For many, the Targa Tour is an excellent introduction to Targa’s concept of a tarmac rally.

The Targa Tour is not a race and is specifically for people with a special interest car who want to experience driving on some of the country’s most spectacular and challenging closed roads, in an exhilarating non-competitive atmosphere. Top speed is governed by a Tour Leader as the cars travel in convoy through Targa’s special closed road stages prior to the actual competition vehicles.

The Targa Tour caters for all types of cars from historic to classic and sports cars, including GT and special interest cars.

The Tour is a popular event for many, and there are even one or two competitors — such as Philip Blank — who enjoy the Targa Tour so much that they continue to enter year after year.

Philip has already done 13 Targa Tour events and estimates that he’s clocked up to about 4500km of closed road driving without (touch wood) putting as much as a wheel off the black stuff — though his regular co-driver, Ryan Orr, reckons Philip may have put one off last year: even so, a blinding effort.

Philip has completed 10 Targa Tour events in his 1968 Triumph 2000, one in an automatic Rover P6B, another in his Triumph 2500 MkII and one in his very rare Vauxhall Magnum. Philip reckons the Magnum, which he used in the Targa Bambina earlier this year, handled like a dream but was a bit down on power, so that is being remedied with the addition of a downdraught twin-choke Weber, which should transform the car. The Magnum will be used as a back-up vehicle in the unlikely event that Philip breaks his Triumph 2000.

British Passion

By now you’ve probably worked out that Philip’s passion is for English cars, particularly Triumphs. He has loved English cars forever, despite immediate family having owned Fiats and Holdens as he grew up. His paternal grandfather owned a MkI Triumph 2000 just when he was learning to drive and he loved it, then a MkII which he also loved.

Leaving aside non-English vehicles, Philip has also owned three Austin 3.0-litre saloons, six Rover P6Bs, three Rover SD1s, a Rover 90, a Viva 1800, Hillman Hunter, Wolseley 18/85 and 1300, Vanden-Plas 3.0-litre Princess, two Triumph Dolomites and a very large number of Triumph’s so-called big saloons — 2000s and the 2500s.

Philip’s current line-up includes our featured 1968 Triumph 2000 MkI, a slightly tuned 2500 MkII, 1976 Vauxhall Magnum 2300 two-door (second string Targa car), and a 1997 Jaguar XJ6.

Philip purchased our featured Triumph in 2002, specifically to enter into the Targa Tour. After completing his first event he thought seriously about entering into the main Targa but decided that the Tour was fast enough for him and his car, not to mention the great sense of camaraderie that exists which, to be fair, applies to the whole event according to Philip.

Apart from the fact that Philip loves English cars, he’s not entirely sure why he chose the MkI Triumph, and thinks he’s probably stuck in a rut of 1960s and ’70s English vehicles. In his view the Triumph is one of the more comfortable and pleasing of the cars available, and he loves their style and old worldliness as well as the fact that they’re easy to get parts for and work on. Comfort was another contributing factor in the decision. Philip briefly considered an Escort (faster, for sure), but then figured ‘no, this is not me, and why should I be that uncomfortable.’

Plus, Triumphs don’t traditionally do this sort of thing (though they did in Europe during the ’60s) so that was and still remains a challenge to this day. Philip reckons they’re definitely not easy cars to extract power from and cornering isn’t their best attribute. Yes, it may have been adequate enough in comparison to other ’60s/ ’70s saloons, but to step it up from there hasn’t been easy, even considering the amount of time and effort that’s gone into this Triumph. Philip says it’s not as easy to get around corners as many others in the field, as it has no power steering and wide sticky tyres.

But let’s not be fooled by the conservative appearance of this Triumph, although Philip would like to have us believe his MkI is basically standard (that’s why they call him ‘the Honest Lawyer’ or ‘Honest’ for short), this car is actually a fairly serious piece of kit.

Trumped Up

Take for example a few engine modifications — such as a 2500 block bored out to 77.5mm to take Mazda turbo pistons, giving a cubic capacity of 2680cc. The engine’s also been balanced, the flywheel lightened, crankshaft nitrided, crank journals line-bored, a larger crankshaft thrust washer fitted to reduce end float and conrods shot-peened. The cam profile is similar to that of a TR5 but with more lift and slightly more duration, designed for torquey road use at up to about 6000rpm rather than for outright power.

The cylinder head has been mildly ported and the combustion chambers reshaped, then planed to give a little over 10:1 compression, with gas-flowed stainless steel valves (not excessively large), a supplementary oil feed to the rocker shaft, high ratio roller tip rockers (alloy) and bronze valve guides. An extractor manifold (sourced via Moss/ Triumphtune, UK) and freeflow resonators have been fitted as well as triple Weber 40DCOE carburettors.

The manual gearbox has been modified to allow overdrive to operate on all forward gears, and a lower 3.7 ratio differential was installed. Datsun 180B rear half shafts and a heavy duty clutch have also been added.

Stopping power is via Princess four-pot callipers up front, rebuilt with new pistons (Triumph MkII discs), EBC ‘Yellow Stuff’ fast road pads, new standard master (twin circuit) and rear cylinders and new standard drums with adjustable shoes.

The suspension is probably one of the most important areas of any Targa car and Philip has paid particular attention in setting up the Triumph with the addition of custom Bilstein shocks and heavier, progressive rate springs up front and custom Bilstein shocks with standard springs on the rear. The rear end is MkII Triumph (with a track 64mm wider than the MkI), the front anti-roll bar from a Triumph 2500S saloon. A custom rear sway bar and front strut tower brace were fitted and tower tops have bearings rather than bushes, plus slight mods to get increased camber and caster.
The tyres are Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 star spec, mounted on 15 by six-inch Performance Minilite-replica wheels.

Over to the electrical department, where Philip has included a Bosch 100amp alternator, Lumenition electronic ignition system, an electronic speedometer (VDO) reading in kilometres, a Terratrip rally meter and halogen headlights. All lights and other heavy draw electrics have fused relays installed to prevent the possibility of an electrical fire.

The body has been beefed up with the addition of a rear firewall and strengthening to the parcel shelf area and C-pillars to accept harness anchorages. Because of the age and type of car Philip has permission to run race seats and a harness for safety.

Work in Progress

Philip tells me that he loves to compete in the Targa Tour for a number of reasons. It’s certainly not to win anything, as there are no placings in the Tour, and nor should there be — essentially you compete against yourself. Though if he’s being perfectly ‘Honest’, one does like to show what the old car (and guy) can do.

As the list of the Triumph’s specifications probably suggests, it’s more about getting around corners in a neat and tidy fashion than going super quick in a straight line. Tour speeds are governed anyway, so entrants can’t get silly. Philip also admits it’s a real blast giving an old car heaps on a closed road — it certainly fulfils his need to release adrenaline and says the trick is to go quickly without breaking the car, or its occupants. He also says the fact that the Tour travels as a group is superb, as they get to know each other pretty well and it’s a great bunch of similarly minded individuals.

Philip points out that his car has been a work in progress starting from a car that was virtually standard when he entered his first Targa Tour in 2003, to the highly modified version you see here.

Roger’s 2500S

Just like Philip, Roger Wilson’s family has owned many Triumphs, his mother had Heralds followed by Toledos and a 2000 MkI, whilst his father owned Triumph 2000 MkIs.

When Roger was in his 20s he bought a wonderful, dark red 2.5PI MkII that he unfortunately had to sell when he went into business in the early ’80s.

Then around 10 years ago Roger bought a Triumph TR6 with 36,000 miles (57,936km) on the clock followed by a GT6 (featured in NZ Classic Car, March 2009), which he totally restored. Roger then purchased a Dolomite Sprint (featured in NZ Classic Car, August 2005), a Triumph T2000 MkI saloon and finally the Targa Tour Triumph 2.5S you see here. A rare Jaguar XJ-C coupe, Mercedes-Benz 300E and BMW X5 complete the line-up of Roger’s toys.

