New TR7 Owner

john · Postby **john** » 29 Mar 2010 14:19

Welcome Tom

Hours of entertainment in front of you [8D]

[8 whole cylinders worth of punch to ram the world through the windshield and out the rear view mirror. Car & Driver]
1981 Grinnall TR7 v8
1981 Black FHC
1979 & 1980 Black Premium FHC(laid to rest) Sorry :-(

John

FI Spyder · Postby **FI Spyder** » 29 Mar 2010 17:57

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Gubi

Drained, flushed, refilled, went to start...click. Crap.
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You'll hear this stated time and again in one form or another. Clean all connections. For starters (no pun intended), clean battery posts/connections, the little connector block by the battery, the wire connections at the starter including the wire that goes to the solenoid. And finally the one that caught me out, the connector block that plugs into the starter relay (behind glove box). This will give a good starting point and will fix 90% of starting problems. There is always a small chance of contacts by ingition switch but that's least likely and most costly so leave that for last.

This is assuming the battery is charged up. If it's a nice day out and the birds are singing, clean connections at the alternator and make sure they are tight (as all connections should be).

When faced with a problem it is human nature to expect the worst and we usually start there but the solution is usally the simplest.

TR7 Spider - 1978 Spifire - 1976 Spitfire - 1988 Tercel 4X4 - Kali on Integra - 1991 Integra

Gubi · Postby **Gubi** » 01 Apr 2010 05:37

Okay, some interior pics. I'm wondering what's original here and what's been redone. It's really in quite nice shape.

30th Anniversary Edition badge. No idea if it's original or not or what this included with regards to trim.

The interior in all its blue-ness. Note the spiffy embroidered logos on the seats. It's looking better now that I took off the electric-blue steering wheel cover.

Boom box speaker between the seats is part of the bodged stereo system. That'll be coming out.

Also has an electric sunroof, which is rather nice. Is this original or aftermarket? I actually passed on a TR7 convertible because the cowl shake was just so bad. The coupe is much more solid feeling, and I've already got the Alfa for full-on top down motoring.

Been too rainy to fix anything, but I've been going through the electrical diagrams so I know what to check. Have to say, the BL service manuals are pretty poor! Better than nothing, though.

-----
Tom
'79 TR7
'87 Alfa 75
'91 Alfa Spider

Gubi · Postby **Gubi** » 01 Apr 2010 06:30

Incidentally, if anyone knows where I can get a radio blanking plate with a Triumph logo, let me know.

-----
Tom
'79 TR7
'87 Alfa 75
'91 Alfa Spider

FI Spyder · Postby **FI Spyder** » 01 Apr 2010 07:20

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Gubi

Have to say, the BL service manuals are pretty poor! Better than nothing, though.
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If you mean the OEM service manual they're the best I've ever seen. (next to "How to fix Your volkswagon For The Complete Idiot" which talks the beginner through everthing from engine overhaul to clutch change with only a few hand drawn line pictures).

The 30th Anniversary Edition had something like $800 of option for free. Steel wheels with chrome rings like you have, TR8 steering wheel amongst other things like Panasonic stereo cassette radio the same as is in the Spider I believe. I don't know why you have the regular steering wheel as the TR8 one is generally considered to be nicer. Your door cards are not original (seats neither). Blanking plate usually get lost a week after radios are installed.Why do you want one? Are you removing the current radio?

Something must be wrong with the convertible you drove cause mine doesn't have any noticable scuttle shake even with the harmonic balancers removed although the coupe will be more solid. Electric sun roof not original. The coupe looks in dandy shape though. How about a shot of the engine bay?

TR7 Spider - 1978 Spifire - 1976 Spitfire - 1988 Tercel 4X4 - Kali on Integra - 1991 Integra

Gubi · Postby **Gubi** » 01 Apr 2010 17:53

Engine pics are a comin', just need to wait for the rain to stop.

Somebody must have spent a lot of money on this interior then. It's a bit loud visually but growing on me. Probably a nice steel and leather steering wheel is on the shopping list eventually.

It's got some ultra-cheap aftermarket radio in it right now and no speakers (besides the big one between the seats...sigh). In fact, I don't even see any places where speakers would go - were they originally in the doors or what? So for now I plan to just pull out the radio and blank it off.

