The Biennial Le Mans Classic takes place this year over the weekend of 4 – 6th July 2014 and proves to once again be one of the most impressive festivals of historic motorsport anywhere in the world. This year the event has particular significance with a team of three TR's entered in a line up reminiscent of what racing fans would have seen Standard Triumph enter during the 1950's at la Sarthe. Overall this represents the opportunity for visitors to Le Mans Classic 2014 to see over nine hours of TR's driven on the limit at the legendary Le Mans circuit throughout the day and night.

Penrite Oils are supporting the three-car entry this year ahead of the launch of a new range of oils aimed specifically at the Triumph TR range of sports cars to be announced later this year.

TR Register members will be able to follow the team's progress throughout the race weekend via live blogs, tweets, podcasts and videos released trackside at http://lemanstrs.blogspot.co.uk

The team of three cars have already been wowing crowds with appearances at the Revington TR open day and in April underwent pre-race testing as part of the TR Register track day at Castle Coombe. Whilst just a shake down test at this stage the Castle Coombe test gave the public an early opportunity to see the cars in action before they head to La Sarthe in July.

Follow Live Updates from the TRs racing at Le Mans Classic 2014 here »

The TR Register is sad to learn of the passing of well known Triumph parts supplier Tony Fitchett, who died on Tuesday 29th April 2014.

After the Triumph assembly plant at Canley closed down Tony Fitchett managed to save many of the tooling and parts that would have otherwise ended up in the scrap bin. A valued member of the Triumph community, there are many Triumphs on the road today that owe their existence to parts obtained from TD Fitchett Limited. It is understood that his son will take over the running of the business to continue his fathers legacy.

The TR Register would like to express its deepest sympathy to Tony Fitchett's family and friends at this difficult time

About TD Fitchett

Since the early Sixties when TD Fitchett or (Tony to those who knew him well), launched in the accident repair market, fixing cars that have become today’s classics. Tony’s business thrived while the British motor industry wrong footed itself again and again. ‘Well-loved marques and designs were being swept away and build quality was becoming lower by the month.His interest in classic British motorcycles tuned him in to the value of nostalgic motoring, and when British Leyland started selling off the tooling for its redundant models, Tony saw the potential and started buying it up.’ By this time he was reconditioning and rebuilding parts from many manufacturers including Ford, Vauxhall and Triumph, but decided to concentrate on the latter -– a shrewd move considering it was fast becoming the nation’s favourite classic manufacturer. More tooling and unused new stock was acquired when Triumph'’s Canley plant closed.Then, long-established Triumph spares dealer Greenwich Autos came onto the market.

Tony bought it, and sent his then right-hand man Graham Franks south to look after the concern until consolidation took place and the whole business was then concentrated back at its Shropshire base.

The current premises were bought in the early Eighties, and from here production line manufacturing was set up, as well as storage for many larger parts, assemblies and tools.

The firm produces gearboxes, overdrives, final drives and many small panels. Larger panels are manufactured off-site using original Triumph tooling, some of which has been improved to ensure a better-than-new fit. Many parts are hand-built by Tony, to ensure build quality remains high an early Triumph Herald with only 248 miles on the clock was kept as one of many reference items.

The site has cavernous warehouses and warren-like stores – and is one of those businesses in which only the tip of the iceberg is seen from the outside.

In fact, TD Fitchett is one of the largest suppliers to the classic trade. Tony looked after the business on a daily basis, but eschewed the limelight of the shop front.

When the chancellor rolled out the red briefcase on March 19th 2014 to deliver the budget there was some good news for beer drinkers with a small reduction in duty but as he stood proudly outside number 11 there was even better news for owners of post 1974 TR's with the introduction of a 40 year rolling Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) exemption for classic vehicles.

Previously, owners of TR2 – 5 and some early TR6's for example were exempt from VED under the previous classification of Historic Vehicles manufactured before 1st January 1973.

The budget in 2013 announced a measure to extend the scope of the Vehicle Excise Duty exemption to historic vehicles by one additional year. This measure comes into force on the 1st April 2014 and allows vehicles manufactured before 1st January 1974 to be added to the exemption category.

The latest Budget announcement however goes one step further to introduce a 40 year rolling exemption to be legislated in the Finance Bill 2014. This will however, not apply until 1st April 2015. Thereafter the cut-off date will be rolled forward by one year on every 1st April in each subsequent Finance Bill. This should mean for instance, that on April 1st 2016 the first of the 4-speed Speke built TR7's would qualify for Vehicle Exercise Duty exemption as historic vehicles.

The news will be warmly welcomed by TR owners but doesn't come without its complexities. Commenting on the news FBHVC Legislation Director, Bob Owen said, "While we welcome the fact that our campaign for a rolling exemption has finally borne fruit and that the efforts we have taken in providing research based information to government have been taken into account in the making of this decision, we view the 40 year cut-off as anomalous given that the generally accepted definition of a historic vehicle across Europe is 30 years. We have also noted that the procedure introduced by DVLA to implement the announcement in the 2013 Budget of extension of exemption pre-1974 vehicles on 1st April of this year has the effect that any qualifying vehicle for which VED has already paid in respect of any month or months after 1st April this year, financial benefit from the exemption will be obtainable only from 1st May 2014. FBHVC is questioning this administrative approach, which does not appear to reflect the 2013 Budget announcement, and will be asking if this administrative anomaly is intended by DVLA to be rolled forward along with the rolling exemption. We would suggest that this arrangement in effect provides DVLA with revenue to which it is not entitled and we do not believe this could have been the Chancellor's intention."

