So many threads devoted to whether the SRT-6 will be a future collectable or worth $1.98 in three years, excuse me for adding one more to the mix. But with all the different cars I've owned over the years there are a number of parallels, and I started thinking about the 1980 Triumph TR8 coupe I had owned back in 1985.

For those that don't know it, the car was a Triumph TR7 (old ads used to tout the TR7 as "the shape of things to come," though if it was it has clearly come and went) -- major mod being the 2 liter 4 cylinder TR7 engine was replaced by an early 60's design 3.5L GM/Rover V8. A pretty low output V8 but it was light and a fast car by 1980 standards. Many, many more TR7s on the road than TR8s -- a similar dynamic to N-A Crossfires vs SRT-6s. Similar TR8 production numbers to the SRT-6 and oddly enough, similar production numbers on the TR7 vs. N-A Crossfire.

I paid $3,200 for it in 1985 while I was in college and struggled to sell it 6 months later for similar money. Former Triumph dealer would only offer $1,500 in trade -- claimed to have two new ones still in the warehouse that he never could sell. Problems? The car would chronicaly overheat, which was finally remedied by a low pressure thermostat and wiring the cooling fan so that it ran whenever the engine was on. The wiring was such a patchwork mess that the entire wire harness had to be ripped out and replaced. The right pop-up headlight worked but took about 15 seconds to creep up. Manual choke added. These were on top of the fixes put in place by the prior owner -- "upgrading" the unduly restrictive intake and tempermental carb to something sourced from an early sixties GM. I'm probably safe in saying that few if any SRT-6's had inflicted so much pain in such a short time as ownership as that TR8 did to me. You may think Chrysler service is as bad as it gets, but that's because you never tried dealer service on a Triumph in 1985. Ahhh!

Just for curiosity a searched Hemmings. 1980 Triumph TR8 Coupe, $16,900.
http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/

I'm sure that most TR8s would have cost more than that to keep running these past 23 years than the selling price even disregarding inflation and the time value of money, so as many have stated cars are rarely "investments" unless you venture into the mega-buck category or simply get particularly lucky. But value and further depreciation are another matter. For those who think their very limited producton 330hp German made sports car over time will be worth less than a 4 year old Yaris, remember the TR8.