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Hi The attached article has been prepared to compare the suspension setup of the Spitfire Mk IV and that of the GT6 Mk2 to the suspension setup of the Lotus Elan that has been regarded as one of the best handing small sports cars ever produced. The similarities of the front suspension will be highlighted as well as the compromised solutions at the rear. Finally modifications are presented to bring a triumph small chassis suspension to perform remarkably close to that of the Lotus Elan. I hope you find this interesting & useful. Nicky Triumph small chassis suspension optimisation..pdf

Hello All, I'm trying to determine if Girling AR calipers will fit the GT6 upright/caliper mounting bracket for the 16P/16PB. They've both got the same distance between mounting centres of 3.5", but other than rotor thickness, unsure about other dimensions necessary to confirm if they fit. Does anyone know what the offset between the mounting face of the caliper and the rotor centerline is for the 16P/16PB? I'd read somewhere that they may have been used on racing Spitfires, and do know they would have been used on Lotus and open wheel cars which used the Herald or Vitesse uprights. Kind Regards, AJ

Hi All Recently purchased a Mk2 GT6. Bodywork and paint all done but needs finishing. Currently fitting a new loom and everything going ok until tried to wire in heated rear screen. Ive linked the new loom to the existing loom under the headlining and there are 2 wires (one at each hinge) but no wires from the heated screen to plug these into. It looks like someone has fitted a new rear screen without exiting the relevant wires from the heating element. However, not really sure how this is done - from under the seal? if not where? Am i missing something? thanks in anticipation Bob

Hi all, Found my way onto this forum recently after hunting for some answers to a few bits of my GT6 that where causing me to have several aneurisms. This is my first post on here so forgive any ignorance in my posts. So currently have a GT6 chassis I’m building. 1970 mk2 with a 2l lump but will be highly tuned and well optimised. Also fitted is a nice 3.63 ratio diff as well as lots of other nice suspension bits. However I now find myself moving onto the daunting task of sorting the gearbox. The car is an overdrive car, but did not come with a box when purchased, someone nicked it before purchase! In addition to this I also have no prop shaft as I held of buying a new one should the gearbox be non standard. Im aware of a conversion Involving a dolomite 1850 3 rail box with J type into a single rail gt6/Vitesse box. I don’t have deep pockets so this will very much be a 80s scrapyard job, finding the bits for cheap and sweating it out for a few nights to produce something good. What I’m hoping to get advice on is exactly what I’m going to need. Unless I can find someone with the setup already who is selling, I’m guessing I’m going to have to buy a good 1850 O/D box and a gt6/Vitesse box to make the conversion? What other snags am I likely to run into or need to watch out for? Can I get a non OD Gt6 Vitesse box to use for this? As is it just the case that is needed? And of course a shorter prop shaft but what about clutch modifications? Clutch is something I also have yet to buy fortunately. Any advice or steering in the right direction would be greatly appreciated. Many Thanks Jacob

Good Day Gentlemen, I'm new to the forum and Triumphs in general. Around 2010 when I was a kid, I first saw a GT6 by way of trying to buy an MG. Fell in love, and I've always wanted a GT6 since then. Finally got the opportunity to purchase one this year. In the preceding years I had a simple dream, and that was to build a PI GT6. What if Triumph made the best possible GT6, with a PI engine and overdrive and whatever other goodies I could think of. I've been reading SteveA's old blog and trying to gather parts and information for the build. So I've accumulated two sets of late PI gear and am having one MU recalibrated/refurbished, and I got hold of a cam and wideport TR6 head, which I think I'll need to shave to bring the CR up to something like on the UK spec GT6s. I've never built an engine before in my life, and i'm not 100% sure what all I need to do to accomplish this idea, but I'm committed to making the dream a reality. My first step will be to build up the head, so I've got to get all the right studs for manifolds and such, get the head height right for a GT6, and sort out the valves and springs and rocker gear. I'm still looking for an engine block to build on, but it's not much of a priority right now simply because I'm loathe to lift a built up bottom end up and down the stairs of my apartment. Here's some pictures of the car, and the new head with some of the components slapped on. Needless to say, I'll be posting an awful lot of neophyte and naive questions in the coming months. So as my first question: Did the PI cars have different valve springs than the non PI cars? Kind Regards, AJ

