Editing Triumph 2000

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2017}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2017}}
{{for multi|the Triumph 2000 Roadster of 1948–49|Triumph Roadster|the Triumph 2000 Saloon of 1949|Triumph Renown}}
{{Infobox automobile
| name = Triumph 2000, 2.5PI, 2500TC & 2500S
| manufacturer = [[Triumph Motor Company]]
| image = Triumph 2000 Mk II (15882371160).jpg
| caption = Triumph 2000 Mk 2 Saloon
| production = 1963–1977 <br /> 324,652 produced
| assembly = United Kingdom <br /> Australia<ref>[http://t2000.kvaleberg.org/t_hist.html#outside Triumph 2000/2500/2.5 Historical Page] Retrieved on 29 March 2012</ref><ref>[http://www.hudson-amc.org.au/historical/ami-the-start.htm Australian Motor Industries (AMI) The Start] Retrieved on 30 March 2012</ref> <br /> South Africa<ref name=ateupwithmotor>[http://ateupwithmotor.com/model-histories/triumph-2000-2500-mk2/2/ Class Acts, Part 2: Triumph 2000, 2.5 PI, and 2500 Mk 2, ateupwithmotor.com] Retrieved on 10 April 2014</ref> <br /> New Zealand<ref>{{cite web|url=https://photonews.org.nz/nelson/issue/NPN67_19660528/t1-body-d24.html|title=Motor Assembly Plant Officially Opened - Nelson Photo News - No 67 : May 28, 1966|website=photonews.org.nz|access-date=28 May 2019}}</ref>

<br /> Belgium<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.motorgraphs.com/heritage/malines-belgium-factory-leyland-triumph-1972_a156434.aspx|title= Malines (Belgium) factory Leyland-Triumph 1972|website=www.motorgraphs.com|access-date=23 February 2020}}</ref>
| body_style = 4-door [[Sedan (car)|saloon]] <br> 5-door [[Estate car|estate]]
| class = [[Mid-size]] [[executive car]]
| layout = [[Front-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout]]
| engine = {{cvt|1998|cc|abbr=on}} [[straight-6]] (2000) <br /> {{cvt|2498|cc|abbr=on}} straight-6 (2.5 PI, 2500TC & 2500S)
| transmission = 4-speed [[Manual transmission|manual]] <br /> 4-speed manual with [[Overdrive (mechanics)|overdrive]] <br /> 3-speed [[Automatic transmission|automatic]]
| length = {{convert|174|in|mm|0|abbr=on}} Mk 1 <br /> {{convert|183|in|mm|0|abbr=on}} Mk 2
| width = {{Convert|67|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
| height = {{Convert|56|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
| predecessor = [[Standard Vanguard]]
| successor = [[Rover SD1]]
| designer = [[Giovanni Michelotti]]
| wheelbase = {{convert|106|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
}}

The '''Triumph 2000''' is a mid-sized, rear wheel drive [[automobile]] which was produced in [[Coventry]] by the [[Triumph Motor Company]] between 1963 and 1977. It was introduced on 15 October 1963.<ref>New Triumph marks the End of an Era. ''The Times'', Tuesday, 15 October 1963; pg. 16; Issue 55832</ref> It was styled by [[Giovanni Michelotti]].<ref name=BBonTriumph2000>{{cite web|url=https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/november-1963/60/driving-the-new-triumph-2000|title=Driving the new Triumph 2000|author=[[Bill Boddy]] |publisher=[[Motor Sport (magazine)|Motor Sport]]|date=November 1963|accessdate=9 February 2021}}</ref><ref name=MichelottiperDM>{{cite web|title=Michelotti (and the Triumph Stag) – 'A free pencil…'|author=Dave Moss|date=4 December 2015 |work=2015 marks the 45th anniversary of the launch of the Triumph Stag. Dave Moss looks back at the car and its talented instigator, Giovanni Michelotti…|url=http://www.wheels-alive.co.uk/michelotti-and-the-triumph-stag-a-free-pencil/|publisher=Kim Henson, "Wheels Alive"|accessdate=9 February 2021}}</ref><ref name=P6perClasCars>{{cite web|url= http://www.classiccars.co.uk/cars/rover/p6/ |title=Rover P6|work=Classic Cars |publisher="Classic Cars", [[Brentwood, Essex|Brentwood]], Essex |accessdate= 9 February 2021}}</ref><ref name=Tri2000perJL>{{cite web|url=https://triumph2000register.co.uk/the-cars/history/the-triumph-2000-story-the-final-years-tc-and-s-models-1974-1977/2/ |author=[[Jonathan Lewis (motorsport)|Jonathan Lewis]] |title= The Triumph 2000 Story – The Final Years: 'TC' and 'S' Models, 1974-1977|year=2010|publisher=The Triumph 2000 Register, [[Wakefield]], [[Yorkshire]]|accessdate=9 February 2021}}</ref>

