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6 July 2007 - The purchase.

On the face of it, the old girl looked quite good in the photo's on ebay. I chose this one for the simple fact that it was only 5 miles away from me and the pick up would be relatively straight forward.

A couple of bids later and I purchased it for £430. Not bad I thought for a convertible! The seller kindly delivered it the next evening and I parted with my hard earned cash and took a stroll around the old girl. (at this point she doesn't have a name).

I have restored many many VW Beetles and Camper Vans over the years, but this was my first Triumph and so it was all new to me! For a 40 year old car it was in pretty good shape I thought, with a little tin-worm around all the usual obvious places for a car of this age: the windscreen, boot, floor, and quarter panels.

As I started to delve a little deeper and remove the panels and carpets, I found a number of attempts at patching her up, presumably for the MOT's over the years. I would rather restore an unmolested car as you don't have to do twice the work to remove the old poorly weleded patches and repair it all properly.

The engine started on the button though so that was a good thing, the mechanicals (brakes, suspension etc) looked like they had stood for a number of years and so the rubbers were perished and the brakes rusted up. It was obvious the old girl hadn't been on the road for quite a few years.

I didn't get very much from the previous owner, only that he had bought it, stored it in a lock-up and left her there for a couple of years before deciding to sell her on ebay. Even the log book didn't turn up with the car and at the point of writing, I am waiting for a replacement from the DVLA.

Anyway, she will undergo a thorough check up and restoration so we can use her daily with confidence.

She is a second car so hopefully won't get too hard a life now that she faces coming out of early retirement!

Enjoy the pictures below, they were from ebay and the previous owner. Is she worth the £430 I paid for her?

Roll your mouse over the images below for a larger view

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