1980 Triumph

TR8 Convertible

8 - Cyl.

Manual

TPVDV8AT208881

Gasoline

Triumph TR8 - From Mild to Wild I’d owned my TR8 for a number of years and drove it in its original stock form was enjoyable but was lacking in performance for a small sports car equipped with an all aluminum V-8 engine from the factory. So at 62,000 miles a decision was made to pull the original 3.5 Rover V-8 and build another Rover 3.5 that I had on an engine stand for 20 years. The engine build consisted of ported and polished cylinder heads, 10.0 to 1 pistons, polished crank, big cam with matching lifters and valve springs, followed by the flywheel being lightened and finished up with a new clutch assembly. Now with this new horsepower it was time to bring the rest of the car up to speed. Added was, four into two, into one exhaust headers, dual pipes with balance tube and custom megaphone tips. The car came from the factory with an open diff with 3.07 gears and drum brakes. I removed the entire rear axle assembly from the vehicle and inspected the rear drums and brake shoes out of curiosity. As I expected, the rear brakes shoes and drums looked like brand new. The brake proportional valve equipped on the TR-8 let hardly any brake pressure to the rear brakes. I purchased a low mileage rear axle assembly from a 1986 Trans-AM which had factory disc brakes and a limited slip unit. This axle was modified as described below. Axle tube shortened and TR-8 axle mounts installed Axle drilled for new four hole bolt pattern New 3.44 to 1 axle ratio All new bearings and seals Now getting back to the brakes, I removed the factory brake proportional valve and added a cockpit adjustable one. To help balance out the brake system even more, the front rotors were drilled and green pads were added. Front sway bar lowering blocks were added to eliminate vehicle nose dive under braking. This vehicle now accelerates hard and stops on a dime with little effort. For the handling, the vehicle was lowered and the spring rate was increased. Added also were polyurethane bushings on all suspension points including the engine cradle and larger front and rear sway bars with KYB shocks on all four corners. The vehicle body did not require anything; it was already beautiful and solid. Added were new interior door panels and the seats were redone. One of the nice things about this car is the original engine and rear axle assembly will bolt in and these parts do come with the car! I will assist your freight forwarder. Happy Motoring