Triumph Renown

Last updated

Triumph 1800
Triumph 2000 TDA
Triumph Renown
Triumph Renown first registered April 1954.jpg
Triumph Renown saloon
Overview
Manufacturer Standard Motor Company
Production1946–1954. 15,491 made [1]
Body and chassis
Body style 4 door saloon, limousine.
Powertrain
Engine 1766 cc or 2088 cc Straight-4 overhead valve
Transmission 3-speed manual
Dimensions
Wheelbase 108 in (2,743 mm) 1800, 2000 & Renown
111 in (2,819 mm) TDC & limousine [2]
Length168 in (4,267 mm) 2000
178 in (4,521 mm)Renown
181 in (4,597 mm) TDC & limousine [2]
Width64 in (1,626 mm) [2]
Height65 in (1,651 mm) [3]

The Triumph Renown is strictly the name given to the Triumph's large saloon car made from 1949 to 1954 but it is, in reality, part of a three-car series of the 1800, 2000 and Renown models. Together with the Triumph Roadster, they were the first vehicles to carry the Triumph badge following the company's takeover by the Standard Motor Company.

Contents

The Triumph Razoredge Owner's Club Ltd, formed in 1975, provides support to some of the remaining Razoredge saloons. The Club is unable to supply Triumph parts the USA and Canada due to insurance costs of supplying North America. [4]

As of 2016, the Club knows of around 250 of these cars distributed worldwide. The later two series of cars with chassis numbers commencing TDB and TDC have survived better than the earlier two variants. This may be due to the commonality of most of the mechanical parts with the Standard Vanguard which was produced during the same period. These cars provide an elegant sedate motoring experience. Those that were fitted with the Laycock de Normanville overdrive are able to cruise at around 55 to 60 MPH and return a fuel consumption of about 25 to 27 MPG.

Bodywork

The cars were distinctively styled in the later 1930s vogue for Razor Edge coachwork used in the 1940s by others including Austin for its big Sheerline. The six light (featuring three side windows on each side) design and the thin C pillars at the rear of the passenger cabin anticipated the increased window areas that would become a feature of British cars during the 1960s. The car's side profile resembled that of the contemporary prestigious Bentley saloons, which some felt was more than a coincidence. Similar styling subsequently appeared on the smaller Triumph Mayflower. The Managing Director of the Standard Motor Company at that time, Sir John Black, commissioned the design of the Razoredge saloon. There has been much discussion over the years as to exactly which designers of that period were responsible for the styling but it is very clear from the records that Sir John drove the production forward and used the Triumph name from the prewar Triumph company that had been bought by the Standard Motor Company.

The body was built by Mulliners of Birmingham in the traditional coachbuilder's method of sheet metal over a wooden frame. [1] The principal panels were constructed not from steel, which was in short supply in the wake of the Second World War, but from aluminium. It had been used extensively for aircraft manufacture during the war, which had taken place in a number of car plants (known at the time as "shadow factories") in the English Midlands. But by the mid-1950s aluminium had become the more expensive metal, which may have hastened the Renown's demise.

Triumph 1800 Town & Country Saloon 1946–49

1948 Triumph 1800 Town and Country Triumph 1800 Town and Country 1766cc registered November 1948 rear three quarters.JPG
1948 Triumph 1800 Town and Country

The 1776 cc, 65 bhp (48 kW) engine and the gearbox for the 1800 came from the pre-war Standard Flying Fourteen (also built 1945-1948). The chassis was fabricated from tubular steel and was a lengthened 108 in (2,743 mm) version of the one on the Roadster with which it also shared its transverse leaf spring front suspension. The cars were well fitted out with leather seats and a wooden dashboard.

A total of 4000 were produced. It cost £1425 including purchase tax. [5]

Triumph 2000 TDA 1949

The 2000 Type TDA was only produced for one year and was essentially a Triumph 1800. The front independent suspension used a transverse leaf spring.

The car used the larger 2088 cc four-cylinder engine with single Solex carburettor as fitted to the Standard Vanguard. The engine developed 68 bhp (51 kW) at 4200 rpm. The 3-speed gearbox with column shift also came from the Vanguard and had synchromesh on all the forward ratios. There was independent suspension at the front but a solid axle and half-elliptic leaf springs was at the rear. Lockheed hydraulic brakes with 9 in (229 mm) drums were fitted.

2000 were produced. [5]

Triumph Renown Mk I TDB 1949–52

The car was renamed the Renown in October 1949. It had an entirely new chassis based on the Standard Vanguard with pressed steel sections replacing the tubes previously used. The front suspension changed to coil springing. Although the 3-speed column change transmission was retained, from June 1950 an overdrive unit was offered as an option. Inside there was a new instrument layout.