Roger has known Philip Blank for a while, as they are both members of the Auckland Triumph Car Club — in fact, Roger is the treasurer and Philip is the secretary of the club. It’s probably not surprising then that Roger blames Philip for his Targa addiction — it’s all down to Philip’s infectious enthusiasm for the Targa Tour, not to mention his passionate talks about it being ‘the best fun you can have with your clothes on.’ It was only last year that Roger decided to tag along as Tour go-fer (carting Triumph spares and taking lots of photos) just to find out what Philip was on about and to determine whether or not he was right, or just simply crazy.

As it turns out Philip was right, if anything Roger reckons Philip was playing it down. As Roger observed — so many great cars, and great organisation from Peter, Vicki, Mandy and the entire Targa Team as well as the guys on the Tour with their cars having fun and a great time. All the people involved throughout the North Island, all crazy about cars, all with passion and interest in cars. It’s fair to say that Roger was hooked.

The Targa Triumph

Roger bought his 2.5S from Jim Nathan’s estate last year just to do the Targa Tour. Jim had spent a lot of time preparing the car for racing with the help of the Hyde Brothers — Paul and Brent at Hyde Automotive — and the Nathan family wanted someone to buy the car who would not just wreck it for its very desirable parts. They were very generous, allowing Roger to buy a car that was almost finished and modified to the point were it was going to be perfect for Targa Tour.

Roger sold his Triumph Stag to his co-driver; Ray Knowles, to finance the project then spent many weekends preparing the car for their first Tour together.

Its handling wasn’t up to scratch so Roger took it to Iain Wilson at Autolign to perform his magic, and he modified the suspension to make the car handle very well.

After running his first tour on a Targa Bambina, Roger decided to have a custom engine management loom made and the car was dyno’d at Speed Source. The car also went back to Iain at Autolign to fit a custom adjustable anti-roll bar on the front to replace the overly stiff White Line bar already fitted. Roger was getting serious.

Under the bonnet, the Triumph 2.5-litre engine is bored out to 2.8 litres, blueprinted and balanced. A Link G3 computer runs a Nissan Skyline EFI cooling fan, high capacity fuel pump, six individual coils and an igniter which replace the distributor. A baffled sump increases oil capacity, there’s a modified cam and larger valves, while a custom extractor and exhaust system complete the engine department.

Roger’s Triumph also boasts a Rover five-speed race ’box, Quaife LSD, Skyline front discs and callipers, custom-built fully adjustable Bilstein suspension, front coil-overs and anti-roll bars front and rear with the front one being made adjustable by Autolign. As well, the Triumph boasts Bosch halogen lights, an 80-amp alternator, a Holden V8 high capacity fuel pump and baffled fuel tank. The car sits nicely on 15 by seven-inch Minilite-style rims and Dunlop Direzza Sport Z1 star spec tyres.

The interior has also been treated to Racepro seats with full race harness, a Terratrip trip meter, speedo and Terratrip GPS. The tacho and speedometer are new model, digital Smiths units which Roger claims to be extremely accurate.

The car is prepared by Sam Weibel from Auto EX; Sam used to work at Hyde Automotive where the car was converted to EFI for the original owner, Jim Nathan.

Targa Tour 2010

Looking ahead to Targa Tour 2010, it’s unfortunate that Roger’s usual co-driver, Ray Knowles, won’t be able to perform navigational duties due to work commitments, but Roger is pleased to be joined by Stephen Gray from Chester Gray Accountants which has sponsored him for the Tour this year. Stephen is also a keen car enthusiast.

For Roger, the whole point of Targa is to improve his driving skill, experience some of the best public roads in New Zealand and meet and talk to people who love cars.

Philip and Roger are getting serious this year, and have bought a support wagon for chief mechanic, Sam, to follow in and service both cars.

Team Triumph has been born.

Words: Ashley Webb Photos: Adam Croy

This article is from NZ Classic Car issue 239. Click here to check it out.

Like many British car companies, Triumph began with bicycle manufacturing, followed by motorcycle production

Siegfried Bettmann began making his bicycles in 1885, moving to motorcycles in 1902. His motorcycles were so successful that it wasn’t until 1921 that a new factory manager, Claude Holbrook, persuaded him to move into cars. The first light car was built in 1923, with an engine designed by Arthur Alderson of Lea-Francis, to whom Triumph had to pay royalties.

In 1924, Triumph became the first British firm to fit four-wheel hydraulic brakes, although its car manufacturing only took off when it introduced the Super Seven. Stanley Edge designed this car, and had also infl uenced the Austin 7.

Early Troubles

The Depression brought considerable change to Triumph. After large losses, Holbrook took over from Bettman as managing director, and decided to move the company’s products up-market with a new generation of sporting saloons. ‘The Smartest Cars in the Land’ were ready for the 1934 season, powered by four and six-cylinder Coventry-Climax engines, gracefully styled in-house by Walter Belgrove and Frank Warner. But sales didn’t meet expectations and with that, combined with the costs of factory expansion, Triumph was again in trouble. In 1936 the motorcycle business was sold, with Bettman as its chairman.

Triumph replaced the Coventry-Climax engines with its own ohv fours and sixes that Donald Healey had designed. Healey had joined Triumph in 1933, and in 1934 he was responsible for the eight-cylinder 2.0-litre Dolomite sports car, with an engine closely modelled on the 8C Alfa Romeo.

The 1937 range offered the Gloria and Vitesse, with the most expensive Dolomite saloons, roadsters and coupes aimed at the SS Jaguars. Dolomite styling incorporated flowing traditional lines, with a Terraplane influenced ‘waterfall’ grille. Sales improved and another lower priced model was  added, but this didn’t prevent the firm from falling into receivership in 1939. In 1944, Standard’s John Black bought the remains of the bombed factory and the rights to the name, effectively opening a new chapter in Triumph’s history. The Triumph Motor Car Co (1945) Ltd was formed as a wholly owned subsidiary of Standard.

The Affordable Sports Cars

From its introduction in July 1953 to the last built in 1981, the Triumph TRs epitomised the British sports car.

The full story of Triumph’s post war years is too lengthy to tell here, with changing policies and a proliferation of models.

We’ll concentrate on the TR story — it was Triumph’s single biggest post war success, and among the world’s most successful series of sports cars.

In a world short of cars, Britain became the world’s leading car exporter by 1949 — and the US was regarded as a great potential market for sports cars, keeping both Donald Healey busy working on the Austin- Healey, and MG developing its replacement for the T Series.

Black wanted some of the action too, and after his attempt to procure the Morgan company failed, he decided to launch a sports car under the Triumph banner. A prototype designated 20TS was unveiled at the 1952 Earls Court Motor Show.

Based on a pre-war Standard chassis with modern suspension and a tuned Vanguard engine, it was underdeveloped. After driving it, Standard’s newly-appointed development engineer, Ken Richardson, was quick to advise Black that, “It’s a death trap and ought to be scrapped.”

Richardson was assigned the task of solving the problems and readying the car for production. The revised car was designated the TR2, making its appearance at Geneva in March 1953. Shortly afterwards, on May 20, Richardson gained immense publicity when he took the wheel of a streamlined prototype at Jabbeke Highway in Belgium, reaching 124.09mph (199.7kph) and setting a new record for production sports cars under 2.0 litres. With its 1991cc engine tuned to 67kW (90bhp), and a strong chassis, the TR2 made no pretensions to luxury but delivered plenty of performance.

Under technical chief Harry Webster, Triumph entered a team of almost standard TR2s in the 1955 Le Mans, fi nishing well in 14th, 15th and 19th places. Managing director Alick Dick authorised the development of a twin overhead camshaft engine, which he envisaged would not only serve Triumph in competition but could also be used for a higher-powered road version.

No Triumphs finished in its 1959 return to Le Mans, but in 1960 all three entries finished, although speeds were down. In 1961, the three entries fi nished ninth, 11th and 15th, and won the sought-after Team Prize. Unfortunately, a number of factors combined to lead Triumph into financial difficulties, until Leyland Motors took over in 1961. The Standard name was dropped, and shortly afterwards the competition department was closed.

