Triumph 100 years, then resuscitate?!

If you belong to the small group of the first car manufacturers in the world, it is now possible to celebrate a centenary of a car brand. Admittedly, it doesn't happen that often. The Top-5 is reserved for Mercedes-Benz (1886), Peugeot (1882), Renault (1898), Opel (1899) and Fiat (1899). And by that we mean the first serious cars with a petrol engine, because of course there are older examples of something that was supposed to look like a car with four wheels. This year, another brand will be added to this elderly list, namely Triumph. The car branch of Triumph was founded in 1923.

From producer to bankruptcy

Telling the story of Triumphcars is quite complicated, but fascinating. With all the mainly political and economic developments in its existence, it is a special story. Enough ingredients for an interesting Netflix documentary.

The founder of Triumph was the German Siegfried Bettmann, who emigrated to London in 1884. He founded the Triumph Cycle Company in and from Coventry he exported bicycles, which he later produced himself there. He chose the name Triumph because the meaning of the word was immediately understood in several different languages. After the bicycles came the motorcycles. The Triumph Motor Company grew rapidly, supplying as many as 30.000 motorcycles to the British Army during the First World War. This also had an impact on sales to individuals and companies. In 1923, 300 motorcycles left the factory every week.

Entirely in the zeitgeist of the 2023s, the cars were not long in coming. The motorcycles went their separate ways at the same time, which never changed. In XNUMX, the Triumphmotorcycles are still very popular. They have 'Cult Bike' status. As early as 1919, a test car with a 2 liter engine was built. It was only a test model, but in April 1923 it became the first real one Triumphintroduced automotive. The vehicle had a 1393 cc engine and its type name was 10/20.

Triumph immediately got the hang of it. In 1927 one of the most successful models was introduced, the “Super Seven”. The company was renamed in 1930 Triumph Motor Company and with that the foundation was laid for it Triumph as we all know.

It was not easy in the economically difficult years between the two world wars. The Dolomite did appear on the scene for the first time. It was built from 1936 to 1940 in various versions. During World War II, the Triumphfactory halls used for the production of aircraft parts. The factory in Coventry was also bombed to the ground and went down in 1944 Triumph sadly bankrupt. Triumph could start again.

Miraculous recovery

But Triumph miraculously recovered. In 1953, the TR sports car model series (TR2-TR8) was introduced and became an outright sales success. That gave a little financial relief to the brand that was incorporated into truck manufacturer Leyland Motors in 1960. Eight years later it happened again.

In 1968 Leyland Motors merged with BMC, comprising Austin, Austin-Healey, Morris, MG, Rover, Jaguar, Daimler, Coventry Climax, Riley, Vanden Plas and Wolseley. The newly formed brand combination formed the world famous and infamous British Leyland Motor Corporation (BLMC). At that time it was Triumph part of the fourth largest car manufacturer in the world. But the ambition of the top management, combined with labor unrest and quality problems, soon led the Germans to name the British 'Elend' to the British car group. Pretty sad, because the British didn't deserve that either.

Not wrong

Still, the brand itself didn't get it wrong. On the contrary, the Triumph TR series (from 2 TR1952 to TR8) sold like hot cakes. From 1962, a second line was even added, in the form of the Triumph Spitfire and the GT6. They were contemporary sports cars that were also affordable. And the sporty family cars were also allowed. Especially because of the beautiful models that were designed in collaboration with the Italian Michelotti.

The Herald and Vitesse, the Toledo and Dolomite and the 2000 and 2500TC captured the hearts of a select group of buyers. Who sometimes wanted something different than a Beetle or Kadett. And it could well be a bit more expensive. After all, character wins. The last serious Triumph was the 8-cylinder Stag, which was technically too difficult. Even the dealers could not properly 'service' him at first. Internal competition and reorganizations did Triumph melting away in the late 1981s. In XNUMX, only the Triumph Acclaim about. That was a Honda with a Triumphbadge, which had nothing to do with the original, innovative anymore Triumph.

Still resuscitating?

However, the Acclaim did provide good sales figures and financial returns. That was also worth something in the turbulent years of Margret Thatcher's time. But the Acclaim could not prevent 1984 from becoming the last year of production for the brand Triumph. The brand disappeared from the market. The cars are now no longer made, but the trademark Triumph still exists.

That's why the Dutch Triumphclubs on August 26 and 27, 2023 to celebrate the 100th anniversary. The club Triumph Holland (CTH), the Triumph Spitfire Club (TSC), Stag Club Nederland (SCN) and the TR Club Holland (TRCH) will then organize a special anniversary weekend at the Jardin d'Hiverre, just outside Baarn. The brand is now owned by BMW, which took over Rover in 1994 Triumph thrown into his lap. The name remains to this day Triumph so on the shelf at BMW, as well as Mini, Riley and Austin-Healey. We don't have to tell you what happened to Mini. It became a bestseller for BMW! So maybe for a reason Triumph to resuscitate again. The innovative brand would deserve that after such a turbulent existence.

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