Triumph TR8

Triumph was regarded as the epitome of the typical British roadster from the late 1950s. This reputation had to be defended at best against MG and Austin-Healey, but could be maintained without problems until the mid 1970s. Then, however, new safety regulations for the important US export market meant that these beautiful vehicles had to be modified permanently by all manufacturers in order to integrate unsightly new rubber bumpers. MG even had to raise the chassis of their MGB to reach the new minimum height of the headlights. Meanwhile Triumph went a different way and developed a successor model for the TR6, which had been available since 1968. Chief designer Harris Mann designed a wedge-shaped body in the typical style of the 70s, which was designed to be self-supporting for the first time. It was not only the form that caused discussions among customers at the world premiere in autumn 1975. Potentially interested parties found it completely disturbing that the new TR7 was only to be available as a Coupé. This was also due to the safety discussions in the USA, where a ban of convertibles and roadsters was proclaimed in the near future.

Looking back, we know that this ban fortunately never happened. Accordingly, Triumph launched a convertible version of the TR7 for the 1979 model year. This was developed in collaboration with Michelotti in Italy and was officially called the TR7 Drophead Coupé (DHC). Actually there were even plans for a four-seater coupé variant called Lynx, which in the end couldn’t go beyond a prototype due to the constant strikes in the British car industry. Today, this prototype can be seen in the Heritage Motor Centre in Gaydon. A two-liter four-cylinder engine with 78 kW/106 hp provided the propulsion in the European vehicles, transferring this power to the rear axle via four gears during the first two years of production and then via five gears afterwards. Customers in Australia, Canada and the USA received a version reduced to 69 kW/93 hp, which could also be coupled with an automatic transmission on request. A more powerful version with the 127 hp engine of the Triumph Dolomite Sprint only reached pre-series stage with around 60 vehicles, but never went into production. Between 1977 and 1980, several TR7 Coupés took part in national and international rallies, with Tony Pond’s drifts particular remaining in the memories of the fans. Although the shape of the TR7 was initially unpopular, 109,646 units were running from the production lines at the plants in Solihull, Canley and Speke until 1980. Around 28,000 of these were convertibles.

In order to score better in the North American market, Triumph engineers squeezed the 3.5-liter Rover V8 engine with 101 kW/137 hp under the bonnet of the TR7, treated the interior with a little more leather, moved the battery into the boot and improved the braking system. Due to the higher weight and the lack of reliability, the decision was made in-house against the specially developed V8 engine from the Triumph Stag. In 1978, around 145 Coupé prototypes without any model designation on the bodywork were produced, which were then sent to selected dealers in Great Britain for long-distance and all-day testing. Internally they were designated as TR7 V8. After the successful tests of the pre-series cars, the production version was given the new abbreviation TR8. From 1980 it was offered mainly as a convertible in the USA and Canada. In total, only 2,722 units rolled off the production line until 1982, including a further 250 Coupés. A V8 variant was already found in the early plans for the TR7 in 1972, but was put aside due to the poor financial situation of the British Leyland group, to which Triumph also belonged. There Range Rover and MG enjoyed greater priority. After the end of production, the De Lorean Motor Company, which was already in insolvency proceedings at that time, sought the production tools and rights to the TR7 and TR8 in order to fill their production facility in Dunmore, Northern Ireland, with a slightly modified De Lorean version. However, when John De Lorean was arrested in the autumn of 1982 for an alleged drug deal, British Leyland withdrew from the contract which was almost ready to be signed. The TR8 remained Triumph’s last sports car. The brand afterwards only produced the Acclaim based on the Honda Ballade until 1984, before the traditional name finally disappeared from the market. Today the trademark rights are held by the BMW Group.

Despite its rarity, the Triumph TR8 also made it into racing. In 1979 John Buffam used a Coupé in rallies and the US racing team Group 44 brought a few examples to circuit racing. After Bob Tullius dominated the SCCA series at will in 1979, the organisers changed the regulations and thus drove the Group 44 team into the IMSA GT series. Although there were already significantly newer cars in the meantime, the last championship title with a TR8 in the Southeast Division of the SCCA ITS series dates back to 2011. Meanwhile, the wedge-shaped TR7 and TR8 are also finding more and more enthusiasts among classic car fans. The model clubs and active support in rectifying technical faults that gave the cars a bad reputation during their production period are also helping. In most cases, these faults didn’t result from inadequate testing, but from the strike policy of the employees. A well-preserved example of the TR8 in green metallic belongs to The Elkhart Collection in the USA and will be auctioned by RM Sotheby’s in October. With five-speed manual transmission and retrofitted rollbar, this car should appeal to sports car drivers as well.

Images: RM Sotheby’s, Darin Schnabel