TR Register members looking to take advantage of the rolling VED will have to do some work in order to qualify, as it is understood that the DVLA will not be automatically issuing "free tax discs". The paperwork will be up to TR owners.

TR owners will need to change an eligible vehicles taxation class on the V5C and V10 forms, which can be downloaded from the DVLA website or obtained from the Post Office. Section 7 of the V5C contains a box relating to tax class and you will have to enter the word 'Historic' and sign the declaration. Additionally, TR owners will need to fill out the V10 Tax Application form once again stating "historic" in the tax class and enclose the vehicles current MoT and certificate of insurance. The DVLA assures the TR Register that in most cases these documents should be returned within one month. If a refund on a tax disc already paid is required then this can also be applied for by using the V14 form.

But what if the registration date is later than the build date? TR owners will need to provide proof of manufacturing date, which could take the form of a Heritage certificate.

To download the DVLA forms visit www.gov.uk/dvlaforms

To read the HM Revenue and Customs document: www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/293910/TIIN_2507_8011_40_year_rolling_exemption_for_classic_vehicles_.pdf

In 1974, production began at the Speke No.2 plant in Merseyside for a whole new sports car – the Triumph TR7. Fast forward 40 years exactly to a cold but clear autumn morning and Triumph Way at Speke resonates to the sound of wedge shaped TR's once again.

The date is 21st September 2014 and to commemorate the forty years ago since production began, 40 TR7s of all the various types and configurations had gathered outside the location of that old factory, now a series of industrial units and an Asda supermarket.

Even to a casual passer by, the sight was awesome. The cars were arranged for photographs four abreast and ten deep. This created an appearance not unlike the archive photographs of the dispatch yards from when the factory was in full production!

Also in attendance at the start of the convoy was Gordon Birtwhistle, test driver of many pre-production TR7s. The day before, he had hosted a select group of owners at MIRA and put an early 4 speed white fixed-head coupe through its paces on the dry handling circuit. The car belonging to Paul Lewis was reported to have made a good account of itself driven flat out as it would have been in those development stages of the period. There are of course no photographs allowed at this top-secret facility.

With commemorative plaques supplied by specialists Robsport International in hand, the TR7 drivers headed off on an advised route that would see them visit two further factory sites involved in TR7 production, Canley and Solihull.

The first section of the route took a winding selection of country roads into Shropshire avoiding the motorways and providing an absolutely delightful run through picturesque villages.

A halfway stop at a packed bikers café provided an opportunity for welcome refreshment, bacon rolls and hot teas all round before the convoy of 40 TR7s once again departed for the remaining two factories.

It really was a momentous, once in a lifetime sight seeing so many wedge-shaped TRs travelling together in convoy.

A radical departure from the outgoing TR6 the controversy around the TR7's modern shape is well documented. But, seeing these cars out on the road in such numbers is a testament to the passionate regard TR7 fans like us at the TR Register still hold for the car. You get to appreciate just how ahead of time the car actually was and the onset of time has softened the initial shock around the wedge design which looks fresh and current even in 2014. Enthusiasts have in the main solved mechanical issues over the years and at relatively affordable prices to buy and run, the Triumph TR7 is now a very attractive proposition, especially in V8 form.

The Speke factory closed down after endless industrial action on May 1978 and production moved to Canley wherethequality of the cars vastly improved. This was the next stop on the convoy run for the 40 lucky TR7s to be making this uniquemoment of history. On the site of the Canley factory stands of course the Standard Triumph Monument on Herald Avenue.

It was during the Canley era that the convertible TR7 was finally released after much panic development work behind the scenes before production moved to its final location at Solihull, where these days nothing of the original site remains. Despite limited access this provided another stop before the convoy headed to it's final destination of the Heritage Motor Centre Museum at Gaydon.

Although the convoy run had been limited to just 40 cars the final stage of the day of celebration saw 107 TR7's gathered outside the Heritage Motor Centre Museum. These included everything from rolling restorations to pristine concours-worthy wedges, convertibles, fixed head coupes, 4 and 5 speed manuals and automatics. There were a large number of factory standard cars alongside big V8s, track cars and Grinnall conversions as well.

At 3pm the day was rounded off with a cake cutting ceremony and speeches from TR7 designer Harris Mann and Tony Lee, Chief Development Engineer who amidst an hour of amusing banter offered some unique insights into the politics, challenges and successes of the TR7 project.

The TR Register and TSSC supported the TR Drivers Club fully in the event but none of it could have happened without the hardwork of John Clancy and team to whom thanks from all the TR Register wedge pilots goes for organising such a memorable occasion.

January 2015 marks the 40th anniversary of the TR7 going on sale in the US and although it wasn't until May 1976 when it appeared in the UK we will be looking forward to a year of celebrations in 2015 to mark the fortieth anniversary of the last of the great TR range of sports cars.

Regrettably the 2014 season is over.

Castle Combe Sprint was our final event of the year (see paddock picture) and that sorted out the final placings in the Championship.

Once again John Weedon is our overall champion. This year Dale Huxford was second overall with Roger McEwenin third place.

Samantha Browne was our leading lady and Jonathon Weedon the winner of the young persons award – well all things are relative.

In the minor placings Graham Ramsey was first in Class 1; Kev Bryant first in Class 2; and, Tony Browne first in the hotly contested Class 3.

The Annual Drivers' Meeting will take place on Saturday 8th November at Wroxton House Hotel, starting at 3.00pm.

