The Triumph 2000 was a common car all over Europe in the 1970’s – Triumph sold over 300,000 of them between 1963 and 1977, and they were fairly perennial in most Shut It You’re Nicked TV shows during that period. However, that doesn’t translate to the US – Triumph attempted to sell them into the US market during some undefined period in the 1960s. I haven’t been able to find out precisely when, but all three of mine were registered in 1967.
Three, you say? Yes, that’s right. I don’t know how many were sold, but there’s never more than one or two at the various shows and I know a handful of people in the sunny Pacific Northwest that keep ’em running. For such an uncommon car, it’s not all that difficult – the engine is all GT6 (or TR6 at a 500cc-higher push), and brakes are similar enough to Stag that there’s some degree of commonality. The Stag is, of course, an evolution of the mk2 Triumph 2000… but that’s another story entirely.
This particularly sad and lonely vehicle is a 1967 in Leyland White with black interior and moss accessories. Given the terminal rust on the doors and the fact that around 50% of the engine is in the boot, it’s a total shock to find that a) the carpets are just fine, and b) the seats are almost perfect under all the dust. This one has sat since about 2001, when it suffered some kind of compression loss and the subsequent repair was abandoned. Unfortunately, sitting for ten years with the head off means the engine is a now a large piece of seized scrap iron, which is a shame.
This car was the “get one free” on a “buy this car, you have to take that one as well” deal. More on the other one to come.