[TR] When to rebuild

[Greg Lemon]

"showing again that they were actually innovative cars for their time.
 Shame they couldn't keep it up.

 -- Randall"

The Brits were on top of the world in the early 50s, offering advanced cars 
with advanced specification and performance, the XK120, TR2, and AH100 being 
prime examples.  One contemporary road test (may have been Hot Rod or Road 
and Track) said the TR2 had better acceleration than any stock American car. 
This quickly changed as the new generation of v-8s were being developed and 
fit to American cars.    The TR soldiered on with around 100 hp and weight a 
little over two tons in its various iterations through the introduction of 
the TR5 for the 1968 model year, which alas wasn't offered in the States due 
to well, I guess we don't need to start that topic again, but about this 
time the Germans, Italians and later the Japanese were using technology and 
innovation (aluminum heads and blocks, overhead cams, fuel injection) to 
keep cars performing and even increasing performance even with the tighter 
standards that strangled the British cars coming over here, killing off the 
AH and strangling the Triumphs and especially the MGs.  Story most of us 
have heard before.

But at one time you are very right Randall, the brits were really leaders in 
technology and innovation,  culminating in my opinion with the E-type and 
the Mini in the late fifties to very early sixties, two very advanced cars 
for their day by any standards, and still standard production cars available 
at very competitive prices with comparable or many times more pedestrian 
offerings from other countries.

Kind of a long rambling post, I kind of like studying and analyzing this 
stuff.

Greg Lemon