Thursday, March 24, 2016

Triumph Spitfire - Motor Trader 1963

Triumph Spitfire - Motor Trder 1963 front page
Triumph Spitfire article front page from June 1963

Originally published in the trade paper Motor Trader on 26 June 1963, this article is about the Triumph Spitfire. This 8 page guide to the service data includes diagrams of the engine, suspension and gearbox. 



You can download the article from here.

You can see my existing collection of Motor Trader articles at http://vitessesteve.co.uk/MotorTrader

Friday, March 18, 2016

Triumph Herald 1200 - Motor Trader 1963


Triumph Herald 1200 series cars - Motor Trder 1963 front page
Triumph Herald 1200 series - Motor Trader 1963 front page
Originally published in the trade paper Motor Trader during 1963, this article is about the Triumph Herald 1200 series of cars. This 8 page guide to the service data includes diagrams of the engine, suspension and gearbox.  I was given scans of this article by Dion a friend on the Club Triumph forum - he has several bound volumes of the Motor Trader lucky chap.




You can download the article from here.

You can see my existing collection of Motor Trader articles at http://vitessesteve.co.uk/MotorTrader

Friday, March 11, 2016

Triumph Courier Van - Motor Trader 1963

Triumph Courier Van - 1st page from Motor Trader 1963
Triumph Courier Van - 1st page from Motor Trader 1963
Originally published in the trade paper Motor Trader during 1963, this article is about the Triumph Courier Van but much of it is also applicable to the Triumph Herald built at the same time. This 8 page guide to the service data includes diagrams of the engine, suspension and gearbox.  I was given scans of this article by Dion a friend on the Club Triumph forum - he has several bound volumes of the Motor Trader lucky chap.




You can download the article from here.

You can see my existing collection of Motor Trader articles at http://vitessesteve.co.uk/MotorTrader

Wednesday, March 09, 2016

Triumph Car Dealers 7 - flying Heralds

Parkgate Garage Ltd - Coventry
Parkgate Garage Ltd - Coventry
This is my seventh blog post about Triumph car dealers.  Garages used to try to attract interest by placing cars on the roof of their showrooms and I have found two Triumph car dealers who did so.

Parkgate Garages Ltd - Coventry

Parkgate Garages Ltd, Parkgate Road, Holbrooks are listed as a Coventry Triumph car dealer in 1955, 1965, 1968 and 1974.  I understand that the buildings were knocked down and that a block of flats now stands on the site.

In 1968 the Coventry area distributor was Newsome, S.H. and Co. Ltd., with their
Sales, Service and Spares: Highway Garage, Kenpas Highway.
Repair Dept.: Quinton Road, Coventry.

Other Triumph dealers listed as at 1968 in Coventry.
Blamire, P., Queen's Road Garage. 
Cheylesmore Garage (Coventry) Ltd., Daventry Road. 
R.E.S. Motors (Coventry) Ltd., Paynes Lane. 
Ryton Motors Ltd., London Road, Ryton-on-Dunsmore. 

North Road Garages - Grantham


North Road Garages - Grantham
North Road Garages - Grantham
North Road Garages (Grantham) Ltd., 56 London Road are listed as a Grantham dealer in 1968 and 1974. The garage premises were known as "The Old Brewery."

Several Grantham based firms were involved the lifting of the Triumph Herald on to the roof of North Road Garage. The crane was supplied by British Cranes and Excavators of Dysart Road whilst the slings came from Barrett Packing of Alma Park - the traffic was directed by the local police assisted by North Road Garage employees. This garage has since been demolished and replaced by a retail park.

Site of North Road Garages, Grantham now
Site of North Road Garages, Grantham now
Another garage in Grantham - Sellers Service Station, Barrowby High Road. were also listed in February 1965 and September 1968.

North Road Garages (Grantham) Ltd address stamped on the back of a Triumph 2.5PI brochure
North Road Garages (Grantham) Ltd address stamped on the back of a Triumph 2.5PI brochure.
North Road Garages (Grantham) Ltd advert 1981
North Road Garages (Grantham) Ltd advert 1981
North Road Garages key fob.
North Road Garages Grantham key fob
North Road Garages Grantham key fob

Sources and links

If you have any more information about these garages, photos of window stickers, dealer badges or sill plates etc please let me know.

Link to my article about  Sellers Service Station.

Link to the other articles in this series.

Link to facebook page: Triumph Car Dealers.

Link to my Triumph Car Dealers Flickr group .

I have a collection of Standard Triumph car dealer directories: http://vitessesteve.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/triumph-car-dealer-directories.html

This is the seventh in an occasional series about Triumph car dealers.  You can download a copy of the Triumph Sales and Service Directory 1968-69 which started me off on the search for info about Triumph car dealers.

