1975 Triumph Spitfire

You don't own a Spitfire, they own you! However, it is a neat little car, great for summer fun, with a convertible room for 2, lots of fun times, and a need to do some maintenance every weekend. These are fun cars that are getting to be 30 to 40 years old, but have a great fun coefficient, are always neat for starting conversations at places you stop, and certainly make you feel young again.

Spitfires weren't very high powered, they can be fussy little machines, and many weren't maintained well by their previous owners. The clam-shell hood makes it very easy to get to all of the engine mechanicals and do a lot of your own work. The systems are very simple compared to modern cars, and they can be a blast to work on and with. They can also be expensive to keep up, as some parts are hard to find, though many are available as reproduction or rebuilt. They are generally very affordable in most respects, and even ones with rust can be fixed. Spitfires are also know to attach themselves byh marking up your driveway and garage with oil stains. Generally, the 1500cc engines are the easiest to maintain and the parts are easiest to find. I'm not a particular devotee of the '79 to '81 models with the all rubber bumpers, but they are in good shape. Be prepared to do such things as: topping up the oil in the carburetor dashpot, lubricating the speedometer and tachometer cables, resetting the valve lash, and checking out the lubricant levels on a regular basis. They are fun, generally straightforward to work on, and neat little sports cars. Not your average daily driver, but a great weekend driver that can serve you in a pinch as a regular vehicle.

I would recommend them as a neat weekend project car, but pay very close attention to what condition the car is in, how much rust it has, and be ready to work on it yourself, as few people have much knowledge of how to work on them any more. They rate 10 on a fun scale, but only 4 on a reliability scale. Know what you are doing and what you want, and they can be a lot of fun. Assume they don't need a lot of work and don't maintain them and you will be cursing the day you bought it!

You don't own a Spitfire, they own you! However, it is a neat little car, great for summer fun, with a convertible room for 2, lots of fun times, and a need to do some maintenance every weekend. These are fun cars that are getting to be 30 to 40 years old, but have a great fun coefficient, are always neat for starting conversations at places you stop, and certainly make you feel young again.

Spitfires weren't very high powered, they can be fussy little machines, and many weren't maintained well by their previous owners. The clam-shell hood makes it very easy to get to all of the engine mechanicals and do a lot of your own work. The systems are very simple compared to modern cars, and they can be a blast to work on and with. They can also be expensive to keep up, as some parts are hard to find, though many are available as reproduction or rebuilt. They are generally very affordable in most respects, and even ones with rust can be fixed. Spitfires are also know to attach themselves byh marking up your driveway and garage with oil stains. Generally, the 1500cc engines are the easiest to maintain and the parts are easiest to find. I'm not a particular devotee of the '79 to '81 models with the all rubber bumpers, but they are in good shape. Be prepared to do such things as: topping up the oil in the carburetor dashpot, lubricating the speedometer and tachometer cables, resetting the valve lash, and checking out the lubricant levels on a regular basis. They are fun, generally straightforward to work on, and neat little sports cars. Not your average daily driver, but a great weekend driver that can serve you in a pinch as a regular vehicle.

I would recommend them as a neat weekend project car, but pay very close attention to what condition the car is in, how much rust it has, and be ready to work on it yourself, as few people have much knowledge of how to work on them any more. They rate 10 on a fun scale, but only 4 on a reliability scale. Know what you are doing and what you want, and they can be a lot of fun. Assume they don't need a lot of work and don't maintain them and you will be cursing the day you bought it!