1974 Triumph TR6

This Triumph TR6 rolled out of the Canley factory at the end of April 1974 and was shipped to PJ Evans Triumph dealer in Birmingham. Soon after, it appears to have been transferred to distributor F Guyver & Sons of Stratford on Avon who registered the car on the first of December that year. It was sold to local architects Badger, Harrison and Cross - presumably for the use of one of the partners.

The first owners diligently returned the car to Guyver’s for servicing according to the manufacturer’s recommendations. Within the first two years they had clocked up nearly 30,000 miles, necessitating ten visits to the garage.

A dozen changes of ownership later sees the current keeper - our vendor from Brecon - acquiring the car in July 2020.

He has a small collection of vehicles and had been looking for a good TR6 for over 3 years, travelling up and down the country before finding this one during lockdown in Newcastle.

In his two years plus of ownership since, he has used it just for his own driving pleasure, always in the dry and kept garaged when not in use. He also reports that the car “has started without fail every time”.

With domestic encouragement to get a campervan and a “one in, one out” policy in force, he’s selling the Triumph - although he is managing to sneak a motorbike into his collection for a bit of “me time”.

The exterior of the TR6 is painted yellow - or as Triumph called it, Mimosa. Although it is likely the colour name was simply a nod to the yellow variants of the mimosa flower, the plant is also appropriately known for being one of relatively few (like the Venus fly trap) capable of “rapid movement”.

We digress. Whatever the inspiration for the name, the resprayed yellow paint looks fantastic and the car really stands out, even on a gloomy day. Narrow black coach stripes follow a swage line down each shoulder to the TR6 decal on the side of the rear wings.

At this point with British Leyland-era cars, we will often describe how woefully period-correct the panel gaps and shut lines are. However, this car seems to have had them attended to as the gaps appear even and the panels largely well-aligned and undamaged.

There are a few blemishes here and there - a tiny bubble low down aft of the passenger door and a few knocks and scratches for example. But these are few and none of them detract from the overall look of the car.

The black vinyl folding roof appears to be a fairly recent replacement, as it looks undamaged and in good order with no sharp creasing in the plastic rear windows. It folds away neatly under a matching cover. According to the heritage record, the car also left the factory with a hard top but this has probably long since been separated from the car.

Like the paint, the chrome brightwork isn’t perfect but it is very good for the age of the car and doesn’t appear to have any significant damage.

The TR6 sits on original-style 15-inch Dunlop steel wheels, painted silver with a red TR6 logo in the centre cap. All are presented in a reasonably good condition and are shod with matching Vredestein Sprint Classic tyres dating from 2016.

The interior of the car - as important as the outside on a roadster - looks in good order too. It is upholstered in black vinyl with faux graining, pleating and diamond-shaped perforations on the seat facings. Neither seat shows any obvious signs of wear or damage.

The dash is a classic seventies padded black vinyl affair surrounding a plain-grain wood instrument panel inset with Smiths gauges and all the analogue knobs and switches you would expect. In the centre console is the original Sharp AM radio that has been repaired and modified to allow smartphones and music players to connect through it.

The leather-rimmed steering wheel looks original and sports the appropriate amount of burnishing and patina around the rim that you would expect.

Elsewhere, the rubber seal around the windscreen looks a little perished and nicked in places but the carpets are clean and intact and generally all looks in great shape internally.

Under the front-hinged bonnet, the engine bay is laid out simply and orderly, with just the rather unruly fuel injector lines and ignition leads spoiling the neatness. There are a few signs of surface rust around some of the ancillaries and fixings but generally everything appears as it should and the engine starts and runs well.

The undersides of the TR6 appear fairly solid with older underseal on the chassis members now starting to flake off. Some of the suspension and steering components sport a little surface rust and road grime too but nothing of significance. The rear portion of the exhaust has been fitted with a stainless steel unit.

The rear boot linings and carpet are clean and intact and under the floor board is a full size spare wheel fitted with Mohawk rubber. In and around the spare are a tool roll, jack and wheel brace. The boot contains a number of running spares including an auxiliary belt, fuel filter and spark plugs.

There is also a tonneau cover with a centre zip which gives a solo driver a degree of protection when driving in uncertain weather. Zipped up, the car can be left roof down but still water tight for when you’ve reached the destination.

The Triumph’s last MOT expired in May 2021. It is of course age-exempt but we always recommend that a classic car owner considers getting an independent assessment of roadworthiness and safety each year - just in case you are ever called upon to provide proof.

The car comes with a fairly well-organised history folder containing a BMIHT factory record certificate, previous log books and MOT records back to 1979.

There are numerous invoices dating back to 1994, many from specialists like Rimmer Bros, for parts purchased and maintenance work done over the years as well as a few period brochures, a magazine article and a barely used Haynes Workshop manual.

There is also some evidence that a previous owner tried to track down as many earlier owners as they could to get their narrative on the car - a sheet of names, some email replies and a couple of “return to sender - address unknown” letters. Other items and correspondence point to previous owners having been active participants within the TR Register Car Club.

Intriguingly, there is a copy of a “Plant and Truck” auction catalogue from Oct 2011 where a previous owner saw the TR6 listed alongside all manner of construction machinery and equipment. It turned out that it was the property of the auctioneer himself but it was still something of a surprise to find in the sale - even if it was a similar colour to a JCB!

Lastly there’s the original owner’s book pack, which includes the Handbook, Dealer Directory and Passport to Service document. This service record shows the first two years of entries from the supplying dealer, F Guyver & Sons of Stratford on Avon. There were no fewer than 6 service entries in 1975 and a further 4 the following year, diligently following manufacturer’s advice and taking the car up to 27,000 miles.

The vendor reports that recent work includes stripping and rebuilding of the gearbox and overdrive unit.

The TR6 represents the last of the line of classic TR sports cars before Triumph went in a very different direction with the wedge-tastic TR7. It has sixties period low-slung roadster looks, a characterful seventies cabin, and a driving experience with more power on tap than many of its more numerous contemporaries.

This example is an eye-catching beauty in a good condition and running well, which we think anyone would be pleased to drive and show. It represents all that is great about the Triumph TRs and we estimate it will sell for between £17,000 and £22,000.

And at that price for a TR6, we don’t think you can go far wrong.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.