Picture credits:  North Road Garage Grantham picture from Grantham 1951-2000 a book by John R. Pinchbeck.  Parkgate Garages image originally posted on: http://forum.historiccoventry.co.uk; North Road Garages (Grantham) Ltd advert 1981 posted by John on flickr.

Saturday, March 05, 2016

Kellison Triumph J2 Coupe


Built in the USA the Kellison Triumph J2 Coupe includes under that amazing body a lot of TR4 bits.

It is not surprising I have only seen this car online as only 8 were made of which 3 survive.
Triumph TR4 engine with Triumph Tune cam cover

Kellison J2 Coupe from the rear
Kellison J2 Coupe from the rear


Wednesday, March 02, 2016

Triumph Car dealers 6 - L F Dove of Wimbledon, Croydon and Woking

L F Dove Ltd is the subject of this the 6th article in my series about Triumph car dealers.
L F Dove Ltd Croydon,Wimbledon and Woking St Christoper badge
L F Dove Ltd Croydon, Wimbledon and Woking St Christoper badge
The Dove Group was established by Mr L F Dove in 1925, initially in Wimbledon and then extended into Croydon in 1927. The Austin Rover Group dealerships were sold in the 1990s - for more about the Dove group: http://www.cambriaautomobilesplc.com/our_brands .  Mr L F Dove started his career at the Austin Motor Co Ltd. The death of Mr L F Dove at age 57 was reported in Autocar on 5 January 1958. At the time of his death Mr L F Dove was Chairman and Managing Director of the L F Dove group.
L F Dove Ltd, Wimbledon advert Norwood News 29 May 1936
L F Dove Ltd, Wimbledon advert Norwood News 29 May 1936

The Dove GTR4A

L F Dove Ltd is known for selling the GTR4 a special bodied TR4 converted for them by coachbuilder Thomas Harrington and Company of Hove. The car was sold in the UK and abroad with sales in Australia, Japan and the USA.
Advert for the Dove GTR4A built by Harrington for the Dove Group
Dove GTR4A advert
Triumph GTR4
Distinctive Charm of the Dove GTR4A
Distinctive Charm of the Dove GTR4A
The photo above shows Miss Motor Show 1965, seated on the wing of a Dove G.T.R. 4A. The young lady is Miss Angela Martin, of Whyteleafe, Surrey, Secretary to Mr. J. Godfrey, of L. F. Dove Ltd., Croydon, makers of the Dove.


The TR Centre

L F Dove Ltd was involved with selling the first TR sports cars from their UK launch in 1953. The business proved very successful and so it was in May 1955 that the official TR. Centre was duly opened, the only one of its kind having full manufacturer's approval.
TR Service Bay at L F Dove Wimbledon 1965
TR Service Bay at L F Dove Wimbledon 1965
Part of the Wimbledon premises was set aside for servicing, tuning, etc. and rapidly became a place where T.R. enthusiasts could call for advice and suggestions on preparing their particular cars for rallying, racing or just normal use. All staff from the works foreman downwards were sent to the factory for special TR. instruction and the Service Bay was laid out to tackle anything from a wash and grease to rebuilding a near write-off.

The special Service Department was backed up with the appropriate stores. A section of the Stores Department introduced racks and bins to take nothing but T.R. spares.

With all this T.R. interest surrounding this branch of L. F. Dove it soon became obvious that a T.R. Club was called for, so with the blessing of the Standard Motor Company an inaugural meeting was held at Dove's showroom and the Club formed known as the Triumph Sports Owners Association, London Section. The Club started with treasure hunts, etc., but it was not long before more ambitious events were called for and by 1962 included in the fixture list were day and night rallies, hill climbs, speed trials, driving tests, social side film shows, monthly noggin and natter meetings and a annual dinner and dance. The Club was very soon approved by the R.A.C. so in addition to the Club's own activities, invitations are received from a large number of other clubs giving the real enthusiast at least one event each week throughout the whole year. As of 1962 the Club had over 100 members.

Rover SD1 7 seater

Rover SD1 conversion by the Dove Group
Rover SD1 conversion by the Dove Group
I wonder how many of these Rover SD1 conversions the Dove Group sold in 1980.  Original scan posted to flickr by Triggers Retro Road Tests.

The text under the photo read as follows:
A front-runner in the ugly-duckling of-the-year-contest. This conversion is to be marketed by the Dove Group from January to convert the Rover into a sevenseater.  The conversion kit, price £475 inc VAT, consists of a roof rack, an extension pod with vinyl on the outside and upholstery inside, seats on a frame, and step for the back bumper. The pod is fitted in the rear window frame after the glass has been removed, and the whole conversion takes about two hours.