Building on Success

The TR3 and its direct derivatives, the TR3A and TR3B, were substantially similar to the TR2. Introduced in late 1955, the TR3 was identifi ed by its ‘egg-crate’ grille and offered an optional, very occasional rear seat.

Larger carburettors and better breathing increased power from 67 to 71kW (90 to 95bhp). Front disc brakes were fitted from September 1956, along with a stronger rear axle assembly.

The TR3 was revised in September 1958, with a full-width grille and numerous small improvements. Commonly referred to now as the TR3A, it was never officially designated as such. The TR3B was sold on the American market concurrently with the TR4, after distributors reported buyer resistance to the restyled car.

Standard-Triumph approached the Italian stylise Michelotti to design the TR on a modifi ed TR3 chassis, resulting in a signifi cant revision. Michelotti had been building a smart-looking Italia coupe on the TR3 chassis at the same time; his TR4 design had very similar side and rear end treatment.

The TR4’s track was widened, 103mm at the front and 77 at the rear, and the chassis was altered to accept rack and pinion steering. The engine was enlarged to 2138cc, and with increased compression ratio it delivered 78kW (105bhp), while the gearbox was fully synchronised. The deep cutaway doors were gone, and the TR4 had wind-up windows and more luggage space.

In 1965, in line with Triumph’s approach of gradual evolution, the TR4A arrived with independent rear suspension. Semi-trailing arms and coil springs delivered a much improved ride, although lever arm actuated shock absorbers weren’t strong enough to tie the tail down on rough surfaces. Just as some US buyers had resisted the TR4, dealers reported resistance to the new suspension, and about a third of the US-delivered TR4As were fi tted with the live rear axle.

Engine Upgrade

By then, the four-cylinder engine was showing its age. Experiments with enlarging the engine to 2.5 litres hadn’t been satisfactory, so the 2000 saloon’s six-cylinder engine was used for the TR5, introduced in 1967.

Without the resources to develop a brand-new engine, Triumph’s solution was to lengthen the stroke to 95mm, resulting in a capacity of 2498cc and going against the ’60s trend to square engines. It delivered more torque, but not a great deal more power. However, a timely decision to use the newly-developed Lucas petrol injection system solved Triumph’s dilemma. With PI the power increase was substantial, the six delivering 112kW (150bhp) at 5500rpm.

Torque output was generous, with a peak of 222Nm at 3500rpm. Harry Webster described it as “the answer to all our prayers for the TR.”

Initially, Triumph engineers thought the Lucas PI system would help the cars satisfy the anticipated, more stringent US pollution regulations. As it transpired this wasn’t the case, so the US export cars were fitted with dual Stromberg carburettors and designated the TR250. Power output was only 78kW (104bhp) — almost identical to the TR4 it replaced.

Final Evolution

For the TR5’s replacement, Triumph went to Karmann in Germany. Karmann altered the front and rear styling, successfully modernising the car’s appearance. Released in 1968, the TR6 was the ultimate development of the TR series, the fastest and most powerful of the range. It became biggest selling ‘traditional’ TR, and nearly 92,000 were built. In the days before political correctness, Australian Sports Car World road tested the TR6 in January 1970, headlining its article For Men Only, and describing it as a “man’s car all the way down the line.” Top speed couldn’t be tested as there wasn’t suffi cient road to allow it, but the magazine agreed with Triumph’s estimate of 125 mph (201kph) in overdrive top. Acceleration was brisk for the day, reaching 0-60mph in 8.5 seconds.

Handling was improved over the TR5, with a stiffer front anti-roll bar and wider tyres — “no vices, no problems,” they wrote, summing up the TR6 as “providing tradition as well as modern refi nements, for enjoyable motoring.”

Difficulties in maintaining tune along with a need to improve emissions resulted in the PI engine being detuned with an altered camshaft in late 1972. The ‘CR’ series cars produced 92kW (124bhp). The Lucas PI system brought the earlier TR’s reputation for reliability into question, but those problems have been rectifi ed.

Last of the TRs

Traditional sports car enthusiasts were just a little surprised when the all-new TR7 arrived in 1975, because it was only available as coupe. But it was a time when more US safety regulations were expected to result in open cars becoming almost extinct. The coupe design allowed Triumph to build a monocoque body, lighter and stiffer, delivering better handling than the earlier TRs. The TR7 took its share of flak.

Powered by the sohc four-cylinder 64kW (86bhp) Dolomite engine, it started off badly with reliability problems and poor assembly.

Improvements were made, including replacing the Leyland Marina gearbox with the heavier-duty five-speed Rover SD1 unit, and it became the best selling TR of all with 112,000 built.

Its credibility moved up a notch with the convertible’s eventual release in 1979, and while the Rover V8-engined TR8 offered much, only 2815 were made before Triumph sports car production ceased in 1981. Triumph almost certainly missed an opportunity by not offering the Dolomite Sprint’s 16-valve 95kW (127bhp) in the TR7.

BL sold the Speke factory where TRs had been made, and in one of the many sad cases of badge engineering in the British industry, continued using the Triumph name on British-assembled Hondas until 1984.

Words and Photos: Ross McGown

The history of the motor car is peppered with odd cul-de-sacs (such as the Sunbeam-Mabberley), missed opportunities (a ‘proper’ E-type replacement) and ‘might-have-beens.’ Of these, it is the final category which holds most interest to classic car enthusiasts. As a few instances — if Rover had been braver, they might have got around to building a turbine-engined sports car, or MG may have produced a mid-engined sports car decades before BMW entered the picture. Instead, these projects withered on the vine.

Today, we may accept the Triumph Spitfire — and it’s big brother; the GT6 — as an established classic but, back in the early ‘60s, the Spitfire was very nearly a motoring ‘might-have-been.’

The Bomb

Turin-based stylist, Giovanni Michelotti, was an inveterate scribbler of car designs, often sketching out new ideas onto napkins or menu cards at restaurants; his brain always bubbling over with fresh ideas.

One of his brain-waves was a small sports car based on the then popular Triumph Herald which, of course, Michelotti had penned. Michelotti’s sports car design appealed instantly to Alick Dick, at that time the man at the helm of Triumph, and work began on a prototype during the final months of 1960 — the work headed up by Triumph’s then chief engineer, Harry Webster. It was Webster who would provide a name for the new car — the ‘Bomb.’

However, the early ‘60s was a tumultuous time for Standard-Triumph, the final result being that, in April 1961, Leyland Motors would take over financial control of the company. At the time of this take-over, the prototype Bomb, partially forgotten, had been shoved into a corner of the factory. Leyland ‘discovered’ the small, Michelotti-designed sports car, blew off the dust and cobwebs and realised that the car was a perfect rival for the MG Midget and, as well, an inexpensive complement to Triumph’s existing TR sports car.

Under new management, the project proceeded apace and the Bomb — now renamed the Spitfire 4 — went into full production in 1962; instantly becoming a hit with sports car buyers despite it’s rather less than powerful 1147cc Herald engine.

Le Mans and the GT6

With the Spitfire established, Michelotti continued to play around with the basic Spitfire concept — and one of these ideas began to gain some traction with Triumph; a hard-topped, GT model. The idea was taken up by Harry Webster and, in 1963, the Spitfire GT became a reality.

Looking rather like a scaled down E-type coupe, like the Jaguar the Spitfire GT featured a long, low nose, a sweeping fastback body and a rear tailgate.

Still powered by the ubiquitous Herald-based four-banger, the new GT was tentatively scheduled to enter production in 1964. However, before that happened, Triumph decided to enter a team of three Spitfire GTs for the 1964 running of the Le Mans 24 hour race — the results were promising enough for a return visit in 1965, this time with four cars.

Following that first appearance at Le Mans, Triumph were forced to re-examine the Spitfire GT’s overall concept. Word was already spreading that MG were planning a fastback GT version of their popular MGB for release in 1965. Determined to match their rivals at Abingdon, Triumph ditched the Spitfire four-cylinder engine and replaced it with the Triumph Vitesse/2000 SC 2-litre six-cylinder unit. The 1998cc engine featured raised compression, twin Zenith carburettors and was mated to an all-synchromesh four-speed gearbox which had been thoroughly tested in the Le Mans Spitfire GT. In order to accommodate this engine, a tasteful power bulge was added to the new car’s bonnet. Chasing MG, Triumph also planned for a more bespoke cockpit which included full carpeting — an option not available at that time on the standard Spitfire.

