What dream car would you choose on retirement (other than a Cali naturally)

[Amarillo]

Thats an impressive list!

Here’s my more modest automotive history, from 1980:

Here’s my barely potent list, from 1990:
Ford Orion
Peugeot 309
Peugeot 406
Peugeot 5008

Current vehicles
VW California Beach
Skoda Citigo

 

[Velma's Dad]

...but nothing can compare to the fun of bombing around in my TR6, which I restored from a wreck to drive to work up the incomparable California Highway 1 to my first symphony job in Santa Rosa, and later used for years to commute between my jobs at the Mexico City National Opera and the Guadalajara Symphony ( always top down and almost certainly responsible for the couple of melanomas I had removed from my face).

Hard to disagree about the TR6

Autocar, 17 April 1969:
" It is very much a masculine machine, calling for beefy muscles, bold decisions, and even ruthlessness on occasion. It could be dubbed the last real sports car..."

Or more succinctly (James May, 2003):
"The blokiest bloke's car ever built"

Picture of yours, pretty please?

 

[clarinetbcn]

Hard to disagree about the TR6

Autocar, 17 April 1969:
" It is very much a masculine machine, calling for beefy muscles, bold decisions, and even ruthlessness on occasion. It could be dubbed the last real sports car..."

Or more succinctly (James May, 2003):
"The blokiest bloke's car ever built"

Picture of yours, pretty please?

Oh what a rabbit hole of nostalgia I just dived down! I don’t have great pics of the TR6, and none after it was repainted an amazing deep blood red, but here’s what I’ve got. One is in front of my 250 year old house in Guadalajara. Extras, the Impala, the 318is, and a pic from my California driver’s license.

 

[alan middleton]

The Dino was a fun car and was high days and holidays only. I also had an S2000, what a fabulous car that was and was the 4 wheel equivalent of a 2 stroke motorcycle. You hit that band and it turned into a hooligan. I wish still had the Honda

Me too. Unfortunately I wrote my S2000 off just before my wedding. I’ve had many cars since.... same wife though

 

[Tony Crawford]

I used to have a Viking!...great conversion.

It is and so comfortable! Dougal is quite rare as he has a blue interior - all other avionics we’ve seen have the brown cushions? He’s the absolute keeper and the one that we feel destressed in after 1 mile down the road!

 

[soulstyledevon]

I do wonder about getting behind the wheel of one of these again...
GT6s were a childhood dream along with Porsches, the aforementioned seem super reasonable at the moment.

Early Soul years.

 

[NorCal]

I have several - older - friends who have owned from new, or latterly, have owned restored TR6s - and other ‘great’ British sports cars. They fall into my category of ‘Grey English Porridge’ and have, and always have had, zero appeal for me.

I’d suggest many ’classic’ cars are purchased by their respective owners not for the driving experience, or until recently, as an investment, but as a desperate nostalgia trip; an attempt to recapture the ‘gold old days’, when summers were warmers, skies were bluer, grass was greener, and they were, of course, very much younger.

As a fresh-faced 17 year old, in the midst of A-Levels, I was working in the summer holidays as a building labourer, and one of my colleagues was bought a new Fiat X1/9 Lido for his 18 the birthday. How I coveted that car; Italian, mid-engined, metallic black paint, and white Alcantara upholstery too.

Some 27 years later I purchased a beautiful, one-owner, low-mileage Fiat X1/9 Lidver the course of a year, I dismantled it, repainted it, scoured eBay.it for NOS parts. I even had the 4 chrome quarter bumpers repaired and re-chromed at a staggering cost.

The day it was ready for an MOT - which it passed easily - I took my wife for a drive in it. After 30 miles, I stopped looked at her, and said I was selling the X1/9. Some things - especially classic cars, and those remembered dearly from younger days - are best committed to memory.

 

[alan middleton]

I have several - older - friends who have owned from new, or latterly, have owned restored TR6s - and other ‘great’ British sports cars. They fall into my category of ‘Grey English Porridge’ and have, and always have had, zero appeal for me.

I’d suggest many ’classic’ cars are purchased by their respective owners not for the driving experience, or until recently, as an investment, but as a desperate nostalgia trip; an attempt to recapture the ‘gold old days’, when summers were warmers, skies were bluer, grass was greener, and they were, of course, very much younger.

As a fresh-faced 17 year old, in the midst of A-Levels, I was working in the summer holidays as a building labourer, and one of my colleagues was bought a new Fiat X1/9 Lido for his 18 the birthday. How I coveted that car; Italian, mid-engined, metallic black paint, and white Alcantara upholstery too.