Sunday the 2nd November 2014 saw the TR Register Annual General Meeting take place at the Heritage Motor Museum, Gaydon.

Due to publication schedules, we were unable to report on this in detail in the last issue of TR Action magazine; however we have put measures in place on the magazine production schedule to rectify that in 2015.

We are happy to announce the election of Phil Tucker as the new Chairman of the TR Register.

Elsewhere, Chris Hale was re-elected as Overseas Director and newly elected to the position of Vice Chairman. Mervyn Parkes remains as Finance Director whilst elsewhere Andy Spencer, Howard Pryor and Roger Hogarth joined the board as South West, Eastern and South Eastern Directors. Tony Sheach was elected to the newly created role of Technical Director.

All contested directors positions were decided on the basis of a poll, meaning that the votes in the room were counted alongside the registered proxy votes.

The following resolutions were adopted (subject to approval by Companies House under the terms of 'special resolution') via a poll:

10.2.2: That the Articles of Association be amended at Clause 17 to add Clause 17 (4) 'Notice of available directorships may be accompanied by a reasonably detailed job description of the role concerned.' (This amendment would indicate that all future available directorships are likely to have a job description, which is not currently required at all, but it would not become compulsory.)

10.2.5: That the Articles of Association be amended at Clause 23 (5) ( b) to delete the words 'or likely to become harmful' and to delete the words 'A Member expelled by such a resolution will nevertheless remain liable to pay to the Club any subscription or other sum owed by the Member. (This amendment would still allow members to be expelled if their continued membership was actually harmful to the club but would not require them to then pay a subscription unless they had already done so.)

10.2.6: That the Articles of Association be amended at Clause 25 (a) to add the words
'and such accounts shall have been published in writing and been available to be seen
by Members on the website of the Club at least 60 days prior to the meeting. (This amendment would require future accounts to be published and put on the Club website at least 60 days before the AGM rather than just requiring them to be presented at the AGM itself as at present.)

10.2.8: That the Articles of Association be amended at Clause 29 to add the words 'and on the Club website at least 7 days prior to the meeting. (This amendment would require the Agenda for meetings to be published and available from the office at least 7 days before the meeting rather than just being available from the office at no set date as at present.)

The Annual TR Register Awards also took place following the conclusion of formal business at the Annual General Meeting with the following results:

TR Register Awards

The TR Register would also like to formally extend thanks to Chris Cunnington who stood down as chairman after seven years of service. Chris has been a figurehead for many years and will be missed. Presentations were made to both Chris Cunnington and Mark Treadwell for their long-standing service.

MINUTES NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE

The full minutes of the 2014 Annual General Meeting are currently available for approval on the TR Register website. This is the first time that this document has been made available online to download in its entirety so we urge all members to read through and submit comments to the Vice Chairman Chris Hale, contact details at the rear of this magazine.
Go to http://www.tr-register.co.uk/agm to download the PDF now.

Fourteen drivers attended the annual drivers' meeting at The Wroxton House Hotel, near Banbury recently.

The Coordinator's Report recorded the Championship had an exceptionally good year by recent standards when measured by the average number of competitors attending events. The 2014 average was 4.6 entrants compared to just 3.6 the previous year.

All agreed this was good news, but still more needs to be done for the Championship to be regarded as being in rude health. Drivers continue to appeal to others to join us in helping to keep the marque active on the race circuits and hills of the UK. We welcome both new and past Triumph drivers, including non TRs.

The best event for the year was the Red Rose Speed Pageant held at the Prescott Speed Hill Climb run by the Longton and District Motor Club.

The Promotion and Publicity Report reported good coverage of the championship in TR Action and on Facebook. Drivers were successful in getting more action images, usually by simply asking amateur photographers to send their best images into the office.

Use of both the website and the forum declined and as a result the summary statistics for these two media were poor. Activity needs to be more frequent in 2015. Drivers also agreed to update their profiles on the Competition News section of the website and to display a brief summary of their car on the windscreen at each event.

The Annual NEC Classic Motor Show took place over the weekend of the 14 - 16th November 2014 and once again proved to be a massive gathering of the classic and vintage motoring press, industry and clubs.

As in previous years, exhibitors were encouraged to follow a theme on their stand and this year's theme was the "The Big Screen." The TR Register stand's "Big Screen" played a montage of movies and TV shows featuring TR's from French romance's of the 1950s to a recent BBC3 comedy featuring a yellow TR7 coupe and everything in between.

Most will know that this year saw another running of the Le Mans Classic race event where a team of three TR's were entered. The line up was reminiscent of what racing fans would have seen Standard Triumph enter during the 1950's treating fans to over nine hours of TR' racing throughout the day and night. Team Penrite included a 1955 TR2, 1959 TR3S tribute and the Triumph TRS of 1961.

The TR Register display at the NEC Motor Show 2014 featured all three of the competing cars and throughout the weekend the stand featured interviews with driver Barry Siddery - Smith, Triumph TRS tribute car owner Paul Gerring, TR2 owner Neil Fender and team boss Paul Hogan.

During the prestigious Classic and Sportscar Awards, the TR Register was also named runner up for the award of "Best Use of Social Media" for the live blog commentary provided on the TR Register website throughout the Le Mans Classic race.

Alongside the three Le Mans entrants the Triumph TR7 took centre stage to celebrate the fortieth year since production of the last of the line of TR sports cars began at the Speke plant in Liverpool.. The feature of the TR7 at this years NEC Classic Motor Show begins a year of celebrations ahead in 2015.

