Triumph GT6

Triumph. Triumph, Triumph, Triumph.....

The Triumph Acclaim HLS. A very significant car. Why? It was the last car/model made by Triumph. Some may look at it and just a glance will make you think 'insignificant Japanese Honda-thingy from the early 80's'. You wouldn't be far off. UK PLc was in big trouble, and manufacturing decline was at the heart of it. Our car industry was floundering. British Leyland - owner of Triumph - was losing money hand over fist. If they had remade the film 'Brewster's Millions' with Richard Pryor trying to spend his way through their coffers it wouldn't have been half as funny as the real thing.

The sad aspect? The Acclaim was the essential replacement for the Dolomite. The Dolomite was a much loved car, but it failed. It failed to be the 3-Series before the 3-Series became what it is now. BMW 'owns' the premium small saloon market. BL never achieved this goal, and Triumph's last dice roll, was the Acclaim. Yes it was a hugely popular car at the time, but any national car maker that can only survive by repackaging something conceptualized elsewhere, erasing decades of proud history - has deep infrastructure issues that mean that it's long term survival is not guaranteed.

Triumph used to make some great little cars. Like this GT6. Another styled by Giovanni Michelotti (see the Triumph Stag), it was the archetypal small, nimble, exciting sports car, that British manufacturers excelled at. With a 2-litre straight-6 pumping out 95bhp, it was the classic rival to the MGB.

I'm happy that someone keeps this on the road. Taxed and running. But I'm also sad that this very machine signifies a period for a company that even whilst it was headlining sales charts, knew it couldn't see further into the future. BMW now own the rights to Triumph. Next time you see a Dolomite, think about the 3-Series connection. When you see a GT6, think Z4. What could have been?