thinking of buying a herald / dolomite - advice please
Discussion
what do I need to know?
it'll be my only car but I'm used to a classic daily driver having run a 26yr old BMW for the past year with no issues until the autobox lost all forward gears!
hoping to spend no more than 1500 and improve it as I go along. for this sum I'd be looking at dolly 1500/1850s from the classifieds and herald saloons at auction.
sensible idea or not? if I'm honest, a non Sprint dolly isn't as appealing as the herald and I quite like the idea of puttering around in the little saloon. longer term I'd want to improve the handling and give it more oomph. however I realise I could get a nicer dolly for the money without having to take a risk at auction.
any particular issues I should be aware of? I'd need it to start on the button, how straight forward is fitting electronic ignition?
car would be kept outside, well maintained and used to commute 250 miles per week (motorway door to door). rimmer bros is close by for parts and my insurer would be aware that its my main car. I'd ether sell it when winter comes around or use it as a basis for a project (i love the trackday vitesse someone has on here).
any other suggestons?
apologies for the strange formatting. my posts are usually small case but this phone likes to have its own way.
ps. I'm thinking of the earlier herald as I prefer the look of them over the facelifted model.
it'll be my only car but I'm used to a classic daily driver having run a 26yr old BMW for the past year with no issues until the autobox lost all forward gears!
hoping to spend no more than 1500 and improve it as I go along. for this sum I'd be looking at dolly 1500/1850s from the classifieds and herald saloons at auction.
sensible idea or not? if I'm honest, a non Sprint dolly isn't as appealing as the herald and I quite like the idea of puttering around in the little saloon. longer term I'd want to improve the handling and give it more oomph. however I realise I could get a nicer dolly for the money without having to take a risk at auction.
any particular issues I should be aware of? I'd need it to start on the button, how straight forward is fitting electronic ignition?
car would be kept outside, well maintained and used to commute 250 miles per week (motorway door to door). rimmer bros is close by for parts and my insurer would be aware that its my main car. I'd ether sell it when winter comes around or use it as a basis for a project (i love the trackday vitesse someone has on here).
any other suggestons?
apologies for the strange formatting. my posts are usually small case but this phone likes to have its own way.
ps. I'm thinking of the earlier herald as I prefer the look of them over the facelifted model.
Edited by shirt on Saturday 27th March 02:31
I had a 13/60 running on radials. Spun it twice without trying (once a complete 180 in the dry, swerving to avoiding someone pulling out onto the Hagley Rd Birmingham)
Still, I enjoyed the car and sorry to see it go. Not brilliant on motorways 4 speed box and no overdrive made it a bit frantic.
Very easy to work on, make sure front suspension (bottom trunnion)is properly greased, mine collapsed a couple of days after I had the car. Quite common but a simple repair.
Plenty of upgrades electronic ignition is easy to fit I like the 123 distributor a bit pricey but a well made bit of kit.
http://www.123ignition.nl/
Still, I enjoyed the car and sorry to see it go. Not brilliant on motorways 4 speed box and no overdrive made it a bit frantic.
Very easy to work on, make sure front suspension (bottom trunnion)is properly greased, mine collapsed a couple of days after I had the car. Quite common but a simple repair.
Plenty of upgrades electronic ignition is easy to fit I like the 123 distributor a bit pricey but a well made bit of kit.
http://www.123ignition.nl/
I have owned both of these 'in period' and I'd say it depends entirely on the sort of use the car is going to get.
If it is mainly a weekender then the Herald would be fine, definately more quirky and will benefit from the free tax. At the time, you could buy a camber compensator to deal with the swing axles and I think there are some good aftermarket kits available today to tame the handling. However, the construction of the Herald often makes them quite 'rattly' and things like the heater and level of trim will require a pretty determined approach for you to remain enthusistic in mid winter.
There are few compromises required to run a Dolomite though. Any of the HL trim levels are as comfy and more classy than any 'modern' and with a good sound system, a Webasto roof and some Miniltes you have a car that will be cool in any company.
I suppose the 1850 HL is the one to go for but you would get a much better 1500HL for your money and they have good potential.
Overdrive would be good but I expect someone does a 5 speed box by now.
If it is mainly a weekender then the Herald would be fine, definately more quirky and will benefit from the free tax. At the time, you could buy a camber compensator to deal with the swing axles and I think there are some good aftermarket kits available today to tame the handling. However, the construction of the Herald often makes them quite 'rattly' and things like the heater and level of trim will require a pretty determined approach for you to remain enthusistic in mid winter.
There are few compromises required to run a Dolomite though. Any of the HL trim levels are as comfy and more classy than any 'modern' and with a good sound system, a Webasto roof and some Miniltes you have a car that will be cool in any company.
I suppose the 1850 HL is the one to go for but you would get a much better 1500HL for your money and they have good potential.
