Very nice colour.
At the time I was choosing between a British Racing Green Spitfire with tan seats and a Salmon coloured Fiat 124 Spider...I actually passed on a deeply discounted NEW Karmann Ghia
They couldn't give those VW's away back then, now they're very collectible. Does that remind anyone of anything??
I hate to break this to you, but the picture you have is not Simon Templar (played by Roger Moore in "The Saint") but John Drake (played by Patrick McGoohan in "Secret Agent" (or "Danger Man" in the U.K.) whose theme song was Secret Agent Man). Sorry.
Journeyman ATCS, retired
U.S. DOT - Federal Aviation Administration -- 1982-2012
--- Valve Audio: Use a transistor, go to jail .....it's the LAW!! ---
Yep...used to have that commercial on a hard drive somewhere. Can't seem to find it now, however.
Owning a 7 gave an entirely new meaning to the word 'Wedgie'.
I do miss the 7. Times got hard for awhile back in the '80's and it became necessary to trade it for something more reliable. Wish I hadn't had to do that. Still have the shop manual on the shelf and a nearly brand new bra for one.
The TR7 was one of the first (if not THE first) model designed after the nationalization of the UK car makers (under the moniker British Leyland). As such, it was design-by-bean-counter rather than by engineer. Many TR7 parts were re-purposed parts from other Brits.
For instance....the motors on the drop-away headlights were actually windshield wiper motors from a Spitfire with a different actuator linkage and control network. There were a number of other similar such parts. Part of being a long-term owner was learning exactly what came from where, so you knew where to go when you needed to replace something.
And of course...one needed to know how to deal with the handiwork of Lucas Electrics. But that was something ANY Brit owner had to learn.
All Lucas light switches had three settings....Dim, Flicker, and Off. And things only got worse from there.
....sT
Journeyman ATCS, retired
U.S. DOT - Federal Aviation Administration -- 1982-2012
--- Valve Audio: Use a transistor, go to jail .....it's the LAW!! ---
Trouble was....the Spits fell apart and rusted out nearly as fast as mid-70's Fords and the 124's had more than their share of troubles as well (although they did fare better than the X1/9 did, I'll admit). If you can find a Spitfire still in good condition today, take a picture. You'll likely never see another one.
I wish I'd picked up a Kharman Ghia too. Of the three...they were probably the smartest choice, unless you were buying specifically to have an ongoing garage project. (and some people did.)
....sT
Journeyman ATCS, retired
U.S. DOT - Federal Aviation Administration -- 1982-2012
--- Valve Audio: Use a transistor, go to jail .....it's the LAW!! ---
Yes, well.....some of us still do......
Vest Patch.jpg
.....sT
Journeyman ATCS, retired
U.S. DOT - Federal Aviation Administration -- 1982-2012
--- Valve Audio: Use a transistor, go to jail .....it's the LAW!! ---