Taming the GT6

Now renamed the GT6, the new Triumph debuted in October 1966. Like it’s smaller brother, the Spitfire, the GT6 was an instant hit. However, it wasn’t all milk and roses. Using a basically unmodified Spitfire chassis for the GT6 damned the much faster car with the Spitfire’s wayward swing axles. In effect, at speed this meant that if a GT6 driver lifted off the throttle, or was foolhardy enough to brake whilst cornering, the GT6 would exhibit vicious understeer. Despite this, almost 16,000 new owners took on the beast — obviously deft opposite-lock drivers!

To give them credit, Triumph listened to the GT6’s critics and, with the MkII version, they re-engineered the car’s rear suspension. By altering the rear wheel geometry, Triumph reduced total wheel camber changes by adapting double wishbones and incorporating the transverse leaf spring as an upper locating arm. A rubber doughnut was then employed to counter drive-shaft length variance. This thoroughgoing — a relatively inexpensive — modification to the car’s swing axle also reduced the GT6’s rear roll centre and instantly gifted the car with safer, more predictable handling.

The MkII also received new cylinder heads and revised inlet and exhaust manifolds — increasing power by ten per cent. Outwardly little changed, although — in line with the then current Spitfire — the car’s front bumper was now raised.

With these changes, the GT6 became a serious rival to the MGBGT — the Triumph was not only cheaper than the MG, it was also quicker, lighter and more economical.

Oddly enough, despite being much improved over the original GT6, sales of the MkII dipped downwards and, by 1970, the car was beginning to look out-dated. As a result, the MkIII GT6 received a major restyle — which included recessed door handles and a flush-fitting petrol cap. Continuing with a smoother look, the MkIII also featured a revised roofline, altered rear-quarter windows and air outlet grilles. The most noticeable difference being a new, sharply cut-off tail.

Sales lifted with the release of the MkIII but, alas, burgeoning US emission regulations began were now beginning to affect sales in that vital market. By 1973, it was plain that the GT6’s aging engine was not up to meeting Federal emission requirements and, in late 1973, the GT6 was finally put to rest.

Family Triumphs

I know it’s a bit of an old cliche, but it’s often said that parents play a dominant part in influencing their children’s lives often resulting in long term effects. For example if your mother has owned numerous Triumph Heralds and Toledo’s throughout your formative years and Dad has driven everything from an earl Jaguar SS Super Swallow Sports to Triumph 2000 salons then it’s not going to take rocket science to figure out what other cars Roger Wilson has squirreled away apart from this magnificently restored 1973 Triumph GT6 MkIII.

Apart from a little rally co-driving back in the early ‘70s and a succession of BMW 3 Series sedans as daily drivers, Roger has carefully collected a few fine examples himself over the years including an original very low mileage TR6, Triumph 2.5PI Saloon, Triumph Stag, Dolomite Sprint and a Triumph Mk1 2000 Saloon, all of which he owns today.

The ‘Resto’

Roger purchased this GT6 MkIII about six years ago. The car was in reasonably tidy condition, and although mechanically tired, Roger drove it on a regular basis because it was such an enjoyable car to drive. Eventually the time came to tweak up the mechanicals and the weary 2litre six-cylinder motor was removed for some long overdue TLC. Then one thing lead to another then another and before Roger could say ‘restoration’, the stripped down GT6 body was on a rotisserie looking rather sad, as did his bank balance – (doesn’t this story sound terribly familiar).

Unfortunately for Roger things got a whole lot worse before getting better as thirty odd years of wear and tear, not to mention it’s fair share of wet weather driving had lead to every restorers curse — rust. The rust was far more extensive than Roger could ever have imagined, and now he was basically at the point of no return decided to persevere with the project. Complete new body panels were ordered from Triumph specialists Heritage in the UK and included both sills, front and rear valances, both rear quarter panels, complete floor section, tail light panel, partial roof panels and complete new bonnet section. Once all the new panels were in place the GT6 was now looking like it literally had a brand new body. The fully reconditioned engine courtesy of Hydes Automotive guru’s Paul and Brent Hyde along with the four speed manual transmission was installed along with the completely refurbished front and rear suspension components and brakes. Master classic car painter Kirk Benge applied the flawless ‘Red Hot’ Holden Commodore paint scheme, as Roger was adamant the he wanted the car to really stand out, and believe me, it does.

To finish it all off, Papatoetoe Auto Upholsterers completely re-trimmed the stunning black interior including headlining and carpets.

Overall, the five years of hard work and enormous expense, (although Roger stopped counting some time ago,) has undoubtedly paid off, although I not sure of Roger will be putting his hand up for any further restorations any time soon. With just a couple of minor cosmetic items remaining to complete this is one fine restoration indeed.

The only problem, or should I say advantage for Roger is choosing which classic car to take to work each morning — now that’s a problem I could quite easily live with.

Specs

1973 Triumph GT6 MkIII

• Engine: In-line six
• Capacity: 1998cc
• Bore/Stroke: 74.7mm x 76mm
• Valves: ohv
• Comp Ratio: 9.25:1
• Fuel System: Twin SU carburettors
• Max Power: 77.5kW (104bhp) @ 5,300rpm
• Max Torque: 117lb/ft @ 3,000rpm
• Transmission: Four-speed manual (optional overdrive)
• Axle Ratio: 3.27:1 (3.89:1 with o/d)
• Suspension: Front: Independent by coil springs, s wishbones and anti-roll bar, Rear: Independent by transverse leaf spring, swing axle and radius arms
• Brakes: Disc/drum
• Steering: Rack and pinion

Dimensions:

• Overall Length: 3784.6mm
• Width: 1447.8mm
• Height: 1193.8mm
• Wheelbase: 2108.2mm
• Kerb weight: 921kg

Performance:

• Max Speed: 180kph (112mph)
• 0-60mph: 10.1secs
• Standing 1/4: 17.4secs
• Economy: 27.6mpg

The Spitfire GT at Le Mans

For the 1964 Le Mans 24 Hour Race, Triumph entered three cars — ADU 1B for Mike Rothschild and Bob Tullius), ADU 2B (David Hobbs/Rob Slotemaker) and ADU 3B (Jean-Louis-Marnat/Jean Francois Piot).

ADU 1B and ADU 3B didn’t last the duration of the race, but the Hobbs/Slotemaker Spitfire finished 21st overall, covering 3658km at an average speed of 152km/hr.

For 1965, ADU 1B, 2B and 3B returned along with a fourth car, ADU 4B. Hobbs and Slotemaker piloted 2B. The remainder of the team included Bill Bradley and Peter Bolton (ADU 2B), Claude Dubois/Jean Francois Piot (ADU 3B) and Jean-Jacques Thuner/Simo Lampinen (ADU 4B).

Hobbs and Slotemaker were unable to repeat their 1964 success following an accident during the seventh hour. By that time, ADU 3B had already succumbed to engine failure, but the remaining two GTs took out 13th and 14th place, with the Thuner/Lampinen car taking top honours.

Triumph GT6 Time Line

October 1966

• GT6 MkI introduced with 71kW six-cylinder engine

• Production: 15,818

October 1968

• MkII released with revised rear suspension, more powerful engine (77.7kW). Raised bumpers, revised cockpit and Rostyle wheels.
• Production: 12,066

October 1970

• MkIII released; revised rear-end styling with ‘cut-off’ tail
• Production: 13,042

December 1973

• GT6 production ceased
• Total Production: 40,926

Words Ashley Webb | Photos Dan Wakelin

Triumph’s brilliant Sprint was caught between a rock and hard place. It was a world-beating sports saloon, but being cash strapped Triumph could do little to build on its fabulous potential. Tim takes a drive.

Coventry has had a somewhat rocky relationship with Germany, so it is interesting that one of Coventry’s largest employers in the ’60s and ’70s was in fact started by a German who also became Coventry City’s Mayor.

