Wtb: triumph tr3 project

[Brian in VA]

So I'm still hunting for some old British junk to tear apart. Think I've finally settled on a tr3 and found a few candidates on line but on the other coast. Found a great one before but got busy at work and of course the day I called someone else had just bought it. Anyway, thought I'd see if anyone knew of one for sale here. Got to find one soon before my wife changes her mind

[Dottore]

The nicest TR3 I ever saw was at Technoklassika a couple of years ago. It was restored by a guy who is the guru for these cars in Germany (Dorscheid). A couple of pictures follow to inspire you. A killer colour combination IMO. (battleship grey with tobacco leather) The car sold for Euro 60,000.

[Brian in VA]

Wow, that is beautiful! I'll save those for later.

[widgeon13]

I have a good friend that sold his last summer for $9K and it was very nice.

[Evans, Marv]

Reminds me of my '59 TR3. It was grey w/ black interior & solid wheels. I'd love to have one to putt around in again - probably more than an Austin Healey. I loved the way the doors swooped down low.

[Jim Richards]

Hubba, hubba, hubba...

[Tobra]

Just don't let your kid drive it

[tevake]

Any interest in a TR6 RHD. My Brother has one in LA. he would probably let go of.

Both Classic Motorsports, and Hemmings Sport& exotic car Mags. are east coast based and focus a lot on British makes. You might find something there.

Here is a nice one we hooked up with the owner at The Mitty this year.




Cheers Richard

[HardDrive]

An oldie but a goodie:

[billh1963]

Originally Posted by Brian in VA

So I'm still hunting for some old British junk to tear apart. Think I've finally settled on a tr3 and found a few candidates on line but on the other coast. Found a great one before but got busy at work and of course the day I called someone else had just bought it. Anyway, thought I'd see if anyone knew of one for sale here. Got to find one soon before my wife changes her mind

Have you driven one? They are pretty archaic. I looked at 3 and 4's...wound up with a 6 with factory hardtop and overdrive.

Good luck in your search no matter what you decide!

[Tobra]

The guy in the red jacket started this rally in his white TR-3. Holed the oil pan on a frost heave. Shut it down and did no damage. Took about 30 minutes to get towed to his nearby home, switch cars to the red one, carried on to Cal Neva that evening and completed the second day. He said the 6 was more comfortable, better top and drivetrain, better car. The white car is going to his kid I seem to recall, not sure about the red one. Heck he might even be gone now, this was at like 5 or 6 years ago.

Picture of the white one is on the other computer. He made that better than 500 mile run 4 times without a hitch on the years he did not crack a hole in his oil pan. Pretty reliable, but you better not be in a hurry is how he said it was.

[johnco]

a couple days ago I was driving up a bridge doing 70 and this little black tr3 zipped past me before even I noticed it in my mirror and disappeared in traffic way ahead before I could even get a good look to see what kind of car it was. I tried to but never could catch up with them to get a picture. he had to doing 90+. I could hear his exhaust screaming almost until he got out of sight.

[fastfredracing]

Originally Posted by HardDrive

An oldie but a goodie:

Here are are a few more things that may help you out as well. Beautiful cars though .



Electrical Theory by Joseph Lucas

Positive ground depends upon proper circuit functioning, the transmission of negative ions by retention of the visible spectral manifestation known as "smoke". Smoke is the thing that makes electrical circuits work; we know this to be true because every time one lets the smoke out of the electrical system, it stops working. This can be verified repeatedly through empirical testing.

When, for example, the smoke escapes from an electrical component (i.e., say, a Lucas voltage regulator), it will be observed that the component stops working. The function of the wire harness is to carry the smoke from one device to another; when the wire harness "springs a leak", and lets all the smoke out of the system, nothing works afterwards. Starter motors were frowned upon in British Automobiles for some time, largely because they consume large quantities of smoke, requiring very large wires.

It has been noted that Lucas components are possibly more prone to electrical leakage than Bosch or generic Japanese electrics. Experts point out that this is because Lucas is British and all things British leak. British engines leak oil, shock absorbers, hydraulic forks and disk brakes leak fluid, British tyres leak air and the British defense establishment leaks secrets...so, naturally, British electrics leak smoke.