Furthermore, the stand will feature one of the oldest Triumph TR6's known to survive as well as a TR4a that was used sent over to Karmann in Germany to mock up the body styling and patterns for the TR6.

The TR Register would like to extend it's warmest thanks to all the volunteers who manned the stand over the three - days, to all the current members who visited the stand for complimentary refreshments and big welcome to the 27 new members who joined us over the course of the weekend. Our next display will be at the London Classic Car Show, London Excel 8 - 11 January 2015.

The Parts Quality Initiative aims to build a structure in which parts quality concerns can be managed with the specialist suppliers such that both we and they may take appropriate actions to keep our classic Triumph TRs on the road, reliably and safely.

We aim to help identify major parts related issues through the use of feedback from TR Register members. To accumulate, compile and analyse factual information in order to work with suppliers to identify and replace problem components in their ranges. This will enable the suppliers continually to improve their offerings to TR Register members with the support of the TR Register car club."

Clearly, we require the assistance of our members in this initiative. However we do expect that any transactions will have been entered and completed in "good faith" by both parties, with constructive dialogue and efforts made, and recorded if necessary, to resolve individual issues and problems.The PQI is not aligned to individual problems; it will remain focused on broad quality issues and represents a natural progression for the Spares Development Fund.

To submit a report on a parts quality concern you may be experiencing please fill in in the form here

New event for the TR Register International 7th – 9th August 2015

Sponsored by Penrite Oil, the TR Register is very pleased to announce it will be hosting a display of Triumph Survivors at the 2015 International Weekend in Malvern, 7 - 9 August. The display aims to be the largest collection of Triumph and derivative survivors ever seen at a Triumph or classic car gathering in the UK. An open invitation is extended to all TR Register members and members of other Triumph clubs who wish to display their Triumph Survivor at Malvern.

So, what is a 'Survivor'? There doesn't seem to be a formal definition for the term in the classic car world. However, most authoritative sources agree that a 'Survivor' is a preserved car, which is substantially original and unrestored. A 'survivor' retains the cosmetic appearance, mechanical components, with the fit and finishes it left the factory with. In essence, it will be a car that has survived the ravages of time and has avoided restoration. Survivor cars are certainly not expected to be perfect, just honest.

Another question that is often raised is what is 'original'? Many owners of restored cars believe their car to be original because it has been restored to 'original specification'. In the context we are talking about here, original specification is not original condition. An original car retains the original factory paint and other surface finishes, or substantially so. The panels, interior, engine, chassis etc are those it left the factory with. The bolts that hold on the wings and doors etc are as they were when the assembly-line worker tightened them up. The paintwork might also reflect factory issues such as where the factory sprayer might have applied too much paint causing runs or maybe not enough paint in other areas.

Original cars have the ability to capture the imagination in a way restored cars never can, where every scratch or factory flaw tells its own story. Every time an original unrestored Triumph is restored it makes every other original unrestored Triumph much more rare. An original anything is only original once.

However, a car that remains exactly how it left the factory over four decades ago probably does not exist, unless it's been in storage in a controlled environment from day one. TRs and many small chassis Triumphs are sports cars after all and, all Triumphs are supposed to be driven! It is therefore unreasonable to expect a car that is over 40 years old to retain its service/consumable items. Components such as tyres, electrical items (e.g. battery, alternator, wiper motor etc), hoses, brakes, suspension etc are likely to have been replaced during its life.

So, if you are interested in original unrestored Triumph and derivative survivors, then you cannot afford to miss this line up, it will be fascinating, captivating and informative.

The display will also give the owners the opportunity to talk about their cars in the arena, recounting their car's history and no doubt there will be many anecdotes of their ownership - it will prove a fascinating spectacle. The display will also be immensely beneficial to those currently undertaking a restoration project, as Triumph Survivors are the most accurate cars from which historical and technical reference may be gained.

To enter your car please contact Andrew Smith for a Car Information Sheet:
Email: TriumphSurvivor@gmail.com or call: 07796 177115

Please note, it is not always possible to answer the mobile during the working day, so please either leave a message or call during the evening between 8 - 10 pm, or weekends.

Completed information sheets are to be returned by 30th June 2015.

The Triumph Survivor display will be held on the Saturday and Sunday of the TR International Weekend 2015 and the top three cars receiving the most votes will be provided with a year's supply of Classic Triumph Oils, whilst the car with the most votes will be presented with the 'Triumph Survivors Cup' courtesy of our proud sponsors, Penrite Oils.

See you at Malvern

Andrew Smith
Triumph Survivors Coordinator
TR Register

The Revington TR/TR Register Sprint & Hillclimb Championship – Events 2015

Find out more about the venues by visiting http://www.motorsportcircuits.co.uk

The TR Register is very pleased to announce the appointment of Sue Bell to the newly created position of Events and Office Assistant.

Sue comes to the TR Register from Towergate Insurance where she has worked for many years administering their specialist Triumph TR Motor Insurance scheme that had been previously trading under Flint and Co. The scheme was affiliated with the TR Register until late 2012 but has since been closed and will soon be amalgamated into Towergate's recently acquired Footman James brand.

Sue Bell brings to the TR Register a wealth of knowledge relating to TRs and an in depth knowledge of the clubs needs. Sue will be familiar to many members already and will prove to be an asset to the office team working full time to assist the membership secretary, directors and editorial team with their duties. We hope you will join the office team in welcoming Sue Bell to her new role.