Hi, My 6 has a 1/2"hose from blanked of mech fuel pump to a TEE that connects rocker box to air filter box. Idle air is sucked thru the idle control screw via a push-on filter. There is no other way apart from seals, for gas to enter or exit the engine A couple of flame traps are fitted in a poor attempt at coalescing. It's been like that for years as my only vacuum connection is used for idle control air flow. Bought this separator/catch tank. Two inlets, one outlet and same size hole on base. Thinking about how to use it and have it connected to provide idle "air"? A parallel PCV valve? I do have a two-wire idle air control motor and control on the ECU. Cheers, Iain.

I have decided to Megajolt the GT6 , which my lad has renamed "Thug" after having been out in the Stag last weekend, he says being in the 6 is like being beaten with a stick! The long term plan is to go EFI , but I dont have the funds to throw at it currently(or indeed the skills to make plenums and stuff) so I have decided to MJ. It means the sensors coilpacks etc will be in when I do decide to go EFI , and I can just sell the MJ ... Long term I am thinking Jenvey style DCOE throttle bodies and Emerald..... hence my need to save up! So with this in mind this weekend will see me start with the setup. I want to keep the car running whilst I get stuff sorted so I will try and run it kind of parallel to the dizzy short term until I have the EDIS side working, then do the Megajolt over a weekend in a fortnight or so when I am back from Holiday. So far I have this bit done... As the car is currently on triple 40s I have had an adaptor machined to extend the throttle spindle on the rearmost carb as I am going to run on a TPS for the 3D side of the ignition. The plan for this weekend is to get the pulley off and the timing cover (which leaks like a sieve when hot but is dry when cold!), see if I can sort the oil leak, mount the pulley with the trigger wheel and the VR sensor and see if I can get it to fire on EDIS. If things go well I will also try and mount the TPS. I will just point to point wire short term to test as the wiring in the car is a mess anyhow and I will sort the whole lot together once the lot is in and I know exactly where everything is going. I understand the wiring is vital to get right in terms of good positive connections. One question, the first of many I am sure, is what is the best way of joining wires. In normal circumstances I would just crimp and spade connector stuff together, but as I want the system to be reliable and sound is there a "best practice" to avoid wiring pitfalls. Anyhow I will try and update with photos as I go on.... this is the latest Megajolt with USB connectivity, it will be interesting to see if it helps avoid the refusing to talk to laptop problems people have had.

Hi All This site has popped up in far too many Google searches when I've been researching my GT6 rescue project for me not to finally join in! Currently working on the said GT6 with the original intention of keeping it a fairly standard drivers car but with a few little improvements. Rebuilt cylinder head, girling servo, master cylinders, dash wiring, 175CD carbs, electronic points replacement and suchlike. However due to the current engine bottom end woes and a spare 2500 lump up t'barn it's looking like the standardish intent is being eroded somewhat! Have enjoyed a lot of your time spent and comments posted on various triumph topics, a veritable wealth of information indeed. Hope to join in myself soon.

