Background
The 1960 takeover of Standard-Triumph by Leyland Motors - at the time, a largely commercial vehicle builder - initially brought a halt to Triumph’s competitive activities. Thankfully, they soon realised that the credibility of a sporting marque required a degree of factory-backed participation and a limited works programme of rallying with TR4s and Vitesses was allowed.
As international rallying leaned more and more toward rough surface stages, the TRs were increasingly disadvantaged and in 1963 Triumph looked to its new Michelotti-styled 2000 to take on the works rallying challenge, particularly for the endurance events like the Monte Carlo and the Spa-Sofia-Liège runs.
The cars needed to be prepared to Group 3 (Grand Touring) class regulations and Triumph set about building four cars for rallying - registration numbers AHP424B, AHP425B, AHP426B and AHP427B.
From the outside, the white cars looked very similar to the standard road models, although they were given extra lights at the front and had their bonnets painted black to reduce glare. They also had larger 15-inch TR4 wheels for extra ground clearance.
Underneath, however, the works cars had strengthened structures and heavily modified engines with higher compression ratios, reprofiled camshafts, a triple Weber carburettor setup and free-flow exhausts - all adding up to 150 bhp, rather more than the 89 bhp of the standard car.
Needless to say the wide-ratio transmission was adapted too, with a shorter final drive and a limited-slip differential. With overdrive available in second, third and fourth it was effectively a seven-speed manual gearbox.
With all the modifications and then the homologation, It wasn’t until 1964 that the cars were ready to compete and their first international outing was the Spa-Sofia-Liège marathon that August. On the return leg, they all retired with broken rear suspension mounts. This weakness was quickly remedied and all four cars entered into the RAC Rally - achieving second and third class placings.
Competitive participation continued through 1965 but the Triumphs raced with tight budgets and a rather heavy car, which put a lot of stress on the transmission. A rule-change in 1966 outlawing highly-modified Group 3 cars meant that Triumph had to either build and sell ‘homologation specials’ to the public, or revert to near-standard road cars in the Group 1 class.
The works team ploughed on in the Group 1 class and also experimented with a larger 2.5-litre engine which would be fitted to production 2000s in late 1968. After a controversial Monte Carlo rally, Triumph once again shut down the works team but continued to support privateer teams - notable ex-works driver Roy Fidler who went on to win the 1966 British Rally Championship in his Triumph 2000.
Works Triumph 2000s returned to rallying under the BMC Competitions Department in 1969 with the 2.5 PI (petrol injected) Mk1 in the hands of Paddy Hopkirk. He and two others also competed in the 1969 RAC Rally, taking the first three places in their class.
Further Mk2 2.5 PI cars were prepared for the 1970 London-Mexico World Cup Rally (actually London to Lisbon, then by sea to Rio de Janeiro and on to Mexico City). Seven cars (a mix of Mk1 and Mk2s) were entered and after 16,000 miles of hard driving, works driver Brian Culcheth came in overall second place (behind Hannu Mikkola’s Ford Escort) with Hopkirk in fourth.
The four Group 3 black-bonnet cars were destroyed by the factory after the 1965 season and few others are believed to have survived, but the resurgence of Historic Rallying means that there are probably more works replicas now than there ever were originals!
And here is perhaps the ultimate recreation…
