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Why did TRs rust so badly in England?

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DavidApp

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I got to thinking about the TR2 I owned in 1969. It was only 14 years old but it was a rot box. If I remember correctly the frame outriggers on one side were held to the car by the floor boards. The "A" post on the drivers side was not attached to the sills. The door tended to flap when it was opened. It had Fiberglass front wings and a Fiberglass TR3 wide mouth front. I got rear ended and the Morris Minor that hit me nearly made it to the petrol tank because the rear end was rotten.

My point being how is it so many TRs seem to have survived so well in the US 45 years after I had my car in England. Just a larger population of cars or less salt on the roads?
The car I am working on is in far better condition than my old car. What I would give to get some bits off that car before it was scrapped. I did get the engine and transmission out of it for my second TR.
No info on that car but it was a similar age and slightly better condition.
Parts were still available from Standard Triumph.
Log Book.jpg
This is a photo of the log book showing when I bought the car. TS 8255.

The car was first registered on Oct. 1 1955

Just some thoughts.
David
 
I have gotten the impression from Triumph histories & articles, that the early TR's were built to be rather disposable.
low cost, with minimal weather & rust protection for the body & frame. Designed to last less than 5 years & then off to the crusher.
(good thing the engine & drivetrain guys didn't get that memo)
 
and don't forget that no matter where you are in the uk you are never too far from the coast (sea air =salt)
 
The answers simple, it rains a lot and the sun very rarely shines to dry anything out. Me? moaning? No no me!
 
And, the good survivor cars are southern cars - so the survival rate in Canada and the Northeast is not far off the UK.

Don't forget ALL cars of that era were designed to be disposable - USA cars - new car every year or two - no rustproofing etc. etc.
 
had a friend bought a model A in Saskatchewan 25 years ago with almost no rust due to the fact that they use mostly sand and not salt on the roads there
 
Good point about the proximity to the sea, acid rain is not so much of a problem these days. We do or did have plenty of rain and most TRs lived outside 365 days a year.
I have read somewhere about the planned short life expectancy.

I was a member of a TR registry and I seem to remember that a group had managed to acquire the Triumph body panel tooling. One member was doing a frame off rebuild. That should be a great car if he finished it.

I presume the US cars were more often a fun car not the only form of transport so tended to not get exposed to as much harsh weather and probable lived under cover when not in use.

David
 
Damp climate didn't help, nor the fact that for many, these cars were daily drivers year-round. Rust protection was minimal at best, with designed-in rust traps and the things rarely had chance to dry out.
 
I went to England for two weeks a number of years ago. Although I did see the sun a couple times I swear it rained every day we were there. Salt and snow or not that is a lot of moisture.
 
Late sixtys  acid rain was a problem. More so in Europe than in the states expect for maybe around rust belt.
 
I seem to remember in Piggot's sidescreen book had a contemporary account of TR shells arriving at the factory unprimed had a flash coat of rust on some areas already. I'd assume that the factory didn't do any extraordinary prep, just prime the shell as they received it and paint it. So no wonder they rusted as badly as they did.
 
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