leafsprung Posted May 9, 2011 Report Share Posted May 9, 2011 (edited) Disclosure statement - I'm a old land rover guy and have made fun of triumph guys polishing their cars between gusts of wind at the local ABFM. I was driving along a country road this weekend on my way to pick up a winch and out of the corner of my eye spotted a small car under a lean to with a bunch of **** stacked around it. Asked the owner about it. He tells me its a triumph tr3 and he had it since 1973. He tells me he used it to tow dirt bikes to the trail then when he got a pickup he parked it. He tells me he will sell it and what he wants for it. I donno anything about triumphs but it seems like a good price. Looked it over, determined that it was not very rusty, was complete, and the engine turned over. Went back the following day and drug it home. Needs some tinkering, but I think I can having driving in a weekends worth of work. Attaching pics below. Did some research and was trying to determine how original this car was and what options were. It has a rear seat, overdrive, heater and wire wheels. Not sure what other options might have been. I donno how to determine what engine it came with (Ive seen references to two different displacements) The VIN is TS8888LO Car also needs a windshield. It seems like maybe its not quite flat. Is there a source for these that isnt 300 bucks? Thanks for your help -Ike Edited May 9, 2011 by leafsprung Quote Link to post Share on other sites
foster461 Posted May 9, 2011 Report Share Posted May 9, 2011 Disclosure statement - I'm a old land rover guy and have made fun of triumph guys polishing their cars between gusts of wind at the local ABFM. I was driving along a country road this weekend on my way to pick up a winch and out of the corner of my eye spotted a small car under a lean to with a bunch of **** stacked around it. Asked the owner about it. He tells me its a triumph tr3 and he had it since 1973. He tells me he used it to tow dirt bikes to the trail then when he got a pickup he parked it. He tells me he will sell it and what he wants for it. I donno anything about triumphs but it seems like a good price. Looked it over, determined that it was not very rusty, was complete, and the engine turned over. Went back the following day and drug it home. Needs some tinkering, but I think I can having driving in a weekends worth of work. Attaching pics below. Did some research and was trying to determine how original this car was and what options were. It has a rear seat, overdrive, heater and wire wheels. Not sure what other options might have been. I donno how to determine what engine it came with (Ive seen references to two different displacements) The VIN is TS8888LO Car also needs a windshield. It seems like maybe its not quite flat. Is there a source for these that isnt 300 bucks? Thanks for your help -Ike Ike, congratulations as that looks like a great find especially with overdrive. There were not too many options but typically this car would have come with a heater, perhaps windshield washer. What shape are the floors, interior and engine bay in ?. The Triplex windshield glass is around $300 but locally I can get a non Triplex glass that is DOT approved for half of that from a guy that gets them from China.. They are a pig to assemble but that is a topic for another day. Stan Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Hicks51 Posted May 9, 2011 Report Share Posted May 9, 2011 Hi Ike, Sounds like a dream find for some people! I would recommend that you post some detailed photos of the interior, (seats, dash, dials) and engine compartment, so that people can advise you on its originality. If you become a "serious" TR owner, I would advise you to get a book or two on the history of the marque. Bill Piggott's books are all excellent and contain the results of years of detailed research. I look forward to seeing more pics and hearing how you get on. Brian (UK, Berkshire) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew Smith Posted May 9, 2011 Report Share Posted May 9, 2011 Nice find Ike, nice car, nice colour too and doesn’t appear too shabby on the outside! Good luck and post some more photos so we can see more and offer you more opinion. Cheers Andrew Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Guest ntc Posted May 9, 2011 Report Share Posted May 9, 2011 Looks a good find well done,the engine number would tell you the cc Quote Link to post Share on other sites
leafsprung Posted May 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 9, 2011 Stan: Would like to hear more about the windshield glass. The floors seem fine. No previous repairs. Cleaned it out well and wire brushed it, found a few pinholes on passenger side behind the seat. Aside from that I cant find any rust in the car; rockers, truck, tire well, battery tray are all solid. Engine bay seems ok, needs a good vacuum and wash but generally clean, same for interior. Its in solid shape for original trim etc. 42K miles. I havent had time to try and start it, its been as the house for less than 24 hours. Brian: Posting some pics (my quota was reached before engine pic could be posted). Looks pretty original to me. The switch for the overdrive doesnt look right (over on the left) but then I donno what it should be. Engine bay looks reasonable but the carbs/aircleaner may not be right? It has strombergs but came with another set of SUs Thanks for the words of encouragement. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
