Triumph’s cost-effective way of updating its traditional TR sports car line for the 1970s, the TR6 was essentially a neat facelift of the TR5 performed by German coachbuilder Karmann, which added a squared-off nose and tail in the style of Michelotti’s work on the firm’s saloon car range. Introduced in January 1969, it wasn’t a revolutionary step change for the Triumph TR series, but neither was it out of line, and in many ways it was a significant car. It was much the same as the TR5/250 models underneath, with a separate chassis and a front-mounted straight-six sending power to the rear wheels through a four-speed gearbox. The TR4A had introduced independent rear suspension, and since then, rack and pinion steering had been added. For the first time, though, there was now a front anti-roll bar.
The obvious change for the TR6 – and the source of some distaste from enthusiasts of the earlier models – was its altogether more butch appearance, at odds with the daintier look of previous TR models. It did however neatly accommodate wider 5.5-inch wheels, bigger bumpers and larger lights. It all worked wonders for the crucial US market, where most TR6s went. Interestingly, many have returned to the UK,