Well this started out as what I thought was a simple theoretical exercise to find out if it was possible to use a MK2 Rocker Assembly on a MK1 head. For a couple of reasons, I wanted to build a spare and two the pillars for the MK1 are NLA but there are loads of Spitfire and MK2 assemblies about (where MK2 includes GT6, TR6 etc). The conclusion is you can, so possibly in the dim and distant future long after I'm gone the only other person in the world with a MK1 head and a broken rocker assembly may find this reference. Why is it of interest to anyone else? well what I found surprised me, and if I had a MK2, Vitesse, GT6, TR6 engine next time I had the rocker cover off I'd do a bit of checking! I first started by doing the simple thing and dropped a spare MK2 assembly (kindly supplied by John D) on to my MK1 head, and it went straight on the pedestal lined up with the studs perfectly, but looking the tips of the rockers in relation to the top of the valve stems was all over the shop, some perfect, some close, some out by a country mile. Now not surprising given that the blocks are identical, but the heads radically different in that the original MK1 had different valve sizes and different chamber shapes albeit centered over exactly the same bore positions and rocker shaft positions. Ok so time to start taking some measurements and do a little drawing to find out where the differences were, and work out what had to be done to make it fit, Oh and I thought a drawing would also help me pre make some spacers for the new shaft as I don't like the spring spacing. I have heard that they can wind up at high revs but don't know if that is fact or urban legend. Well the little drawing got bigger and bigger as some measurements didn't make sense, had to dig out my spare MK2 engine and start measuring from that as of course taking measurement from just a rocker assy doesn't work as the middle pedestals aren't fixed and there are those spring things. Even so measuring from a fully assembled head still didn't make much sense so I ended up measuring more and more (and double and triple measuring) and the drawing grew and grew. A few things I can state as fact The Pedestal heights on all the triumph engines, Spitfire, Vitesse, TR6 are all identical, likewise the spacing of the rocker pedestals on all the 6 cylinder engines are identical, The rockers on all these engines are also all identical within the limits that given they are all off a bit on a single assembly they are no more off across multiple assemblies. What surprised me was that my MK1 assembly that I had solid spacer'd some 30 years ago for my original head, was nicely lined up with the valve stems of my current "wonder head" pairs of valves being exactly spaced at 35mm, but on the MK2 head the pairs of valve spacing varied from 35 -37 mm and to be honest the alignment of the rocker tips with the top of the valve stems was all over the shop. Not as bad as dropping it on the MK1 head, but still very poor. Then I started looking at the oil drillings in the actual rocker shafts, and again was surprised at how random the positioning seemed on the MK2 shaft compared with the MK1. Anyway please find a very big drawing for your edification, entertainment and education. I don't know if I can upload it but if anyone want's in .dwg or visio format to play with let me know. Alan

I own a Triumph GT6 with D Type Overdrive. The latter unit has been installed for over thirty years and has always functioned perfectly under all conditions. Some months ago the Laygear in the gearbox broke and was replaced. The Overdrive was inspected for any small bits of metal that may have lodged and in fact small particles were found around the filter. When complete everything was put together again and gearbox filled with gear oil adding 'SLICK 50" as a measure of protection. On taking the car on the road I noticed that the Overdrive was not working well at normal operating temperatures. In fact, it worked perfectly when cold but as the engine warmed up the Overdrive took a more than normal time to engage and would not hold the gear under load, say, accelerating or climbing even the slightest incline, where the gear would on its own fall back on direct top. Overdrive third would not engage at all. As a first measure, I removed the gear oil with the additive and replaced with EP90 on its own but, the problem remained. On examining the "SLICK50" box, it says that it is not recommended for cars with limited slip differential, or CVT's. Has this anything to do with my problem? If so, how best to remove all traces of it? I would please like your advice as I seem to be lost for a solution

My GT6 was running OK before I pulled the engine half out to change the sump. Now, it sounds like a bucket of bolts! What I changed: Rewired the 2/5 and 3/4 coils so that they fire the right way round. I just opened the loom where the coil's pigtail spliced into the main loom, and swapped the wires over. No more flames out the inlets! The trigger wheel VR sensor wires pulled out of the connector when I removed the harness from the engine. They've been reconnected. The VR sensor only works one way, and I've confirmed that it's connected correctly, as the MS3Pro can see the trigger wheel turning. Added the O2 sensor to the exhaust. Ground back the injector pockets which had previously protruded into the manifold. Much better flow now! Added small vacuum takeoffs for the MAP & fuel pressure regulator, and larger takeoffs for the idle valve & brake booster. Added a small vacuum rail for the pressure regulator and MAP sensor, which now registers an air pressure drop when the engine is running. The idle valve / brake booster vacuum tank hasn't been added yet, so their takeoffs have been blocked off. The engine starts easily, but idles roughly around 700. Any throttle opening kills it. It's still sensing load as Alpha-N, ie using the throttle sensor, which was how it was before I pulled the engine. I've tried changing that to manifold vacuum or ITB (which uses the throttle position and manifold vacuum) but it's made no difference. It chugs, and dies if the throttles are cracked open. There seem to be two issues, if I'm reading the symptoms correctly. Firstly, the timing seems erratic. It's still set at about the same figure as before, but the timing light shows a lot of variability. My timing light has a dial, which apparently isn't great with wasted spark, so I will buy a timing light designed for wasted spark ignitions. Secondly, it isn't enriching the mixture when the throttle opens. The O2 sensor usually shows maximum lean-ness, but as was suggested before, that may be due to air getting into the system. I'll remove and recalibrate the wideband sensor, and I'm thinking about unbolting the inlet manifold and seeing if it is sealing properly against the head. Any other suggestions, hallowed Megasquirters? What else? The leak around the sump is gone (- yay!) but the front oil gallery plug, behind the engine front plate, is leaking. Oil pressure is 70psi, which is good. And I fitted the original old and crusty water pump until a replacement seal for the alloy pump arrives. Predictably, it leaks too. But the oil and water leaks can wait until she's at least singing sweetly again.