-----
Tom
'79 TR7
'87 Alfa 75
'91 Alfa Spider

yorkens · Postby **yorkens** » 01 Apr 2010 18:05

Nice looking seats, seems theyÂ´ve done a first class upholstery job!

[img][IMG]http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k438/yorkens/L1020372.jpg[/img][/img]

FI Spyder · Postby **FI Spyder** » 01 Apr 2010 18:40

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Gubi

In fact, I don't even see any places where speakers would go - were they originally in the doors or what? So for now I plan to just pull out the radio and blank it off.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Do a search of this forum to see different solutions people have on updating radios. Speakers go in doors, you'll see the holes if you pull the door cards. Space is limited though in size and depth so your very limited on slecting a quality speaker. One member has a small subwoofer that goes behind seat. Space is limited by heater for size of radio so that limits the selection of quality radios. The original 30th Anniversary had a high end (for the time) Panasonic radio/casette deck. I rarely have mine on anyways do to traffic noise on highway and I prefer the music from the best speaker ever made.[:)]

TR7 Spider - 1978 Spifire - 1976 Spitfire - 1988 Tercel 4X4 - Kali on Integra - 1991 Integra

Steve-LPS-Thomas · Postby **Steve-LPS-Thomas** » 01 Apr 2010 19:27

I thought the Anniversary model was a convertible?

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http://www.croyde-bay.com/triumph.htm

croydebay@aol.com

V8Wedgehead · Postby **V8Wedgehead** » 01 Apr 2010 19:41

The 30th anniversary was put on either the coupe or the convertible.....just like cars with the "special editions" today there is nothing but add ons so dealer to move the 1979 coupes by putting the goodies on them. I had two parts car TR7s with the 30th anniversary stuff on them. One was a Carmine Red 79 and the other a Brown. Both had the stero, luggage rack, fog lights, stripe kit, leather wheel, trim rings, center caps and dash plaques.

Michael
1980 TR8 FHCs; Rally Conversion #0020 & Stock #0058

"If it is broken then fix it....if it is not then make it faster!"

Steve-LPS-Thomas · Postby **Steve-LPS-Thomas** » 01 Apr 2010 19:44

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">The 30th anniversary was put on either the coupe or the convertible<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

I didn't know that...

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http://www.croyde-bay.com/triumph.htm

croydebay@aol.com

V8Wedgehead · Postby **V8Wedgehead** » 01 Apr 2010 19:54

I would say to begine with a 1979 North American TR7 coupe was rare to begin with but since you could buy a convertible it hurt the coupe sales so any gimmick they could use was needed to sell the coupes. There was a few other coupes on Ebay in the last 4 months that were the 30th ann. cars.

Michael
1980 TR8 FHCs; Rally Conversion #0020 & Stock #0058

"If it is broken then fix it....if it is not then make it faster!"

Beans · Postby **Beans** » 01 Apr 2010 21:11

Over here in the NL it was even worse.
A FHC cost a few thousand Guilders more than a DHC in 1981 [:0]

<center>

1980 TR7 DHC (my first car, currently being restored)
1981 TR7 FHC Sprint (better known as 't Kreng)
[url="http://www.tr7beans.blogspot.com/"]My Weblog[/url]</center>

swifty · Postby **swifty** » 01 Apr 2010 21:29

Do like that interior - at the risk of uttering blasphemy, I would say it's nicer than the usual tartan offerings...

[img][IMG]http://i728.photobucket.com/albums/ww281/swiftstuff/029-1.jpg[/img]/img]

Gubi · Postby **Gubi** » 04 Apr 2010 02:16

Oy. So cleaned all the connections, charged the battery, and still no go. I've got plenty of voltage at the starter terminal and it won't crank even with a starter switch directly at the starter, so it's definitely looking like the starter is dead.

After I moved it into the garage I also found some suspicious molten metal drops under where the starter is, which cannot be a good sign. [:0]

I'll get a tow sometime this week and let someone with a lift deal with getting the starter out.

-----
Tom
'79 TR7
'87 Alfa 75
'91 Alfa Spider

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