A Renown tested by the British magazine The Motor in 1950 had a top speed of 75.0 mph (120.7 km/h) and could accelerate from 0–60 mph (97 km/h) in 24.3 seconds. A fuel consumption of 23.9 miles per imperial gallon (11.8 L/100 km; 19.9 mpgUS) was recorded. The test car cost £991 including taxes. [6]

Of the 6501 produced, fewer than 100 are known to have survived. [5]

Triumph Renown Limousine 1951–54

(188 in 1952; 3 in 1953; 3 in 1954)

In 1951 a limousine version was announced with an extra 3 in (76 mm) in the wheelbase. A division (glass partition) was placed behind the driver separating the front and back of the car. A radio and heater were fitted as standard.

A limousine with overdrive tested by The Motor magazine in 1952 had a top speed of 77.5 mph (124.7 km/h) slightly quicker than they had recorded two years earlier for the saloon and could accelerate from 0–60 mph (97 km/h) in 25.0 seconds. The reported fuel consumption was 21.6 miles per imperial gallon (13.1 L/100 km; 18.0 mpgUS). The test car cost £1440 including taxes. [3]

A total of 190 were made [5] though only very small numbers remain.

1952 Triumph Renown Castle Hill, Lincoln - Vehicle - geograph.org.uk - 865259.jpg
1952 Triumph Renown

Triumph Renown Mk II TDC 1952–54

The final version of the Renown used the longer-wheelbase chassis from the limousine. It is easily distinguished from the earlier cars by virtue of the push button door handles and the wider rear window.

Of the 2800 produced, only 150 remain worldwide. [5]

Demise and replacement

There was no direct replacement Triumph saloon following the end of Renown production. A badge-engineered version of the Standard Vanguard Phase III intended to be called the Triumph Renown was built with a version of the upright Triumph radiator grille and the Triumph "world" badges, but shortly before the model's launch in August 1956 it was decided to badge it as the Standard Vanguard Sportsman instead.

Die-cast models

Related Research Articles

Austin Princess Motor vehicle

The Austin Princess is a series of large luxury cars that were made by Austin and its subsidiary Vanden Plas from 1947 to 1968. The cars were also marketed under the Princess and Vanden Plas marque names.

Standard Motor Company British motor vehicle manufacturer

The Standard Motor Company Limited was a motor vehicle manufacturer, founded in Coventry, England, in 1903 by Reginald Walter Maudslay. For many years, it manufactured Ferguson TE20 tractors powered by its Vanguard engine. All Standard's tractor assets were sold to Massey Ferguson in 1959. Standard purchased Triumph in 1945 and in 1959 officially changed its name to Standard-Triumph International and began to put the Triumph brand name on all its products. A new subsidiary took the name The Standard Motor Company Limited and took over the manufacture of the group's products.

Ford Zephyr Motor vehicle

The Ford Zephyr is an executive car manufactured by Ford of Britain from 1950 until 1972. The Zephyr and its luxury variants, the Ford Zodiac and Ford Executive, were the largest passenger cars in the British Ford range from 1950 until their replacement by the Consul and Granada models in 1972.

Triumph Spitfire Motor vehicle

The Triumph Spitfire is a British front-engined, rear-wheel drive, two-passenger convertible sports car introduced at the London Motor Show in 1962 and manufactured between 1962-1980. Styled for Standard-Triumph in 1957 by Italian designer Giovanni Michelotti, the Spitfire was manufactured for the duration of its production at the Standard-Triumph Canley works — and evolved over a series of five production iterations, with a approximately 315,000 manufactured over 18 years.

Triumph GT6 Motor vehicle

The Triumph GT6 is a 6-cylinder sports coupé built by Standard-Triumph, based on their popular Triumph Spitfire convertible. Production ran from 1966 to 1973.

Triumph Herald Motor vehicle

The Triumph Herald is a small two-door car introduced by Standard-Triumph of Coventry in 1959 and made through to 1971. The body design was by the Italian stylist Giovanni Michelotti, and the car was offered in saloon, convertible, coupé, estate and van models, with the latter marketed as the Triumph Courier.

Triumph Vitesse Motor vehicle

The Triumph Vitesse is a compact six-cylinder car built by Standard-Triumph from May 1962 - July 1971. The car was styled by Giovanni Michelotti, and was available in saloon and convertible variants.