We're now three events into the season. The first at Hullavington was attended by 7 championship competitors and was notable for Nick "I only need three wheels" Smith being pipped to maximum points by Dale Huxford. Sadly the wheel studs on Nick's TR6 decided enough was enough allowing the wheel to temporarily roam free across the Wiltshire countryside. So Dale in his Spitfire collected 10.05 points, Nick in his TR6 10.04 points and Tony Browne in his Dolomite Sprint 9.73 points.

The second event at Croft proved equally challenging for non championship entrant Geoff Mansfield. With a heavy right foot he squirted his smart TR3A across the line and into the tyre barrier resulting in yet another tyre making a temporary break for freedom. Sadly, the result was a punctured radiator and bent bodywork. On a brighter no newbie Tom Key showed veteran Roger McEwen a clean set of wheels taking 10.02 points and leaving Roger trailing with just 8.82 points. Jim Johnstone actually recorded the fastest time, but scored no points as he isn't registered with the championship, yet.

Our third event was the best attended so far this season. Fourteen registered competitors took part in the Gurston Down meeting. The TR6s of Roger McEwen, Nick, Smith, Graham Howard and Jim Berry, where joined by the Vitesses of Alan Yeo and Chris Roberts, Tony & Sam Browne in their Dolly, Tom Purves in his TR3A, Rod Warner in his TR7 V8, Andy Bradnum in his GT6 MkIII, Bob Barnard in his TR4, Dale Huxford in his Spitfire Mk IV and Graham Ramsey in his TR7. What a splendid entry. Graham Howard took the full 10.05 points with Nick Smith this time beating Dale Huxford with 9.96 and 9.87 respected.

The return of the TR Register Tracks days over the past couple of years has been welcomed by steady support and an ever-increasing turn out. The events represent an ideal opportunity to explore the capabilities of your TR in the safest possible surroundings with full support from course Marshalls and fellow TR owners alike.

This year's first outing was at Castle Coombe, near Bath and those attending to test their Triumph to their own personal limits were treated to a day of glorious sunshine. We could not have booked more perfect weather with the sun warming the track temperature up without conditions getting so hot that it was uncomfortable for those driving in closed roof cars, helmets and overalls.

Signing on always commences super early to maximize track time, but a cooked breakfast and plenty of coffee was laid on for the bleary eyed, Press Officer included following a 4.30 AM departure from home!

Castle Coombe are true professionals at processing batches of cars for track laps, as was the event organiser Kevin Bryant to whom we owe a huge vote of thanks for putting on this event for the TR Register. First disclaimers and tickets for the noise test are distributed, and then the participants were required to pass the noise test, or stop to collect an exhaust baffle from Merlin Motorsport and try again! Following that all drivers and passengers received their safety briefing and some tips on driving the track before signing on and taking to the tarmac. Sensibly, the marshals lead each group out on their first sighting lap of the day to demonstrate braking points and best lines through the corners for those willing to take note.

The cars were divided into groups A through to D according to experience, speed and car specification. A great move because it meant most the cars on track were travelling at a similar pace and ability but most importantly it allowed everyone bags of track time to really get to know the circuit, build their confidence and have a fantastic time. It was also great to see so many spectators attending who although were not driving on track, all added to the fabulous atmosphere in the paddock and trackside.

There was a huge spread of vehicles from very early standard road TR3s, through to the recently built fire breathing rally-prepped monster TR7V8 of Alastair Flack. Saloons big and small were well represented, including an Acclaim as were the small chassis Triumphs and of course plenty of TR6s and TR7V8s – both of which seemed to be the preferred weapon of choice. TR Register Hillclimb Champion Jon Weedon was also out on track for pre-season testing in his single-seater Mallock Hillclimb car. The widest grin of the day however had to come from TR Register Chairman, Phil Tucker in his TR3A fondly known as "UP –J" though the jury it out as to whether it will need a gearbox rebuild before his trip to France!

The event concluded without incident and everyone who had been out on track left with aching faces from all the grinning! Thanks to Kevin Bryant once again for organising such an important event in the annual TR diary. Also don't forget that the next TR Register Track Day takes place on 14^th July at Blyton Park in Lincolnshire. Tickets still available but very limited, so call the office or book online via the TR Register shop.

"Just a quick thank you from the Essex Group for a great day out, for me this was reminiscent of TR Register GoodWood Sprints in the early 80's and on all fronts is exactly what membership is all about."

"Just a short note to say thank you for organising such a great day at Castle Combe on Tuesday. I was with a few others from the Brunel Group and we thought the format was spot on. The grouping was good and with just 12 on the track we were able to easily work out what pace we were each running at and pass or give way accordingly."

"Just a great big thank you for organising such a fantastic day on Tuesday. Still got a huge grin on my face!"

"An absolutely great day on Tuesday. Well organised and well run. Many thanks. My son, following his passenger ride, said he had no idea why anyone would do such a blindly terrifying sport, but after his first drive, said it was just fantastic, and he knew exactly why!"

"I really enjoyed it. It was a good idea to give people a 15 minute slot and meant there was less time queuing up around and more time on the track."

"I'd like to extend a big Thank You to the circuit staff, yourself and the TR Register from myself and the Triumph Dolomite Club for a superb day. Very well organised and we look forward to, hopefully, attending the event next year."

"Many thanks for all the organisational effort you all put in. I thoroughly enjoyed the day."

