On Fri, 21 Jul 2006, at around 10:07:33 local time, "Gosling, Richard"
<r.gosling@penspen.com> wrote:
>">Richard (now driving Sammy the Black Tulip '73 MG BGT)
>
>NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Talk about going over to the dark side! <g>"
>
>
>Yeah, well, I love Triumphs and MGs. I appreciate the friendly rivalry,
>but don't subscribe to it myself. I had a Black Tulip BGT before I got
>Daffy, that was the car I had when my wife and I married and we went on
>honeymoon together in. When an identical car (and it is a rare colour,
>only made for one year) appeared for sale, cheap and local, in need of
>loving care to return it to the road, I had to have it! My wife always
>preferred the MG, more spacious, more comfortable, not so much of a
>go-cart, she would fight me for the keys to the MG but never the
>Spitfire, so it was easier to get her approval to buy another BGT than
>to get another Spitfire too.
Dear Richard,
You know I was only teasing, don't you? I've never found MGs
particularly attractive myself, and my loyalties lie with Triumph, but I
suppose in your case, given your wife's preferences, an MG is an
acceptable second-best!
>
>I like the idea of the 2500. Funny, just the other day I was secretly
>hoping my daily driver Audi 80 seriously fails it's MOT later this year
>(not likely, it usually passes with pretty minor repairs), as a
>2000/2.5PI would make a nice replacement for it.
>
>If yours is a 2500 (rather than a 2.5PI) that makes it pre-facelift,
>right?
No. The 2500S is the one that came after the 2500TC, which itself came
after the 2.5PI. My car was first registered in January, 1977. They
stopped making them in May. This is the pinnacle of Big Six design
(or, if you prefer the earlier shape, the design that killed off the
range for good!) The PI is the cleverest of them, but I have heard
such horror stories about the frankly experimental injection system that
I am much happier with a pair of SUs - just like the Spit.
>
>I can understand your desire to sell Carly to someone who wants to
>repair rather than dismantle, but I fear that if both the chassis and
>body are toast, you may have trouble - and it's hard to enforce what
>anyone decides to do with her once her V5 has changed hands.
True, true. I suppose I shall just have to bite the bullet and accept
that she is beyond economical repair - or even the uneconomical repair
that so many of us carry out on our cars. Spitfire 1500s are still
very common cars, and I can't think of a reason why anyone would spend
the money doing up Carly when, for half the price, they could buy one in
excellent condition. The 2500S Estate, on the other hand, is one of
only about two thousand ever made, and probably one of only a handful
still on the road. It makes more sense to sink money into that than
into "just another Spitfire" - much as I love her.
ATB
--
Mike
Ellie - 1963 White Triumph Herald 1200 Convertible GA125624 CV
Connie - 1968 Conifer Triumph Herald 1200 Saloon GA237511 DL
Unnamed - 1977 Russet Triumph 2500S Automatic Estate MP6711 SCA
Carly - 1977 Inca Yellow Triumph Spitfire 1500 FH105671
Aneka - 1984 Cashmere Gold Triumph Acclaim CD SAXXDELX7BM232714
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