Happy Friday, Autopians! I decided to throw the budget out the window again today, and look at two nice, low mileage examples of classic six-cylinder sports cars that start with the letter T. They’re from different eras and different countries, but they share the same spirit.
I figured the Saab was going to win yesterday, but I was a bit surprised by the outpouring of love for the Subaru. I didn’t realize the old 2WD ones were that popular. Personally, I like a good Brat, and the little 2 door hatchback from this era was a really cool car, especially with 4WD, but the basic sedan doesn’t inspire much more than a “huh, neat” from me.
As for the Saab’s provenance as a panel wagon, the truth is, I don’t know. I found photos of other 95 panel vans, both with and without the stampings for the side windows, but I have no way of knowing which ones came that way from the factory fifty or sixty years ago, including this one. Doesn’t matter, really; it looks cool now. Give it a nice paint job, find a set of those Sonett “soccer ball” wheels for it, and get rid of those idiotic LED headlights, and you’d have a cool little cruiser.
There is just something wonderful about an inline six-cylinder engine, isn’t there? They’re smooth-running, torquey, and look great under the long hood of a sports car. And they almost always drive the rear wheels. V8s may get all the glory, but just think of all the amazing cars that have had an inline six: the Jaguar E-Type, the Aston-Martin DB4 and 5, the original Corvette, the original Nissan Z, decades of BMWs, and these two: the Triumph TR6 and the Toyota Supra. I’ve found a very nice, very original example of each. Let’s check them out.
1969 Triumph TR6 – $24,995
Engine/drivetrain: 2.5 liter overhead valve inline 6, four-speed manual + overdrive, RWD
Location: Laguna Beach, Ca
Odometer reading: 21,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives great
If you’re counting in Star Wars, it goes 4, 5, 6, 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9. If you’re counting in Triumph sports car, for the US market, it goes 2, 3, 4, 4A, 250, 6, 7, 8. The TR6 was the last “true” TR model, with body-on-frame construction which dated back to the TR2, and four-wheel independent suspension which came along on the TR4A. This car was built in Britain, but it was made for America; nearly ten times as many TR6s were sold in the US than in the UK.
The TR6’s engine is a carryover from the earlier TR250 (TR5 in Great Britain). British home-market cars were equipped with Bosch mechanical fuel injection, but due to emissions regulations, US-market TR6s made do with twin Stromberg carbs. A four-speed manual gearbox sends power to the semi-trailing-arm independent rear axle. This car is equipped with an electric overdrive, which was available in second, third, and fourth gears, making it a spiritual predecessor to the Doug Nash 4+3 transmission in the C4 Corvette. This car is believed to have only 21,000 original miles on it, and it runs and drives flawlessly.
As much of an MG fan as I am, I have to admit that Triumph does interiors better. I just love the flat wood dash on these, and the driving position in a TR6 is as close to perfect as you can get. This one is, of course, in just about perfect condition, and the seller says everything works just fine, so spare your Lucas jokes. It was originally ordered without a radio, and has never had one installed. But if you’ve ever heard a Triumph inline six, you’ll know any extra auditory entertainment isn’t necessary.
Triumph calls this color “Damson Red,” but if you see it in person, it’s really purple. And ever since I first saw it in person, on a 1971 Stag, it has been my favorite Triumph color. This one, with the early slim chrome bumpers, looks especially nice. The reproduction redline tires and 1969-only Rostyle-ish wheel covers give it a Hot Wheels look that’s just too cool.
1987 Toyota Supra Turbo – $19,500
Engine/drivetrain: Turbocharged 3.0 liter dual overhead cam inline 6, four-speed automatic, RWD
Location: Lake Mary, FL
Odometer reading: 87,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives great
The Toyota Supra started out as a special version of the Celica, with a longer nose to accommodate a six-cylinder engine. But over time, it got less Celica-ish and Supra-er, until this third generation, when the Celica went front-wheel-drive and the Supra became its own model, and it really came into its own as a refined, comfortable grand tourer.
The Supra’s inline six had grown to 3.0 liters by this point, with dual overhead camshafts and 24 valves. But if you wanted to go a step further, you could order a turbocharged model, like this one, which boasts 232 horsepower – Corvette territory in those days. This was a fast car. A five-speed manual was available, but this Supra, like many others I’ve seen, is an automatic. It has just 87,000 miles on it, barely broken-in for a 1980s Toyota, and it runs and drives beautifully.
