Back when I was old enough to remember (3 years old) my parents owned a red
TR3 small mouth. I fell in love with the car and knew which car I would
buy before I learned how to ride a bicycle. My parents sold the car since
we lived in New York and the car was becoming a bit rusty. They bought an
almost new white TR4 (demo car with less than 1K miles). One year later we
moved to the Bay Area. My parents kept the car for over ten years.
Looking out for my best interest, my parents sold the TR4 when I was about
to turn fifteen (In California a driving permit was issued when someone
turns 15). You see they were concerned that I would drive this "sporty"
car recklessly and end up killing myself. They had no idea how much I
loved the car and how careful I would have been. There was no way I would
do anything to put the car at risk of being damaged. Anyways my parents
sold it with only 50K California miles on the car and bought a new Ford
Capri. I ended up crashing/totaling the Capri during a drive through the
backroads in the California foothills when I was 16.
The story does have a happy ending. I bought a "66 TR4A-IRS" (I have
always liked the way that sounds) when I was nineteen. Paid $1200 and the
car was a blast to drive. It was in orginal condition with the usual
dings, scratches, and interior rips and cracks.
After I graduated from college, my friend convinced my to take him and my
car on a cross country trip from California to Boston and back. That trip
is a whole other story, but I will say that the car had no problems except
for the starter motor going out in St. Louis (the starter motor ended up
having a shorted wire from the armature which was fixed with some
electrical tape).
I was happy driving my Triumph but always dreamed about what it would be
like to drive a "new" TR3 of 4. My dream came true when I found a red '62
TR4 with all the fixings (surrey top, OD, wood dash, wires, and leather
seats). The car had not been running in 10 years, but was a complete car
with a straigt body. This was around the time that I discovered Moss and
the Roaster Factory, and decided that I would restore the car. The project
started in '89 and finished in '94. I did every thing except the paint job
(I know my limitations). To this day I have never added up all the
receipts to find out how much I spent on the restoration.
I have not finished writing "My Triumph Story". The next chapter might be
about restoring a TR3. You see having just one Triumph is not enough to
satisfy my craving for these wonderful cars.
Steve
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