"A very short note of thanks for a great day yesterday.Well run and most enjoyable.Thank you for making it happen and to the circuit team – so well run."

"Brilliant day & very organised but relaxed."

On a sun-kissed Wednesday in April, in excess of 200 media and VIP guests descended upon the legendary 'Home of British Motorsport' for the Silverstone Classic Press Launch day to discover details about this summer's special 25th anniversary meeting.

The Silverstone Classic is celebrating its 25th anniversary in 2015 and is firmly established as the World's Biggest Classic Motor Racing Festival. Organisers are expecting to top last year's event that enjoyed a record 1,125 race entries in front of a crowd of 94,000.

The spectacular event – winner of the prestigious 'Motorsport Event of the Year Award' - is staged at the famous Silverstone circuit in Northamptonshire, birthplace of the FIA Formula One World Championship and home of the Formula 1 British Grand Prix. The three-day festival features the very best of historic racing covering more than eight decades of motor sport as well as live

music from classic rock bands. This year the legendary Status Quo will be headlining alongside a wealth of family entertainment.

Three of Britain's best-loved and iconic TR sportscars will be celebrating major milestones at this summer's extra-special 25th anniversary Silverstone Classic (24-26 July). It is sixty years since the TR3 was born, fifty years since TR4A was introduced and forty years since the launch of the TR7 – all three significant birthdays will be marked with massive displays plus a memorable circuit parade.

The TR Register – in partnership with the TR Drivers Club and Triumph Sports Six Club – has teamed up with the event organiser to ensure a huge turn out and more than 100 models are expected to join in the festivities.

When released in 1955, the Triumph TR3 was a considerable progression from the previous TR2. Most notably, perhaps, it was the first British series production car to feature disc brakes, technology that we all now take for granted.

Ten years later in 1965 the Triumph TR4A was introduced, again showcasing significant steps forward in sports car engineering with its independent rear suspension and revised styling to fit the requirements for indicator repeaters in the vital American market.

The most radical evolution in Triumph sports car designs however came in 1975 with the bold, slashing wedge styling of the TR7. The newcomer featured a monocoque, MacPherson strut suspension, an overhead cam 'slant-4' engine and initially was offered as a fixed roof coupe.

Though much maligned at the time, the TR7 became the best selling of all the TRs and has enjoyed something of a renaissance with enthusiasts and collectors in recent times. Surviving cars in good condition are becoming more and more sought after as their rarity increases.

A full range of all three fabled TRs will be on show for the public to savor at the Classic alongside key variants from the legendary marque's successful racing and rallying programmes. As part of the comprehensive infield showcase, the TR Register is aiming to recreate the TR7's Motor Show launch display from 1975. Classic car enthusiasts will be welcome on the stand throughout the three-day event where they will be able to meet owners and learn more about these magical models over a complimentary cup of tea or coffee.

"This summer's Silver Jubilee Silverstone Classic is going to be very, very special
for lots of great reasons and this trio of outstanding TR anniversaries is certainly
one of those," enthused Event Director Nick Wigley. "Along with MG, the TR brand is synonymous with a glorious age when these wonderful British sports cars ruled the world. We'd be delighted to be celebrating one TR birthday, so to have three is just fantastic!"

The undoubted highlight of the weekend's birthday celebrations, though, will be the special TR anniversary parade staged on the full Silverstone Grand Prix circuit. This is scheduled for Saturday evening shortly before chart toppers Status Quo take to the main stage.

To launch the celebration of these milestone anniversaries to the worlds press, the TR Register Press Office took along five cars to the Silverstone Classic Media day one sunny Wednesday in April. Present on the day was Mick Forey (TR3) and Tim Sharp (TR6) of Leicester group, Colin Boother (TR4A) and Ian Brown (TR7 convertible) from Cotswold Vale plus the TR Register's own Coca Cola Levis TR7 coupe looking resplendent after its recent re-commissioning work.

The day began with the customary coffee and pastries before we were welcomed to the event by motorsport pit lane correspondence royalty, Louise Goodman. The press launch took the several hundred journalists present through a detailed presentation of the many aspects that make up this massive and prestigious event.

Touring car veteran Tim Harvey took to the stage alongside Patrick Watts to announce the appearance of his championship winning Peugeot in the super Touring Cars category. We were tantalised with previews of the cars battling it out for the Kidston trophy for pre-war racecars. The race, new for 2015, is named after one of the rich Bentley Boys who enjoyed so much success in the late 1920s and early 1930s at events like Le Mans and was brought to life by an opportunity to be driven flat out around the famous Silverstone Classic in one of those pre-war Bentley racecars, an experience that your TR Register Press Officer will never forget!

A particularly interesting discussion explored the meteoric rise in classic car values since the very first Silverstone Classic was run in 1990 with some cars more than tripling their value in the last twenty five years. Some staggering examples included genuine AC Cobras that have risen in value from £170k

to £1.3million since 1990. Sadly fuel has also shot up; it was just 40.2p per litre twenty- five years ago! As a result of all this though, the attendance at Silverstone Classic now represents tens of millions of pounds worth of historic motoring.

Alongside the much loved Tourist Trophy and sixties touring car races there will also be a spectacular race involving the 1980s Group C sports cars including the 1989 Le Mans winning Sauber Mercedes, driven by the likes of Henri Pescarolo, Jochen Mass and Johnny Dumfries. Formula One history will also be represented and Michael Schumacher's genuine Benetton car was present at the media day for numerous photo opportunities with the many dignitaries present.

