{"id":4468,"date":"2020-05-19T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-19T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.secret-classics.com\/triumph-tr8-2\/"},"modified":"2020-10-09T14:45:30","modified_gmt":"2020-10-09T14:45:30","slug":"triumph-tr8-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.secret-classics.com\/en\/triumph-tr8-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Triumph TR8"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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 Coup\u00e9. 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 Coup\u00e9 (DHC). Actually there were even plans for a four-seater coup\u00e9 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 Coup\u00e9s 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.<\/p>\n\n\n

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