François' Triumph TR3B TCF453L
 
 
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Welcome

I made this page to keep the memories of this TR3B. I sold  the car when I moved back to Europe in 2003 because I already had another TR3 (a TR3A to be precise ) there. I originally put this page together to advertise the car on ebay, and I have just removed the marketing comments and details. I have tried to have a color environment  matching the car: Primerose yellow in the background like it was when I bought it, BRG like it was when I sold it :-)

General

Of course, if you are a cognoscenti of the TR3, you know already that the TR3B is a product that Standard-Triumph has actually never had on a catalogue. Indeed, for S-T, it was only the continuation and the end of the TR3A range. It is only later, thatTR-fans dubbed the few thousand TR3’s that were produced simultaneously with the TR4 the “TR3B”. ‘3B’s incorporated quite a few TR4 parts, in particular, for the last batch (the TCF batch): 4-synchro gearbox, 2.2 liter engine instead of the 2.0, TR4 breaks. If you need to know more about the production of the TR# and of the TR3B in particular, I suggest that you consult the website of the Vintage Triumph Register www.vtr.org

The car

When I came across this genuine dry California car I had to get it. It had never left the state and had still its original California black registration plates. I enjoyed it mostly in its somewhat tatty primrose yellow paint cuase I loved its daily driver stance. The original color of the car was powder blue with blue interior. Yuck! The body My TCF453L was wonderfully free of rust. For someone like me from Switzerland, it is always impressive to lay under a car and see the reddish color of rust nowhere. As I was removing the rear fenders to prepare the car for the paint, none of the bolts were seized and most of them could be turned by hand. There was no rust on any of the body panels internal or external apart from the driver-side floor, that had some weakness at the level of the driver’s feet. Before sending the car to the body shop for the green paint, I spent four exhausting days removing all external hardware from the body, removing everything but the block from the engine bay and sanding the primrose yellow paint away to make sure the paint would be laid on a solid base.

That’s the primrose yellow as the car was until spring 2003.

The engine and drive train

The engine on this car was wonderful. It kept upward of 60 psi including in the middle of the summer in Southern Arizona when the external temp is 105 F, and closer to 120 F at the level of the road where the engine lives. What struck me when I bought it, was its strength. It really pulls! The holes for the roll-bar indicated that it might have been raced in an earlier life and the engine was maybe souped-up.

As a TCF, the front brakes are TR4-type with the pins in the pads as they should be. The suspension had been rebuilt just before I got the car and it was firm and tight with the hardware still shiny. The steering was somewhat approximate and therefore I rebuild the steering box, with new bushings, pin, shims and seals. In this condition, the steering is wonderfully tight and precise and really pushes you to ask more speed from the car.

The gearbox was a no-problem: positive with no hard points or sloppiness. I removed it to re-bush the clutch shaft.

The interior

The interior had been changed at some point in the past to black with white piping. A high-quality interior with all the right patterns, quilting and pipings. The carpets were in very good condition. The rear seat cushion had been custom made to fit around the roll-bar as you can see on the pictures. I changed the driver seat cushion (frame and springs) to provide a more positive support. Contrary to what some people claim, I never felt that the new springs set you too high or are too firm. I also re-covered all cockpit cappings with new vinyl.

All gauges, switches and lights worked including the precious original Smith mechanical temperature gauge. I rebuilt the speedometer that had the tendency to stick when the temperature was a bit low.

The car featured the optional Smith heater that is complete including the tiny plastic door handles and has absolutely no rust.