NOW SOLD to David in Oregon. Congratulations!!!!
NEWS FLASH! This car now has complete weather gear… top, tonneau and awesome side curtains! This great classic just got that much better! With these high caliper and tight side curtains, you can dramatically extend your driving season with this car (she has a heater, too)! This is a great package, don’t miss it!
Just 8,636 TR2s were built between 1953 and 1955. This is TS 4431, a rare car, and worth serious consideration.
She was built in 1954 (the last ’54 car was #5191, this one is #4431) and then titled as a 1955, as was common when these cars were purchased and first registered in the following year.
Later in 1955, the TR3 was born, and the grill moved forward, as shown at right below. The white car is a small mouth TR3, of which 17k were built between 1955-1957. In 1958 the large mouth TR3A was born and about 58,000 units were built before the end of the series a few years later.
Each variant is wonderful. But the TR2 is visually the most unusual. The grill is brilliant, raw and simplistic, and a perfect fit for this rugged car. I love the small mouth TR3 but the TR2 snout always seemed more appropriate for the car than later versions. And there just don’t seem to be many TR2s left anymore.
Thus I am in love with this short door four speed TR2 because of the subtle differences it has from the more common TR3s. I never tire of the unique small mouth and I love the clean doors with no external door handles. I am sorry they added door handles to the TR3, some purity was lost. And I love the vintage center brake light, unique to TR2s.
This particular car was formerly vintage-raced. The log book is included and shows a tech inspection in 1988. It was subsequently restored for street use by the long time owner. The car was sent to Marque specialist Macy’s Garage in Ohio in 2011 where they went through the car and did some sorting of the prior restorer’s work. They also upgraded the front brakes to disk. I have asked them to see if they can find the receipts from that service work in 2011.
I bought the car from a (meticulous) collector in Florida who wasn’t using the car any more and wanted to move it to a good home. The car is really fun to drive and it’s tight and quick. It also has tremendous curb appeal.
Note the lack of lock fittings on the front of the bonnet-the TR3s had these external chrome fittings to hold the bonnet shut. You’ll see those fittings on the boot lid and spare tire hatch below. You need the T handle key to open them… but no outside latch fittings on the bonnet. Early cars had an internal (and more practical) hood release.
The top is nearly new, as is the interior. The side curtains too are a nice bonus, and in great shape. You can see them in the boot, with nice clear plastic windows. The interior was also completely redone, and also looks nearly new.
A trickle charger is hard-wired in place under the bonnet in front of the battery. There’s a battery kill switch in the passenger foot well. This is a nice anti-theft feature. A spin-on oil filter is also present, for easier oil changes.
The car spent a lot of time in California, as confirmed by early registrations which are shown in the photo gallery. At some point the car moved to Ohio, and then on to Florida. The car is quite solid, the underside looks quite nice.
Give a call if you want to discuss this rare and wonderful vintage car!