Overdrive would be good but I expect someone does a 5 speed box by now.
neutral 3 said:
Go for a Dolly Sprint . Very Quick , Very underated and far more of a daily driver than a Herald or Vittesse , both of which are Very Crude , I couldnt live with one of those on a daily basis
I had a Dolly Sprint (SFN977S where are you honey? dead I`d imagine) as my only car 20 years ago. Great car when on song. Quite high maintenance ~ points,condensers,plugs,carb clean outs on a regular basis. Timing chains,water pumps and propshaft UJs fragile. I went through brake pads roughly every 5000 miles as well. Worst problem was rust,sills,jacking points and the front chassis legs IIRC all needed MIG attention. This was when the car was 10-12 years old so maybe less relevant now as anything half decent still around will have been restored I should imagine. Mrs H67 loved it and we owned it for 5 years and clocked up 50K miles. Get a good Herald or Vitesse on the other hand and what you lose in civilisation you gain in the maintenance department. A good 2 litre Vitesse is not far off the Sprints performance and is much less demanding under the bonnet. Daily winter use would be hard work though as the heating, demisting and wipers etc are decidedly underwhelming.
Get both, Sprint for winter, Vitesse for summer.
thanks for the advice so far. to clarify a few points:
the car would be in daily use, 50mile round trip of which 49miles will be uncongested motorway. i'm not bothered about speed in that respect as the aformentioned 528i liked to drink so i usually cruise around.
elec. ignition would be the first job on either car as i would need it to start on the button every day. future mods would be brakes & suspension. when i move somewhere with a garage then the fun would really start!
this is the herald i'm interested in at auction:
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C145017/
and this is what i'd plan to do with it as i go along:
http://moddedherald.blogspot.com/
there's a cheap 1500tc dolly on ph, but the autobox puts me off:
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1562500.htm
and i've just seen this on ebay which is a little rough around the edges but looks period perfect:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/TRIUMPH-1300-FWD-1968-SALOON...
i think a vitesse is out of my price range, good ones are £3k+
still undecided on dolly vs herald. i think the latter will be an easier maintenance prospect but i've long fancied a k-series or saab turbo engined dolly so maybe i should find a strong shell and get accustomed to its mechanics with a view to doing that conversion in a couple of yrs.
the car would be in daily use, 50mile round trip of which 49miles will be uncongested motorway. i'm not bothered about speed in that respect as the aformentioned 528i liked to drink so i usually cruise around.
elec. ignition would be the first job on either car as i would need it to start on the button every day. future mods would be brakes & suspension. when i move somewhere with a garage then the fun would really start!
this is the herald i'm interested in at auction:
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C145017/
and this is what i'd plan to do with it as i go along:
http://moddedherald.blogspot.com/
there's a cheap 1500tc dolly on ph, but the autobox puts me off:
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1562500.htm
and i've just seen this on ebay which is a little rough around the edges but looks period perfect:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/TRIUMPH-1300-FWD-1968-SALOON...
i think a vitesse is out of my price range, good ones are £3k+
still undecided on dolly vs herald. i think the latter will be an easier maintenance prospect but i've long fancied a k-series or saab turbo engined dolly so maybe i should find a strong shell and get accustomed to its mechanics with a view to doing that conversion in a couple of yrs.
Performance of Herald easily enhanced with Spitfire bits. Likewise that tuck in issue on corners was solved in the later Spitfires and the Spitfire swing spring is easily and cheaply fitted to a Herald.
Your mate who mentioned getting front wheels perpendicular to the chassis was talking about steering I suspect. These cars have amazing steering lock.
Your mate who mentioned getting front wheels perpendicular to the chassis was talking about steering I suspect. These cars have amazing steering lock.
I could happily go back to owning a Dolly
I've owned 1300 and 1850s and for style the 1850 has it but for maintenace its the smaller engine every time
My dad had Heralds though and loved them but I would advise the Dolly, get the big one and enjoy very fast and comfortable motoring
But rust is a bugbear even my windscreen frame was rotting away on the 1850, down at the bottom corners both sides and in the sills etcetera.
but real comfortable style
I've owned 1300 and 1850s and for style the 1850 has it but for maintenace its the smaller engine every time
My dad had Heralds though and loved them but I would advise the Dolly, get the big one and enjoy very fast and comfortable motoring
But rust is a bugbear even my windscreen frame was rotting away on the 1850, down at the bottom corners both sides and in the sills etcetera.
but real comfortable style
If you have tuning ambitions I'd rule out that 1300 FWD and IMHO the colour looks all wrong.
The Herald is pretty, worth a close inspection and they are easy to closely inspect too - which is a bonus!
Don't mind that Dolly but the colour matching looks a bit suspect to me and I would be more confident of something less enthusiastically valeted - but that's just my personal preference. Price is, as said, about the mark and certainly not cheap. Still think the Dolomite a better choice for a daily driver.
I have more than my share of cars already but I would find the right Dolomite hard to resist.
A 1300 one was my first ever brand new car in 1977. It was as clean as new - including the underneath - 3 years later! RTX 14R are you out there?
The Herald is pretty, worth a close inspection and they are easy to closely inspect too - which is a bonus!
Don't mind that Dolly but the colour matching looks a bit suspect to me and I would be more confident of something less enthusiastically valeted - but that's just my personal preference. Price is, as said, about the mark and certainly not cheap. Still think the Dolomite a better choice for a daily driver.
I have more than my share of cars already but I would find the right Dolomite hard to resist.
A 1300 one was my first ever brand new car in 1977. It was as clean as new - including the underneath - 3 years later! RTX 14R are you out there?
The Dolomite Club has an excellent forum: http://forum.triumphdolomite.co.uk/
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