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TR2/3/3A Auction results for TR3's

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Jedi Warrior
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Just got the December issue of 'Classic and Sports Car' magazine. They have a monthly feature with a round up of auction results for classic cars. I was surprised to see how high the auction results were for TR2s thru TR3A's. The lowest sale was over ÂŁ18,000 and a TR3A in the Bonham's auction described as 'Superb, Restored, ex-left, Hand Drive' sold for ÂŁ36,700, that's over $58,000!

They also had a small ride along magazine listing what they consider the 25 'Greatest Ever Drivers' Cars'. The TR3A is rated at No. 21. Rated higher than a Lancia Stratos or a Cobra 289!
 
Before you get your hopes too high, I don't think prices typically reach quite that level here in the States, where we got sometimes from 70-80% of total Triumph sports car production. OTOH, it might still be the case that a "parts car" or "basket case" here in the US might be snatched up by a UK restorer for better money than the car would bring here!
 
Drivers will sell privately over here for somewhere between ÂŁ8,000 to ÂŁ15,000. For freshly restored cars people can ask up to ÂŁ20,000. Dealers will tend to sell better quality cars and prices seem to be around ÂŁ15,000 upwards. It is rare to see them advertised for more than ÂŁ25,000 and that would be for near concourse condition.
Restoration projects will start at about ÂŁ3,500 for a reasonably complete car. The problem for us here is that most restoration projects are severely rusted. We still import "rust-free" cars from the USA to restore!
Sorry, I'm not sure what the exchange rate is just now, so you will have to translate!
 
Here is a pic of the 36 000 lb'er for anyone that is interested.

TR3Goodwood.jpg


Cheers,
M. Pied Lourd
 
No way it looked that good coming off the show room
 
Amazing paint job! I agree with Don.
 
Wow, that is one good looking TR3A. I don't know if it's really worth $58000+ but I guess someone thought it was. Good to see value of the cars is going up. Looks like a D-type or XK-SS on the left just peeking into the picture.
 
It is a good looking car and it <span style="font-style: italic">is</span> good to see it.

Part of it reflects the reality of the $$ real cost a full blown professional restoration - at least if it is all farmed out. I probably have 25 hours into my heater alone as an example. A restoration shop charging out at $100/hr (not an uncommon rate for profesional specialty restoration shops) means that is now a $2500.00 heater.

Also I can add another comment based on my early research - if you talk to same restoration shops, they will readily tell you there are many $50k TR3's out there. A full on professional panel fit/finish/<span style="font-style: italic">paint job alone </span>on a ground up resto car will run well north of $15k.

It really doen't matter what the car is - if it is a special interest car, the best examples will always bring that kind of $$. I have also been tracking TR3 prices for a long time. I have followed examples of $40k and $50k cars - they went somewhere - they were sold - and not normally through sites like eBay.

An earlier posting I started on same topic can be found here....

https://www.britishcarforum.com/bcforum/ubbthreads.php/topics/676767/1
 
This, of course, is one of the examples in Piggotts book, Original TR2/3/3A. Celebrity, I suppose, adds something to the value. I agree with Don, also. The car is "restored" to something it never was. After all, these were never high end cars. They were built on a budget, sold at a very competitive price; flashy, fast and fun but never elegant. I, for one, love them for it. Tom
 
Thought you might like that skip. Apparently, it went for a very high price as well.

Cheers,
Tush
 
TomMull said:
...these were never high end cars. They were built on a budget, sold at a very competitive price...
Click to expand...

Not unlike 65 Ford Mustangs for example or any number of classic cars from that era - the best of which are also now out of $$ reach for the average guy today.
 
This seems to coincide with the information I recently received from Hagerty's Insurance. I was speaking with them to renew the insurance on TS76775L and they indicated that there was absolutely no problem with putting a $40,000.00 declared value on my car. They said that based on the current sale prices which they are seeing, that was a reasonable number.
 
Andrew Mace said:
Funny thing: in 1965, the Amphicar (hey, it's got a Herald engine!) sold new for $2,889. Now, maybe $40,000-$60,000! :crazyeyes:
Click to expand...

I know someone who has one thats a project he wants to sell if anyone might be interested.
 
Yup, the Jag factory converted un-sold short nose D-Types to 'Road going' sports cars with the idea that they would sell them to The US for road racing events. Only converted & sold 16 of them before the big factory fire destroyed the rest. Unbelievable that by '57 the D-Types were considered just obsolete racers and the factory couldn't find any way to shift the rest of them.
 
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