December 2020/January 2021 Issue 326

A select bunch from Goodwood attended the last actual Laon Historique meeting at the former French capital in 2019. On the final day, GWTR stalwarts Steve and Fay Young, in their black TR4A, were having trouble in starting the car in the hotel car park. It had performed well on the round-town bash the day before (see picture).
GWTR's finest gathered round for the usual post-mortem. General opinion was a weedy battery as the culprit, but it was not the only culprit, as Steve relates:
''On the drive home from Laon, it became increasingly difficult to change gear, and what with the failing battery, the pouring rain and a pumping left foot on the clutch, it was not the most edifying of journeys - the rain coming down on my good lady sitting to my left as well being a more immediate irritation. So before taking the TR on a long journey again, I resolved to get the thing looked at. Turned out that the gearbox was leaking oil into the clutch (how, I know not), which was the cause of the gear changing difficulty. David Rose Classics of Storrington, West Sussex, has renewed the clutch, and the gearbox has been refurbished. Whilst all that was out of the car, I replaced the mats, renewed the transmission tunnel with one from Revington (it had seen better days and was only kept together by the underfelt!). The electronic ignition needed some attention, and of course a more resilient battery. After a wash and brush-up - for me as well as the car, I find it is going like the proverbial conker, and ready for the next time we are able to meet and show it off again''.

Andy Fell's TR3A's body refitting is gradually progressing. Trim and seats have been refurbished. Panel fitting is in progress and an inner front wing is getting attention. A bump in a past life has required some bodywork adjustment - like the scuttle panel which needs raising on the passenger's side to be properly level. New door skins are being fitted and thereafter the car should be made ready for spraying in Sebring White.

Scribe is doubtless treading on old ground, but it might be of potential interest to some. A few months back, my TR3A met a freshly fallen tree branch in full leaf, gale blowing, a wet and narrow road and oncoming traffic. Nowhere to go, so skidded gently into said branch. The offside bumper had collected a smallish dent. Gave it some thought, and whilst the useless appendage could be hammered straight by an expert, that, plus a necessary re-chrome of the whole thing would be a costly exercise. Nosing around on the TR Forum indicated that Harrington Group in Vietnam produce a big variety of stainless steel bumpers for classic low-volume produced cars. Opinions expressed were positive, with fitting alignment sometimes an issue. I had a Gordon-Keeble for 40 years, and have been told that 10 of these cars have had Harrington bumpers fitted out of the 50 or so extant in the UK. Good enough. So £459 transferred and 2 weeks later Fedex delivered absolutely on time. The stainless steel looks as good as chrome. The necessary bolts are included, together with a length of soft, shaped rubber for overrider packing. The heavy chassis brackets that the bumper blade attaches to are not included. If the price looks low, of course only one blade and four overriders are involved.

GWTR members extend greetings to all Triumph compatriots for the festive (we hope) season, and would ask any new incomers, owners or interested folk in the West Sussex GWTR area to contact Robin Cringle at gwtrgroupleader@gmail.com with your phone and email details, and get the inside track.