Triumph 1800 / 2000 Roadster

Well known today by many as the car driven by Bergerac in the 1980's BBC television detective series of the same name, the Triumph 1800 Roadster was introduced in 1946. It shared the same tubular, crossed braced chassis as the 1800 saloon which started production at the same time. It was a well appointed car, and featured a high quality leather interior, with polished wood door cappings and dashboard.

The bodywork which was styled in house by Frank Callaby was built on an ash frame with mostly aluminium panels, although the front inner and outer wings were steel. They were actually quite an expensive car of their day and were in the main hand built. A notable feature of these cars was the rear dickey seat, which provided occasional seating for two extra passengers and folded up out of the boot compartment complete with windscreen. In 1948 the car was updated into the 2000 model and the old 1776cc (Jaguar) engine was replaced by 2088cc Standard Vanguard engine. A total of 4500 1800 / 2000 roadsters were produced by the time production ended in 1949.