Triumph Spitfire mkIV

Triumph Spitfire IV 1972 1300cc (Historic vehicle tax)

MOT until 30/04/2017

3 owner car. restored and returned to the road in 2015 after the last tax ran out in April 1989. Finished in the original Pimento red (orange) but in 2 pack paint. The mileage currently reads 31871. I am unable to confirm the true mileage. but the condition of the interior suggested that this is genuine. I have only added 1600 miles since I bought the car in 2005. I stripped the car & did the initial body work after I bought the car. then it remained largely untouched for a number of years while I was distracted by other projects. The previous owner had taken the car off the road (presumably for MOT failure due to body rust?) and it had remained in her brothers garage until I bought it. It was a very complete & unmolested car and had no weld repairs when I bought it.

The chassis was in good order and was taken to bare metal and repainted with zinc primer and chassis black. The body has had new rear wings & inner wheel arches. new outer & centre sill sections with new sill end caps at the front. The bonnet is GRP. but retains all the inner frame-work and was fettled to achieve the best possible fit. with the heater grill cut out (this often isn't done on GRP bonnets that I've seen). The bonnet underside finished in satin black. It also has GRP front corner valances. As is has a GRP bonnet. the wing to bonnet seam has been removed to give a smoother look to the front end. At the rear. the bumper mounting features in the rear wings have been removed to smooth the rear end out too (number plate lights integrated into the number plate bolts). The underside of the body had the same treatment as the chassis. stripped to bare metal. zinc primer. chassis black. but also under sealed with Waxoyl under seal.

The vinyl hood was fitted in 2015. it was new old stock but of unknown make. The carpets are all new (Newton Commercial). the rest of the interior is predominantly original and is in good condition. I have the original internal door cappings. but decided not to fit them after the painter had re-finished the internal door tops. The steering wheel has been replaced with a 13” Mountney leather wheel. but the original will go with the car too.

It has red poly bushes fitted all round. spax adjustable dampers - front with adjustable spring platforms. uprated front springs. a quick steering rack - with solid alloy mounts. GT6 uprights & M16 callipers spaced for matching vented discs. The brake servo was removed. but the master cylinder size increased to compensate.

The electrics are largely standard. but it has H4 halogen headlights.

The engine was initially run after returning the car to the road. but then removed and re-freshed with a re-ground crank. new piston rings. duplex timing gear & chain. Accuspark electronic ignition. later Lucas re-con alternator. valves lapped in ARP flywheel & con-rod bolts. The standard cam was carefully timed to equal lift on overlap. The cylinder head does not have hardened valve seats for unleaded fuel. but the car comes with a quantity of lead replacement additive. this is easily added when re-fuelling. At the same time. the gearbox was re-built with new syncro rings. bearings selector bush kit and alloy bell-housing (8kg weight saving). The engine is otherwise standard. running the original twin 1. 25” SU's. these have stub stacks on the inlets with piper-cross filters. There is a tubular stainless steel exhaust manifold running into a stainless steel Pheonix sports exhaust. I added a centre resonator box to this to quieten it down. but the original straight-through pipe can go with the car. Since this rebuild. the engine and gearbox (which has fully working overdrive) have completed 1400 miles. including a trip from the Midlands to the Goodwood revival. on Motorway & dual carriage way. where it performed faultlessly and kept up with the traffic with no issues.

It has revolution 4 spoke 13x6 alloys. which go well with the body colour. They are fitted with Yokohama A048 185/60x13 tyres in medium compound. these were new in 2015. as such they have hardly any wear.

This car has been garaged all the time I have owned it and has had little use. with even less in the wet. It is for sale as I have a new project and a lack of space. I've had my fun with the car. so it's time for it to find a 4th owner.

Also published at eBay.co.uk

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