Triumph At Speke building Stag Shells

[Neil W]

Maybe known to SOC Forum members but found this link via the Manchester Standard Triumph Group detailing a bit about the old Factory.

http://www.mstg.org.uk/speke.html

Some of the photos








Know build quality was not that good at Speke but you would have thought they's see the bottom TR6 was missing a door.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Stag+Rd,+Liverpool+L24,+UK/@53.3553879,-2.8809546,15z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x487ae001e6eab94f:0x5fef586cea03a4e4

Stag Road is a street in the settlement of Liverpool which is within the electoral area of Allerton and Hunts Cross Ward in the administration area of Liverpool District Council located in the North West Euro Region of the UK.

Stag Road is located 173.63 miles North West from the centre of London



Neil

[Stag61]

Neil great pictures and good links thanks for that

[richardthestag]

crikey, super rare pics of people actually working at Speke in the 1970s ;-)

[jleyton]

An interesting find - well done Neil.

However, in the write up it contains one of the often repeated, but totally incorrect, misconceptions about Triumph. It says: The TR7 ...........was a serious flop.

I wasn't a big fan of the TR7 until I had one as a company car when, having accepted that it wasn't in the TR2-6 mould, I found it quite enjoyable. However this 'it was a flop' is quite wrong. It was the best selling TR of all - approx numbers, including derivatives and federal spec versions etc were :

TR2 8,500
TR3 75,000
TR4 69,000
TR5 11,000
TR6 92,000
TR7 115,000

Another often repeated, but almost definitely incorrect thing about Triumph figures, is that there were "more Auto Stags than Manuals".

The exact split of manual/auto is not available for 1976 which could conceivably mean that autos outsold manuals, but judging by the other years and overall numbers it would seem extremely likely that there were actually more manuals produced than autos.

	Total		Manual		Auto
1970	740		388		352
1971	3901		2,512		1,389
1972	4504		2,447		2,057
1973	5508		2,649		2,859
1974	3442		1,732		1,710
1975	2898		1,375		1,523
1976	3110		N/A		N/A
1977	1836		613		1,223
Totals	25939	11716		11113

Cheers

Julian

[richardthestag]

interesting figures Julian

I always had a soft spot for the 7, a car that cried out for more power. but was acceptable for what it was. Triumph should have centred the advertising campaign around Joanna Lumley wearing PVC and used the tagline like "beardies need not apply" etc

Mum had a yellow FHC with webasto, it was an early 4 on the floor speke model so natural it rusted faster than the Belgrano but it was a nice ride. and reliable too, except for the headlamp motors. I eventually sussed them out and could make them wink, or go up and down alternately which mum did not find amusing

[mike@thenook]

My (then) Father-in-law worked at the BL Bean foundry and brought home a works TR8 for us to try for a weekend - It went like stink in a straight line but corners had to be taken very carefully - it was a bit like a Marina with a big engine and the brakes...

Don't complain about Stag brakes until you've driven a standard TR8!


Interesting pic's though and I must assume that it was one of "Red" Robo's days off - he'd never have allowed pictures to be taken of actual work being done!

[jleyton]

Hmmm Interesting

Sparked off by Neil's post above I Googled images of 'Triumph at Speke' and came up with this:

Untitled.jpg

https://revslib.stanford.edu/catalog/pg989wy8563

However, I thought that Speke only produced the bodies before final assembly at Canley, so why is there a mostly completed car apparently at Speke

Cheers

Julian

[Neil W]

interesting figures Julian

I always had a soft spot for the 7, a car that cried out for more power. but was acceptable for what it was. Triumph should have centred the advertising campaign around Joanna Lumley wearing PVC and used the tagline like "beardies need not apply" etc

Mum had a yellow FHC with webasto, it was an early 4 on the floor speke model so natural it rusted faster than the Belgrano but it was a nice ride. and reliable too, except for the headlamp motors. I eventually sussed them out and could make them wink, or go up and down alternately which mum did not find amusing

My last convertible was below which I sold to a collector in Malta - not built at Speke tho' - 10k miles & all original down to hood / paint / engine / interior.





The BBC weren't mincing their words about Speke

http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/liverpool/hi/people_and_places/history/newsid_8401000/8401200.stm

[bullstarz]

You can clearly tell from the photo's that this was the old factory in Speke on the outskirts of Liverpool, as all the wheels have been robbed.

Was the factory where the off road place is now or those rundown buildings on the A561

[new to this]

An interesting find - well done Neil.

However, in the write up it contains one of the often repeated, but totally incorrect, misconceptions about Triumph. It says: The TR7 ...........was a serious flop.

I wasn't a big fan of the TR7 until I had one as a company car when, having accepted that it wasn't in the TR2-6 mould, I found it quite enjoyable. However this 'it was a flop' is quite wrong. It was the best selling TR of all - approx numbers, including derivatives and federal spec versions etc were :

TR2 8,500
TR3 75,000
TR4 69,000
TR5 11,000
TR6 92,000
TR7 115,000

Another often repeated, but almost definitely incorrect thing about Triumph figures, is that there were "more Auto Stags than Manuals".

The exact split of manual/auto is not available for 1976 which could conceivably mean that autos outsold manuals, but judging by the other years and overall numbers it would seem extremely likely that there were actually more manuals produced than autos.

	Total		Manual		Auto
1970	740		388		352
1971	3901		2,512		1,389
1972	4504		2,447		2,057
1973	5508		2,649		2,859
1974	3442		1,732		1,710
1975	2898		1,375		1,523
1976	3110		N/A		N/A
1977	1836		613		1,223
Totals	25939	11716		11113

Cheers

Julian

Julian

thanks for that,i always thought more stags were sold in auto,you learn some thing new every day

dave

[staginhiding]

I love seeing these old factory production line photos..
Julian in your find that must be the left hand drive cars..the cars have the door mirrors fitted and they look like the AMC ?
Type I think..USA market.

Sam

[Neil W]

I love seeing these old factory production line photos..
Julian in your find that must be the left hand drive cars..the cars have the door mirrors fitted and they look like the AMC ?
Type I think..USA market.

Sam

Think it is a RHD as the windscreen wiper point to the left - if LHD they would point to the right.
Rear badge is black so think it is a mk2 so would have been discontinued for USA also the USA ones would have been fitted with side red rear cruise lights - I think.
Other LHD would have had the badge ie Europe.
Door mirror may not have been fitted to a passenger door on LHD from brown car below.

Lady below in LHD Model was certainly not wearing a 'Triumph' as politically incorrect - her headlights are a bit too high







Number plate plinth looks to be a larger size on US Models going by advert & photo ( or dealer fit ) - The white Stag is ex US for sale in the UK







Neil

[staginhiding]

Well spotted,so in which case the door mirrors (on the drivers side at least )were fitted at the factory..

[jleyton]

Hi Sam - hope you enjoyed your hols

I thought you might be right about them being LHD however if you look at the wipers they are sitting like a RHD car

I'm still surprised that they built the car as far as that in Speke - maybe they built all the car except the mechanical items - subframes/suspension/running gear/engine & gearbox whereas I had always assumed they just built and painted the shells.

Cheers

Julian

[malc4d]

US cars had only the drivers side mirror fitted from the factory. These where the manual type similar to the Jag.