I
INTRODUCTORY NOTE
The Roadster Factory has been the leading supplier of
Triumph TR6 sports car components for over 30 years, and this
updated catalogue, originally published in August 1990, is both
a result and and indication of TRF's success in the market
place.
The Roadster Factory recognized that the TR6 would
achieve the status of a major classic earlier than any other
parts company, and I was writing TRF's first big TR6 catalogue
during 1979 and 1980. The catalogue was not complete until
late autumn in 1980, and it was mailed to TRF customers along
wht a new price list just before Christmas. When I returned to
work after New Years with John Swauger and the rest of TRF's
staff of four, the phone (It was one black phone then!) was
ringing off the hook with orders for TR6 components that had
never been available from the dealers.
In 1980, when I published that little white TR6 catalogue,
most parts were still available from Triumph (It was known as
Jaguar Rover Triumph then.), although the list of available
components dwindled away gradually over the next ten years.
As the years wore on and the car clearly achieved classic
status, more and more product sourcing ws required to keep
stocks of parts demanded by enthusiasts undertaking frame-up
restorations. In the early 1990's, however, many original
suppliers were still making parts, and original components were
readily available from Armstrong, Borg & Beck, Laycock,
Lucas, Girling, AE Engine Parts, Vandervell, etc., etc. Today,
many of these companies have been sold, or they have
changed their product ranges so that fewer and fewer original
components are available from original-equipment
manufacturers. What remains is still much appreciated,
however, as parts are generally made to high standards on
original or upgraded tooling.
British Motor Heritage was in its infancy in 1978, when The
Roadster Factory was founded, but it has grown to become a
major supplier today. BMH parts are especially important to
TR6 enthusiasts, as nearly every body panel is still
manufactured, most on original tooling, and even complete
body shells remain in production. The Roadster Factory is also
able to depend upon British Motor Heritage for drawings and
specifications when we are attempting to produce
components no longer available from any other source.
A major segment of the parts available for the TR6
model today is made up of reproduction parts manufactured for
The Roadster Factory and by other companies. Some of the
"other companies" are competitors in the worldwide market.
Others are aftermarket manufacturers of automobile parts
which supply various components for the TR6 model.
Reproduction parts vary in quality from what TRF calls "replica
parts" to what most enthusiasts call "nasty repros." Replica
parts are made to original drawings and specifications; they
look like original, and they function like original, Nasty repros
may not fit well, they may wear out quickly, or they may not
look like original parts. The Roadster Factory manufactures
approximately twenty percent of the parts we sell, and we
always aim to make replica parts.
If you are considering the major restoration of a Triumph
TR6 sports car, you may wonder if you will be able to acquire
all of the parts you need to complete the car and to put it back
on the road. The answer to this question, as I write, is a
definite "Yes," and parts supply will remain very good for the
foreseeable future. The biggest problems facing you as a TR6
enthusiast today are: Which parts provide real value based on
quality for money spent? Which parts will maintain the value of
the car? Which parts provide for driving safety? and From
what source should you buy parts? When these questions are
considered carefully as they relate to each other, it becomes
clear that The Roadster Factory is the best parts source for
the TR6 model. No other company has such a vested interest
in Triumph in general and in the TR6 in particular, and no other
company goes nearly so far as The Roadster Factory to
supply items such as green water hoses and ignition cables,
longer lasting clutches, real Timkin bearings, correct interior
colours and materials, including original vinyl grains, diamond-
patterned seat upholstery, and a choice of wool and tufted
nylon carpet materials, reflective-striped tops, safer brake parts
and suspension parts, original-equipment body panels for
better fit, and genuine English hardware, with correct threads
and correct tensile strengths. Many of these items are details
which make the TR6 such a special car, and some are
necessary to the function of a high-performance sports car.
The Roadster Factory has always tried to provide these
special items, when other parts suppliers advocate simply
keeping the car on the road with generic components.
TRF also operates its own shop for making TR6 wood dash
panels and a rebuilding shop for engines, gearboxes, diffs, rear
hubs, steering racks, carburettors, and brake calipers. We
operate a wood dash shop because we want to offer our
customers better dashes than any we can purchase elsewhere,
and we run our rebuilding shop to provide enthusiasts with a
source of first-class rebuilds assembled by experienced
Triumph mechanics. This means that, if you do most of your
own work, you can get help with rebuilding anything that
requires special tools and knowledge. You won't have to take
your car to a general repair shop and maybe never get it back
on the road again.
No other parts source in the world cares as much about
Triumph TR6 sports cars as The Roadster Factory. We show
this every day with the quality of the parts we sell and with the
knowledge we make available to our customers. This
catalogue is a product of that knowledge and representative of
it. We hope that our catalogue is useful to you as a tool for
purchasing parts and for working on your car. It contains the
knowledge acquired through more than twenty years of selling
parts, working on cars, and researching every aspect of the
TR6. I wrote this catalogue as a part of my job of owning and
running a British parts company, but I put my heart and soul
into this book, and it is something about which I feel good and
of which I am proud. I hope that my catalogue adds to the
pleasure that you receive from driving your car and from
maintaining it as an example of the proud heritage of British
motoring...
Charles A. Runyan
The Roadster Factory
May 1, 2008
TRIUMPH TR6
SPORTS CAR
SPARE PARTS CATALOGUE
AND
ENGINEERING ASSEMBLY MANUAL
VOLUME I
PLATE SECTIONS AA to DS
