In a message dated 1/20/2004 11:18:05 PM Eastern Standard Time, MotoPsyche
writes:
> I've just started paying attention to the likelihood that my TR3A (TS67947L)
> was manufactured in 1960, even though it is currently titled as a 1961. I'm
> curious to know if most folks refer to their cars by the build year or the
> sale/title year, especially after confirming the build date.
FWIW, information I have shows that the first TR3A manufactured in CALENDAR
YEAR 1960 (January 1 or 2?) is TS65124. As an additional reference point,
TS71909L was manufactured on March 28, 1960, and TS73624L was manufactured on
April 15, 1960. So your TS67947L probably was built in late January or early
February 1960. So, in that sense, it definitely is a "1960" Triumph.
For whatever reason(s), it's likely the car didn't sell or wasn't formally
titled/registered until very late in the 1960 calendar year. Back then, it was
usually acceptable to title a car in the (model) year sold. Model years
traditionally began around September...ish. ;-)
Twenty years ago, such a situation could be an "issue" for someone trying to
apply for "Historical" license plates and/or insurance -- in having to
establish that the car was, say, 25 years old. Now, it's not an issue. So long
as the question of title year was not the result of a long-ago clerical error,
I like the idea of leaving the situation as-is; it's all part of the history of
the car.
For years, I was confused by the 1962 date on the papers for one of my Heralds,
since I'd long suspected the car was older than that. In that case, turned out
the car was built in April 1960 as a "Personal Export Delivery" car to US
specification but with "home market" lighting (especially the RHD headlamps). I
don't know the earliest history of the car, but presumably it was used in
England for some time before being brought back to New York, where it was then
first registered as a 1962!?
So, for me, it's all part of the "charm" of these cars. Your mileage may vary,
of course!
Oh, and Jeff mentioned his "1968" TR4A? Interesting situation. He's right
insofar as TR4As were not built in 1968, but "leftover" cars were still being
catalogued in Triumph sales literature and price lists in 1968. I don't know
exactly how Leyland sidestepped any safety or emissions issues back then, but
I'm sure it was all legitimate! (Oddly, some of the early safety and emissions
regulations were written with CALENDAR YEAR and not MODEL YEAR stipulations,
i.e., "cars manufactured for sale on or after January 1, 1968,....")
--Andy Mace
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