For the rest of the day it was an opportunity for the hundreds of journalists from national newspapers and car magazines alike from around the world to pore over the TRs assembled in the anniversary display area. We were extremely privileged as a
club to have been invited to this unique
and exclusive industry event and I know
from spending the many hours talking to photographers and writers that quite a few went away educated and inspired about the TR story and our anniversary cars in particular.

The day rounded off with a photo-shoot for the TRs in motion around the famous circuit for the Silverstone Classic event's media agency who have kindly given us permission to reproduce the results here for you and will be distributing our club news releases to the wider classic car press between now and the event in July. If you have not yet booked your ticket to come and join us, then what are you waiting for?

Sponsored by Penrite Oils, the TR Register's Inaugural Triumph Survivor Display was held at the 2015 International Weekend in Malvern over the weekend of 7 - 9 August 2015 and included a great line-up of sixteen cars in all: 1962 TR3B, 1962 Italia, seven TR6s from 1968 - 1976, three 1981 TR7s and two TR8s (1980 and 1981 (registered in 1986) and stunning examples of a 1975 Toledo and a 1979 Spitfire.

The display was held in Avon Hall, within the Three Counties Showground and drew large crowds eager to see the elusive 'Triumph Survivors'. The vehicles gave the opportunity for members and the public alike to see how these cars, warts and all, left the factory. The display proved particularly beneficial to those restoring their cars to see how panels were fitted (not a perfect panel gap in sight!), the positioning of the decals and the quality of a factory paint finish etc, etc. Lots of questions were asked of owners and even more photographs were taken for reference.

These cars were far from being 'trailer queens' though. Frank Ackermann (a member of the TR Register Germany and the UK) drove all the way from Dreieich in Germany to display his CKD 1972 Pimento TR6 with 30,000 km on the clock. Frank said 'this is the most miles my TR6 has ever driven, but I'm very glad I did and I'm also glad say the car had no problems –the original Lucas pump was faultless!'

On Saturday and Sunday the cars were driven into the arena where Wayne Scott, TR Register Press Officer talked to owners about their car's story. Most survivors have managed to remain intact by being locked away for many years or have had little use during over the years.

Read the full story in TR Action Magazine!

Final results

1st. 1981 Triumph TR8: D63 OGR owned by Simon Eaton

(pictured here alongside TR7 designer Harris Mann)

2nd. 1962 Triumph Italia: 477 YUT owned by Paul Harvey

3rd. 1970 Triumph TR6: DPF 640J owned by Andrew Smith

One of the most overused statements overheard at the Classic Motor Show has been revealed as this year's show theme. 'She's a Beauty' will provide the inspiration for the TR Register's club display when the season finale returns to Birmingham's NEC from 13th to 15th November. The theme will run alongside the anniversary celebrations for the TR3, TR4A and TR7 this year.

We will be honoring those ladies that challenged the men when it came to Triumph motorsport and most importantly we are looking to showcase the women involved in the TR Register club scene – both past and present.

Event Director Dan Nwaokolo explains: "The classic motoring scene is no longer a man's world. Each year we have more and more women who are on club committees organising stand displays, young ladies enrolled on classic restoration apprenticeships, and female classic collectors joining us at the show.

"We will celebrate all the women involved in the classic community over the years as well as looking at why owners treat their vehicles with the same passion as they do their spouses. Most owners even give their cars female names! We will explore how a man's passion for his classic is only dwarfed by the passion he has for the other love of his life.

"From the women who are passionate enthusiasts to those who unknowingly inspired the designs we love, we acknowledge them all."

The TR Register will be present at the show this year with two displays, the main stand featuring anniversary cars to celebrate 60 years of TR3, 50 years of TR4A and 40 years of TR7 to round up a whole year of celebrations. The second display will be run by the clubs Youth Group who will be showing a selection of their members cars within the new 'Young Owners' area to be featured at this years show.

TR Register's Press Officer , Wayne Scott says: "The NEC Classic Motor Show is an important part of the TR calendar and we are keen to be involved with the "She's a Beauty" theme alongside our own anniversaries. We would very much like to hear from all our TRing ladies on how they would like to be involved in these celebrations, all ideas will be considered."

There are special club member discounts available for TR Register members. Find them listed in the members feed area of this website or on the rear page of TR Action Magazine.

Members login area.

Many of you have now received your members login email, there are a few still to deliver. If you have not received it yet, please wait. Although most members have received them, we have had a few issues regarding spam filters and certain data strings when sending emails out to some of you, from our servers.

If you are one of the unlucky ones - please bear with us. We have identified who you are, we have a fix and we'll be sending your email in the next few days. In the meantime, double check your junk mail and spam folders just in case. We will update you all via these pages when we have re-sent them to the troublesome accounts so you can check yours.

Sorry for the delay if you are one of the members affected.

** Update: We expect to send all members their login invite email by midnight on Wednesday 2nd September 2015. Keep checking back here for further updates.

Are you sure we have your email address?

Of course, it might be that the TR Register simply does not have an email on file for you, not all of our members have given us their email address yet - if you think that might be you then register your email now here.

What does the members login email contain and why do I need to wait for it?

This contains a unique link that you must click to choose a password. The reason you need to click this link is to verify it is you choosing the password and not someone who happens to know your email address!

Once you have chosen your password, simply return to the homepage and login.

You can delete the email if you wish, the link will only work once. If you try to re-use it you will see a message stating "You have already chosen your password".