Triumph was founded by the Bettmann family to manufacture bicycles in Germany and England. The German concern did not go on to great things, but Siegfried Bettmann ran the flourishing Triumph bicycle concern in Coventry and became a real local identity. Triumph UK produced its first car in 1923, but Bettmann sold out at the beginning of WWII, during which some other Germans did their best to obliterate the great manufacturing city with the blitz.

Not many model ranges can claim to have been both front and rear wheel drive, or to have had both in the range at the same time

The Standard Company subsequently bought Triumph, and then Leyland Motors bought both concerns in 1961, although as Standard-Triumph it remained fairly autonomous until the British Leyland fiasco ruined things for every company that it smothered in bureaucracy. That the rights to the once great British Triumph name should now be held deep in a vault at arch-rival BMW’s German headquarters is somewhat ironic.

During the genesis of this particular Triumph model, BMW was a struggling concern doing its level best to emulate the Triumph factory’s product. That BMW succeeded, and then took on the mantle of executive express while Triumph was suppressed, says more about the prevailing work and management ethic in the two countries at the time than it does about the fine engineers, who could only use what resources they were given to produce motor cars.

Name Game

In retrospect, Dolomite was probably not the most dynamic name that could have been given to a GT saloon, but it did have some good heritage in the Triumph genealogy, and shared its origins with Ford’s leading range at the time.

The ski resort of Cortina d’Ampezo, from which the iconic Ford range took its name, is in fact part of the Dolomite range of mountains north of Venice, Italy. I know which place name sounds better to me. Identified and named by Frenchman Deodat Tancrè de Gratet de Dolomieu (1750-1801), Dolomia is a particular a particular type of rock — stratified calcium magnesium carbonate — found in the region which reflects pink against the sun (not something the Leyland marketing team dwelt upon). We all know where they were coming from when choosing the name of a rock or a mountain range, but it has got to sound good, too. Dolomite never quite cut it.

As far as Triumphs go, many consider the greatest of all time was the original 1934-5 Dolomite Straight Eight ‘designed’ by Donald Healey, and owing rather more to the Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 than Alfa’s lawyers were happy with. Only three of the supercharged cars were made, one of which was destroyed by a train during the 1935 Monte Carlo rally. The Dolomite name was tried again with a totally different car in 1937, using 1500cc fours and 2.0-litre sixes. The last time the Dolomite name was used was half way through the bewildering life cycle of Triumph’s mid-size saloon in the ’60s and ’70s. Not many model ranges can claim to have been both front and rear wheel drive, or to have had both in the range at the same time.

Triumph may have had a profusion and confusion of underpinnings during this period, but all of its body styling (originated by Michelotti) was inescapably Triumph family, originally a blessing but latterly a curse. The glasshouse (roof, screen and doors) did not change between 1965 and 1980. Whilst there is no doubting that the Dolomite Sprint today is an attractive classic, in the later part of its life cycle the styling was considered antique, owing much of its structure to the dumpy 1965 Triumph 1300.

Baby Barb

Michelotti’s styling brief for the Triumph 1300, or ‘Ajax’ as it was known within the factory, was to make it look like a baby Barb, Barb being the works code for the 2000.
Triumph had a good range of cars in place in the early ’60s, with the Herald, Vitesse and Spitfire built on the same chassis, and the 2000 large car. In 1962 the Herald wasn’t selling as well as hoped, and the Ajax 1300 project was instigated as a replacement for the Herald, but it only became so by a long and circuitous route.

Harry Webster, the chief engineer, had obviously spent some time looking at how BMC had made great space efficiencies with its front-wheel-drive Mini and Morris 1100. For the Ajax project he decided to go the same route, but elected to have the old Standard-Triumph engine running north-south in the chassis instead of east-west as Issigonis had done, because he wanted the Triumph virtue of a tight turning circle. He had also witnessed the problems BMC was having with its integrated engine and gearbox, so he designed a separate gearbox and reversed the engine, putting the flywheel at the front.

As the development of Ajax went on, two things became apparent. One was that the Herald was now selling far better than expected, and two, that the Ajax was going to be expensive to make. Rather than ditch the Ajax, Triumph decided to forget the two-door Ajax and four-door Herald, and make the Ajax very highly specified, so its high retail could cover the costs.

The Ajax was introduced as the Triumph 1300 in 1965, and up-market again as the 1300TC in 1967. They were well received and reasonably successful, but the Herald had boomed, and so it was felt necessary to push the Ajax further up market by lengthening it front and rear in a similar style to the MkII Triumph 2000. Now with a 1500 engine, the car continued, but the front wheel drive system was proving costly in service.

Inevitably Herald/Vitesse sales eventually flagged as that design began to show its age. Triumph was not receiving big handouts from Leyland Motors, as it had been in the early ’60s, so a replacement was going to be a problem.

New Slant

The saviour was Saab, which commissioned Triumph to design and manufacture a slant four engine for its new 99 model. This gave Triumph both income and eventually a new engine to use. The Ajax could not be made cheap enough to replace the Herald so, necessity being the mother of invention, the short tail two-door Ajax shell was dusted off and converted to rear drive, with a live axle, under the code-name ‘Manx’. Interestingly this gave Triumph the ability to build a four wheel drive, which it did for a competition 1300 Rallycross special which was very successful until it rolled.

The stripped-out two-door Manx was called ‘Toledo’ when went on sale alongside the front drive 1500 in 1970. Soon after Saab’s exclusivity agreement ran out on the slant four engine Triumph introduced its own version, but this time chose not to use front drive but the straightforward rear drive Toledo arrangement in a four-door shell. This hybrid was called the Dolomite, and was completed in 1970 but not allowed into production and release until 1971 because of crippling strikes.

The engine won several design awards, as it was cheap to manufacture and very efficient in use

It was an 1850cc, 100mph sporting saloon, which despite its Meccano development was substantially more than the sum of its parts. Now Triumph had a Toledo (stripped-out short-tail rear wheel drive), a Triumph 1500 (luxurious long tail, front wheel drive) and a Dolomite (sporting long tail, rear wheel drive) all using the same shell, but made in different parts of the country — clearly some rationalising was required and the public saw this in 1973, when the front-dri ve car got the chop. The public could be forgiven for missing the trick, however, because at the same time a mighty 94.7kW (127bhp) version of the Dolomite, the Sprint, was released to rapturous applause from the press.

Rockers and Rollers

Len Dawtrey came up with the idea of operating the 16 valves off one camshaft. For the eight inlet valves the cams bear directly on the bucket tappets, while the exhaust valves are operated by long rockers operating off the same eight cam lobes. This enabled the plugs to be sited in the ideal position, centrally in the cylinder head. Harry Mundy at Coventry Climax, who had done the Lotus Twin Cam and Jaguar V12, helped Spen King at Triumph design the ingenious 16-valve head to sit on top of the slant four engine. The engine won several design awards, as it was cheap to manufacture and very efficient in use.

Among many firsts the Dolomite Sprint was the first mass-produced 16-valve four-cylinder car, and the first British car to have alloy wheels as standard, which made the seven-year-old body look very distinguished on its 5.5-inch rims, shod with 175/70HR13 Dunlop SP Sport radials. With its two HS6 SU carburettors and a minimum peak of 165Nm torque, the Sprint was given the beefy TR6 differential, and a gearbox with optional overdrive joined by a two-piece prop shaft with Rzeppa constant velocity joints replacing the usual UJs. A larger servo and high performance pads were specified for the front discs, while larger drums were fitted at the rear with a load-sensitive relief valve in the rear brake circuit.

The Dolomite had superb instrumentation and steering column-mounted switchgear, with the high level of wooden trim and the 81 driving positions inherited from the old 1300. The sweet, sporty-handling Sprint was an instant hit, a real driver’s car. Over time the range underneath the spectacular Sprint got rationalised to all become rear-drive Dolomites with a four-door shell. The ageing Standard engine was still in use in the Dolomite 1300 and 1500, whilst the 1850 and Sprint used the engine originally designed for Saab, albeit much modified.