Miss Greyhound Racing 1968 area finalists

Miss Greyhound Racing 1968 as driven by L F Dove
Miss Greyhound Racing 1968 as driven by L F Dove
'The TR People', L. F. Dove of Wimbledon, helped to solve the problem of transporting the seven area
finalists of the 'Miss Greyhound Racing 1968' Competition before the assembled racegoers at the 40th anniversary of greyhound racing at the Wimbledon Stadium. Nearly 7,000 spectators admired a display of pretty girls and cars: a TR5 PI, Herald 13/60 and 1200 convertibles, and a Vitesse 2-Litre convertible. To display the complete range of Triumph cars, Wimbledon Stadium provided facilities outside the main Grandstand entrance.

The Dove Group

The Dove Group Motor 16 October 1963
The Dove Group Motor 16 October 1963
The Dove Group had branches in Croydon, Wimbledon and Woking.  They sold Austin, Vanden Plas and Riley + Standard Triumph + Vauxhall, Rover and Rootes.
Dove Group key fob
Dove Group key fob
Dove Group Jeep key fob
Dove Group Jeep key fob

Dealer address and photos

In 1936:
L F Dove Ltd, 33/7 Russell Road, Wimbledon, S.W.19

In 1955:
L F Dove Ltd, 33/7 Russell Road, Wimbledon, S.W.19. (Official T.R.2 Centre.)
Works at: 3/7 Palmerston Road. S.W.19.

By 1959 the address had changed to 44/48 Kingston Road. Wimbledon, S.W.19 with the works as before.

In 1965 and 1968 dealer directory
L F Dove Ltd.• 44/48 Kingston Road. Wimbledon, S.W.19. (Official T.R. Centre)
Works at 3/7 Palmerston Road. S.W.19.

By 1972 the works is no longer listed.

Woking branch  L F Dove Ltd., Guildford Road, Woking Surrey are listed in all the directories I have from 1955 until 1974..

L F Dove, Kingston Road, Wimbledon 1965
L F Dove, Kingston Road, Wimbledon 1965
L F Dove Croydon street scene as was
L F Dove Croydon as was
Doves garage Croydon October 2015
Doves garage Croydon October 2015
Doves, Green Lane, Morden
Doves, Green Lane, Morden
The Dove Group Woking 1973-74
The Dove Group Woking 1973-74
Site of Dove Group Woking - googleStreetView May2019
Site of Dove Group Woking - googleStreetView May2019

Memories of a mechanic

Paul De Kock contacted me to say:

I started my time as an apprentice mechanic in 1977 at LF Dove in Woking and their workshop was in White Rose Lane (which is now a Travel lodge next to the Royal Mail sorting office). The time was very much B.L. with the range of cars covering Jaguar, Rover, Triumph, Austin Morris etc. My main source of work was notably on the Rover P6 and Dolomite which used to be most popular of the era, closely followed by the TR7.
 
It's good to see that you have done this blog about Doves and I wish you all the best. I could tell you stories about Danny Boothman who signed out 14 cans .. yes 14 cans of Easystart after doing a head gasket on a P6 2000 and proceeded to spray it in every orifice he could find, causing all of the rest of us to duck behind cars waiting for the big bang when it fired up, to the brand new P6 3500 that came in with all 4 wings rusted through like it was a 40 year old car, re registered and new wings fitted, then sold back out as a brand new car. but those type of stories are "trade secrets" haha.

Adverts and key fobs

An old advert found on the Pinterest account of David Nicoll.

Key fob for the Croydon branch of L F Dove
Key fob for the Croydon branch of L F Dove
Key fob for the Wimbledon branch of L F Dove
Key fob for the Wimbledon branch of L F Dove

Dove Group window sticker
Dove Group window sticker
Dove Group advert in What Car magazine July 1977 for the TR7
Dove Group advert in What Car magazine July 1977 for the TR7

Plea for more information

If you have any more information or recollections about L F Dove or the Dove Group, photos of window stickers, dealer badges or sill plates etc please let me know. I can be contacted via the comments to this post or on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/stephen.weblin

Sources and links

Link to the other articles in this series.

Link to face book page: Triumph Car Dealers.

Link to my Triumph Car Dealers Flickr group which includes many photos of Standard Triumph garages etc from my collection and many other contributors .

I have a collection of Standard Triumph car dealer directories: http://vitessesteve.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/triumph-car-dealer-directories.html

You can download a copy of the Triumph Sales and Service Directory 1968-69 which started me off on the search for info about Triumph car dealers.

Picture credits:L F Dove Ltd, Wimbledon advert Norwood News 29 May 1936 - trinity-mirror-image-created-courtesy-of-the-british-library-board1; Christoper Henry Perkins for the Croydon key fob; GTR4  photo me;

Tuesday, March 01, 2016

Triumph car dealer directories

I have a collection of several Triumph Spares and Service Directories.

