Michael wrote:
...Perhaps John will address a curious point in that equation--that
Standard-Triumph club members in the U.K. number far in excess of those in the
U.S., despite the fact that almost 90% of the cars were delivered to the U.S.
I might have some idea why. Triumph is best known in the States for their
sports cars - the TR range, Spitfire and GT6 - and it is true that these were
largely built for export (although I would be surprised if the US really took
as much as 90%, but I don't have the figures to check!). However, in the UK
they were mainly producers of everyday saloon and estate cars (some of which
were also exported in smaller numbers to the States) - the Herald/Vitesse, the
2000/2500/2.5PI, the Toledo and Dolomite, and their final effort the Acclaim.
Since the market for family cars is much larger than that for sports cars, and
I suspect a much larger proportion of production went for home consumption,
this would explain the number of UK Triumph owners. There was also the Stag,
built mainly for the UK market (seems strange to me, as it seems very suited
to American tastes), but that was in smallish numbers compared to the saloon
cars.
I have also heard (from Americans) that there is more of a throw-away attitude
to cars in the States, partly because they are so much cheaper there. An old
car in Britain is more likely to be patched up and kept running, while an
American is more likely to junk it and buy another - this helps more cars pass
through the 'banger' phase of their life between 'new' and 'classic' in
Britain.
Just my thoughts and ideas,
Richard & Daffy
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