Please make sure you mark all incoming mail from @tr-register.co.uk as not spam or "trusted" in your spam filter settings. Some email services require you to set trusted email addresses. Also again, please keep an eye on your spam and junk folders.

Subscribe to newsletter

Some members have been confused as to what the 'Subscribe to Newsletter' form is for at the bottom of the homepage. By entering your details in here, you are subscribing your email to a list that will receive periodic news and information from the TR Register. If you have a members login account (i.e you are a TR Register member) you are already subscribed so you do not need to do anything. If you wish to opt out, you can click the unsubscribe button at the base of any newsletter you receive. Non - members may sign up to receive periodic news and announcements from the TR Register as a newsletter delivered to their email inbox.

The forum

The forum , for now remains unchanged. Updates to the forum will happen during phase 3 along with the TR Register Archives porthole and after updates to the shop and office infrastructure have been completed. For now, please login to the forum with the same account details you have always used. We will update you on further forum development within the next few weeks.

Group Leaders

You will be contacted separately regarding populating the new group website pages. You will be able to populate local group pages via your new members login.

Classifieds

You can add a classified advert FOR FREE as a member. Do not try and add classifieds from the classifieds page if you are a member as you will be asked to pay. From your members login area, simply go to the menu on along the top, far right where you will find a button to "Manage my Classifieds" and you can add an unlimited number there for free.

Rebuilders diaries

Please add some blogs and share your projects with everyone, you can access and manage this from within your members area.

Known issues

There are a number of post launch bugs that we are running with:

1) Some members are seeing an extra login page when trying to access the "update your details / renew your membership" page. This will be fixed very soon.

2) There is a large number of TR Action Magazines online but not quite the entire back catalogue yet and they are in 'oldest first' order. Currently we are adding more all the time, its a painstaking process so bear with us while we complete the upload.

3) Issues with viewing TR Action via iPhone / iPad with full page re-sizing.

4) If you come across a broken link or typo on a page please let me know: press@tr-register.co.uk

5) Media centre and trusted suppliers pages will be populated with content ASAP.

A spokeswoman for Beaulieu Estate, in the New Forest, said Edward, 3rd Baron Montagu of Beaulieu, died "peacefully" after a short illness.

He is survived by his wife Fiona, his son and heir Ralph, daughter Mary and second son Jonathan.

The Hampshire estate and visitor attractions are to continue to operate as usual, the spokeswoman confirmed.

The estate hosts the National Motor Museum, Britain's most significant collection of historic vehicles and Lord Montagu has played a highly significant role in the Historic Vehicle movement as both president of the Federation of Historic Vehicle Clubs and as a member of the All Party Parliamentary Historic Vehicle Group.

An estate funeral will be held at Beaulieu, followed by a memorial service at St Margaret's in Westminster "for his friends in London and further afield", she added.

The dates are yet to be confirmed.

Lord Montagu was one of the pioneers of the stately home industry and first opened his home to the public in 1952.

He also founded the National Motor Museum on the 7,000-acre (2,800-hectare) estate and was a leading authority on veteran and vintage cars, usually taking part in the London to Brighton run.

The directors of FBHVC extend their warmest condolences to the family and would like to record their deep gratitude for Lord Montagu's tireless work over many years as their President.

For further information contact Geoff Lancaster, FBHVC communications director, on 07860 562659.

Its with great sadness that the TR Register learnt this morning of the passing of Tony Lee, ex- chief development engineer at Standard Triumph and one of the engineers instrumental in the development of the TR range, especially the TR7.

Tony Lee joined Triumph as an apprentice in January 1946 and worked extensively alongside his bosses Harry Webster and Walter Belgrove on developing new Standard Triumph products in the post - war era. Speaking to Moss Motoring Magazine in May 1992 he recalled fond memories of his time there as an apprentice, " ... two favorite words used when speaking to apprentices, nip and whip, as in "nip over there and whip that thing out" or being asked to create a shock absorber testing rig using "that sheet of metal over there" .

One of Tony Lee's earliest projects was performance testing the first car to be released by Triumph after the war, the interestingly shaped 1800 . He then went on to the position of "experimental shop manager" and spent most of his time working at M.I.R.A on performance development. Tony's first major input into the TR range of cars was through his extensive work with the TR3 Beta where one of his test runs saw him co-piloting for Ken Richardson whilst testing a TR4 chassis fitted with TR3 components.

During the 1970s Tony had risen to the top of the engineering development hierarchy at Triumph and was sent to Turin on a couple of occasions to take a look at and eventually drive prototypes from Giovanni Michelotti for the TR6 replacement. In the end a more futuristic wedge shaped design from a young Longbridge designer called Harris Mann was chosen and Tony Lee began work on developing the car ready for market.

One of the most iconic images in TR7 history comes from TR7 prototype testing in Wales where on a 20% mountain incline near Bwlch y Groes , the power, torque and braking were all tested in rather extreme conditions whilst the car wore fins to disguise it from the competitors spy cameras.

Tony remained deeply passionate about Triumph motor cars long into his retirement and was most recently seen entertaining fans with a fascinating talk at the TR7 40th Anniversary run held at Gaydon last September. He will be sorely missed by Triumph enthusiasts from around the globe.

Alan Goodwin, General Manager at Revington TR passed on his condolences via social media today, "Tony was an intrinsic part of TR7 development and an important part of my early career. Tony will be missed."

Tony passed away on 3rd September 2015, aged 86 peacefully and surrounded by his family.

Tony Lee pictured left alongside John Lloyd on the right during a TR7 prototype test in Wales.