Triumph Tr4A
Part of the Family
Purchased in 2006 this TR4A has been a a truly fantastic car and a part of our family since then. It took us to Spain and back, performed wedding duties, later transporting the four of us with the, then small, boys shoved behind the front seats.
The car was manufactured on 8th February '67 but sold to it's first owner in January '68 via Berkeley Square Garages, London to a Mr Alan John Hinton-East (1923-1982). It wore it's private number JHE 3 (JHE 1 and JHE 2 adorning Mr Hinton-East's Rolls Silver Cloud and Ford Cortina GT respectively) and was, according to the heritage certificate, supplied in the colours it wears to this day together with heater, tonneau cover, 60 spoke wire wheels, independent rear suspension and Goodyear G85 tyres.
According to the original green logbook the car was first registered to Hinton East Ltd on 3rd January 1968. I'm not sure what the car was doing since the build date but was, perhaps, a dealer demonstrator. Following the death of Mr Hinton-East in 1982 the car was transferred to Mr Anthony Guy Alward Martin (a motor mechanic) on the 8th of April 1983 (mileage on 7th April '83 Mot certificate records 12,135). After transferring the valuable original registration of JHE3 (whence it became CDG 617F) Mr Martin kept the car until 1991 when, on 14th August (at 26,260 miles), it was transferred to Mr Martin Brian Johnson who kept the car until January 2006 when (at 41,019 miles) he sold the car to the person I bought the Car from on 4th June 2006. Mr Johnson detailed everything he did to the Triumph between August '91 and January '06 in a little pocket book, which is with the paperwork.
The paperwork with the Triumph is extensive and includes the original brochures, manufacturer's guarantee certificate, service book, owner's handbook, Motorola handbook for the radio, almost every MOT from the first of 1st February 1972 etc. Therefore the current mileage can be warranted, as it is well documented. The car was serviced at Standard Triumph on four occasions according to the service book, the last being on 9th May 1977 at 10,820 miles.
The body has never been removed from the chassis and so it still sports its factory panel gaps. The car has been preserved and never restored. A previous owner applied liberal amounts of Schutz type coating to the chassis and under body panels, which seems to have helped with the preservation. The floors are original and despite it having received some paintwork attention over the years, I would not be surprised if some of it was original. The original hood was only replaced in 2022.
During my tenure, I have had the car looked after at TR Bitz near Warrington. Before driving to Spain in it in 2008, I had a number of jobs done. Over the years it has had the following: Rear lever arm shock absorbers converted to Spax telescopic, K&N air filters, new front shocks, new radiator, electric fan fitted, twin stainless steel exhaust, braided brake hoses, new brakes, new half shaft, distributor rebuild and pertronix electronic ignition fitted by Distributor Doctor, hi torque starter motor, new engine mounts, leather Moto Lita steering wheel (have original), new soft top, new steering rack, overdrive solenoid and two sets of tyres replaced due to age.
The arrival of our two boys (and the E Type) relegated our Triumph to reserve status but it is, perhaps, our favourite. Simple mechanics, beautiful Italian (Michelotti) styling, the extremely useful overdrive on 2nd, 3rd and 4th and the ultra reliable, easy going (yet highly engaging) nature of this TR4A make it so loveable. Not to mention the impeccable provenance.
