AROnline
  • Home
    • Go to random page
  • Cars
    • Austin/Morris
      • Morris Minor
      • Austin A30/A35/A40
      • Austin FX4/FL2 Black cab
      • BMC 1100/1300
      • BMC 1800/2200
      • Austin 3 Litre
      • Austin Maxi
      • Austin Kimberley/Tasman (X6)
      • Austin Apache
      • Morris Marina
      • Leyland Sherpa
      • Leyland P76/P82
      • Austin Allegro
      • Austin-Morris Princess
      • Morris Ital
      • Austin Metro
      • Austin Ambassador
      • Austin Maestro
      • Austin Montego
    • Rover
      • Rover P5
      • Rover P6
      • Rover SD1
      • Rover 200 (SD3)
      • Rover 800 (XX/R17)
      • Rover 200/400 (R8)
      • Rover Metro/100 (R6)
      • Rover 600 (SK1)
      • Rover 200/25 (R3)
      • Rover 400/45 (HHR)
      • Rover 75 (R40)
      • Rover Streetwise
      • CityRover (RD10)
    • Jaguar
      • Mk2/S-type/420
      • MkX/420G
      • E-type
      • XJ6/XJ12 (XJ4)
      • XJ-S
      • XJ (XJ40)
      • XJ (X300/X308)
      • S-TYPE (X200)
      • X-TYPE (X400)
      • XJ (X350)
      • XK (X150)
      • XF (X250)
      • XJ (X351)
      • XF (X260)
      • F-Type (X152)
      • XE (X760)
      • F-Pace (X761)
      • i-Pace
    • Land Rover
      • Defender
      • Range Rover (Classic)
      • Discovery
      • Range Rover (P38A)
      • Land Rover Freelander
      • Range Rover (L322)
      • Evoque
      • Range Rover (L405)
      • Range Rover Sport
      • Discovery Sport (L550)
      • Discovery 5
      • Range Rover Velar (L560)
    • MG
      • Midget
      • MGB/MGC
      • Austin/MG Metro (LC8)
      • Austin/MG Maestro (LC10)
      • MGF/TF
      • ZR
      • ZS
      • ZT
      • XPower SV
      • MG6
      • MG3
      • MG GS
    • Mini
      • Mini (ADO15)
      • Mini Cooper
      • Mini Clubman
      • MINI (R50/R56)
      • MINI (F56)
      • Countryman/Paceman
    • Triumph
      • Triumph Herald/Vitesse
      • Triumph Spitfire
      • 2000/2500
      • Triumph 1300/Toledo/Dolomite
      • TR6
      • Triumph Stag
      • Triumph TR7/TR8
      • Triumph Acclaim
    • Ford
      • Consul/Zephyr/Zodiac
      • Cortina
      • Escort
      • Capri
      • Ford Granada (1972-1985)
      • Fiesta
      • Sierra
      • Mondeo
    • Vauxhall
      • Viva
      • Victor
      • Chevette
      • Cavalier
      • Astra
    • Rootes/Chrysler/Talbot
      • Hillman Imp
      • Hillman Hunter
      • Hillman Avenger
      • Simca 1000
      • Simca 1100
      • Chrysler 160/180/2-Litre (C Car)
      • Chrysler Alpine/Talbot Solara
      • Chrysler Sunbeam
      • Chrysler Horizon
      • Matra Bagheera/Murena
      • Talbot Tagora
      • Talbot Samba
    • TVR
      • M-Series
      • TVR Tasmin
      • Griffith
    • ‘Other cars’
      • AC 3000ME
      • Alfa Romeo Alfasud
      • Argyll Turbo GT
      • Bond Equipe
      • DeLorean DMC-12
      • Enfield 8000 Electric
      • Lotus Esprit M70/X180
      • Matra-Simca Rancho
      • Midas
      • Nissan Qashqai
      • Reliant Scimitar
      • Sinclair C5
      • Trident Clipper
  • Reviews & Drives
    • Car Reviews
    • Drive Stories
    • Our Cars
      • Mike’s Rover 400
      • Mike’s Rover 416GSi
      • Mike’s Montego
      • Mike’s Rover 75
      • Mike’s Rover 214SLi
      • Mike’s 214GSi
      • Alexander’s Citroën XM
      • Alexander’s Rover 800
      • Keith’s Range Rover P38
      • Keith’s Freelander
      • Keith’s Rover 75
      • Keith’s Citroen Xantia Activa
      • Keith’s Citroen C6
      • Keith’s Polish Rover SD1
      • Keith’s Rover SD1 Vitesse
      • Keith’s Renault Avantime
    • Staples2Naples 2004
    • Staples2Naples 2005
    • Czech Wrecks 2008
    • RatRod 2011
  • News
    • All News
      • Jaguar Land Rover
      • MG Motor UK
      • MINI
    • All Events
    • MGR@10 Month
    • Rover SD1@ 40 Special
    • Geneva Motor Show
    • Archive
  • Opinion
    • Opinion
    • Your Cars
    • Best of AROnline
    • Videos
  • Facts & Figures
    • Mechanical marvels
      • Commercials
      • Buses
      • The bus section
      • Rail Projects
    • History Files
      • British Leyland – The Grand Illusion
      • British Motor Holdings – the joining of BMC and Jaguar
      • Evolution of the AR logo
      • The Road to Perdition
      • The Whole Story
      • Road vs Rail
      • Urban myths and old wives’ tales
      • Interviews and personalities
      • Production figures
      • Development codes
      • Project Drive
    • The converters
      • Avon Coachworks
      • Chris Humberstone
      • Crayford
      • Lynx Engineering
      • Mumford
      • Panther
      • Paul Banham Conversions
      • Rapport International
      • Startins/MacNeille
      • Tickford
      • William Towns
      • Wood & Pickett
      • Woodall Nicholson
    • Concepts & Prototypes
      • BMC, BL and ARG Concepts
      • Ford concepts
      • Jaguar concepts
      • Land Rover concepts
      • MG concepts
      • MINI concepts
      • Rover concepts
      • Sports car concepts
      • Supermini concepts
      • Vauxhall concepts
    • AROnline Overseas
      • Around the World
      • Also known as
      • Carrozzeria designs
      • Connections
    • People
      • Alec Issigonis
      • Spen King
      • George Turnbull
    • Galleries
      • In production
      • Museums
    • Resources
      • Buying Guides
      • BMC, Leyland and Rover engines
      • Press photos
    • The Ryder Report
  • Marques
    • Austin
    • Authi
    • Hillman
    • Hindustan Motors
    • Innocenti
    • Jaguar
    • Land Rover
    • MG
    • Morris
    • Riley
    • Rover
    • Standard
    • Standard Motor Products
    • Sterling
    • Triumph
    • Vanden Plas
    • Wolseley
  • Timeline