That engine was doubled up to become the Stag V8, and was meant to be the future of Triumph. It would be nice to think that they all lived happily ever after once the rationalisation took place, and the classy Sprint led the way in sales and on the race track, but unfortunately the rot had set within the British car industry. Even simple cars had disgraceful quality issues, and the Dolomite Sprint was sophisticated. The Dolomite and Stag got a bad name for reliability, which killed sales.

Crushed

To replace the well worn Dolomite Spen King had the SD2 up his sleeve: it used an injected Sprint engine, but never got beyond prototype stage, BL choosing to put its meagre funds into LC10, the Maestro. King never gave up and had Michelotti facelift the Dolomite, but that pretty car never saw daylight either. The Triumph tooling was so worn out that production beyond 1980 could not be considered. After eight years and a respectable 22,941 Sprints Triumph Canley manufacturing was closed down, and Triumph’s spirit, effectively, died. The TR7 wandered on for a few more years at Rover’s plant, and a Honda Civic was given the Triumph name.

That was a kick in the face for Triumph die-hards, but in marketing terms exactly what old Triumph 1300 owners wanted — a reliable, highly-specified small saloon, it sold quite well on the home market. Though it looked decidedly antique for a sports saloon, Dolomite and Sprint owners were not feeling deprived by this stage; it was not fashionable to buy British any more, and they were already salivating over the new BMW 3 Series range.

The Power and the Glory

The Sprint was a masterpiece and scored many notable successes, however, for every plus there was a minus. As designed, the engine was extremely efficient and developed 112kW (150bhp) without any major work. It was cheaper to manufacture than any other 16-valve engine; in the simple Dolomite chassis proved well able to beat the opposition in 2.0-litre sedan racing; and had the potential for a good rally car, too. Leyland Special Tuning homologated Weber carburettors and some other bolt-ons that made the car a very effective competition car. The problem was that Leyland management was simply not interested in putting major effort into the car and engine, though the result would have done its image no end of good.

After eight years and a respectable 22,941 Sprints Triumph Canley manufacturing was closed down, and Triumph’s spirit, effectively, died

As it was, while the engine was good for an easy 112kW, due to its design it would be difficult to get it beyond that stage within the regulations imposed at the time.
New Zealander Brett Riley (son of Johnny Riley) thought his career was made when he got a Dave Price-run works Unipart-March 793 with the Sprint engine to compete in the British F3 championship alongside one Nigel Mansell. But the lack of tune-ability within the Sprint engine meant the car was mostly a mid fielder, and Brett’s career stalled while the other fella miraculously caught the attention of Colin Chapman while practicing the March Dolomite in the British GP meeting.

In saloon racing Andy Rouse won the British Touring Car championship for manufacturers in 1974 and overall in 1975, and the Sprint continued to coin up championships throughout its production in both Group 1 and Group 2 form. Notable drivers over this side of the world were Robbie Francevic in New Zealand, and Ron Hodgeson in Australia, whose ex-Rouse car is still racing today. In rallying the irrepressible Tony Pond notched up a production car class in the British Rally Championship.

The negative side of this was that while the Sprint was good, it could have been so much better had the Leyland management signalled the go-ahead for the lighter, stiffer, two-door Toledo body shell and Sprint engine combination that Special Tuning and Canley Experimental wanted to dish up. This would have given the car considerably more potential in homologation for rallying and racing, as well as giving it the sporting cachet in the market place. The Sprint was rarely compared with Ford’s RS2000 or Twin Cam Escorts and the other outright sporting saloons that were out there, despite having the performance to match them.

Sprinters

As it was when new, the Sprint filled a gap for a refined, distinguished, oh-so-British high-performance compact, footing it easily with the BMW 2002 Tii and Alfa Romeo 2000 GTV. It was similar in cost and performance to the highly-strung Ford RS1600 or muscular Capri 3000GT — and none could match the Sprint’s level of appointment and four-door practicality. As a practical classic, the Dolomite Sprint is a real sportsman’s dream, as demonstrated by our two New Zealand owners.

Perhaps predictably, both owners are of British origin and have motoring in the blood. Richard Jaques’ father drove a Hillman Husky in the RAC rally, and subsequently owned a string of Triumphs, firing Richard’s enthusiasm for the marque. Geoff Sparkes raced karts in the UK, but then turned to classics when he moved to
New Zealand in 1984, starting with a Lotus Seven then an XK150 Jaguar.

Between them they have three Sprints, each at a different level of originality. Geoff has two, one an immaculate and totally original car, the Tahiti Blue car in our pictures, and a Russet Brown car, somewhat less tidy but used to win the Leisuretime Tracer Classic racing series this year. While his brown car looks relatively standard, it scampers around Pukekohe in one minute, 15 seconds.

Geoff’s 1979 Tahiti Blue two-owner car was originally owned by a Canley Engine development engineer, Richard Tibbetts, and brought over with him when he left Triumph to come to New Zealand. Fitted with optional overdrive and driving lamps, it is otherwise absolutely as it came out of the factory but with 156,102km (97,000 miles) now on the clock.

The 1975 Mimosa Yellow car of Richard Jaques regularly competes in classic trials, sprints and on the Narva Targa Tour. It had its first event at the 2001 Domain Hillclimb a week after he had bought it. First registered in Feilding, the car had four previous owners, and has now clocked up 140,000km. Somewhere between the specs of Geoff’s two Sprints, Richard’s has twin Weber 40DCOE9 carburettors, a modified cam and lowered, stiffened suspension. He has seen an indicated 120mph from the car, and does one minute, 29-seconds at Pukekohe. Once again, though, it is immaculate, with an absolutely superb paint finish.

The two feature cars look classic and sporty and have survived the ravages of time extremely well. This does not apply to Dolomites in general; they rust over the headlights and round the doors, as do the front chassis mountings on examples that have spent time on salty British roads.

Headache

Apart from Richard breaking a bearing cap at Taupo race circuit, neither of the engines have caused problems, but that is because they have been properly maintained by knowledgeable people throughout their life. Like the Stag, these engines do not suffer misuse, and cooling system issues lead to warping cylinder heads, which any Dolomite owner will tell you is a job you wish you never started. Dolomite head studs go in at an angle, so torquing them down is an art, and getting the head off the block often means scrapping one or the other as they like to bond. An engine oil cooler is the best way of keeping that headache at bay. Otherwise the Dolomite is simple and sturdy, and to be honest doesn’t suffer as many of the ’70s British quality issues as people will have you believe.

Andy Rouse won the British Touring Car championship for manufacturers in 1974 and overall in 1975 in a Dolomite Sprint

Driving the two Dolomites was an absolute blast, they are very, very good cars. With 81 possible driving positions (all of them fairly upright) it is easy to get comfortable, as the leather-rimmed alloy-spoked steering wheel moves telescopically and up and down. The instrument display is one of the neatest comprehensive displays you will see. Pre-dating BMW’s benchmark dash, the Dolomite’s, mounted on a large wooden plinth, is a model of clarity. Before you even fire up you are comfortable and cosseted. The two cars differ once the key is turned. Richard’s car has a throaty gargle as the Weber chokes suck in the air, Geoff’s car has a harder, cammier noise, though both are distinctly free of reciprocating rattles.

Surprisingly, Geoff’s standard steering is heavier than Richard’s, but the ride is better. Dolomites are not the state-of-the-art ride-wise, but for a tall live-axle car they are remarkably well sorted, both cars feeling firm and well tied down without being the slightest bit uncomfortable. The handling is tight, direct and slightly nervous compared to most cars. The Dolomite is a car which demands attention when driven smartly, being really well tied down within its limits but a little skittish once you reach them, which is all part of the fun.

The engine is one big bundle of torque, and acceleration feels very strong from quite low down. Paradoxically it is a great relaxing tourer, with the overdrive on third and fourth giving long-legged cruising without the need to use the clutch and gear lever. The Dolomite Sprint genuinely is a very versatile car, being a great cruiser, a good family car and a rip-snorting fun car if the mood takes you. Steering and noise levels apart, the two cars I drove don’t feel that different, both would be very acceptable company.