Subject: SMOKE

When wires smoke, how come the smoke is not the same color as the wire?

This is not completely true. When the smoke is in the wire, it is under pressure (called voltage). The pressure difference causes the color to change from the normal color we are used to. Not unlike the blood in our veins and arteries changing color due to the oxygen content. When the smoke escapes the wire and is exposed to air, the pressure is released, and the color reverts back to what we commonly recognize as smoke. The wire then changes to the color of the smoke that escaped.

I hope this helps you understand.

I would only question the last sentence of that description. It has been my experience that the wire turns a color directly opposite of the smoke.

Not always true, I think it must depend on the composition of the smoke in question.

I should have made it a little clearer; the color the wire becomes, is directly proportional to the escape velocity of the smoke. Higher velocities generate higher heat. This heat tends to burn the wire and affect the coloring. The statement was meant to be a generalization, indicating the fact that the color of the wire does in fact change. Sorry for the miscommunication.

I was speaking of electrical smoke which is generally white. The spent smoke casing generally assumes a color somewhat near black after the smoke leaves.

I can't stand it anymore! If, as you say, light bulbs suck up darkness and convert it to smoke which is transmitted (via wire) to a power source for recycling...why do car batteries go dead when lights are left on? Do car batteries (and flashlight batteries for that matter) have a limited amount of storage capability? Is it like a hard drive that gets so full that you have to double-space and then lose all data?

Now you're getting it.......

I thought you guys were smarter than this. Of course the battery stores the smoke. In fact it can store so much smoke that if you open the top and light a match, the resulting explosion can do serious damage. I'm sure you are aware that usually where there's smoke there's fire. If you connect the battery to a charger, the smoke is then returned to the wire (Remember, a light bulb wont work unless it is connected to a wire system) for the utility companies to use. Your hard drive analogy is a very good example.

Our hardware guys might be onto something in their quest for superior wiring. I have noticed the unique method of of series/parallel wiring the power strips on our systems seems to prevent the smoke from getting out of the wires. A "Smoke Loop" of sorts. In the case of the "smoked" workstation recently, you should notice that this was a conventional single power strip installation.

Since color is perceived by the cone shaped receptors in our eyes, and cones require more light that their rod shaped counterparts. Is the sky blue at night?

At night the process including contraction of the pupil is visual purple by which the eye adapts to conditions of increased illumination when facing 300 candle power redeflecting devices.

Since there is a spectrum of light that we as humans cannot see, I support the theory that everything is going up in smoke, we just can't see it. This may explain why the neighbors dog barks for no apparent reason.

I think your basic understanding of smoke systems is remarkable. However I find a flaw with your theory. The battery is a reusable storage device for smoke. therefore, one would assume that some sort of one way valve (we can call it a diode) should be needed to prevent pressure flooding back into the system while at rest. Unlike the A/C system, the smoke system is collecting darkness at the headlights and converting it to smoke. This causes the system to fill up. The battery can contain much higher pressures and volumes than the wires. If this pressure exceeds the capacity of the wire, it will cause a rupture as you described. The rupture can be controlled by a sacrificial device known as a fuse. But this still doesn't eliminate the problem. Perhaps a two way valve (zener diode) is used to allow a small amount of pressure to return to the system, and partially equalize. I find this theory unlikely though, due to the increase in the force required to start the pump (which is now under pressure) working again...

The smoke continues circulating through the system, due to the pressure differential in the battery (smoke pressure/vacuum reservoir). When the reservoir becomes depleted, the pressure simply equalizes everywhere in the system (similar to an A/C system when it's turned off) and stuff just wont work. Notice the relations: Work (W) = Force (F) x Distance (D); Force (F) = total difference in pressure (Dp) x Area (A). Therefore, the work done in a pressure system is: Dp x A x D. If the pressure differential (Dp) is reduced to zero then W = 0 x A x D = 0.