Triumph dealer list from Motor magazine 05 April 1938

Thanks to Nivek.Old.Gold on flickr for sharing this scan from one of his old Motor magazines.

Standard and Triumph spares and service directory October 1955

Showing date on front cover


I was sent this original directory by . You can view or download it from my googledrive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_CE2l4Osa3SMG84U1ZOMS1nQWc/view?usp=sharing

 

Standard and Triumph spares and service directory October 1958

Showing date on front cover.


I bought this directory on Bay . You can view or download it from my googledrive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1IYW5ZGfSrN1fufEmupfXwDevWhm1OlId/view?usp=sharing


Standard Triumph Sales and Service Directory 1959

Tom Herald of www.triumphherald.com on facebook made available a copy of his 1959 directory.
You see a copy at:  https://www.flickr.com/photos/vitessesteve/albums/72157666422304983
You can view or download it from my googledrive:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_CE2l4Osa3SRXJUQWdzcXk3Mzg/view?usp=sharing

 Standard Triumph Sales and Service Directory 1961

Front cover of Standard Triumph Sales and Service Directory 1961
Front cover of Standard Triumph Sales and Service Directory 1961
I bought my copy the Standard Triumph Sales and Service Directory 1961 on eBay.
This edition lists the Standard Triumph dealers as at August 1961 in the UK.

Standard Triumph Sales and Service Directory February 1965

 showing reference 139/2/65 on last printed page.

You can view or download it from my googledrive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_CE2l4Osa3SQWpPTlgtMi1ndXM/view?usp=sharing

Triumph Sales and Service Directory September 1968

showing reference 139/9/68 on page 35 which I understand means this edition was printed September 1968.
Front cover of Triumph Sales and Service Directory September 1968
Front cover of Triumph Sales and Service Directory September 1968


I bought this 1968 directory on eBay. You can view or download it from my googledrive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_CE2l4Osa3SREljMTZGMXQ3Qms/view?usp=sharing

Triumph Sales And Service March 1970

You can view or download it from my googledrive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tQpQFgUjbj363BEFwz6cVsVMjD14OvK1/view?usp=sharing

Triumph Sales And Service March 1972

Triumph Sales and Service directory March 1972 front page
Triumph Sales and Service directory March 1972 front page

Just inside the back of the booklet is this printing reference.

A directory of all the United Kingdom Triumph disributors and dealers as at March 1972. You can view and download a copy from from my googledrive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_CE2l4Osa3SdzczWnNBa2hMdHc/view?usp=sharing

Triumph Sales And Service March 1974

Showing reference (undated) on last page "25/34 M (86201)  468/374/UK". I assume this is March 1974.



Galileo on the Triumph Dolomite forum very kindly scanned and made available a 1974 copy of the Triumph Sales And Service directory.   You can get a copy here: https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B6QR7c9loufLQXJsTkJWUTEtelk. in PDF format or at:  https://www.flickr.com/photos/vitessesteve/albums/72157666447300034 as images.

Rover Triumph Sales and Service May 1975

 Showing reference on back cover "RT 1129/5.75". I assume this is May 1975.
Bought at Stoneleigh MG Triumph spares day 2017. You can view and download a copy from from my googledrive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_CE2l4Osa3SMzl3VE5TWnhiSzQ/view?usp=sharing

BL UK Dealers April 1979

BL UK Dealers April 1979 front cover
Bought on eBay this BL UK dealer directory is the April 1979 edition. You can view and download a PDF copy from from my googledrive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/125gQMWST65r7DefAVLxgIsvq9rCxoJMu/view?usp=sharing
 

Austin Rover Dealer Directory March 1988

Austin Rover Dealer Directory March 1988 front cover

Austin Rover Dealer Directory March 1988

Bought on eBay this Austin Rover dealer directory is the March 1988 edition. You can view and download a PDF copy from from my googledrive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_CE2l4Osa3SWEJEUU11MlZMelE/view?usp=sharing

I do have a January 1987 edition that I have yet to scan.

Rover Dealer Directory May 1991

I found this British Aerospace era directory on eBay.  It is from May 1991.
Rover dealer directory May 1991 cover
Rover dealer directory May 1991 contents page
You can get a copy here:https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_CE2l4Osa3SbFdndmphZnZxbnM/view?usp=sharing  in PDF format.

Leyland North America Dealer directory 1974 - Austn , MG, Jaguar, Triumph, Land Rover

 You can view and download a copy from from my googledrive: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B_CE2l4Osa3SemMyLUp0OVJTWlU/view?usp=sharing