1980 Triumph TR-7

 

                                                                                                                             1980 TR7 DHC Limited Edition Fuel Injected Spider Convertible

                                                                                                                                               Build date: August 1980 @ Solihull. UK

                                                                                                                                                        VIN. No. TPZDJ8AA401889

                                                                                                                                                       California License: 1GDX208

                                                                                                                                                            Body No. BAP216791 

                                                                                                                                                           Engine N0. CK-1403-UC

                                                                                                                                                       Transmission No. CL-106888-C

                                                                                                                                                             Trim Code: RAF (Gray)

                                                                                                                                                    Paint Code: PAG (Maraschino Black)

                                                                                                                                British Motor Industry Heritage Certificate No. 2007-12186

 

 

 

The 1980 TR7 Limited Edition Spider was the first British built car to carry the Spider designation and the most sought after collectible TR7 in the US today. It is estimated that about 1. 70 of these rare limited edition Spiders were built. Even rarer were the 400 or so fuel injected Spiders produced for the California market with its tougher emission standards. However. VIN numbers for Spiders run from 400300 to 401918 overall and for the fuel-injected version from 401400 to 401918. suggesting higher numbers were produced (1618 produced overall 518 being fuel injected). The number of roadworthy Spider‘s has steadily dwindled over the years with fewer than 100 known to exist today.

These sleek. black. Limited Edition Spiders were built for the North American Market and the only production TR7 to be painted Maraschino Black. considered to be the highest quality paint job ever applied to any TR7. Two versions of the TR7 Spider were produced; the California version equipped with the Bosch L-Jetronic fuel injection system and the Federal version equipped with twin SU carburetors. All the Spiders were 5 speed convertibles fitted with air conditioning. All other differences were basically trim including unique alloy wheels and a leather trimmed steering wheel fitted with a Triumph laurel wreath emblem in the center boss. Also fitted was an AM/FM stereo cassette player. pewter-colored deep pile semi-shag carpet. special seat covers with vertical stripes in grey and black and special red reflective 3Mdecals and pin striping on the exterior of the body. Dealer options included a stainless steel trunk mounted luggage rack and fog lights. Our Spider was fitted with all the trim options except fog lights which I added later. (See Notes)

This Spider arrived at the Union Jack Dealership in Hayward. CA. sometime in late spring or early summer of 1981. A build date of August 1980 is stamped on the Manufactures ID Plate mounted to the rear of the driver's side door however. the British Motor Industry Heritage Certificate obtained from factory records has a recorded build date of September 15. 1980. The certificate does not show a recorded date of shipment to the US but specifies it is a left hand drive vehicle for export to North America (California) export.

I purchased our Spider new at the Union Jack Dealership in Hayward Ca. on October 19. 1982 for the sum of $6500. Post British Leyland it was one of two remaining new cars on the showroom floor. the other being a pricier 1981 silver TR8. By the time of our purchase this Spider had turned two years old and the odometer registered 1749 dealer driven miles. With the demise of British Leyland the Union Jack Dealership was renamed Mr. Corvette selling used Corvettes.

Over the next five years I drove our Spider as a daily commuter while living in the East Bay of San Francisco. During this period. other than minor tune ups. the car remained trouble free. In July of 1987 an engine failure. the result of a broken piston ring scouring the #4 cylinder wall. resulted in it being placed into storage where it remained for the next 19 years. The odometer recorded 78437 accident free miles at the time of the engine failure.

Upon retirement in January 2006 I brought our Spider out of storage for a frame on restoration at Glenn Clark's “The Car Clinic” in Rancho Cordova CA. Glenn is a trained mechanic in all things British and hails from New Zealand. He rebuilt and installed a replacement engine and a rebuilt Rover LT-77 5 speed transmission while the original engine and transmission were sent out to be rebuilt to be re-installed at a later date.  Glenn inspected and repaired the Bosch Fuel Injection. updated the suspension. bringing our Spider back to life. During the rebuild of 401889 every effort was made to keep it factory original. (See Notes)

In January of 2007 our Spider was repainted and detailed by Lorenzo's of Rancho Cordova. The body was completely stripped to bare metal. primed & painted. During this process no rust was located anywhere on the body or Frame. Every effort was made to restore it to its original factory color and trim including newly reproduced reflective 3M decals & pin striping.

British Motor Industry Heritage Trust Certificate No. 2007-12186 was issued to 401889 on September 12. 2007. The certificate is a certified copy of the original factory production records from British Leyland. The information contained in the certificate verifies the make. model. car chassis/VIN number. engine number. body number. specification. span >  color. build date. date of dispatch. destination. and details of factory installed equipment. All numbers and information contained in the certificate have been verified & matched to 401889.