The smoke only escapes the wires when a path is created between the pressure differential areas (@ either the reservoir or the pump) that has too little restriction. When this happens, the smoke travels through the wires so fast that the friction between the smoke and the outer walls of the wiring heats the wires until they rupture. The smoke continues to escape until its pressure is equalized with the atmosphere, or until the conduit that provides the path between pressure areas is severed. When this happens, the sudden drop in pressure allows the wires to "collapse" slightly and, being so hot, as the edges of the ruptures and severed ends touch, the material becomes fused, sealing the system and retaining the remaining smoke.

Don't forget, when the system is at rest, all the valves, (switches and relays) are closed, keeping the pressure areas separated. When restarting the pump, as long as everything is OK, the smoke pressure is equal on both sides of the pump and there is no net force on the pump when it begins operating again. Also, within the pump there are pressure/volume actuated one-way valves with restrictors built in, arranged in such a way that they keep excess smoke volume recirculating through an integral smoke loop, which maintains the pressure within manageable limits.

The excess smoke, created by the light/smoke converters (headlights and other darkness absorbing devices), is changed back to darkness and dissipated in small unit concentrations so its dark effect is not locally observed. The smoke pump impeller (stator), converts smoke into magnetic flux which does work on the engine. Some of the excess work energy is dissipated through the cooling system and exhaust in the form of heat, while the remaining work energy is converted back to smoke and distributed evenly in small concentrations as you drive. This maintains the total quantity of smoke in the system at an average that does not change over time.

[recycled sixtie]

Here are a few notes on my few short years of my TR3 ownership. Chose between
an Austin Healey 3000(rusty) and a 1958 TR3. Bought the TR3 in the late 60's.
Midnight auto wreckers removed a rear lens because it was parked outside.
Car smelt of gas all the time. Removed gas tank and found it leaked. Garage where I worked at I had the mechanic "fix" the leak. He did not fill it with water when welding
and blew it up. Rocker panels were rusting badly. Snowplough took out a chunk of the rear fender. Not having the $$$ to fix it in my early years I let it go. It was a fun car to drive, great exhaust note. Pathetic heater for Calgary/Winnipeg winters. Definitely a car for a fixit owner and a southern climate.

[Brian in VA]

Thanks for all the replies.
Tobra, was that you? Great pic.

Yeah I'm sure the tr6 is a better car in every way but the tr3's design really does it for me. It's purely for fun so I'm ok with the "handling." I'll keep that wiring diagram for sure. Love the "glue open" and arduino for the bloggers, very funny.

[Noporscheform]

Bought my TR-3 in 1971, it was my first car. I still have it, currently undergoing a complete restoration at a british restoration shop in michigan. I have not driven mine since 1978, long story, however I have driven the restorer's TR-3 (same since high school) a number of times over the last 6 years, and I will have no complaints about performance when mine is done. The open air feel of an old sports car cannot be matched.

The restorer has a barn full of British cars, Griffith, Iso Rivolta, Morgan, Triumphs, Jaguar, Austin Healy, etc. he will not live long enough to finish his own projects, but he toils on, as a very happy man.

[Brian in VA]

Well..... Finally pulled the trigger on a '59 TR3, kind of ratty but will keep me busy for a long time. I think I'm going to do a non-original restoration, fake-racerish, with maybe a hint of Magnus inspiration. Strictly just for fun. I've been collecting old photos of racing TR3s and would post some but the iPad confounds me.

[Heel n Toe]

[Hugh R]

If you need a SU fuel pump manual, I have one. You will NEVER figure out how to properly adjust one without the manual. With the manual its pretty easy. I can scan and email it to you. PM me. It also details balancing and adjusting SU carbs.

[Embraer]

ive had several TR's.....still have my TR4. fun little car, but if you've never driven one, you're going to find out how truly antiquated they were, even when new!

i had a guy give me a TR3 for free a few years back...complete car, but a complete basket case. I sold it for $500. There was a neat TR4 on bringatrailer recently with the much sought after Surrey top. if it would have been on the west coast, i would have bought it. check the Dove TR4 for a cool looking coupe.

btw...the best thing if you want to drive the car is remove the SU fuel pump, install a blank-off plate on the engine, and use an electric pump with a dialable fuel regulator. much, much more reliable.