Pick of the Day: 1970 Triumph Spitfire

Not all classics have to cost a lot of money

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1970 Triumph Spitfire
1970 Triumph Spitfire

With all the post-Monterey Auction Week talk focusing on million-dollar cars I thought it might be nice to go back to Earth and feature a car that’s affordable, with a great pedigree and strong competition heritage. That car is the Triumph Spitfire.

The Spitfire was introduced at the London Motor Show in 1962 as an affordable sportscar built to compete with the very successful Austin-Healey Sprite. It featured sporty styling by Michelotti with underpinnings from the Triumph Herald. Unlike the earliest Sprites it featured creature comforts such as roll up windows, instead of the Sprites side curtains, and an easy to raise and lower convertible top.

1970 Triumph Spitfire
1970 Triumph Spitfire

On the track the Spitfire would win numerous SCCA F and G production championships. It took a class win at the 1964 Tour de France rally where it finished second overall, and cruised to a 1964 Geneva Rally victory. In 1965 a Spitfire earned a class win at the Alpine Rally.

The Spitfire is a fun car to drive and is also easy to service. When you see Moss Motors ads that list master cylinders as low as $49 you can bet that these are for the Spitfire. In addition, the front hinged bonnet makes access to the engine better than any car I can think of.

1970 Triumph Spitfire - Interior
1970 Triumph Spitfire – Interior

The Pick of the Day is from the final version of the first-generation styling; a 1970 Triumph Spitfire finished in Pale Primrose with a black and beige interior listed for sale on ClassicCars.com (Click the link to view the listing)

The car is being offered by a dealer in Stratford, Wisconsin who describe it as an extra clean Spitfire that is rust free and had a comprehensive frame-on restoration. They add that it has been repainted in the car’s original color and received new upholstery, new carpet, a new top, and new Minilite wheels clad with new Kumho radial tires. They call it a great running and driving little car that’s fun to drive.

 1970 Triumph Spitfire - Engine
1970 Triumph Spitfire – Engine

I will attest that these are great driving cars and offer a tremendous amount of fun for the money spent. I also like that this Spitfire features the one year only British RAF Bullseye Triumph badge on the hood, which is a fun feature for a car bearing the name Spitfire.

Not all classic sports cars have to cost a lot of money, which the $19,700 asking price for this Spitfire easily proves. The Spitfire represents a fun per dollar value that is hard to beat.

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