Words: Tim Nevinson | Photos: Jared Clark

Triumph Dolomite Sprint

Engine: 45-degree slant four
Capacity: 1998cc
Valves: sohc, 16-valve
Fuel system: Twin HS6 SU
Max power: 94.7kW at 5700rpm
Max torque: 168Nm at 4500rpm
Transmission: Four-speed manual/overdrive (TR6)
Suspension: Front coil and wishbone with anti-roll bar; Rear four-linked live axle, coil and anti-roll bar
Steering: Rack and pinion

DIMENSIONS

Length: 4115mm
Width: 1568mm
Height: 1372mm
Wheelbase: 2454mm
Weight: 970kg

PERFORMANCE

0-100kph: 8.8 secs
Top speed: 190kph
Production: (1973-80): 22,941

Words: Tim Nevinson
Photos: Jared Clark

Tim goes to Pukekohe to sample two classic but different Triumphs of the same era to find out how they end up with the same lap times.
I have a weakness for ’60s and ’70s British saloons. It could be argued they have enough  weaknesses of their own without mine to add to them, but to me they have an innate charm  about them — even more so when they’re adorned with chunky Minilite-style wheels, or finished  off in period competition team colours.

I am sure John Tomlin and I are not alone in the  world, but we speak the same language. None of your Lucas ‘Prince Of Darkness’ jokes here, thank you very much.

John Tomlin has been racing a long time, Formula  Vees and sedans before the usual family and business commitments meant that racing aspirations were  placed firmly on the back burner.

Once his company (New Zealand Business  Telephone Company, which distributes Leader 1000 telephones to commercial users) had created the disposable income required for a resumption of racing activities, a return to the race-track was on the cards.

While John may have fancied himself as the next Michael Schumacher, his mates let him know that the German had a 20-year head start, didn’t smoke, didn’t drink, and had a couple of millimetres advantage on the waist line. They suggested that rather than spend up on the latest single-seater, John might consider looking further afield. John looked no further than the end of his paddock, where a Triumph 2.5PI shell had been grazing for a while.

Six Hour Success

John had been mildly aware of the success Triumphs had in the Benson and Hedges races in the ’70s, with such luminaries as David Oxton at the wheel. He had a soft spot for these old beasts, and a little research showed that the old Trumpet had been a pretty useful rally car, used by the Leyland works teams for events when heavy duty was required.

This is where a little bit of lateral thinking was Landcrab a few years ago. Never mind that it was a heavy old beast used for rallies when heft was required rather than agility, and that rallying is a million miles from circuit racing when it comes to ideal set-ups. Who cares what it goes like when it looks great? (Well, John does actually, he is fanatical about it).

Fortunately, the Tracer Leisuretime Classic race series is set up like one of those schools at which it’s not the winning that counts — it’s about taking part. It doesn’t matter how much money or aggression you throw at it, the Tracer Leisuretime formula equals everyone out. Nobody really cares who called for, not to mention a large leap of faith. ‘What about making the old Trumpet into a classic race car, and make it look like those wonderful works cars?’ he thought. Classic racing, all sorts of different cars (enough differences to cover up any rustiness in your driving armoury, and not exactly on the cusp of the world championship), and no pressure. Well, none from anyone else, anyway.

Now I am totally with John on this, having gone all weak-kneed when I saw a race-prepped Leyland wins, cars aren’t used as weapons, and everyone enjoys themselves. The cars are raced in groups with similar lap times, with reverse grid and handicap races thrown in to even out the winning. Having a car that is not ideally suited just doesn’t matter, so long as it is safe — hence the regular sight of a MkVII Jaguar racing against an Escort. An Escort or Alfa Sud is the obvious choice for this type of activity, but John wanted to be different.

Giving it the Works

He took the old garden grazer shell to Andy Culpin of RaceFX and said, “I want you to build this up into a classic race car, to look exactly like the works 2.5PIs.” Andy’s first question was quite probably — why? Sadly short of realistic answers, John was given a couple of weeks to think about it before Culpin set to work on the’ 70s luxury sedan. Sure enough, and still without a rational answer, a few weeks later John gave the go ahead to start the project. The body shell was fully stripped, acid dipped, extensively lightened, seam welded, and given a full Group A-spec roll-cage — all carried out by Race FX. The factory wiring was completely removed and replaced with a custom-made loom (thereby banishing those ‘Prince Of Darkness’ jokes) and the dashboard was customised to fit around the new cage and recovered by Dashboard Restorations. There are few people who would bother to get a dashboard recovered after fitting a roll cage, but this gives you some idea of how Tomlin approaches things. The seats are Momo with three-inch, five-point RJS cam lock safety harnesses.

John is a fairly big chap, and Andy wanted him down as low as he could get him: by using a Dolomite steering column attached to a Triumph Herald rack, John is set well back and fairly reclined, with the steering wheel sat in his lap.

Morris Turner at Stag 4×4 provided the Triumph bits, the Herald rack was used to get a ratio that suited without too much weight. A Tilton fully adjustable pedal box was inserted (I noticed a very big throttle pedal), and the remote reservoirs for the front and rear brakes came from AP Racing.

To look after the stopping department — and to keep costs down — John fitted Range Rover front-vented discs, which work with Nissan Skyline Turbo four-pot callipers and EBC Yellow race pads supplied by Lyall Zohs at EBC Brakes. The callipers hang off MacPherson Struts, with Koni Classic fully adjustable shocks and King springs on fully adjustable towers with camber/ castor adjustment at the top.

The front sway bar is custom made and fully adjustable. At the rear the brakes are Nissan Skyline Turbo two-pot callipers, while the suspension is fully independent. Adjustable platforms with Koni Classics and King springs are used. The rear sway bar is a modified Toyota MR2 front bar. All the bushes and joints have been replaced with a combination of Nolathane and rose joints. The whole suspension specification was fine-tuned by Edgar Saltwegter at George Stocks. John was absolutely delighted with the job RaceFX did on the body, and the rest of the installation work done by George Stocks and EBC.

Cash Injection

Fuel-injected Triumph engines were alleged to give a lot of trouble — and they usually got worse if someone tried to fix them, which was one of the reasons Triumph made the carburetted 2500TC available. The TC became very popular, but the PI was something of a rarity. With a reputation like this behind it, one would have thought that John Tomlin would have plumped for carburettors on his Triumph. Not a bit of it. “The works cars had mechanical PI, so my car is going to have mechanical PI.” He would live to regret that decision, but there it is in our photographs — petrol injection, and the car is now going as strong as an ox. John is nothing if not persistent.

In his first year of competition he went through a whole pile of engines, and played mind games with the injection unit. It turns out that the injection unit works fine, always did — the problem was with the fuel pump, it simply wasn’t pumping enough fuel. Once he fitted an Audi A8 fuel pump, the old Fergie-derived engine went like a sewing machine. Perhaps it is a little impolite to call it an old Fergie — a tractor engine never looked this good, or revved like this. The Lucas mechanical injection breathes through a custom-made air box and ram tubes, with a K&N Filter — all force fed from the front headlight aperture. Fuel is fed to the original metering unit, which has been modified and mapped by John and his father.

Dad’s Engine

The engine was assembled by John’s dad, an A Grade mechanic and ex service manager for Spencer Allen Motors in Papakura. John senior went out in the car to test the engine, but he didn’t like it: too noisy. Jim at West Auckland Trade Tools supplied parts and oils, and Terry at Franklin Engine Reconditioners did a fantastic job on the engine machining. There was quite a lot of it, as the motor isn’t entirely standard. It has larger exhaust valves (Nissan L20), a Kelford full race cam and Ford BDA valve springs. Triumph Spitfi re cam bearings are fitted, the oil galleries enlarged, and the sump enlarged to nine litres with a full gating system and a windage tray which incorporates a crank scraper. The oil pick-up for the pump is lengthened and relocated to the centre of sump, and Andy Culpin’s ‘regulation’ two-litre Accusump was fitted.

