi-cousins, in both style and performance. MG’s held onto solid rear axles and four-cylinder engines long after Triumphs could be had with six-cylinder power plants and fully independent suspension setups. That’s why the TR-7/8 were such a disappointment in many ways. The styling polarized people, but under the skin, they were a big step backwards from the TR-6, with the solid rear axle and four-cylinder mill under the hood. The TR-8, with the Rover 215 aluminum V8 under the hood helped, but abysmal build quality was the final nail in the coffin for British cars in America.