It competed with the contemporary [[Rover P6]] 2000, which initially was offered only with a four-cylinder engine. The Rover was also released in October 1963, just one week before the Triumph.<ref name=Autocar197606>{{cite magazine |title = Buying Secondhand: Rover 2000/2200 | series = 144|magazine=[[Autocar (magazine)|Autocar]] | volume =  nbr 4155| pages =62–64| date = 26 June 1976}}</ref> Larger-engined models, known as the Triumph 2.5 PI and Triumph 2500 were also produced from 1968.

== Engine ==
The 2000 used the six-cylinder engine first seen in the [[Standard Vanguard#Vanguard Six|Standard Vanguard]] at the end of 1960.<ref name=PracticalMotorist1960>{{cite journal|journal =Practical Motorist |volume = (nbr 76)|series =7 |title =On the road&nbsp;... Standard's new 'Luxury Six' Vanguard is based on their Michelotti-styled 'Vignale'. The new 1,998 c.c. (74.7 x 76 mm) six-cylinder engine has push-rod o.h. valves and twin down-draught carburetter&nbsp;... |page=7|date=December 1960}}</ref>   However, the last of the six cylinder Vanguards had applied a compression ratio of 8.0:1 which the increasing availability of higher octane fuels enabled the manufacturers to increase to 8.5:1 for the Triumph.<ref name=Autocar197202>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Autocar (magazine)|Autocar]] |volume = (nbr 3958)|series =136 |title =Used Car Test: 1967 Triumph 200 Automatic| pages =  24–25| date = 10 February 1972}}</ref>   This and the fitting of twin Stromberg 150 CD carburettors made for a claimed power output increased to {{Convert|90|bhp|kW PS|0|abbr=on}} from the Vanguard's {{Convert|80|bhp|kW PS|0|abbr=on}}.

== Running gear ==
Standard transmission on the original car was a 4-speed manual gearbox: [[Overdrive (mechanics)|overdrive]] and [[Borg-Warner 35 transmission|Borg-Warner Type 35]] 3-speed automatic transmission were options.<ref name=Autocar197202/> The [[unibody|unitary]] body had independent suspension all-round with [[Trailing-arm suspension#Semi-trailing arm|semi-trailing arm]]s at the rear, all using coil springs. The servo-assisted brakes were disc at the front and drums at the rear.

{{Clear}}
==<span class="anchor" id="Triumph 2000 Mk 1"></span>Triumph 2000 Mk 1 & 2.5 PI Mk 1 ==
{{Infobox automobile
| name = Triumph 2000 Mk 1 <br> Triumph 2.5 PI Mk 1
| image = 1967 Triumph 2000.jpg
| caption = 1967 Triumph 2000 Mk 1 Saloon
| production = 1963–1969 (2000) <br>120,645 produced <br> 1968–1969 (2.5 PI) <br> 9,029 produced
| body_style = 4-door [[Sedan (car)|saloon]] <br> 5-door [[Estate car|estate]]
| engine = 1,998 cc [[straight-6]] (2000) <br> 2,498 cc [[straight-6]] (2.5 PI)
| transmission = manual 4-speed gearbox (overdrive optional)<ref name=Autocar1973/> or <br/> automatic Borg-Warner Type 35<ref name=Autocar1973/>
}}

The Mk 1 was presented to the public at the [[London Motor Show]] in October 1963, and volume sales began in January 1964. Continuing in production until 1969, this version came in [[sedan (car)|saloon]] and, from 1965, [[station wagon|estate]] forms. The estate car body shell was partly built by [[Carbodies]],<ref name="Munro">{{cite book |title=Carbodies The Complete Story |author=Bill Munro |publisher=The Crowood Press |year=1998 |isbn=1-86126-127-6}}</ref>{{rp|119}} and in the Mk 1 version was the same length as the saloon. Various minor improvements were made during the period of which the most noteworthy, probably, was a significant upgrade in October 1966 to the "previously rather ineffective" ventilation, with eyeball vents added in the centre of the facia and the heater controls repositioned beneath them.<ref name=Autocar196712>{{cite magazine|title = Used Car Test: Triumph 2000 (overdrive)| series = 127|magazine=[[Autocar (magazine)|Autocar]] | volume =  (nbr 3750)| pages =  20–21|date = 28 December 1967 }}</ref>