The Rover-Triumph Story

Ian Nicholls,  AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.

The SD1 was the final flowering of the ill-fated Rover-Triumph plan
The SD1 was the final flowering of the ill-fated Rover-Triumph plan

Introduction

‘By 1978 we are due to be producing about 470,000 vehicles a year, compared with around 230,000 we built in 1973.’ – Bernard Jackman, Managing Director of Rover Triumph, February 1974

July 1986, when the last  Rover SD1, a top of the range Vitesse, trundled down the Cowley assembly line, marked the end of an era. It was not just the end of the SD1, but the final demise of a plan that envisaged British Leyland producing 470,000 Rover and Triumph-badged premium priced cars by 1978.

This ambitious plan was built on the achievements of Rover and Triumph when they were still independent of each other, but catastrophically backfired, dragging both brands through the mire at a time when competition in the premium sector was hotting up. Rover-Triumph engineering was completely independent of BMC/Austin-Morris and represented an attempt to create a separate premium brand.

The traditional story of the British motor industry has tended to focus on BMC/Austin-Morris, with Rover and Triumph as minor players. Eventually, Triumph was killed off and the entire Austin-Morris range was badge-engineered as Rover cars. However, at one stage, a separate Rover-Triumph range was seen as a key to prosperity. This is how that idea gained traction and how, in the end, it all fell apart.

The story has been told before in separate model and marque strands, but this is how it all integrated. Along the way, we will come across ill-fated projects such as  Rover P7,  Rover P8,  Triumph  Puma,  Triumph SD2  and  Triumph Lynx.


