Lot 220: 1965 Triumph 2000 Saloon

At first glance, such a large and only moderately powerful saloon as the Triumph 2000 must have seemed an unlikely candidate for competitive rallying back in the mid-1960s. However, the then current Group 3 regulations permitted extensive engine tuning as well as the substitution of lightweight body panels and modifications to brakes, suspension, etc; thus the works 2000s employed triple Weber-carburetted 150bhp engines, wide-ratio overdrive gearboxes, limited-slip differentials, 15” wheels and larger brakes. Following a disappointing debut in the 1964 Spa-Sofia-Liège Rally, the works 2000 of Roy Fidler/Don Grimshaw finished 2nd in class and 6th overall in that year’s RAC, a most promising result so early in the car’s development. There were a couple of class wins and some notable leader-board finishes for the works 2000s in 1965, but with Group 3 due to be axed at the season’s end, the writing was on the wall. Triumph ran the 2000 in Group 1 form in the Monte Carlo and Swedish rallies early in 1966 before the works team was disbanded and the cars sold off. Limited activity continued at national level however, Roy Fidler, driving a works-assisted 2000, winning the 1966 British Rally Championship. It was not quite the end; two prototypes were built for the 1967 RAC Rally and fitted with 2.5-litre engines, but neither was able to take part in this cancelled event.
Richard Lloyd has followed the same route with the car offered here, which is fitted with the later 2500 model’s 2.5-litre engine. Up-rated to ‘fast road’ specification with high-lift camshaft and free-flow exhaust system, this classic Triumph is a veritable wolf in sheep’s clothing and has been used by Richard for tarmac and navigational rallies, including the 2006 Tour of Catalunya and the Irish Rally in 2007. An exceptionally original car presented in very good overall condition (the original interior is virtually unmarked), ‘FPL 955C’ is offered with sundry receipts.