History of the Triumph Herald and Vitesse

by Andrew Mace, Vintage Triumph Register Triumph 10 / Herald / Vitesse (Sports 6) Consultant

The first Herald to go on sale to the general public in April 1959 was what has long since become one of the rarest versions: The Coup&eacute. Not quite a full four-seater (in fact, the rear seat was an option), the car nonetheless was equipped with features quite familiar to British sports car fans: four speed transmission; 948 cc engine with twin SU H1 carburetors and an output of 50.5 bhp gross/42.5 bhp net. Some features of the new car were considered quite novel at the time: independent rear suspension; an incredibly tight turning circle (25 ft.); "collapsible" and adjustable steering column; and a greatly reduced maintenance schedule through use of nylon and rubber bushes that virtually eliminated grease fittings on the chassis.

The Coupé was soon joined by a Saloon version, which allowed rather more room for a full rear seat. The Saloon was originally powered by a single Solex-carbureted, 38.5 bhp gross/34.5 bhp net version of the same 948 cc engine, though later the twin-carb engine would be offered as well. By March 1960, these two models were joined by a Convertible, which also offered a top that folded almost completely out of sight, a full (though a bit cramped) rear seat and the twin-carb engine. 1960 also saw the introduction of the Herald S, a stripped-down saloon that never caught on.

Bigger news the following year was the introduction of the 1200 series, incorporating the same Coupé, Saloon and Convertible body styles with a larger engine and somewhat more relaxed final drive. Soon added to the range was an Estate Wagon and the short- lived Courier van, a "commercial" version of the Estate wagon much like the once-common sedan delivery versions of American station wagons. A further upgrading of the 1147cc engine came with introduction of the 12/50, a 1200 Saloon with 51 hp engine, folding sunroof, different grille (seen later in the U.S. on the Sports 1200) and uprated trim.

Improvements continued, with all Herald 1200s eventually receiving the sturdier frame seen first on the 12/50 (and earlier on the Vitesse six-cylinder derivative) and a 48 hp version of the 12/50 engine. By the end of 1964, the Coupé had disappeared, perhaps falling victim to the popularity of the Spitfire!

In 1968, facing competition both from other marques and other models in the Triumph range, the Herald received a final, major upgrading. More power came from a single-carb version of the 1296cc Spitfire Mk.3 (and Triumph 1300) engine, and a front-end restyle came from adapting a variation of the Vitesse sheetmetal. Improvements were made also to the interior and drivetrain components. The resulting 13/60 came, as before, in Saloon, Convertible and Estate Wagon variants, replacing all previous configurations of Herald save the 1200 Saloon, which continued as before. Sales of the 1200 quickly dropped off, though, while the 13/60 models were more successful for a time.

By 1970, the rear-drive Triumph Toledo and front-drive 1500/ 1500TC were too much competition. The 1200 Saloon disappeared in May 1970, followed by the 13/60 Saloon in December and the Convertible and Estate cars in May 1971.

Vitesse

Meanwhile, back in 1959 and the introduction of the Herald, any number of new models, projects and prototypes were being considered by Standard-Triumph. One of these was an engine project -- a six-cylinder engine derived from the SC/Herald engine (the engine that ultimately was to power the 2000 and TR6 models). By 1960, Triumph engineers had shoehorned a 2-litre version of this six into a modified Herald Coup&eacute. The concept caught on, at least within the Triumph organization. No one expected sales to be exceptional, and the cost to bring the car to production was fairly low, so the car looked to be profitable.

Major changes from the original Herald involved new front styling from Michelotti and a reworked, sturdier chassis frame (later adapted on Heralds as mentioned above). When the Vitesse was launched in 1962, it featured a 1600cc engine rather than the 2000cc engine of the first prototype, and the car was offered only in Saloon and Convertible versions. Lagging sales of the Herald Coupé were to blame for the lack of a Coupé in the Vitesse range. In 1965, the substitution of Stromberg sidedraft carburetors and manifold from the 2000 for the original Solex setup resulted in a significant gain of horsepower, acceleration and fuel economy.

By 1966, the Vitesse had been significantly upgraded in the face of increased competition, primarily in sharing a 95hp, 2- litre motor and other components introduced in the new GT6 , all-synchromesh transmission (developed originally for factory Spitfire rallye cars), sturdier axles and differential, larger front disc brakes, and the 4.5" wide wheels used on Courier, GT6 and 2000 models.

By this time, though, the limitations of the swing-axle rear suspension were noted more and more both in the Vitesse and GT6. Although the now-familiar swing-spring fix had been around since the beginning of the Herald line in 1959, it was not applied until 1971, and then only to the Spitfire. Instead, a double- jointed half axle setup was designed, utilizing the same transverse spring but adding a lower wishbone and rotoflex couplings and relocating the trailing arm and shock absorbers (now lever type on the Vitesse). The Vitesse 2-litre Mk. 2, introduced in late 1968, incorporated this change along with a further increase in horsepower, gained from a different camshaft and use of the "full-width" cylinder head. (The GT6 Mk.2 -- or GT6+ in North America -- also shared these improvements.) As good as the car now was, though, it was perhaps a bit late in coming. Sales tapered off steadily; the last Vitesse was built in May 1971, only weeks before Dolomite production began.

The U.S. Market

Before you American fans get too excited about some of these models, please be advised that the above descriptions don't necessarily apply to the United States market.

The Herald Coupé was dropped in the US well before the end of its production run. The Estate car was never officially imported (a mistake in the opinion of some), nor was the 12/50 (the sunroof feature alone might have been a great boost to Herald sales in this country). Interestingly enough, the Herald 1200 name was replaced in the U.S. during the 1964 model year by "Sports 1200"; the latter featured the home market 12/50's grille and a 48 hp. version of the 1147cc engine. Trunk badging noted the change.

By the mid-1960s, marketing of the Herald was not a high priority. What advertising there was often referred only to the "Triumph 1200," with no reference to the Herald or Sports names.

The original Vitesse (1600cc.) Convertible, badged in the U.S. as a "Sports 6," was marketed in 1963 as a "limited-edition car"; even at that, fewer than 700 were sold before the model was withdrawn from the U.S. market in 1964. The Sports 6 was perhaps better suited to American highways than was the Herald, but it faced stiff price competition from cars such as Ford's new Mustang. (The Vitesse Saloon was not officially imported to the U.S.)

Original U.S. prices (POE East Coast) and U.S. sales figures (from Robson's Triumph Herald and Vitesse) were as follows:


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