Toyota interiors in the 80s were probably available in other colors, but in my head, they’re all this burgundy. Considering the era, the dashboard is remarkably restrained for a Japanese grand tourer. Think about how gadget-laden and flashy the dashboard of a 300ZX or a Mitsubishi Starion is in comparison to this. It all looks like it’s in good condition, except for a little wear on the seat bolster, and I assume everything works.
It’s clean as a whistle outside, and it actually looks good in white. These look good in any color, though; it’s such a well-proportioned design. I know the generation after this gets all the love, because of its crazy horsepower and movie connection, but this car looks a whole lot better in my opinion. Maybe it’s just because it’s more of my era.
Yes, you can find examples of either of these cheaper than this. But they won’t be this nice. If you want a good one, you’re going to have to pay for it. But hey, we’re only playing with imaginary money here anyway, so what the hell?
If it was a second-gen Supra it would have been a tough choice (I had a GTS Celica, ex-brother in law had the same year Supra.)
I’ve owned a TR6 and am going with that. It was a much more fun car than the TR7 I had later.
Odd that the color wasn’t what swayed ProPlum.
Heh. Didn’t think of that.
Damn, son.
As for my vote – TR6 all day. The Supra here is kind of the ugly duckling of all the generations. The MKII had the angular spacecraft look, the MKIV is a bonafide supermodel.
I have never really fallen to the Supra religion, but if I were to get a Supra it would be the generation before this one. Apparently I’m fond of harder edges.
This TR6 though is a beauty, and is not helping my longing for one of my own someday. Triumph all the way.
Give me the TR6 (tho I would probably end up swapping for a set of later model wheels…the hubcaps don’t do anything for me)
First off, if you’re going to blow the budget, why not go big! Here is a lovely little Talbot Lago T26GS, also with an I-6 and a 4-sp semi-auto preselector transmission. Can be yours for less than $450,000. Ok, only $50 less. But still, a bargain!!!
Anywho, when I saw these two choices, I was about to say looks like a “why not both” day. Then I saw the prices. Oh, that’s why not.
Have to go with the TR6 with a wheel/tire combo that matches my Hot Wheels carrying case.
Go bigger (and rustier!!) with this, a 1949 Talbot-Lago T26 Grand Sport SWB by Saoutchik which sold for some 1.7 million Euros (1.9m in dollars) in 2015:
https://www.artcurial.com/item-images/FR/426/10514426_Vue.jpg?w=700&force_webp=true
And that’s the good side…
https://www.artcurial.com/ventes/2651/lots/46-a
Well that definitely satisfies the “shitbox” portion of SBSD.
While the TR6 is really cool as hell, my heart belongs to Toyota. With some proper maintenance, that car still has hundreds of thousands of miles left in it and just speaks to me. Could be because I grew up in the 80s.
Compared to the TR6, the Supra looks bland, plain and boring. Maybe if it had be a manual. But Triumph today.
I could go plum crazy for a Damson TR6. I am afraid to drive one though… they say to never meet your heroes.
I already have a straight-6 manual convertible, but a car is going to have to have some seriously special features for me to accept an automatic at this point in my trajectory.
TR6 easily
PURPLE TR6!!!!
Got to go with the Triumph. IE in regards to the window stamped on the Saab Ford Cargo vans have the stamp for the windows on it as well
If the Supra was a manual I would have clicked it in a second.
Oh wow, this is actually pretty hard. I adore the TR6 (British car designed by Germans, what’s not to like?)
I also like that generation of Supra.
But I think I like the TR6 more. Sometimes, you just really want to hear the classics. And it’s not DECREPIT ’60s shit, it’s real nice ’60s shit.
And you couldn’t make one that nice for that money. The Supra looks good in pics but I think is going to have some projects in store.
I say, wind up the old Victrola and put on your favorite popular song.
Both are nice. That TR6 just calls to me.
Both are great, both are overpriced.
The Triumph is a convertible with a manual, so it’s the winner. It will get a multitude of compliments everywhere you go.
The Toyota will run another two hundred thousand, so it will survive being driven instead of kept in a garage.
While this is the generation of Supra I want to own someday, I can’t go for this specific car with my pretend SBSD money due to the automatic. For some reason, I don’t have the pretend SBSD money to do the conversion or buy another Supra with a manual transmission from a future SBSD.
Man, this is a really Freudian pairing for me: my mom’s first car was a TR3 that she never forgot, and my dad’s first sports car was the previous generation of Supra. So neither one is a proper match, but still….
Anyway, it was the Triumph for me (even though my mom didn’t care for the post-3A models), since I’ve always wanted a British roadster, and this is a pretty great example of one. I doubt the Supra would win regardless, but I’m certainly not getting a sports car with an automatic.
