page_title: Triumph TR8
section_title: Motorsport
hierarchical_section_title: Triumph TR8 / Motorsport
caption_attribution_description: Had a display of classic Triumph vehicles, this was a TR-8 race car from the 1970's.
context_page_description: The Triumph TR8 is an eight-cylinder version of the "wedge-shaped" Triumph TR7 sports car, designed by Harris Mann, and manufactured by British Leyland, through its Jaguar/Rover/Triumph division. Because of its outstanding performance, the TR8 was often dubbed the "English Corvette". The majority of TR8s were sold in the United States and Canada.
context_section_description: Despite their low production numbers, TR8s have an interesting racing history. John Buffum successfully raced one as a rally car in the late 1970s. Bob Tullius of Group 44 fame dominated SCCA racing in 1979 in one, so much so that the SCCA added enough "reward" weight to the car that Tullius left Trans Am and successfully competed in IMSA GT instead. TR8s ran successfully in the SCCA's showroom stock series being campaigned by Morey Doyle ( Nationals & Regionals) and Ted Schumacher (Nationals). Schumacher with Doyle had great success in the Playboy/Escort Endurance series with his car. Starting the last race of the year, Schumacher was fourth in the overall point standings (just three points away from first) when an accident ruined their chances;  nevertheless, Schumacher still ended up seventh in the manufacturer's points for that year, all with no official factory help. Presently, at least three cars are being run in SCCA's ITS class. Morey Doyle and his son Andy run their TR8s in the Midwest Region, currently Morey and his sons, Morey C. and Andy are preparing the car for the SCCA National Runoffs in E-Prod at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (2017).  Jeff Young runs his green TR8 in the Southeast Division with numerous regional race wins and the 2011 Southeast Division SARRC ITS championship, running against over seventy other drivers in Mazda RX7s, Miatas, 240/260/280zs, BMW 325is, Porsche 944s and Acura Integras.
  The TR8 was homologated for Group 4 (racing) on the first of April 1978. According to the FIA rules that applied at this time, recognition would have required the production of 400 similar cars suitable for normal sale. However, production records (in the BMIHT archives) show that only about 150 cars had actually been built by this time, mostly due to major industrial action at the BL Speke plant that included a 17-week-long strike from November 1977. Rally journalist and historian Graham Robson quotes John Davenport (director of BL Motorsport at the time) as reminding him that "In those days there was no rigorous FIA inspection system. Provided that one provided production sheets signed by an important manager, then nobody worried...." Robson goes on to state that "A lot of fast and persuasive talking then went on, to show that the makings of well over 500 [sic] cars were either built, partly built, or stuck in the morass of the Speke strike". However, the FIA rules are clear that only complete cars may be counted towards this requirement.
  Unlike the papers for the TR7 homologation in 1975, those for the TR8 homologation in 1978 do not give a production number achieved or a date for this. Hence, it is unclear how many prototype TR8s the FIA believed had been finished. However, it is also well recorded that the Ford Escort RS1800 was re-homologated directly into group 4 in 1977 when there were only ever about 108 produced, and it is possibly only the 50 (X0 marked cars) produced in 1977 were relevant - the cars were required to have been produced within 24 months, and the group 4 Escort RS was homologated with the 1975 cc version of the BDA engine.
  It appears then, that where a group 4 car was a modification to an existing approved car, as the TR8 was to the TR7, the FIA were able to grant approval on a much smaller number of cars than the 400 stated in the homologation requirements, possibly only about 50 cars. This also appears to apply to the Vauxhall Chevette HSR, Porsche 924 Carrera GTS, and Triumph TR7 Sprint (for the re-approval of the 16-valve head, to allow its continued use into 1978, following a change to the FIA homologation rules), where it is clear that the FIA could not have been persuaded that 400 cars had been or would ever be produced.
  The TR8 was not a production car in April 1978 and did not go on sale in North America until mid-1979. According to Graham Robson, the Group 4 rally car was therefore called the TR7V8 as a compromise with BL Sales and Marketing.
caption: TR8 racer on display at the Canadian International Autoshow.
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