People’s thoughts on TR4

[Neilson]

Hi all, I wondered what your thoughts are on this TR4 I’ve been offered?

It was stripped down to bare metal, seams filled and new paint in the last year, so no rust anywhere.

Gearbox rebuilt in 2021, and engine rebuilt around 2019.

What you do think?

 

 

[BlueTR3A-5EKT]

I probably would not duck if you threw the keys at me.

Looks quite fine from the photos.

[Neilson]

16 minutes ago, BlueTR3A-5EKT said:

I probably would not duck if you threw the keys at me.

Looks quite fine from the photos.

Thanks, that what I thought!

I was after a TR4A, so need to learn if the TR4 is similar to driving experience before I take the plunge

[BlueTR3A-5EKT]

1 minute ago, Neilson said:

Thanks, that what I thought!

I was after a TR4A, so need to learn if the TR4 is similar to driving experience before I take the plunge

  The solid axle TR4 is a well behaved and solid car.    Perhaps the solid  axle TR4A would be as good if not better.
 IRS, for me, is not attractive.

Stuart will be along in a moment no doubt.   
 

[Neilson]

7 minutes ago, BlueTR3A-5EKT said:

  The solid axle TR4 is a well behaved and solid car.    Perhaps the solid  axle TR4A would be as good if not better.
 IRS, for me, is not attractive.

Stuart will be along in a moment no doubt.   
 

I’ve been reading up a bit, and it does seem a lot of people prefer the solid axle, and it’s cheaper to repair. That could just be TR4 owners though haha. 
 

I do really like this car though, and this I believe could be the one I end up purchasing.

[Lebro]

Not only cheaper to repair, but there is a lot less to go wrong.

The hood on a 4 takes longer to put up, & you don't get the nice wood dash, but overall I would opt for a 4 over a 4A anytime.

Bob

[BlueTR3A-5EKT]

3 minutes ago, Lebro said:

Not only cheaper to repair, but there is a lot less to go wrong.

The hood on a 4 takes longer to put up, & you don't get the nice wood dash, but overall I would opt for a 4 over a 4A anytime.

Bob

…..That is because we have owned solid axle TRs for 50 years and heard too many horror stories of rotted chassis and differential mounts breaking on IRS cars.  Etc.  

Driving comfort is better with IRS if it has been left generally standard as far as springs and dampers are concerned.  Many have been uprated to a ride so hard, that if it were a casual partner, you would have to buy it dinner.  That would be an even more firm ride than the sold axle car.

  Personally I like the Spa white dash panel over the wooden covering of later cars as that was very period.  The car you are shewing looks to have a Surrey hard top which in its self is a nice modification.  Surrey Soft tops and frames can be found used to convert the car if you so wish.   Ask the seller if they have them.   Maybe even full soft top and frame plus a tonneau for proper open top motoring.

[gloide69]

It looks like it has had new floors and sills fitted, but check if the floor mounting point braces were, as I can't see them in the pictures of the body underside.

Paul

[ianc]

TR4 is as tough as old boots, whereas, as Bob has intimated, there's a lot more to go wrong with IRS.

I started learning about problems with the IRS TRs when I was the Tech Editor in the 1970s .  First, it was collapse of front suspensions, followed by swinging arms coming adrift at the rear.  Then diffs started to come adrift, and later the drive shafts and hubs started to fail.   Such failures are rather scary and can result in a crash.

There have been fixes devised for all these matters - but at what cost?   Meanwhile, the cart axle TR4 just continues to motor on oblivious to all these modern "improvements".

Personally, I would never buy an IRS TR.

Ian Cornish

[John Morrison]

if it s got overdrive its the best TR of the lot, and this one looks a beauty.

John.

[Chilliman]

1 hour ago, ianc said:

Personally, I would never buy an IRS TR.

+1

[North London Mike]

1 hour ago, ianc said:

Personally, I would never buy an IRS TR.

Ian Cornish

+1, done a lot of miles in mine and some in the company of IRS cars, no contest.

The older 'live' car takes takes a licking and keeps on ticking (with apologies to Timex) 

[Neilson]

3 hours ago, Lebro said:

Not only cheaper to repair, but there is a lot less to go wrong.

The hood on a 4 takes longer to put up, & you don't get the nice wood dash, but overall I would opt for a 4 over a 4A anytime.

Bob

Thanks Bob, that sounds good!

Luckily it has the original Surrey set up, which is a bonus, and I really like the white metal dash rather than the wood.

I think I’ve definitely found the one! ;)

[Neilson]

2 hours ago, BlueTR3A-5EKT said:

…..That is because we have owned solid axle TRs for 50 years and heard too many horror stories of rotted chassis and differential mounts breaking on IRS cars.  Etc.  

Driving comfort is better with IRS if it has been left generally standard as far as springs and dampers are concerned.  Many have been uprated to a ride so hard, that if it were a casual partner, you would have to buy it dinner.  That would be an even more firm ride than the sold axle car.

  Personally I like the Spa white dash panel over the wooden covering of later cars as that was very period.  The car you are shewing looks to have a Surrey hard top which in its self is a nice modification.  Surrey Soft tops and frames can be found used to convert the car if you so wish.   Ask the seller if they have them.   Maybe even full soft top and frame plus a tonneau for proper open top motoring.

I’ve been reading and taking in a lot of info, and there does seem to be a lot of issues with the IRS set up. I do like the chrome indicators and lines on the TR4A, but like you I love the white metal dash.

