| :: Description |
My car is a 1982 TRIUMPH TR7 rebuilt as a TR40 (ferrari f40 style kit car) It has only covered just under 9000 miles on a proffesional engine upgrade & rebuild.
It has a webasto sunroof fitted within the last year, in very good condition. It has a category 1 alarm & immobiliser with receipts for insurance purposes. In 1995 it was stripped back to it's bare shell, sandblasted & rustproofed. The car was completely refurbished, new wiring loom, new guages (the original triumph ones were notoriously unreliable), upgraded front brakes including race pads (again, the originals were known for not being very good!), it has fast road suspension on the front, fairly firm, and adjustable SPAX suspension on the back. It is running on nearly new tyres all round with nice compomotive split-rim alloys similar to the ones used on ferrari F40's, which is what the bodykit was supposed to look like when built. There are no dents or cracks to the fibreglass shell , but the original paintjob was 20 odd layers thick and has crazed in a few places, but after a good t-cut and polish looks ok, you don't notice it unless the car is parked & you look up close for the faults.
The engine was completely rebuilt with re-ground crank, a new 16v head fitted, rebuilt carbs, a custom big bore manifold & stainless exhaust system (Cost £2500). The gearbox was rebuilt with closer ratio gears & a heavy duty clutch. New alternator & battery etc. The head has been ported & polished/gas flowed to give it a bit of a boost. This was all done only 1000 miles ago. I have old MOT's to prove mileage since rebuild. The interior is ok but the carpet is a bit faded in places so would benefit from a couple of hours tlc. The interior is finished in a red & black cheque with half leather (or leather type) material with a mountney steering wheel and alloy pedals. I have photo's of the restoration and a letter from the company detailing all the modifications for insurance purposes.
The car basically handles like a big go-kart, it's very firm around the corners thanks to it's wide tyres & good suspension, & the gears & clutch are quite heavy/stiff. It's fairly respectable around town and sounds nice. I have driven it to derby, wales & birmingham with no problems at all, it's not really a motorway car, thanks to the close cut gearing but will do a ton without any problems, but at those speeds it will drink the juice... at 65 to 70 you get much better returns.
My insurance is with specialist insurers Footman James as a kit car, only £117 per year with no excess. (Third party only)... not bad eh?
These kit cars are quite rare now, especially ones professionaly built by a restoration company with all the documentaion & history... |
