Q: Greg, I enjoy your columns in Auto Roundup Magazine very much, and I would appreciate if you could help me find information on my 1973 Triumph GT6 MK3.
The only thing I know is it used to be a racecar, and I have been working on it for several years to bring it back to its original showroom condition.
I am at the point where it is almost ready for car shows. Can you give me some history on the car and its' approximate value when I'm finished?
I have enclosed the VIN numbers for you, and it has a gold race emblem on the dashboard. Peter K., Senecaville, Ohio.
A: Peter, thanks for the nice words and I'd be happy to help.
First, your 1973 Triumph GT6 MK3 is the last year this model was produced by British Leyland, corporate of Triumph motorcars.
It was conceived from the Spitfire convertible model in 1966, and received a redesign when the Triumph GT6 arrived at dealers in 1970.
Since 1970, it has been called the GT6 MK3. Your car came with an inline 6-cylinder 1998cc engine that puts out 95 horsepower with a curb weight of 1936 lbs.
Although your car was a racecar, no doubt in Sports Car Club Of America class competition, it was built for general and sports car purposes, although many did see race action.
Along with Triumph's most popular model, the TR6, Spitfire and GT6 were built to compete head on with two other foreign models, namely Austin Healey Bugeye Sprites and 3000s, and the MG lineup of MGA, MGB and MG Midget.
In 1973, your car's seats were changed from vinyl to cloth and offered some nice options. Your MK3 can run a top speed of 113 mph and go from 0-60 in 10-seconds.
To the chagrin of Triumph enthusiasts, however, the last U.S. models were hampered by government intervention, where low compression engines thanks to the mandatory use of lower octane unleaded gasoline became the norm. Of course, all car manufacturers experienced the same fate, as the years 1973 through 1980 weren't known as "performance years" by any means.
Today, your GT6 is a popular sports car, and, to your advantage, didn't sell in big numbers as only 13,072 GT6's were built from 1970 to 1973, with a total run on only 41,253 since 1966.
By 1974, the GT6 was dropped by Triumph, although Triumph still sold many TR6 and TR7 models, and also its rare V8 powered TR8 through 1981. The V8 TR8, powered by a Buick/Rover design 3.5-V8, had a production run of only 2,750 cars, of which perhaps 750 still remain.
Your GT6 MK3 will be worth in the $10,000 range when finished, perhaps more, maybe less depending on circumstances.
Today, all Triumph cars have a strong following and many clubs exist. I recommend the Vintage Triumph Register, P.O. Box 655, Howell, MI 48844. Write to them, and I hope all this helps.