The exhaust headers are three-into-two-into-one (which will soon be changed to a two-into-three-into one system). The crank, rods, pistons, timing gear and rockers are all standard, but nicely machined and balanced. On the back, the fl ywheel is lightened with a carbon fibre/ceramic combination paddle clutch to disengage the Toyota Supra W55 wide ratio five-speed gearbox. John originally used the Triumph four-speed with overdrive, but found the overdrive engagement to be too unpredictable for racing. Much of the experimentation and engine tuning was done by Tony at Short Motors Takanini, who has dyno, tuning and mechanical services on site.

The result of all of this effort was beautiful when it first rolled out (after 10 years of racing it looks a little battle scarred, but still looks sensational). As John had asked for a replica, Andy gave him a big hole in the front guard like the works cars for cooling, a bubble in the bonnet and big holes in the front apron. Sitting low on chunky 15×7 Performance Minilites and 205×55 Dunlop R tyres, the car looks ready for Andrew Cowan or Paddy Hopkirk to jump straight into.

Special Tuning

Brian Culcheth was British Leyland’s key works driver when the first works Triumph 2.5s appeared — anything weird and wonderful from the Leyland Special Tuning division usually had Culcheth at the wheel. John has spoken with Culcheth a number of times about his project, and has been given pictures and encouragement by the works driver but, having originally developed the 2.5 for rallying, Brian could only be so much help.

“As there was nobody who could really give us any advice on how to make a Triumph saloon go quick, most of the costs have been in R&D. For what it has cost to get it to this stage I wouldn’t get any change out of $100K, but knowing what we do now I guess we could build another for around $40K.”

This Triumph’s Achilles heel was the sliding spline driveshafts; necessary for the semi-trailing rear suspension. Curiously enough, John has chosen to remain with this system.

“It does chew them [driveshafts] out, but on the road it was more due to them getting gunked up than the power being put through them. I could put a Nissan Skyline roller bearing set-up in there, it would bolt straight in. We have the problem right now, compounded by the fully locked diff, but it’s a known quantity”

Development is like that. Basically it’s another word for fixing things that go wrong, and making sure they don’t do it again. The Triumphs were tough old birds, as Benson and Hedges results attest, but once you start modifying something you just find the next weakest link.

“The chassis, suspension and brakes are well sorted now so the next development is to build a quick engine — the one we have is relatively standard. So over the next 18 months we will be developing another motor using some goodies out of the UK and USA. That should see around 195kW (261bhp), which with a little bit of a diet for both car and driver should see time dip into the low 1.13s at Pukekohe.

Short and Simple

The result of all his current work, apart from a lot of fun and considerable pride from admiring looks, is a Pukekohe best of 1.15.4 seconds, and 48.1 around the old track at Taupo. This is where Barry Garland and our second Triumph — a Vitesse — enters the picture.

Barry comes from Tirau where he and his partner, Steve, are sand and earth moving contractors. Barry gives John Tomlin a lot of competition on the track. Using the same powerplant, Barry shifts around Pukekohe in about the same time as the bigger Triumph, and fl ies around Taupo a second or two quicker. Between you and me, Barry hasn’t spent as much money as John. When we looked inside the boot of John’s car we saw that RaceFX had installed a Jazz fuel safety cell, with a bulk fuel loader for long distance events, an expensive-looking Bosch fuel pump, and lots of Aeroquip hoses. In the boot of Barry’s Vitesse we found a deck chair and a trolley jack. How does Barry match times with John? The answer revolves mainly around the 200kg that John lugs around with him every lap. If Barry was to carry three passengers around with him things might be a little different. As it is they trade laps with each other, and one is quicker in places than the other.

Barry’s Triumph Vitesse, apart from being lighter, makes a considerably smaller hole in the air along the back straight. It is also nimbler through the esses. However, as Barry’s car utilises a relatively standard shell — using the narrow chassis construction typical of Heralds and Spitfires — it isn’t as torsionally rigid as the highly modified PI. As the Vitesse is narrower, lighter and with a much shorter footprint than Tomlin’s car, this means that on the high speed undulating curves it is considerably more nervous than the big PI, and starts bouncing towards the Armco, causing Barry to lift when John has his foot firmly planted into the firewall — making the most of his momentum.

Toute Vitesse

Round the back of Pukekohe Barry has it all his own way, easily pulling away under acceleration, whilst when stability and rock solid handling is required around the front of the circuit, John has the advantage. It all makes for a very entertaining cat and mouse situation.

It also makes you wonder why the Triumph works did not make more of the Vitesse in competition — the combination of a huge powerplant in a very light body makes sense for this application. As a road car they were a very rapid and comfortable tourer, a sort of forerunner to the BMW 325.

The Vitesse never came with a 2.5 engine, they carried either 1.6 or 2.0-litre motors, but it’s an easy swap to slot in the larger capacity six. Barry’s Ross Calgher built engine is fed by three, twin-choke 40mm Webers, with power transmitted through a lightning quick Quaife gearbox and limited slip differential.

Early Heralds and Vitesses had a bit of a reputation for tucking their rear wheels under on cornering, but this was solved on later models with a lower tie rod and modifications to the transverse leaf installation. Barry has made his own version of this, and keeps the wheels safely in negative camber.

There is little wrong with Triumph Herald front suspension and steering, their parts are regular cannibalised for racing and sports cars, some with a very high pedigree. Barry has fitted Spax adjustable dampers with a stiff 22mm sway bar on the front and 16mm sway bar on the rear. The front brakes are Wilwood, but drum brakes remain at the rear.

Barry found his car back in 1992 as a dismantled basket-case — ripe for restoration. He decided immediately to make it into a racing saloon, but has not modified it drastically — just made a really nice job of the transformation. Barry also has good experience as a driver, having competed in the Heatway and other rallies using a Mini, achieving second in class one year. His lap times are near identical to John Tomlin’s at Pukekohe, but at Taupo, Tomlin would have to work pretty hard to keep ahead of the Vitesse — Barry’s laps being a good second quicker than the big PI’s.

Widely differing approaches

The ongoing success of the Tracer/Leisuretime series is down to the ingenuity of Ray Green’s rules, which allow spectators to watch almost standard cars competing fairly against purpose-built modified cars without it becoming a cheque book exercise. Both these old Triumphs give their owners and spectators a lot of pleasure, despite their widely differing approaches. Much as I admire the Escorts and Alfas which compete in the race series, it is the variety of cars that make the Leisuretime and Tracer series what they are. I sincerely hope there are more people out their who have the inspiration and wherewithal to create other cars which are as nostalgic and slightly off the wall as these two Triumphs.

1964 TRIUMPH VITESSE MKI

Engine Six-cylinder, ohv
Capacity 2498cc
Max power 124kW (166bhp)
Max torque 206Nm (152lb/ft)
Fuel system Triple twin choke 45 DCOE Webers
Gearbox Triumph with Quaife kit
Suspension Coil and wishbone front, transverse leaf rear, with Spax dampers
Steering Rack and pinion
Brakes Wilwood discs front/ drums rear
Wheels Performance Minilites
Tyres Yokohama AO3212, 205/60/13

DIMENSIONS

Width 1524mm
Height 1280mm
Overall Length 3886mm
Kerb Weight 970kg

PERFORMANCE

Max speed 209kph (130mph)
0-100kph never timed (probably quicker than John’s!)

TRIUMPH 2.5PI MKII WORKS REPLICA

Engine Six-cylinder, ohv
Capacity 2498cc
Max power 153kW (205bhp) at 6000rpm
Max torque N/A — but plentiful
Fuel system Lucas Mechanical Injection
Gearbox Toyota Supra W55 wide ratio five-speed
Suspension MacPherson strut front, semi-trailing rear
Steering Rack and pinion
Brakes Vented discs
Wheels 15×7 Performance Minilites
Tyres 205×55 Dunlop R (dry) 205×60 Falken Azenis (wet)

DIMENSIONS

Length 4528mm
Width 1690mm
Height 1335mm
Kerb Weight 1151kg

PERFORMANCE

Max speed 204kph (127mph) at the end of Pukekohe’s back straight
0-100kph Never timed (but bloody quick)