Darryl adds: “This is a development of all the TR2s and TR3s Racetorations has ever built, and it’s the ultimate in terms of where we are at the moment. Quite honestly, we’d be hard pushed within the confines of what this is now as a car, to improve on it. As a package, it’s as good as it’s going to get and as long as Jim doesn’t bend it, it will last for generations.”

    So when it comes to driving this car, there is more than a slight suspicion of guilt hovering over my enjoyment. Gone are the engine’s usual tractor like qualities – yes, it’s still torquey with immense linearity and a complete lack of highly-strung temperament, but this 2.2 litre will gleefully stretch for the 6000rpm redline. As tacho needles sweep across the dial-face, the noise becomes more intense, more urgent and more demonic.

 

    The steering is quite hefty with a hint of vagueness about the straight ahead, but this soon fades as you become acclimatised or let it attack a complex of bends. Work your way up through the four-speed gearbox with overdrive, essentially a seven-speeder, and this is a truly invigorating sportscar. Between 3000 and 6000 rpm it seems that the old four’s appetite for torque is never ending, almost like an automotive glutton. Your forehead is pummeled by the flow of wind over the aeroscreens, subjecting your hair to a severe follicle massage, yet tuck down behind the aeroscreens and the snug cockpit is free of buffeting.

    Haul on the brakes, which at first take you by surprise with their eagerness, heel and toe down through the gears and aim for the corner’s apex. The ride is firm, but this is where you reap the benefit, in controlled limited roll through corners. Be over ambitious and you might lure it into understeer, be sensible and wise with your approaching speed though, set it up properly, accelerate out and the TR will delicately drift through and back onto the straight. The bucket seat hugs you in place, the guilt subsides, a satisfying grin grows and the laps soon start to multiply.

    Why do I find it so impressive? Well, because despite all of the many modifications and myriad modern detail touches, this Racetorations TR3A hasn’t lost its intrinsic character – it may be far better built, have more features, be quicker and handle better, but it hasn’t had its essential raw TR-ness obliterated. It’s addressed its faults and built on its strengths.

    Clearly I’m not alone because this type of TR has much more of an acceptance now than it did eight or nine years ago. Recently displayed at the 2009 TR Register International meeting and although some admirers said that they would not do this to a TR3, no one said that they didn’t like what was done or that it wasn’t worth the money – which is progress. Instead, people were saying, ‘What a beautiful car’ and we certainly wouldn’t and couldn’t argue with such sentiment.

Racetorations Triumph TR3A

Technical Specification

Body
All steel TR3A bodywork with ladder-frame chassis. Quartz headlamps, long distance driving lights in modified grille, reverse light, third high-level brake light, LEDs in all other lighting, high-torque starter motor, 45 amp lightweight alternator, automatic 12” electric fan, electric fuel pump. Alloy fuel tank with alloy Aston filler cap, boot floor removed to accommodate full-size 6J alloy spare wheel, front and rear tow eyes. Full width wind deflector with aeroscreens, removable competition sidescreens, race mirrors. Extra vents, louvers and trailing edge raised bonnet raised for additional cooling, oil cooler inlets on lower front valance. Paint: Jaguar 1971 British Racing Green.

Engine
Triumph 2318cc four-cylinder, with 89mm forged pistons, steel billet connecting rods, lightened steel flywheel. Modified cylinder head, twin Weber 45DCOE carburetors, modified inlet manifold with twin cable linkage, modified fast road camshaft, chrome-moly pushrods, alloy rocker supports, stainless steel unleaded valves and hardened exhaust seats, crackle black alloy valve cover with neoprene oil seal, electronic distributor. Alloy high output waterpump and alloy waterpump housing, alloy finned sump, uprated oil pump, 16 row oil-cooler with thermostat, harmonic crankshaft damper, main bearing high-tensile cap screws, split-lip neoprene rear oil seal. Four-into-one stainless steel exhaust manifold with 2.5” Super Sports system.

Transmission
Front-engine, rear-wheel drive. Roller-bearing modified four-speed gearbox with uprated overdrive with high ratio final-drive. Automatic overdrive disengagement kit with gear knob micro-switch change. Uprated propshaft, limited-slip differential with finned alloy cover with extra oil capacity.

Suspension
Front: independent, fast road coil springs, wishbones, uprated telescopic dampers, 0.875” roll-bar, fully adjustable camber top wishbones with rose joints, alloy front hubs.
Rear: live axle, uprated semi-elliptic springs, rear location kit, provision for Watts linkage, competition lever-arm dampers with rose-jointed links. Lowered 25mm all around, suspension protection plated.

Brakes
Front: AP Racing four-pot brake calipers with 11.5” vented and cross-drilled discs with ceramic pad set.
Rear: Alfin alloy finned brake drums with M20 linings.

Wheels and Tyres
Lightweight magnesium 6.5 x 15” alloy wheels with Pirelli P6000 195/65R15 tyres.