Interesting how much contradictory information is on the web regards fixing Spit/GT-6 bump-steer! I've combed through post until my eyes bleed. Hoping folk on this site have it sorted properly. Found exactly ONE link that seemed to go into real detail, then lost it. As I recall the gist of it was to; A. Shorten the rack, THE key to success. B. Move the rack back and up. C. Lower the suspension. Since I have a spare rack I can do "A" but would like to know how much to shorten it. Which may be complicated by my fitting a Buick V6 engine and T5 trans which requires moving the rack if I can. "B" creates a problem as I need all the space I can get for crank pulley clearance. In fact I need to be able to move the rack FORWARD if possible. I will be using 14" rims so have a little extra room around the spindle area. I have seen post recommending bending the steering arms for better geometry. They are BOLTED on! I have metal working equipment, it seems better to me to just create new arms of the proper length and height. I'm thinking a tad longer and set the ball-joint height and off-set correctly. Have to wonder why this has not been done already by some performance parts company? It seems I should be able to make a set to work with a relocated rack, just need some help with the geometry. "C", I wish the rest were so simple! A prior owner fit inordinately long 13" springs, my car sat on the lower bump stop at all times, nose in the air even with extra weight. So just fitting a set of Spitfire springs will be a big temporary improvement until I can figure the correct rate for new springs. Even with the springs out to be able to move the suspension through it's vertical range I see undesirable positive camber at the planned ride height. So it looks like modified upper arms will be mandatory unless the lower can be spaced out? No limitations beyond my being ¢heap, as I'm not entering any races with any sort of rules on suspension. Would like to do the local Virginia City hill climb and maybe the Silver State Challenge open road event. It will mostly just be my personal rapid transit GT car. Solid thinking suggestions or links please.

Evening all, I've recently acquired a brilliant French Blue '74 Stag ... goes like stink and is in very, very straight order. Condition of the bodywork and undercarriage is what sold her to me in the first place! But-last owner had her for 29 years ... The RV8 has SD1 heads and an SD1 LT77 gearbox attached, and a 4bbl Holley ... aside from the engine change and some Revolutions, she is unmolested. I looked for a car which could be used immediately, and which was rot-free. That's what I got. So why am I looking for a swap? Wellllll ... I've run many Triumphs over the years, and my heart lies with the GT6. I've run two Mk3s in past years, and as lovely as the Stag is, I pine for a GT6 Mk3. It really is that simple. A GT6 in roughly equivalent condition is what I have in mind ... so, any interested parties out there? There are more detailed photographs available by email, should someone wish to see 'em! If no swaps pop up, I'm just as happy to run the Stag until a suitable opportunity pops up. This really is a longterm sort of car. It's not concours, but it is very good. Paul (BR6 Orpington area)

Merkur XR4Ti rear hub, stub axle, and bearing mount drawings? I am trying to engineer a new rear suspension for my "Trick-6" project. Buick V6/T5 in a plus body. Stock rear would evaporate even if I had one. So the Merkur seems a reasonable substitute. Anyone have drawings or a link? I think these have been in use long enough that drawings should be fairly readily available. I will have to redraw them anyway in my CAD but still simpler than having to reverse engineer them if available. I tried to contact the fellow who had already done this conversion but he never replied so I'm on my own. Could also use some help in how CV axle length is measured along with original XR4ti lenghts. One long and one short, not sure yet how that will affect my intended design. Really just getting started.