Wow. Memory lane trip for me here.
A friend had a TR6 in high school – he loved that thing and kept it in great shape. It sounded and looked great but he also spent a lot of time keeping it running. A lot.
I owned a 1989 Supra Turbo 5 speed manual with the Targa top and burgundy leather seats. I enjoyed it immensely. Mechanically they are pretty bulletproof. The only common problem area was the head gasket had a tendency to fail. Changing to an after market copper head gasket fixed that issue permanently.
It also was pretty easy to get the car up to 300HP with simple mods to the turbo system. (I managed 280HP at the wheels on a dyno during a Supra club event – which means I was darn close to 300HP at the crank after taking into account drivetrain loss.)
I also put on a nice custom mandrel bent stainless exhaust to replace the worn out stock exhaust. Oh yeah, I also did the manual short shift mod. Fun times. It was a great car.
For nostalgia, I would go with the Supra here for sure. I would mod the Turbo system for sure and otherwise, keep it stock. I think the automatic with the Turbo that only spooled up and really came alive above 4000RPM would actually be a good match.
While I love the look of the TR6, I prefer having a reliable car I can just drive vs one that will most definitely needs to be babied and constantly maintained.
Triumphs always make me happy but I assumed it was an automatic Toyota Supra day until I saw it was automatic. Still a wonderful car but the Triumph is just too nice and has correct transmission.
This exactly
I love me some TR-6. It’s just behind the Spitfire as my favorite British roadster (and ahead of my once-owned MGB). There are few Supras that do anything for me, and this generation isn’t one of them.
The Triumph is in splendid condition, but it still is ugly as fuck (IMHO), especially looking from behind.
This was the more elegant and balanced of all the Supra iterations, and I could forgive it not being manual. Toyota today.
I want them both. Supra for my DD and the TR6 for my fun weekend car. That TR6 is in great condition
Both are pretty clean, both are still more than I would pay for either one. they are just not that interesting, though I suppose if I had to pick on the Toyota would at least make for a more reliable and safe Daily that would probably get some oohs and ahhs still.
No “both” option? Damn. I went with the Supra so I don’t have to deal with the fussy 2-carb setup, even though I would probably like the way that Triumph drives a little better.
SU carbs are dead nuts simple to rebuild and tune. Rebuilding the twin SUs on my ’74 MGB was my first foray into an automotive carb rebuild (I’m a diesel guy), and I did it successfully on the first go. They worked great!
synching them can be a chore though. And so many seem to have opinions which to do first, idle and then sync or the other way around.
If she no idle good, you’re gonna have a hard time measuring vacuum correctly to sync them. So I’ll let you decide which is the better start point.
If you don’t trust your ear you can use a flow gauge. Its really not difficult by ear though.
I generally use a gauge. syncing carbs on old motorcycles is not that different. it just can be a chore to do and usually these cars are like old motorcycles they sit too long between being driven and something gums up in the carbs. this means tear down and reset before syncing them again. SU just had some quirks from “experts” from the bench it seemed.
As far as synching goes dual Skinners Union carbs are as simple as they get.
As a bonus once they are rebuilt with modern gasket material they
become quite reliable as !omg as they don’t sit long enough to build a varnsih.
A lot of people would screw them up by using the wrong weight oil in the dashpot.
They’re very hard to screw up compared to a multi-jet carb like you’d find on standard North American V8s.
I’ll second this. My 71 TR-6 had twin Strombergs. Once I rebuilt them it took an afternoon to get them synced. Borrowing a rotameter from a friend who had Corvairs helped, but you can use a stethoscope or hose in your ear to gauge the flow. Once I had them dialed in I didn’t have to touch them for 10+ years, eventually sold the car.
The owner’s manual for my ’68 Datsun 1600 included directions on how to sync the carbs by ear with a hose.
as I was reading the Triumph part I had a sneaking suspicion that Rob would make the supra a auto, and I was right! if it was a manual I prolly would have picked it, but that little roadster is just awesome and probably what I would buy if I lived in the burbs and could have a second “fun car”, well that or a fiero lol
A six and a manual certainly make it hard to look away from and the thing is pretty minty looking. I think it comes down to enthusiasm for that triumph though. it is a bit like a model T for me. lot of quirks and very maintenance intensive. Also Parts are becoming unobtainium. though I image this is similar for the Yota, but at least the factory parts last a little longer and seem to require less fiddling to stay functioning.