Some 27 years later I purchased a beautiful, one-owner, low-mileage Fiat X1/9 Lidver the course of a year, I dismantled it, repainted it, scoured eBay.it for NOS parts. I even had the 4 chrome quarter bumpers repaired and re-chromed at a staggering cost.

The day it was ready for an MOT - which it passed easily - I took my wife for a drive in it. After 30 miles, I stopped looked at her, and said I was selling the X1/9. Some things - especially classic cars, and those remembered dearly from younger days - are best committed to memory.

You just bought the wrong car, mate. All my friends with classic cars drive them and love to drive them. My car is older than me (and more reliable) and brings a smile to my face whenever I’m driving.

 

[soulstyledevon]

New cars seem pretty boring and unimaginative these days.
Cars were prettier then, than now...

 

[Velma's Dad]

I have several - older - friends who have owned from new, or latterly, have owned restored TR6s - and other ‘great’ British sports cars. They fall into my category of ‘Grey English Porridge’ and have, and always have had, zero appeal for me.

I’d suggest many ’classic’ cars are purchased by their respective owners not for the driving experience, or until recently, as an investment, but as a desperate nostalgia trip; an attempt to recapture the ‘gold old days’, when summers were warmers, skies were bluer, grass was greener, and they were, of course, very much younger.

'Grey English Porridge' on a 'desperate nostalgia trip'. Just a few weeks ago, although admittedly I was a bit younger then.

 

[clarinetbcn]

I have several - older - friends who have owned from new, or latterly, have owned restored TR6s - and other ‘great’ British sports cars. They fall into my category of ‘Grey English Porridge’ and have, and always have had, zero appeal for me.

I’d suggest many ’classic’ cars are purchased by their respective owners not for the driving experience, or until recently, as an investment, but as a desperate nostalgia trip; an attempt to recapture the ‘gold old days’, when summers were warmers, skies were bluer, grass was greener, and they were, of course, very much younger.

As a fresh-faced 17 year old, in the midst of A-Levels, I was working in the summer holidays as a building labourer, and one of my colleagues was bought a new Fiat X1/9 Lido for his 18 the birthday. How I coveted that car; Italian, mid-engined, metallic black paint, and white Alcantara upholstery too.

Some 27 years later I purchased a beautiful, one-owner, low-mileage Fiat X1/9 Lidver the course of a year, I dismantled it, repainted it, scoured eBay.it for NOS parts. I even had the 4 chrome quarter bumpers repaired and re-chromed at a staggering cost.

The day it was ready for an MOT - which it passed easily - I took my wife for a drive in it. After 30 miles, I stopped looked at her, and said I was selling the X1/9. Some things - especially classic cars, and those remembered dearly from younger days - are best committed to memory.

The difference between an X1/9 and a TR6 is a little like comparing your first glimpse of a sex scene on TV as a twelve year old to actually having sex.

 

[willwander]

The difference between an X1/9 and a TR6 is a little like comparing your first glimpse of a sex scene on TV as a twelve year old to actually having sex.

....With an old lady

 

[Velma's Dad]

....With an old lady

LOL but be fair the X1/9 was rear wheel drive and mid engined which is always a good starting point. I never actually drove one of those but I did have a Toyota MR2 as my daily driver for a while - similar concept and excellent to drive with sharp handling.

Also along the same lines, ie mid -engined, were some of the Japanese 'Kei' cars of the 1990s. This was my son's a few years ago, a Honda Beat. Just a three cylinder 660cc engine but with one throttle body per cylinder, revved to 8500+, the car weighed almost nothing and was a hoot to skip around the lanes in once you got it spooled up.

 

[Borris]

I have several - older - friends who have owned from new, or latterly, have owned restored TR6s - and other ‘great’ British sports cars. They fall into my category of ‘Grey English Porridge’ and have, and always have had, zero appeal for me.

I’d suggest many ’classic’ cars are purchased by their respective owners not for the driving experience, or until recently, as an investment, but as a desperate nostalgia trip; an attempt to recapture the ‘gold old days’, when summers were warmers, skies were bluer, grass was greener, and they were, of course, very much younger.

As a fresh-faced 17 year old, in the midst of A-Levels, I was working in the summer holidays as a building labourer, and one of my colleagues was bought a new Fiat X1/9 Lido for his 18 the birthday. How I coveted that car; Italian, mid-engined, metallic black paint, and white Alcantara upholstery too.

Some 27 years later I purchased a beautiful, one-owner, low-mileage Fiat X1/9 Lidver the course of a year, I dismantled it, repainted it, scoured eBay.it for NOS parts. I even had the 4 chrome quarter bumpers repaired and re-chromed at a staggering cost.