Spitfire/GT6 front hub drawings? I may just make new hubs in a 4x108MM pattern for my "Trick-6" project which I am trying to get active on again. Probably use 7075 aluminum since Ti would be too expensive. My CNC lathe and mill have to be good for more than just the day job. Seems like these have been in use long enough that drawings should be fairly readily available. I will have to redraw them anyway in my CAD but still simpler than having to reverse engineer them. Anyone have drawings or a link? Yes I do know I could just buy them in the UK, at an exorbitant price, particularly after the exchange rate and shipping are added in. My own time and tools are the "Free" for me. I'm also after drawings for Merkur XR4Ti rear hubs and mounts if possible. Need them for my rear suspension redesign.

I'm putting a Buick 225 into a Triumph GT6+. If that engine dies I have a Buick 231 to replace it with. I have an ex-Camaro T5 sitting in place now but it's a bit large as I cannot take TOO much out of the narrow frame rails. I also have a Merkur T9 box which would be much easier to fit into the available space. The Merkur was a 2.3 turbo car, HP was similar to the Buick V6 but I doubt it had the same torque. T9 boxes are rare in the U.S. so no one here appears to know much of anything about them. How strong are the T9's from a practical point? My Buick V6 could be considered interchangeable with a Rover 3.5 or 3.8 for HP and torque. Do T9 boxes survive behind Rover engines in light cars? Not intending any drag racing, more a fast road/track day car.

May as well throw this out there while I'm redesigning the Trick-6 suspension. 225" Buick V6 engine and T5 five speed OD trans. The original real diff was taken before I got the car and would never work anyway. Original rear leaf spring is gone and not missed, expecting to use coil-overs. Being a +/Mk. III it had the roto-flex couplings. I need to create an entirely new rear suspension. Thinking of using Merkur XR4TI as it's fairly available and has the correct 4x108 PCD for my 14"x6" Enkei wheels. Anyone ever fit the Merkur/Sierra rear to a GT6? It's about 8" too wide in stock form. Would also want to upgrade it to rear disc brakes. Scrap everything from the original rear, or just the diff and axles? Would like to keep as much as possible "Off the shelf". I see lots of post on using Subaru diff's, why not the Ford? I can also readily get Ford T-bird 8.8" diff's but they are pretty large and more than I need for a V6.

Here's one I've been playing with for a little while....what colour would suit it best? ; )

Hi all, My beloved steve is currently off the road due to a slight knocking at idle (really isn't too bad but I'd rather take care of it than run it to destruction). Ive put this down to the fact that since I've had the car I've not tinkered with anything within the block just cylinder head; water pump replacement etc so there's bound to be a fair amount of wear seeing as I've had the car 2 years now and I have no record of when they were last done, if at all! So I'm just after a little advice really, Rimmer Bros page has so many I don't know what I should looking at ordering: http://www.rimmerbro...m--i-GRID007969 If anyone could shed some light on overhauling the bottom end of the engine somewhat ie things I will need would be really helpful as I'm a little lost. I presume you need to measure the crank for the correct size shells but I'm only guessing. Any help appreciated!

I've just found a couple of things on the net about using a M45 Eaton supercharger on a Triumph Spitfire. Just wondering really if anyone had had any experience doing this? I really like the sound of superchargers and it would make my GT6 a little more unique but its whether it would be worth doing. The engine is a standard 2 litre straight 6 but its off the road at the moment and ready for a bit of work to be done!

I'm looking to squeeze some more power out of my GT6 via injection or better carbs etc but before i do i was wondering if anyone had got trouble with the diff by doing so? I know that its never been very well praised so i'd like an idea of how much I can put through it or alternatives I could swap it for...

Hi all ive owned my gt6 for about 9 yrs can't believe i have had her that long,started a restoration 4 yrs ago then life got in the way,after nursing my dad through cancer i decided to get back on with the gt6 a hour at a time so here are some pictures. steve