In October 1968<ref>{{cite news|title=Triumph|work=[[The Times]]|date=1 October 1968| page=9|issue=57370}}</ref> the 2.5 PI (petrol injection) Mk 1 was launched, fitted with a [[Lucas Automotive]] mechanical [[fuel injection]] system. Performance was very good, but the PI models (along with the TR6 models) gained a reputation for unreliability and poor [[Fuel economy in automobiles|fuel economy]].

In Australia, these models suffered badly because of the summer heat.  The electric fuel pump commonly overheated causing fuel to vaporise and render the engine inoperable until the pump cooled down.  The overheating of the pump was caused by a combination of very high pressure fuel loads (over {{convert|110|psi|bar|abbr=on}}) and a pump that was adapted from what was originally a windscreen wiper motor. As such, it did not cope well with sustained pressures in moderate to high ambient temperatures.  Because of the launch late in the Mk&nbsp;I's life, there are relatively few PIs in the original shape.

<gallery widths="200px" heights="150px">
File:Triumph Estate (2368440169).jpg|Triumph 2000 (Mk 1) Estate 
File:Triumph 2.5 PI.jpg|Triumph 2.5 PI Mk 1 Saloon
</gallery>
{{Clear}}

== Triumph 2000 Mk 2, 2.5 PI Mk 2, 2500TC and 2500S ==
{{Infobox automobile
| name = Triumph 2000 Mk 2 <br> Triumph 2.5 PI Mk 2 <br> Triumph 2500TC <br> Triumph 2500S
| image = KUU2P 1976 Triumph 2000 TC.jpg
| caption = 1976 Triumph 2000 TC Saloon
| production = 1969–1977 (2000) <br> 104,580 produced <br> 1969–1975 (2.5 PI) <br> 49,742 produced <br> 1974–1977 (2500TC) <br>32,492 produced <br> 1975–1977 (2500S) <br> 8,164 produced
| body_style = 4-door [[Sedan (car)|saloon]] <br> 5-door [[Estate car|estate]]
| engine = 1,998 cc [[straight-6]] (2000) <br> 2,498 cc [[straight-6]] (2.5 PI, 2500TC & 2500S)
| aka = Triumph Chicane ([[South Africa]])<ref name=ateupwithmotor/>
}}

In October 1969,<ref name=Autocar1973>{{cite magazine| title = Used Car Test: 1971 Triumph 2000 Estate Car| series = 138|magazine=[[Autocar (magazine)|Autocar]] | volume =  (nbr 4019)| pages =  16–17|date = 7 June 1973}}</ref> the Mk 2 range was launched, styled, like its predecessor, by [[Giovanni Michelotti|Michelotti]], and preparing the car for the 1970s. The front of the car now followed the lines of the then-upcoming [[Triumph Stag]] grand tourer. There were entry-level 2000 models, which were the most plentiful, but the remainder of the range consisted of 2500, 2500&nbsp;TC and 2500&nbsp;PI models. Apart from the PI (petrol injection) models, all Triumph 2000 and 2500s had twin [[Zenith Carburetters|Stromberg]] or [[SU carburetor|SU]] [[carburettors]], the "TC" suffix on some models can seem misleading in this respect as it stood for a higher equipment level. In June 1975 the 2500S model, with 14&nbsp;inch (356&nbsp;mm) wheels and anti-roll bar, was added:  it replaced the 2.5PI which had quietly disappeared from the show rooms two months earlier.<ref name=Autocar1975>{{cite magazine| title = New from British Leyland: 2.5PI gives way to 2500S| series = 141|magazine=[[Autocar (magazine)|Autocar]] | volume = (nbr 4100)|page=59 |date = 7 June 1975}}</ref>  This marked the end of fuel injected engines for the car, but improved acceleration was claimed for the twin carburettor 2500S and its slightly less expensive 2500TC sibling.<ref name=Autocar1975/>  These new versions featured an extensive list of other, mostly minor, improvements, of which the most significant were probably those affecting the ride and handling: these resulted from suspension changes including an [[anti-roll]] bar.<ref name=Autocar1975/> The Estate in the Mk 2 version was 5&nbsp;inches (125&nbsp;mm) shorter than the Mk 2 Saloon, because the rear bodywork of the car was carried over unchanged from the Mk 1 version, and as with the Mk 1, built by Carbodies.<ref name="Munro"/>{{rp|125}}