Our TR-7 Spider continues to be a work in progress as well as a daily driver that any car owner would be proud to own. Once our restoration was completed it resulted in a noticeable increase in horsepower from the standard 90 hp to about 125 hp. greatly improving performance. My wife and I continue to drive our Spider whenever possible and it is. to put it simply. a fun car to drive. The TR7 Spider still turns heads today with its modern clean lines rivaling many current production cars.  This Spider has been driven a total of 8590 miles since restoration was completed. In May of 2007 our Spider won 1st place and the People's Choice Award at the United British Sports Car Club in Woodland California. the largest British car show in Northern California.

The sleek TR-7 Spider and its V8 variant the TR-8 arrived on the scene too late to save British Leyland and the TR/MG line of cars from demise bringing to an end an era of British motoring. In many ways the TR7 was a car ahead of its time and during its production run of about 115. 00 cars it out sold all previous TR production models to date.   In the end the TR7 came to be regarded as the red headed step child of British Leyland due to production difficulties. labor issues. and lack of quality control. It suffered a much maligned reputation much of which it did & did not warrant.

Since its debut in 1975 the TR-7 has gained a grudging acceptance among many diehard classic TR drivers as a true TR. the last of its line. The TR-7 shared very little in its engineering and design with its predecessors. Over the past 37 years the TR-7 and TR-8 have garnered a solid following of enthusiasts who are just now beginning to discover and restore this low cost line of British sports cars while parts and intact cars are still readily available and affordable. Aftermarket specialty shops are discovering the TR7/8's potential and beginning to offer various upgrades to enhance its drivability and appearance.

The following documented work was completed to our Spider between January of 2006 and September of 2012:

1. The factory installed engine was temporarily replaced by rebuilt engine # CL-16369-UEand the original fuel injected cylinder head was rebuilt & reinstalled in June of 2006 (see notes)      

2.  New upgraded reduction starter installed summer 2006

3.  New OEM Delco Remy electronic distributor installed summer 2006  

4. New OEM drive shaft installed summer 2006 

5  Original Factory steering wheel. seats. door panels & sun visors  refurbished summer 2006

6. New OEM shocks. struts. and upgraded urethane suspension bushings installed throughout summer 2006 

7. The OEM Bosch L- Jettronic fuel injection system & electrical harness were refurbished using the existing inventory of Bosch parts including new sensors. custom made induction hoses. rebuilt air-flow meter & new throttle body summer 2006

8. New OEM disks rotors installed & Front & Rear Brakes overhauled summer 2006

9. OEM Factory Fuel Tank refurbished summer 2006 The factory installed 5 speed transmission (CL-106888-C) was replaced temporarily by a rebuilt Rover LT-77 5(14ACL-1129B) 5 speed transmission spring 2007 (see notes)

10. New custom exhaust system & catalytic converter installed spring 2007

11. Vehicle repainted & detailed spring 2007

12. The OEM Filter & Filter housing was replaced by an K&N cold air intake system spring 2010

13. The OEM Differential Hub equipped with a 3. 45:1 rear axle ratio (California Spiders only as opposed to 3. 90. 1 ratio for the manual carburetor 5-speed Spiders) was rebuilt to factory specs with new axle kits & bearings installed spring 2010

14. New upgraded 98 amp alternator installed  August 2010

15. New tinted windshield & Trim installed August2010

16. New engine mounts installed spring August 2012

17. New clutch kit installed spring August 2012.

18. New upgraded radial A/C compressor. mounting bracket. hoses. & fittings installed spring 2012

9. New custom built aluminum radiator & A/C condenser by Wizard Cooling installed fall 2012

20. Original engine & transmission re-installed August 2011 

Notes:

The Factory installed OEM engine. CK-1403-UC. was disassembled and rebuilt to factory specs. Rebuilding included the re-sleeving of the #4 cylinder. new upgraded OEM high compression pistons (. 020 oversize pistons boosting the compression from 8. 1. 1 to 9. 25. 1). new rods and bearings and a rebuilt factory OEM fuel injected cylinder head were re-installed August of 2012.  The original factory installed 5 Speed LT77 Transmission CL-106888-C. was disassembled and inspected. found to be in perfect condition and reassembled with new seals and installed August2012 The 1980 TR7 Spider was a marketing package developed in the United States by importers. Jaguar. Rover. Triumph (JRT. Inc. ). The cars were not exported from the factory with all the trim. For example. the striping kits. radios. steering wheels and cosmetic packages were sourced by the importer. JRT. and retro-fitted by the dealers in the US. Many of the trim part numbers will not be found in the factory manuals or parts lists because they were not factory sourced parts. Many of the parts were secured through various sources at JRT and shipped to the dealers with the accessory parts stored in the car's boot prior to being installed. Spares include a new Robbins top. various fuel injection parts. hoses. & ignition parts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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