foster461 Posted May 9, 2011 Report Share Posted May 9, 2011 Stan: Would like to hear more about the windshield glass. The floors seem fine. No previous repairs. Cleaned it out well and wire brushed it, found a few pinholes on passenger side behind the seat. Aside from that I cant find any rust in the car; rockers, truck, tire well, battery tray are all solid. Engine bay seems ok, needs a good vacuum and wash but generally clean, same for interior. Its in solid shape for original trim etc. 42K miles. I havent had time to try and start it, its been as the house for less than 24 hours. Brian: Posting some pics (my quota was reached before engine pic could be posted). Looks pretty original to me. The switch for the overdrive doesnt look right (over on the left) but then I donno what it should be. Engine bay looks reasonable but the carbs/aircleaner may not be right? It has strombergs but came with another set of SUs Thanks for the words of encouragement. Ike, I'm in northern MA and got the TR3 windshield glass from Richard at Pro Source Glass in Andover, MA. 978 975 5044 It is a tad thinner than the Triplex so it goes into the frame easier. The forum has limited space for pictures so most of us use a free photo hosting site like Photobucket and you can link or embed those photos into a forum reply. Stan Quote Link to post Share on other sites
TR Man Posted May 9, 2011 Report Share Posted May 9, 2011 (edited) Disclosure statement - I'm a old land rover guy and have made fun of triumph guys polishing their cars between gusts of wind at the local ABFM. I was driving along a country road this weekend on my way to pick up a winch and out of the corner of my eye spotted a small car under a lean to with a bunch of **** stacked around it. Asked the owner about it. He tells me its a triumph tr3 and he had it since 1973. He tells me he used it to tow dirt bikes to the trail then when he got a pickup he parked it. He tells me he will sell it and what he wants for it. I donno anything about triumphs but it seems like a good price. Looked it over, determined that it was not very rusty, was complete, and the engine turned over. Went back the following day and drug it home. Needs some tinkering, but I think I can having driving in a weekends worth of work. Attaching pics below. Did some research and was trying to determine how original this car was and what options were. It has a rear seat, overdrive, heater and wire wheels. Not sure what other options might have been. I donno how to determine what engine it came with (Ive seen references to two different displacements) The VIN is TS8888LO Car also needs a windshield. It seems like maybe its not quite flat. Is there a source for these that isnt 300 bucks? Thanks for your help -Ike The best think about your car is the fantastic condition of the panels. They look like they have never had a dent. From what I can see the panels gaps are also very good and the bonnet is an almost perfect fit. Amazing really. Well done, it should be a beautiful car when you have finished restoring it. Martin Edited May 9, 2011 by TR Man Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ianhoward Posted May 10, 2011 Report Share Posted May 10, 2011 What a fantastic find! I does mke you wonder how many more are still out there! Wish I could find one as good!!! Good luck with the restoration! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
bnw Posted May 10, 2011 Report Share Posted May 10, 2011 Looks like an Oregon plate. That explains the lack of rust. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Menno van Rij Posted May 10, 2011 Report Share Posted May 10, 2011 First: welcome! Overhere in Holland there are a lot TR owners owning a Land Rover (or the other way around ) So, you are in good company! Second, I think it's a great looking car as it is! Lots of character and a genuine barn find is something most of us dream about. And it's nice to try to get the car on the road using as less money/time as possible. About you pictures: it's best to open an account on Photobucket.com and upload the pics from Ph'bucket to this forum using the button on Photobucket. That way, there's no 500 KB restriction. Menno Quote Link to post Share on other sites
leafsprung Posted May 10, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2011 Thanks for all of the encouragement. Im getting excited about this car. I drained the old gas out, oiled up the cylinders then poured some gas in the carbs and it fired up. Started to clean out the interior as well. Bled the clutch and it works. Brake may need some more in depth attention. Doesnt seem to be a bad car. Have only spent 40 minutes working on it but it seems so much better than when I found it! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
stuart Posted May 10, 2011 Report Share Posted May 10, 2011 I would say you have an absolute bargain there. Very good find indeed, just clean it up and enjoy. Stuart. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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