bowtie6 in the sunshine, sporting Panasports and that oh-so-rare factory hard top.
Today’s post shows six or one half of the other grouping of Triumph TR6’s gathered over at my friend Al’s shop. You see, Al just got his business license for his TR6 restoration garage. While bowtie6 did not come from Al’s shop, it was invited to take part in this impromptu car show of sorts.
Nice pair of TR6’s…
Quick post today of white and red TR6’s…
Visited my friend Al’s shop today and could not pass up the opportunity to take this photo of his white TR6 next to bowtie6. Al’s white TR6 runs on black centered wheels that look very slick against the all white background. Nice car, don’t you think?
In today’s snail-mail I received the July 2013 issue of Classic Motorsports Magazine and there is an article about the total weight of different classic cars. Interesting article indeed. This article made me think about the weight measurements I took on bowtie6. So how much does a TR6 weigh, really?
The one-page article’s title is “By the Numbers” and shows several cars such as a 1967 Shelby GT350 (3295 lbs), 1971 MGB roadster (2150 lbs), 1965 Sunbeam Tiger (2545 lbs – a real porker) and a 1992 Mazda Miata (2194 lbs). This was listed on the page shown here to the left.
Hmmmm… According to the article, the results were obtained with a set of Longacre DX scales. What is the weight of a TR6, you ask? Take a look:
Compared to these numbers, bowtie6 did remarkably well. Here are my results, also taken with a set of Longacre scales:
Wait a minute… These numbers are including a hard top!
Here are the totals without the hard top:
Very interesting comparison. My TR6 is lighter than a stock 1969 TR6 even with a hard top installed! 
If you want to see more details – CLICK HERE.
I realize my TR6 is not the average run-of-the-mill TR6 but dang this is a big difference. I suppose the new, lightweight frame and all alloy Ecotec play a very large role in this total. Add to that the extra horsepower and torque numbers and the result is a pretty awesome TR6.
I’ll ask again, how much does a TR6 weigh?
This has been a question in my mind ever since we fitted the new frame and engine to bowtie6. Well today I finally was able to find out. The result was a great surprise.
Along with a full tank of fuel and the hard top in place we took our first set of numbers. The following pictures show front and rear total weights.
Here is the total:
Not too bad – 2,222 lbs and a 48.2% front / 51.7% rear bias.
We were curious about the weight of the factory hard top. Well I can conclusively state the Triumph factory hard top weighs in at about 65 lbs. Granted mine has had a few changes done. I have added a layer of Dynamat Extreme inside however, I removed all the chrome trim. So at the end of the day, I guess this would be about equal.
Here is the total without the hard top in place:
With the hard top removed, total weight is 2,158 lbs and a 49.3% front / 50.6% rear.
Next thing I need to do is put bowtie6 on a dyno and measure just how much horsepower we are putting down on the pavement. In stock form, the 2.4 Ecotec in a Solstice/Sky produces 177 hp. That is using the restrictive factory exhaust and the factory tune which is optimized for economy. In bowtie6‘s case, we have tuned the PCM to produce power at the expense of economy (duh!), so we are far above from the stock value. How much? That we need to find out.
Regardless, this is all quite impressive. It would have been nice to be closer to 2000lbs but 2,158 is not shabby at all. I guess I should not have used all that Dynamat! 🙂
Oh and I found a prior post I had made regarding how much my cousin Jim’s TR4 weighs – to read that post CLICK HERE.
Just an awesome pair of TR6’s in the late afternoon light… 🙂
Pictured here is bowtie6 next to my friend Adam’s Mimosa Yellow TR6. I did the paint job at my cousin Jim’s shop and it turned out very nice indeed.
Adam’s TR6 features an original TR6 engine and overdrive gearbox. However what makes it special is the supercharger fueled by a big SU carburetor. Although not as quick as bowtie6, Adam’s ride is a real looker…