The day it was ready for an MOT - which it passed easily - I took my wife for a drive in it. After 30 miles, I stopped looked at her, and said I was selling the X1/9. Some things - especially classic cars, and those remembered dearly from younger days - are best committed to memory.

An interesting and I suspect all too frequent discovery by those that hanker after the car of their childhood dreams. The trouble is modern cars are now quiet, reliable and usually drive extremely well. They are generally a warm and comfortable place to sit whilst ticking off the miles and this is where the problem lies. The comparison between any small modern hatch and a classic sports car rarely stands up to scrutiny. Just about any boring modern box will start, steer, accelerate, handle and stop infinitely better than ones childhood pin up car. They also require minimal maintenance to keep them in fine fettle. However, compared with classic vehicles they are really boring.

I admit that classics are not everyone's cup of tea but a good classic will make any trip out a memorable one. Many older classics have to be talked to nicely and lavished with expensive offerings otherwise they will sulk and refuse to go. Like a pet they enjoy your company and often take great delight in throwing you the odd curved ball instead. If you arrive at your destination without breaking down they will give you a genuine sense of achievement. The joys of motoring in an early open car are totally removed with modern day driving. With many you can't just jump in and go as things must be done to coax your old timer into action. On the road you will always hear that strange worrying noise you haven't heard before and you must always keep a second ear open for the noise of bits dropping off. You can't just pop down to the motor factors and order another. Getting out and getting under is all part of the fun as are the hours of fettling in the garage.

I agree that like your Fiat, classics are for many a nostalgia trip that can leave them dissapointed. For me, being brought up in the fifties and sixties I prefer pre nostalgia vehicles, in fact the older and quirkier the better, ones that cough out pollution and drop hot oil everywhere. With this type of vehicle the contrast between ancient and modern is so vast that it makes you realise just how good the modern car has become.

With poor lighting, abysmal brakes, dodgy steering and appalling handling I often wonder why I am driving such a vehicle in modern traffic. However, they are tremendous fun and I believe they also make you a better driver. Every pot hole is a major event and you have to anticipate what others are going to do and plan way ahead to avoid problems. Unlike modern vehicles you can't just sit back listening to a CD, relying on a hard press on the servo assisted dual circuit brake pedal with ABS and automatic radar emergency braking function to get you out of trouble. Like many others, my antique motors have the stopping distance of a super tanker which spices up the experience no end!

I've not driven a TR6 myself but I am confident that if you had you would upgrade your culinary description of this superb classic English sports car.

 

[Velma's Dad]

I've not driven a TR6 myself but I am confident that if you had you would upgrade your culinary description of this superb classic English sports car.

TR6 in culinary terms? Probably "Angus Steakhouse rump and chips", ie not sophisticated and you'll need to apply a bit of muscle, but curiously satisfying.

(The TR4 is better, although I'm biased. Live axle and less weight - lighter engine and no IRS gubbins - so not very much slower than a 6 and turns in better especially on the loose. Ribeye, maybe.)

 

[andyinluton]

Borris, you've described it perfectly.

I am trying to bridge the gap between nostalgia and practicality by running a Morgan.

At 3 years old & only 2500 miles, it still needs tinkering with, greasing every 1000 miles & lacks modern driver aids.

On the other hand it has a 2 litre engine from a Ford Mustang, a gearbox from an MX5 a decent heater and a few other more modern bits that give more modern day reliability & high speed cruising ability.

It has retained many of the classic car traits - leaking roof, no stereo, noisy on the motorway & creaks & rattles - this I feel gives it character.

Would I want to drive it every day, no, but give me a sunny afternoon, warm evening or even a dry crisp cold day with the heater on & the sun out & its a joy to drive.

The California like depreciation means it can sit in the garage waiting for the right occasions to come around without me feeling its a waste of money (SWMBO may have a different opinion). but for me it gets my vote as a perfect retirement toy.

 

[andyinluton]

TR6 in culinary terms? Probably "Angus Steakhouse rump and chips", ie not sophisticated and you'll need to apply a bit of muscle, but curiously satisfying.

(The TR4 is better, although I'm biased. Live axle and less weight - lighter engine and no IRS gubbins - so not very much slower than a 6 and turns in better especially on the loose. Ribeye, maybe.)

For me it would have to be the TR5 - perfect mix of the 2, TR4 looks with the TR6 6 cylinder engine, but blimey they've shot up in price.

 

[clarinetbcn]

For me it would have to be the TR5 - perfect mix of the 2, TR4 looks with the TR6 6 cylinder engine, but blimey they've shot up in price.

I always found the German Karmann T6 update on the Giovanni Michelotti styled T4 to be an especially fortunate combination of design languages.

