TheTR5 simultaneously marked the end of one era and the beginning of another for Triumph’s TR range. While the styling remained familiar, retaining the handsome Michelotti-designed body of the TR4 and TR4A, a 150bhp six-cylinder engine made the car faster than the previous four-pot models and paved the way for the successful TR6 that followed. Manufactured from July 1967, the TR5 was a one-year wonder, but its relative rarity and ‘best of both worlds’ slot in the range means it’s a highly desirable classic.
In truth, its roots extend back even further than the TR4 of 1961, as that essentially took the underpinnings of the TR3 that had been so successful on both sides of the Atlantic and clothed it in a new body. A big change came in 1965, however, when Triumph unveiled the revamped TR4A. Many wore ‘IRS’ badges in reference to a revamped rear-end chassis set-up that allowed the fitment of a fixed differential unit and fresh mounting points for the semi-trailing rear suspension – which now used coil springs. However, for the more traditional North American market, the majority of TR4As retained a live rear axle set-up.
After the body change and suspension change, it was the TR5 that ushered in an engine change – one that gave
