In a message dated 10/9/2002 4:28:14 PM EST, Greg_Hutmacher@i2.com writes:
<< Is this car really all that unique or am
I over-flattering its significance as an original car? >>
Greg,
With so many TR6's produced and exported to the USA, it's not too unusual to
find an unmolested, original car along the east coast (I can't speak for
other parts of the US). Certainly to have a 6 which is unmolested and in
very good original condition starts to make your car more unique.
My '76 had a lot of original stuff on it but, unfortunately, was a bit
"molested" from POs! I spent a lot of time trying to decide whether I wanted
to restore the car back to 100% original, period correctness or restore it to
a compromise of correctness with a few modern amenities. I think that my
decision to follow the latter choice was based a lot on emotional appeal.
If, instead of looking at the '76 TR6, I was looking at my 1969 TR6 assuming
that I had kept the '69 since new, I would have probably restored it to
original.
This reaction to treating life-long owned cars a little differently than cars
purchased for a project seems to have some merit in the shop I deal with.
There is a gentleman with an earlier TR6 who is the original owner and wants
it restored to original condition including, of course, original color.
While I share a lot of nostalgia with every Brit car I've owned (various girl
friends, college escapades, transporting pregnant wife to hospital, etc), I
wanted my TR6 restoration to reflect a bit of my personal whims and fancies
which weren't standard fare in 1969 or 1976. So, for instance, while I'm
preserving a lot of original details, there are a few non-original changes:
Goodparts triple Zenith setup, elect fuel pump, cam, headers, cyl head work,
etc. The light tan interior is correct for Triumph TR6's and although the
stitching and head rests are correct for 1976, the color is not original for
1976. The exterior color is red but not pimento, carmine, signal,
etc....it's a custom blended red that is simply the purist, richest red I've
ever seen:)
That's how I handled the question you're wrestling with. I wish you
luck.....I know you didn't want to hear that the answer involves personal
choice but it does! I know one thing, it's really sweet to look at a car
restored to original standards.....not to mention the fact that your 6 would
become a very popular benchmark for the inevitable questions from other
restorers: "I wonder what the correct way of doing that (hanging that,
installing that, drilling that) was?"
Cheers,
Chip
Chip Krout
1976 TR6 #CF57822U - one of the last 500 built - restoration nearing
completion
1970 Spitfire Mk3 #FDU78512L - on the road and enjoying another driving
season!
/// triumphs@autox.team.net mailing list
/// or try http://www.team.net/cgi-bin/majorcool
/// Archives at http://www.team.net/archive
|