As far as the TR6 drive train, throwing the 2500 straight six into gear and feeling the IRS squat down into a torque infused curve is priceless.

 

[Velma's Dad]

Anyone just joining the thread.. Welcome to the Triumph TR Register (Cali Owners Branch).

 

[clarinetbcn]

I always found the German Karmann TR6 update on the Giovanni Michelotti styled TR4 to be an especially fortunate combination of design languages.

As far as the TR6 drive train, throwing the 2500 straight six into gear and feeling the IRS squat down into a torque infused curve is priceless.

I drove it twice round trip from Mexico City to San Francisco, the second time loaded to the gills with all my belongings before moving to New York City. Brilliant long distance tourer, mainly due to the powerful and vibration free 6 cyl. inline. My Cali's 2.0 diesel is so primitive in feeling by comparison, but its economy makes it the perfect van motor, and I'm lucky to have it.

 

[andyinluton]

As far as the TR6 drive train, throwing the 2500 straight six into gear and feeling the IRS squat down into a torque infused curve is priceless.

Thats what I would like to remember, unfortunately my memories are more waiting at the side of the road for the overheated fuel pump to cool down, the trickle of water running down my left leg when it rained, having to park with all four wheels on level ground if I wanted to be able to shut the doors and weekends spent covered in Isopon filler trying to patch up the wheel arches.

I gave up eventually & bought a far more reliable car from the same stable - a Stag.

 

[clarinetbcn]

I gave up eventually & bought a far more reliable car from the same stable - a Stag.

That certainly would cure anybody of friendly feelings toward Triumph.

Triumph's V8: The worst engine ever made

A nearly unbelievable host of design flaws makes you wonder how such a mess ever made it to production

driving.ca

 

[Velma's Dad]

That certainly would cure anybody of friendly feelings toward Triumph.

Triumph's V8: The worst engine ever made

A nearly unbelievable host of design flaws makes you wonder how such a mess ever made it to production

driving.ca

Yes it certainly has a reputation as a comedy engine for sure. And less than 150bhp from a 3-litre V8 as standard, and bottom end reputedly too weak to be really tune-able. Despite Stag folks saying it wasn't as bad as all that - and they may well be right - a lot of Stags were transplanted with bomb-proof Rover V8s long ago.

 

[andyinluton]

Yes it certainly has a reputation as a comedy engine for sure. And less than 150bhp from a 3-litre V8 as standard, and bottom end reputedly too weak to be really tune-able. Despite Stag folks saying it wasn't as bad as all that - and they may well be right - a lot of Stags were transplanted with bomb-proof Rover V8s long ago.

It was just ahead of its time. Combined with poor quality control.

These days everyone runs around with antifreeze all year - we didn't back then & it caused the studs to corrode.
The timing chains stretched & snapped - these days everyone is used to replacing timing belts & chains.

The Rover V8 upsets the balance of the suspension & brakes as its lighter & changes the character of the car as its more of a low reving plodder with a rev limit a lot lower than the original.

 

[Legin]

In for a penny. My first ride in a Tr6 was as a child in the back of the best mans car at a wedding do, made an impression. I already had my mums old Mk1 mini from age 8 and was practicing on that - does that ever happen these days, all playstation I guess.

The garage I worked at as a Saturday kid used to deal in different cars and restore them, stuff like Crayford Cortina, Maserati Bora, Sunbeam Tiger that sort of thing.

I was gifted some cash as a 14 yr old and wanted to buy that TR6 but I just didnt have enough. One day said garage had a Mk3 GT6 late non roto flex , non od with tints come in.
So after begging the boss it was sold to me ,he already had too many projects on the go especially as some had just been vandalised. Over the 8yrs I had it I fully restored it and modified it. I stroked the 2000 to 2500 and added PI which subsequently I put back on carbs as i couldnt afford the 9 mpg ( it had set up issues).

The herald based le mans geared box use to blow up regularly so I set about building a gearbox from a triumph 2000 and dolly sprint with j type overdrive. Shortened the prop , flared the chassis, mixed all the gearbox internals and off it went. I actually wrote an article for TSSC magazine on the conversion. My goodness this long stroke had torque but rev it and it would break which I did twice.
Only thing I never sussed was twisting driveshafts and blown diffs. It was to be my next project but unfortunately one new year eve I had a really big off and that was it gone and nearly me with it.

So I decided now was the time for that TR6 so went to drive one. Oh dear never meet your heroes its was like driving a truck after the GT6. It may have had a derivative of the swing spring back end but if you were up for it the steering and lift off oversteer were good for rapid progress in a GT6.
So that was it the TR6 never happened and I moved onto RS2000 and the like but nothing matched that GT6, the girls preferred it as well.