A tiny sports car built by Triumph Motor Company from 1968 to 1976, the TR6 isn't the first vehicle you think about when talking about drag racing. Far from surprising given that American gearheads had tens of muscle cars to choose from back in the day, but come 2022 and a TR6 is terrorizing V8-powered cars at the strip.
I am, of course, talking about a highly modified Triumph. Granted, the car looks almost stock on the outside save for the drag-spec wheels and tires, but it hides a nasty surprise under the hood. Because this TR6 packs a 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine strapped to a 57mm turbo.
There's no specific info as to where the four-banger was sourced from, but don't bet on it being a modern 2.3-liter EcoBoost. That long hood is probably hiding an old-school 2.3-liter that Ford used to offer in the third-generation Mustang.
And based on how quick this Triumph is, we're probably looking at a highly modified mill that sends way more than 600 horsepower to the rear wheels. Output figures are a mystery, but this TR6 is powerful enough to cover the quarter-mile in 10 seconds. All while smoking V8-powered muscle cars in the process.
The video below shows the Triumph lining up against a horse of classic muscle cars (obviously modified for quicker quarter-mile runs). Rivals include a Plymouth Duster, a Barracuda, a Chevrolet Camaro, and an Impala. The TR6 driver wins all but one race with 11- and 10-second runs.
The footage ends with the British sports car racing against a Chevrolet Blazer. The TR6 scores another win and its best run yet at 10.02 seconds with a trap speed of 136.49 mph (219.65 kph).
Sadly, there's no info as to where these races took place and what's the deal with this TR6, but hopefully, we'll see it racing again because it's one cool build.
Designed to replace the TR5, the TR6 arrived in 1968 with a 2.5-liter straight-six engine. Triumph used this mill until the nameplate was discontinued in 1976, but offered two different versions for Europe and the U.S., respectively.
While the cars delivered to North America had a carburetted engine good for 104 horsepower, the rest of the world got a fuel-injected inline-six good for 150 horses. Tipping the scales at only 1,130 kg (2,491 pounds), the Euro-spec TR6 needed only 8.2 seconds to hit 60 mph (97 kph) and had a top speed of 120 mph (193 kph).
Ask Ciprian about cars and he'll reveal an obsession with classics and an annoyance with modern design cues. Read his articles and you'll understand why his ideal SUV is the 1969 Chevrolet K5 Blazer. Full profile
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