Consider Triumph’s much-maligned wedge. The car’s controversial shape—critics called it a flying doorstop, a wacky wedge and worse—ignited a firestorm. The TR7 suffered some serious burns at the hands of the factory, the press and consumers, and the TR8 emerged from the ashes of this wildfire. To fully appreciate the TR8, it’s important to empathize with its predecessor’s plight.
During …
This was a really great article about the TR7/TR8. I've owned a lot of Brits in the past, but my TR8 is a keeper.
Great artical, I like to read all I can find on these great , underated cars. I have never driven a tr8 but am looking forward to it,
I have 4 tr7s , 3 dhc, 1 coupe, and a tr8 dhc. I love my little wedges, I am looking forward to building my 8, I have never "raced" my 7s but played alot, they are a blast! My 80 tr7 dhc is well known in MB CAN. as it is most carshows around our area. My 7 was a rough car at best when i got it , now its a gem. My tr8 is a bush parked ,rusty non running lump as of when i got it, But it will be transformed into a gem.It is a AUG 81 built car with injection, and a 5spd. I cant wait to hear it purr and drive it like it was built to do!
I've gone through this article and updated the photos and added the new prices. Hope everyone enjoys!
Thanks Jordan. Great article and update. Kevin O
I was a mechanic at two different BL Dealerships from '75 to '78 and did Pre-Delivery Inspections on a number of new TR7s. It took twice as long to PDI a TR7 as an MGB because of the quality of the labor that assembled them was so poor, then the head gasket jobs started rolling in. My shop manager agreed that it was the poor quality of the head studs that caused most of the problems. After I left the shop for an IT career, my buddies told me that BL finally got decent studs for the TR7 and that they finally got the head gaskets to seal. The other problem we had was the oil pump impeller for the 5-speed LT77 transmission would fail leading to transmission problems. The replacement impellers were much better quality, but the bearings and gears that needed replacement after the pump failure caused multiple transmission replacements. I loved the way the TR7 drove, but the penny pinchers and union labor killed the joy of owning one.
The cars as delivered to the public were notoriously bad due to strikes etc. and although that was prior to the TR8 coming out, the reputation stuck to some degree.
I've driven a late injected TR8 and they are pleasant though far from powerful in terms of what we have today - a 2023 Japanese econobox will leave them in the dust.
I also think that they made a mistake going to the small wheels - that mandated fitting small brakes and hampered the cooling on those brakes. Too bad they didn't go with something closer to Kas Kastner's TR250K!
I was just checking the entry lists for some of our local (Central Florida Region) SCCA events, and I believe I saw a TR8 listed.
You'll need to log in to post.
