1968 TRIUMPH TR5 Registration Number: VGF 78F Chassis Numbe...

Hammer

£38,000

1968 TRIUMPH TR5

Registration Number: VGF 78F
Chassis Number: CP/2266
Recorded Mileage: 22,580 miles

- In current family ownership for 25 years
- Three previous owners, ownership history from new
- Subject to from much previous restoration and maintenance work

Triumph's TR Series began with the unveiling of a prototype (the TR1) at the 1952 London Motorshow. The TR2 was launched the following year, and so began an uninterrupted run of two-seater Sports Cars that ended in 1981 with the last of the TR8s. Codenamed `Zest', the TR4 was introduced in 1961 as a replacement for the TR3A. Though based on the chassis and drivetrain of its much-loved predecessor, it cut a far more modern dash, thanks to an all new Michelotti-styled body. Power was provided by Triumph's proven OHV four-cylinder engine with capacity increased to 2138cc. All it cried out for, to compete with the new wave of saloon GTs was more power. The stock 2-litre GT6 engine was tried and, although smooth, was actually no quicker than the old tractor-derived four-pot. The answer was simple though – enlarge the straight-six by a massive 500cc to give a lusty 2.5-litre and help it breathe a little easier. With a better cylinder head and wilder camshaft, the engine worked well, although it was a bit lumpy at low revs until fuel injection was fitted to better monitor fuel delivery. All this led, in October 1967, to the launch of the TR5. Outwardly the car was barely discernible from the TR4A, but the new engine, complete with Lucas fuel injection, turned the TR into a genuine performance car, with a handy 150bhp on tap. The TR5 is arguably the best of the lot, enjoying the clean unsullied looks of the TR4 with the raunchiness of the TR6. A total of just 2,947 TR5s left the factory between October 1967 and November 1968.

This rare UK-delivered example was dispatched from the works in May 1968 via dealer H.R.Owen of London to its first owner in Maidstone, Kent, who kept his new sports car for nine years before selling it in 1977. The second owner (from nearby Byfleet) pressed the TR5 into daily transport until the early 1980s, at which point his work took him to Singapore and the Triumph remained in the garage at home. By the late 1990s it was clear the owner was not coming home, and so the TR5 was traded via a dealer to the third owner, Mr. John Powell from Christchurch in Dorset. Mr. Powell commissioned much restoration of the car’s bodywork, unfortunately later to have to sell the car to fund a building project. As such the current vendor’s family acquired the TR5 in 1998 and have kept it ever since. Although car was presentable and in good mechanical order, the new owner wanted to get it up to near concours standard, and so the TR5 was restored once more with new panels as required, replacement trim and chromework, and sundry other smaller items. Since completion the Triumph has been serviced annually, and dry stored when not in use.

Finished in its original shade of Wedgewood Blue with a black interior, and complete with current V5C and older V5 registration documents, and a thick file of bills for restoration works and replacement parts, this is clearly a well loved example of one of Triumph’s best efforts.