The Austin Cambridge is a motor car range produced by the Austin Motor Company, in several generations, from September 1954 through to 1971 as cars and to 1973 as light commercials. It replaced the A40 Somerset and was entirely new, with modern unibody construction. The range had two basic body styles with the A40, A50, and early A55 using a traditional rounded shape and later A55 Mark IIs and A60s using Pininfarina styling.

Austin Westminster Motor vehicle

The Austin Westminster series are large saloon and estate cars that were sold by the British manufacturer Austin from 1954, replacing the A70 Hereford. The Westminster line was produced as the A90, A95, A99, A105, and A110 until 1968 when the new Austin 3-Litre took its place. Essentially badge-engineered versions of the Farina Westminsters were also produced using the premium Wolseley and Vanden Plas marques. 101,634 Westminsters were built.

Humber Super Snipe Motor vehicle

The Humber Super Snipe is a car which was produced from 1938 to 1967 by British-based Humber Limited.

Vauxhall Cresta Motor vehicle

The Vauxhall Cresta is a British full-size car which was produced by Vauxhall from 1954 to 1972. The Cresta was introduced in 1954 as an upmarket version of the Vauxhall Velox, itself a six-cylinder version of the Vauxhall Wyvern. The Cresta models were the E (1954–1957), PA (1957–1962), PB (1962–1965) and PC (1965–1972). The Viscount (1966–1972) was an upmarket Cresta PC.

The Morris Isis name was first briefly used by Morris Motors Limited on a 6-cylinder car made from 1929 until 1931. It was resurrected on a new 6-cylinder midsize car from the British Motor Corporation in the 1950s to replace the Morris Six MS.

Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire (motor car) Motor vehicle

The Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire is a large automobile which was produced by the British company, Armstrong Siddeley Motors Limited, from 1952 to 1960.

Triumph TR2 Motor vehicle

The Triumph TR2 is a sports car produced by the Standard Motor Company in the United Kingdom between 1953 and 1955. It was only available in roadster form.

Triumph Roadster Motor vehicle

The Triumph Roadster is a roadster produced by Britain's Standard Motor Company from 1946 until 1949. It was first available as the Triumph 1800 Roadster (18TR) from 1946 to 1948 and then as the Triumph 2000 Roadster (TRA) from 1948 to 1949.

Standard Vanguard Motor vehicle made in England

The Standard Vanguard is a car produced by the Standard Motor Company in Coventry, England, from 1947 until 1963.

Triumph Mayflower Motor vehicle

The Triumph Mayflower is a British four-seat 1+14-litre small luxury car noted for its razor-edge styling. It was built by the Standard Motor Company and sold by Standard's subsidiary, The Triumph Motor Company. It was announced at the October 1949 British International Motor Show, but deliveries did not commence until the middle of 1950. One of the nine prototype Triumph Mayflowers, "JWK 612", was factory tested 5000 miles across Europe in 1950, they used the famous rooftop test track of Impéria Automobiles in Belgium. The Mayflower was manufactured from 1949 until 1953.

Standard Ten Motor vehicle

The Standard Ten was a model name given to several small cars produced by the British Standard Motor Company between 1906 and 1961. The name was a reference to the car's fiscal horsepower or tax horsepower, a function of the surface area of the pistons. This system quickly became obsolete as an estimate of the power produced by the engine, but it continued to be relevant as a way to classify cars for tax purposes. Like other manufacturers, Standard continued to use the name to define the approximate size of their 'Ten' model long after the origins of the name had, in Britain, become inapplicable.

Sunbeam-Talbot 90 Motor vehicle

The Sunbeam-Talbot 90 is an automobile which was produced and built by Sunbeam-Talbot from 1948 to 1954 and continued as the Sunbeam Mk III from 1954 to 1957.

Vauxhall Big Six Motor vehicle

The Vauxhall Big 6 is a name given to a series of automobiles which was produced by Vauxhall in the United Kingdom from 1934 to 1940. Rolling chassis were also bodied in Australia.

References

  1. 1 2 Robson, Graham (2000). A to Z of British Cars 1945–1980 . Herridge. ISBN   0-9541063-9-3.
  2. 1 2 3 Culshaw; Horrobin (1974). Complete Catalogue of British Cars. Macmillan. ISBN   0-333-16689-2.
  3. 1 2 "The Triumph 2-litre Limousine". The Motor . 12 March 1952.
  4. "The Triumph Razoredge Owners Club".
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Sedgwick, M.; Gillies, M. (1986). A-Z of Cars 1945–1970. Bay View Books. ISBN   1-870979-39-7.
  6. "The Triumph Renown". The Motor . 1950.