'70 Triumph Spitfire MkIII - WITH OVERDRIVE- Mechanically fully rebuilt-paint it

1970 Triumph Spitfire

1970 Triumph Spitfire MKIII. I have owned this car since 1992. Bought in running condition with about 60K miles on it. Although the frame was perfect, I soon realized that the floors and sills were rotten. I undertook a comprehensive mechanical restoration and upgrade. Firs, I bought new sills and floorpans and had a professional weld them in. I found another ‘70 parts car and completely rebuilt and installed the engine from that with new pistons, rings, bearings valves and hardened valve seats. I rebuilt the steering rack with new inner and outer tie rods. I rebuilt the front suspension with new trunnions- even pressed in new front axle stubs. In the rear, I upgraded the fixed leaf spring to the newer swing spring found on the Mark IV and later cars. While I had the engine out, I resprayed the engine compartment in its original Jasmine Yellow as I was going to respray the car in that color. The last major mechanical upgrade was to source a Laycock Type D overdrive unit and completely rebuild both it and the transmission. New clutch/pressure plate/bearing. At that point in 1994 I had an easy rural commute and was able to drive it to work on occasion. I put approximately 3000 miles on the car after full mechanical rebuild.

Then my life changed radically (1998) and progress on the car stopped. I got divorced and moved to a different location where I could not safely drive this car very much. I acquired many more cars suitable for my commute and the Spitfire stayed in the garage, untouched. It has not been driven in about 10 years. I tried to start it to sell, but the fuel pump is knackered. I did check the compression and all cylinders read 180psi, which is what you might expect on an engine rebuild about 3,000 miles ago. What you can expect to do to get the car back in running condition is change the rear wheel cylinders and the front differential seal which seem to be leaking.

The car basically needs paint and interior work, and most if not all of the parts to do this are included. (I think the only major missing thing is a new carpet).The original bonnet was tweaked a bit, so I was able to find a complete one from a MkII to replace it (included). A NEW old stock bone-in-mouth FRONT BUMPER is included (still in factory wrapper) A new convertible top is included (along with its original tonneau). A decent pair of seats out of an early Miata are included. Two complete extra doors are included. The vinyl on the inner door panels is still good enough to be used with new backer boards Four full hubcap, four dog dish hubcaps and four spare steel wheels are included.

As I am about to sell my house (moving to France fairly soon) in addition to spare Spitfire parts, the winner will get some TR4a and TR6 leftovers that could be used to trade for useful Spitfire parts. A full complement of workshop and restoration manuals will be included, some are very rare, but all are useful. I’ve sold the 12 cars that I once had- this is the last one to go.

This car has really good bones and with just a few fixes from sitting, can be on the road again (ugly, but running well) The paint and interior work aren’t too serious as all the rot has been replaced with new metal (at considerable expense, back in the 90s) so literally you should be able to sand/strip and paint it. I can tell you that having the overdrive in this car makes a world of difference as when it kicks in it feels like you are in warp speed on the Starship Enterprise.

Car is available for complete inspection prior to bidding (on the lift) as desired in Deltona, FL. Title is clean, unsigned and in seller’s name. I am happy to discuss any additional details or take pictures of any specific areas you wish. Battery shown in photos will not be included.

Bonus: If the sale price meets or exceeds the Buy-it-Now price, also included will be a pair of SU HS2 carbs (which were used on prior years and non-US cars) and and the proper intake manifold for fitment on this car. One carb has been cleaned and the other requires disassembly. Pictures can be found in a separate listing under my userID on ebay.

• Make: Triumph
• Model: Spitfire
• Type: Convertible
• Doors: 2
• Year: 1970
• Mileage: 62693
• VIN: FDU84011L
• Vehicle Title: Clean
Want to buy? Contact seller!