Tag Archive: Triumph

Aug
15

What Auto Is This? ..This Little Sports Car Was A Giant Killer

This South African sports car was built between 1958-1964. One of it’s founders “stumbled” upon fiberglass technology while visting England in 1957. The new process intrigued the man and he invited his soon to be partner to England to master the body building technique.  They came into contact with South African designer Verster de Wit (who was working on the Sunbeam Alpine) who helped them style their first car design and taught them the design process.

When they finally came upon a design they liked it was time to produce this lightweight sports car. So broke and wanting to return to South Africa they sold the first body mold in England for return plane tickets. In early 1958 they produced their first production car. Using the body molds they created and a ladder frame. Powered by a engines from either a Coventry Climax or Ford Anglia. Later models could be upgraded with 1100 cc 85 horsepower engine from a Ford Cortina

The interiors were spartan and simple. Featuring a center 3 gauge pod it offered no glove box and simple toggle switches. Early cars offered no heating system. No a problem in the blazing climate of South Africa. Later cars were exported to England and Canada so a basic heating system was offered. With its nimble suspension and light weight it was used for racing. That perfect combo made it a “Giant Killer” on the race track. Whipping heavy hitters from Porsche, Trumph and Austin Healey. Even today at Vintage SCCA events it still is a winning combo. Sadly this bargain basement racer was only made between 1958-1964 with less than 450 being made. Recently the company has been re-formed under another name and has started making this rare sports car again. What Auto Is This?

Jan
06

What Auto is This?? Ultra Rare Euro GT

This ultra rare GT was produced between 1957-1962 under two different makes but the same name. Less than 400 were made. The body was amde of fiberglass. The frame work was made of an aluminum tubular space frame. It featured a sophisticated De Dion tube rear suspension..

Power was supplied by a 2.0 liter Triumph TR3 engine and drive train. The early years(1957-1960) the cars were produced in Slough Berkshire England. When the company failed one of the original founders move production to Colnbrook Buckinghamshire England. .In 1958 this GT was entered in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It finished 16th..

The car had good performance due to its light weight and race inspired suspension. Still the bodies were poor fitting on the early versions. The high cost of being built by hand proved costly and the sales price was three times that of the TR3. The Phase II models would offer an improved one piece body but costs were still high. In 1961 they received an improved frame and revised dashboards..

In 1961 British car magazine “The Motor” tested the car. It posted 0-60 times of 12.6 seconds. Top speed was 112 MPH. They also recorded a very thrifty 27 MPG. It still had a very costly price of 16,000 pounds. Plans were to install an all aluminum 3.5 liter V8 borrowed from Buick. That engine would eventually end up in the hands of Rover and used in Range Rovers for many years.The company closed its doors in 1962 after only a handfull of cars were produced..What Auto is This??

Nov
23

Todays “What Auto is This??” Quiz

This car company was founded in 1946. Producing vehicles up till 2006 in Lancashire and Blackpool England. Known more for its lightweight but powerful sports cars of the 1960s-1970s. From 1960 they produced sports cars with race inspired tubular frames and fiberglass bodies. At age 14(1937) its founder left school to work as an apprentice in a local garage. In 1954 he designed his first “plastic” or fiberglass body over a tubular frame prototype. This practice would remain till 1980. The founder left the company in 1962 to found a fiberglass engineering company,but remained as a consultant till his death at age 85. Thru the years they used engines from other car companies. Ranging from a MG four cylinder,a six cylinder Triumph engine and even a Ford 289 cubic inch V8. During the 1970s they would rise to become the 3rd largest independent producer of sports cars in the world. In 2006 the company was broken off into smaller parts to save costs in an effort to save it. Its future reamins uncertain. “What Auto is This??”

Nov
16

Todays “Junk I Have Owned”

1963 Triumph TR4. 

I hate to admit it but I’m a sucker for a hard luck story. Even worse, I’m a sucker for a pretty face. Being a bachelor for my whole life in many ways has made me put up walls against the very thought of love or at least “deep like.”But there she was. You could tell by looking at her that she was abused and alone. She  was about my age.Born in 1963. That would make her 47 or so today. Nice body and what lovely bumpers she has. No sagging. Nice curves and wow what a rear! There was something about her. She had a sparkle in her eye(headlight) and she needed my help. So for the first time in many years I started a new relationship.Who was she? She was a 1963 Triumph TR4. Worth all of the princely sum of $400.00 I paid for her. Solid body and frame. Just what I have been searching for. You see I have a soft spot for rough cars.Anybody with a checkbook and common sense can buy a fully restored car. It takes a real lack of any brain cells to do a project like this. And being as the Mexicans call “EL CHEAPO” I couldn’t pass up her up. Nothing gives me more pleasure than tearing off some skin on and old rusty bolt. Or the wonderful sound that your lower spine makes when lifting out an engine block or transmission. So with much happiness and fright I went into another restoration project. As usual my plans and life don’t always work out at the same time. The TR4 was sold before I even got a chance to fracture a knuckle..Thinking about that project made me ponder some past not so great projects. Triumphs for all the bad rap they get have always been very good cars for me. All TR6s I have owned have all ran great and proved to reliable with proper care. All these years I have not always had “Creampuffs” So with that in mind we start a new feature in my “On The Road with Johnny B” column  called “What the Hell was I thinking” In no real order.. 

 

..1983 Renault Le-Car. This wonder bomb never made it home.On my trip home I got a flat tire,blew a hole in the heater core melting my new sneakers with scalding water.Almost lost a wheel  and the radio stopped working. Thus inventing a new French word. “Le-Crap-box.

Nov
12

Todays “What Auto is This??” Quiz

 Todays “What Auto is This??” Quiz..Produced between 1949-1953..This little car was an attemp by its maker to build an “Upscale Small Car” With a blazing 38 horsepower..Zero to Sixty times of 26.6 seconds and a top speed of 63mph this “Upscale” car had all the performance of Rosie O’Donnell on a Stairmaster..at least it… could return 23mpg as long as you did not mind cramped interior space..About as “Upscale” as eating White Castles in a tuxedo. “What Auto is This??”

Oct
19

Todays “What Auto is This?? Quiz

This was the first post-war(WWII)design from this company after being taken over by a much larger corporation..Due to lack of usable steel construction was over ash or wooden framework..Some panels were steel while others used aluminium..Powered by 4 cylinder engines ranging from 1766-2088cc..They were not known for performance..This car maker tried to some success to copy the much more classy Bentleys of the day but its slow performance and lack of build quality could never come close..What Auto is This??

Aug
17

The Answer To Aug 16th,2011 Auto Quiz..

The answer to August 16th 2011′s What Auto is This Quiz is the 1929 Willys Knight Model 70B.Willys Knight would open its door in 1913 when John North Willys purchased The Edwards Motor Car Company of Long Island New York..John Willys would promptly move his newly purchased car company to Elyria Ohio in 1914 and then to its permanent home in Toledo Ohio in 1915..The Willys Knight was known for its “Sleeve Valve” type engine till its demise in model year 1933.Other makers would use sleeve valve engines up till the late 1960′s such as Triumph in their TR2,TR3 and Tr4′s. Known for its style and workmanship the Willys Knight name would go to the automotive happy hunting grounds but Willys name would live on till this day in the form of another American icon The Jeep.

 

 

Take a ride and see a classic 1930 Willys Knight transformed in this video..