The Surrey set up is all original and I do believe he has the soft top panel, but I don’t know what the condition is like. I’m not sure if they’ve got the full soft top and frame, so I’ll check on this.

 

Thanks for the advice!

 

[Neilson]

2 hours ago, gloide69 said:

It looks like it has had new floors and sills fitted, but check if the floor mounting point braces were, as I can't see them in the pictures of the body underside.

Paul

Thanks Paul, I’ll make a note of this and ask the seller.

Neil

[ricky30dk]

4 hours ago, BlueTR3A-5EKT said:

  The solid axle TR4 is a well behaved and solid car.    Perhaps the solid  axle TR4A would be as good if not better.
 IRS, for me, is not attractive.

Stuart will be along in a moment no doubt.   
 

Am I the only one suffering from rear axle twist/steer? It’s sufficiently noticeable that my wife has started finding reasons not to get in the car…..

[Neilson]

2 hours ago, ianc said:

TR4 is as tough as old boots, whereas, as Bob has intimated, there's a lot more to go wrong with IRS.

I started learning about problems with the IRS TRs when I was the Tech Editor in the 1970s .  First, it was collapse of front suspensions, followed by swinging arms coming adrift at the rear.  Then diffs started to come adrift, and later the drive shafts and hubs started to fail.   Such failures are rather scary and can result in a crash.

There have been fixes devised for all these matters - but at what cost?   Meanwhile, the cart axle TR4 just continues to motor on oblivious to all these modern "improvements".

Personally, I would never buy an IRS TR.

Ian Cornish

Thanks Ian, some really interesting points.

I never even considered a TR4, as I wax totally set on getting the newer version. I thought if there was any faults the TR4A version would iron these out.

From what it sounds the TR4 is pretty bullet proof, and I’m really interested in buying this car!

Thanks Ian

Neil

[Neilson]

1 hour ago, John Morrison said:

if it s got overdrive its the best TR of the lot, and this one looks a beauty.

John.

Thanks John, it has got overdraft in 3rd and 4th gears, and was rebuilt last year by a TR specialist!

Best
Neil

[Lebro]

Should have overdrive in 2nd gear also, maybe a saloon gearbox  fitted ?

Bob

[Neilson]

One thing he diid mention, was that it has a dynamo that has been changed to a negative earth. 
Would a dynamo suffer if j was to add a classic clock and new radio/cd?

Edited October 11, 2023 by Neilson

[RobH]

Just now, Neilson said:

Would a dynamo suffer if I was to add a classic clock and new radio/cd?

No  - nether draw very much current. (Supposing the radio is a normal one and you are not going for a boom-box  !)

[roy53]

Neil it is the colour you were looking for.

Looks interesting as well. The IRS is a lot smother ride suspension wise compared to the 4 , but my 4 has Revington competition rear springs so may be not best to compare.

A friend and myself both have 5s [IRS ] and 4s and both enjoy the driving the 4s most but this is more the engine , so much torque for the whole rev range that changing gear is cut down compared to the 5.  Comfort though the IRS wins hands down.

Roy

[Neilson]

54 minutes ago, RobH said:

No  - nether draw very much current. (Supposing the radio is a normal one and you are not going for a boom-box  !)

Thanks for info Rob, I might go for a crazy sub woofer in the rear and a 100 watt amp to drive it haha!

Best

Neil

[Malbaby]

Overall it looks good, but does have faults.

More pics including the door panel gaps would be helpful.

Live axle versus IRS is a personal choice, as is the TR4 style emergency brake position on your left leg.

Minor things like the additional puller fan and untidy hydraulic lines in the engine bay would annoy me.

More of a concern is ......the question of the inner sill/floor body mounts. One can only assume they were welded in after the oics were taken...Assume new floor pans fitted.

Plus ...if the underside of the body was stripped down to bare metal and any rust eliminated, why is so much seam sealer used.

My impression is that minor rust areas, may have been cleaned, then liberal amounts of sealer were applied over the primer...The bottom of the spare wheel well looks problematic...Rust was not eliminated as stated, but contained.

 

[What was wrong with the second TR6 pic that you posted]

[Neilson]

52 minutes ago, roy53 said:

Neil it is the colour you were looking for.

Looks interesting as well. The IRS is a lot smother ride suspension wise compared to the 4 , but my 4 has Revington competition rear springs so may be not best to compare.

A friend and myself both have 5s [IRS ] and 4s and both enjoy the driving the 4s most but this is more the engine , so much torque for the whole rev range that changing gear is cut down compared to the 5.  Comfort though the IRS wins hands down.

Roy

Hi Roy, to be honest my search has turned into a holy grail of sorts!

I’ve always wanted a Royal Blue one, and wanted to get the correct blue, as it seems there’s a few versions of this colour.

At first I was adamant about getting a TR4A, and then got really interested in the TR5s seeing their value drop somewhat. 

I was going to get a yellow TR250, which seemed a bargain but the TR5 group gave me some great advice and I pulled out of the sale. I was even considering putting a bid in for the red TR5 on Trade Classics, but if shot right up near the end.

So, I’ve been offered this car, which is the colour I’ve always wanted, and from what I’m hearing is pretty much bullet proof. So I’ll make do with a couple of cushions and hopefully enjoy the ride.

Great to read your thoughts on the TR4 and TR5 comfort differences .

Thanks Roy 

Neil