Yahoo Autos Junkyard Gem: 1979 Triumph TR7 Coupe
When the time came for British Leyland to replace the aging Triumph TR6, a machine that was both affordable and didn't compete directly for sales with the BL-built MG MGB, MG Midget and Triumph Spitfire was needed. This car was the radically styled TR7, which first went on sale in the United States as a 1975 model. We saw a 1979 TR7 Drophead Coupé in a California boneyard a couple of years back, and now we're heading back to the Golden State for a discarded example of the hardtop version for the same year.
North American sales of the TR7 overlapped those of the TR6 into 1976, then continued through 1981. That was a year longer than new MGs were available here.
General Motors must have been inspired by these British Leyland corporate badges when the company put "Mark of Excellence" fender badges on its cars during the grim period of the mid-to-late 2000s.
The TR7's engine was a SOHC slant-four, developed in partnership with Saab and first installed in the Saab 99 and Triumph Dolomite. This one displaces 2.0 liters and was rated at 85.5 horsepower (British Leyland didn't hesitate to claim half-horses).
The transmission in this car is a five-speed manual. A three-speed automatic was available, but I've never seen a two-pedal TR7.