The Mk 2, the last big Triumph car, ceased production in 1977, supplanted by [[British Leyland]]'s corporate executive car, the [[Rover SD1]].  Six-cylinder 2300 and 2600 versions of the new Rover would nonetheless be powered by engines designed by Triumph, originally intended to replace the older 2000 / 2500 units.<ref name=SD1Sixpot>{{cite web|url=http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/cars/rover/sd1-rover/engines-rover-sd1-six/|title=Engines : Rover SD1 Six ... Leyland's first, Triumph's last|author=Keith Adams|date=26 August 2011|work=AROnline|access-date=18 January 2016}}</ref><ref name=SD1club>{{cite web|url=http://www.roversd1.info/2300/2300.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071102100721/http://www.roversd1.info/2300/2300.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2 November 2007|title=The Rover 2300, MK1|publisher=THE ROVER SD1 CLUB|access-date=18 January 2016}}</ref>   The last production car, a 2500S estate (BOL87V) is kept at the [[Heritage Motor Centre]].

<gallery widths="200px" heights="150px">
File:Triumph 2500 PI Mk2 in Morges 2013 - Front left.jpg|Triumph 2.5 PI Mk 2 Saloon
File:Triumph2500TC.JPG|Triumph 2500TC Saloon
File:Triumph 2500 S first registered May 1976 2498cc.JPG|1976 Triumph 2500S Saloon
File:Triumph 2500S estate 2498cc 1976.jpg|1976 Triumph 2500S Estate
</gallery>
{{Clear}}

==Overseas assembly==
Various models were assembled in [[South Africa]], with the later 2500TC and 2500S being badged '''Triumph Chicane''' in that market between 1973 and 1978.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=W6AjAQAAIAAJ&q=Triumph+Chicane ''Time & Tide''], Volume 55, Time and Tide Publishing Company, 1974, page 12</ref>

In New Zealand, [[Complete Knock Down|CKD production]] of the Triumph 2000 continued at [[New Zealand Motor Corporation]]'s [[Nelson, New Zealand|Nelson]] plant, with 2500S models until March 1979. Sir [[Rob Muldoon]], New Zealand's then [[Prime Minister]], privately owned a white 2500S and had been known to drive to work in it. This car is now owned by a member of the Auckland Triumph Car Club.

The 2000 was assembled in [[Australia]] by [[Australian Motor Industries]].<ref name=Chambers>{{cite journal|last=Chambers|first=Cliff|title=Ones That Got Away|journal=Unique Cars|date=27 February 2013|issue=347|page=24|url=http://www.uniquecarsmag.com.au|access-date=5 March 2013}}</ref> A special version of the Mk 1 was known as the 2000MD ("Managing Director"), which had special features such as knock-off wire wheels, triple Stromberg carburettors, and the battery moved to the boot.<ref name=Chambers/> Total production of the 2000MD was approximately 100.<ref name=Chambers/>

==Today==
Many of these cars are still on the road, supported by owners clubs and specialist parts.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://triumph2000register.co.uk/|title=The Triumph 2000 2500 2.5 Register|website=triumph2000register.co.uk|access-date=28 May 2019}}</ref>

The 2000 and derivatives are also popular with modifiers owing to common parts and engines shared with other Triumph models such as the [[Triumph TR6|TR6]], [[Triumph GT6|GT6]], and [[Triumph Vitesse|Vitesse]].

==Motor sport==
Factory-entered 2.5 PIs finished 2nd and 4th in the [[1970 London to Mexico World Cup Rally]].<ref>[http://triumph2000register.co.uk/?page_id=874 The Triumph 2000 Story - The Big Triumphs in ‘Works’ Competition: 1964-1976, triumph2000register.co.uk] Retrieved on 14 April 2014</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Triumph 2.5 PI}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20100930044607/http://austin-rover.co.uk/ The Unofficial Austin Rover Web Resource]
*[https://www.aronline.co.uk/ Austin Rover on-line]

{{British Motor Holdings and British Leyland cars, 1966-1986}}
{{Triumph_Motor_Company_timeline}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Triumph Motor Company vehicles|2000]]
[[Category:Cars introduced in 1963]]
[[Category:1970s cars]]
[[Category:Rear-wheel-drive vehicles]]
[[Category:Sedans]]
[[Category:Station wagons]]
[[Category:Cars discontinued in 1977]]