The first saloon on the line emerges for a starring role
As the 60th anniversary year of both the Rover P6 and the Triumph 2000 draws to a conclusion, Practical Classics can reveal a star turn ‘first’ that will attend the Classic Motor Show over the weekend of November 10-12. What is believed to be the very first Triumph 2000 to come off the production line, 2681 KV (commission number
MB1) will be on the Triumph 2000/2500/2.5 Register stand with owner and specialist, Karl Dandridge.
Some controversy surrounds the car but club president Andy Roberts is confident they have the first off the line: ‘There is so much evidence on the car for a start: the blind riveted commission number is the original item that has never been removed. It is stamped
MB1DL (MB denoting the Triumph 2000 range and DL denoting a saloon car). All the window glass carries identical date markings that show that it was manufactured in the second quarter of 1963. Although it is of course possible to fit early glass to a later car, the glass does not appear to have been disturbed and all of the date marks match each other.’
Dating and establishing the car as number one has been a true detective tale. ‘The club knew about this car in 1981, when it was owned by Mr William Brown of Pontefract. We have been in touch with Mr Brown and he has provided photographs that show the style of the registration number plates is unusual, especially the design of the figure eight… it matches rear plate on the car we have.’
Karl will begin a full restoration of the car after its NEC a
