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[BrianM]

Some stupid questions from the other side.....

I've been driving a 1979 MGB every day for the last 8 years...and now my wife has her eyes on a 62 TR-4. (and she never notices cars) - I know basically nothing about Triumph.

So - some dumb questions, attempting to capture the 'now' in the TR world. I've talked to the owner, who says the car had a frame-off restoration in 99. Drove by and looked at it today - without owner present, so it was all external stuff.  His wife showed up, says they still drive it (last driven a few days ago).

Noted several odd body panel fits - hood to fender gap is wedge-shaped on driver side by about 1/8", looks like the door-sill gap is not parallel on driver side - hard to tell since the door doesn't shut the whole way (striker plate alignment?) etc. May be some evidence of an old accident - up inside the driver's side front corner (under headlights, essentially), there is a brace from chassis to radiator / front body? that is mangled. Measured by my highly-calibrated fingers, the driver's side rear wheel has about 1/4" less clearance forward to the body than the passenger side.

Seemed like lots of strange (to me) sheet metal pieces underneath - lots of places where it looked like the body panel or frame piece just ended - not rolled over or attached to something else. While the edges don't appear eaten (rusty), it looks like the body is assembled very differently than an MG. Like the 'sill' piece on the rear dogleg - seems like a separate piece, not one continuous bit of metal like MGs. Didn't get too far underneath, as I was on my way home from work and not dressed to crawl about.

Also moderate underbody (could be surface) rust - springs, frame rails, etc.  However, no signs of rust bubbles, paint looks good, sills seem to be solid (didn't do magnet test yet).

General mechanical stuff doesn't bother me - done lots of work on my MG, but haven't done real body work yet.

Overall, are the 'usual' TR problems the same as MGs? Rust in sills, doglegs, floors, etc, or are there other things to be aware of? I have my doubts that the car got a frame-off, at least not the way I think of it. May be curious to see the engine - as an indicator of how the car has been treated / cared for.  He's also asking around $13K - without advertising - not sure he is really serious, and the price seems to be in the high end of the TR-4 range that I've found.

[herald948]

No offense to the seller of the car you describe, but I would RUN AWAY from that car!

[none]

I totally agree with Andy.

It sounds like the frame is bent from that front collision. Might be why at least some parts were removed from the frame for an (failed) attempt to straighten it.

And for that price you should be concerned about the mechanicals. For $13k it should be a safe and reliable driver and the frame and body should be straight.

To start repairing the main structure will make it a very expensive car in the end.

I absolutely love the TR4. As for myself, I would prefer a late '64 because of some of the changes in the front suspension, rear axle mounting, radiator, and the seats. But that is just my opinion.