Read the full story

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part One : 1959

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 8

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the story of Rover and Triumph, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry. Here, in the first part, we recount the […]

Triumph TR3
The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Two : 1960

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 9

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the story of Rover and Triumph, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry. Here, in the second part, we track the […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Three : 1961

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 0

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the story of Rover and Triumph, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the third part, we herald the […]

Rover-Triumph story 1962:Triumph Vitesse
The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Four : 1962

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 6

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the story of Rover and Triumph, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the fourth part, a new Land […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Five : 1963

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 8

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the fifth part, the year is dominated by the arrival […]

Triumph Fury
2000/2500

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Six : 1964

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 8

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the sixth part, the year is marked by the expansion […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Seven : 1965

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 2

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the seventh part, Rover and Triumph continue their expansion, and […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Eight : 1966

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 8

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the eighth part, Rover and Triumph start considering tying the […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Nine : 1967

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 24

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the ninth part, Rover and Triumph become bedfellows within the […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Ten : 1968

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 13

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the tenth part, the Leyland Motor Corporation becomes bedfellows with […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Eleven : 1969

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 12

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the eleventh part, he relates how the Specialist Car Division […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Twelve : 1970

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 14

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the twelfth part, he relates how the Specialist Car Division […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Thirteen : 1971

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 1

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the thirteenth part, he recounts how the profitable part of […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Fourteen : 1972

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 19

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the fourteenth part, he recounts how Rover-Triumph raced towards a […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Fifteen : 1973

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 23

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the fifteenth part, he recounts how the UK’s entry into […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Sixteen : 1974

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 16

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the sixteenth part, he tells the story of how the […]

Triumph TR7
The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Seventeen : 1975

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 28

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the seventeenth part, he tells the story of the lead […]

The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Eighteen : 1976

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 9

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the eighteenth part, he recounts the effects of the Ryder […]

Sir Michael Edwardes pictured in 1977
The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Nineteen : 1977

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 10

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the nineteenth part, he gets under  of the Rover SD1‘s greatest […]

The construction of an expanded Solihull was well underway by early 1974
The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Twenty : 1978

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 3

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the twentieth part, he recounts the impact new Chairman and […]

Jaguar XJ Series III
The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph story – Part Twenty One : 1979

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 18

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the Rover-Triumph story, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the twenty-first part, he recounts how, amid the doom […]

Triumph TR8
The Rover-Triumph Story

History : The Rover-Triumph Story – Part Twenty Two : 1980-1986

7 July 2019 Ian Nicholls 67

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, concludes the Rover-Triumph story, and what was their long and drawn-out part in the downfall of the British motor industry.  Here, in the twenty-second and final part, […]

  • Login
  • Register
  • Forgot

Have an account?

Register for this site!

Sign up now for the good stuff.

Lost Your Password?

Enter your username or email to reset your password.

Latest story

MG Rover RDX60
AROnline News

News : MG Rover prototypes saved!

10 December 2023 5

After what seems like an unending battle to secure the future of the MG Rover prototypes that have been languishing in Longbridge since the firm went into administration in 2005, […]

AROnline on Facebook

Most recent comments

  • James Riley on News : MG Rover prototypes saved!
  • Richardpd on Opinion : Pressing the self-destruct button
  • Glenn Aylett on Opinion : Pressing the self-destruct button
  • Steven on News : MG Rover prototypes saved!
  • Steven on News : MG Rover prototypes saved!
  • John Turner on News : MG Rover prototypes saved!
  • Paul on Opinion : Pressing the self-destruct button
  • John Turner on News : MG Rover prototypes saved!
  • Glenn Aylett on News : Confirmed – MINI Electric will be built in the UK
  • Court Guinness on Announcement : Still working on securing AROnline’s future

The AROnline writers

  • Keith Adams

    published 5441 articles

  • Clive Goldthorp

    published 644 articles

  • Mike Humble

    published 445 articles

  • Ian Nicholls

    published 156 articles

Archive (1959-2019)

Featured stories

Archive : Leyland news

14 January 1960 0

History : The evolution of the AR logo

28 February 2021 28

Archive : Austin to shed 800 workers

15 October 1985 0
Austin to shed 800 workers By Clifford Webb Austin Rover is expected to tell union [...]

The cars : BMC 1800 (ADO17) development story

15 April 2018 94
Big and ungainly it may have looked, and it struggled to capture the imagination of [...]

Archive : Rover has no comment over jobs

19 October 1998 0
OXFORD MAIL Rover has no comment over jobs Rover is refusing to comment on reports [...]
  • About AROnline
  • Terms of use
  • GDPR Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Commenting policy
  • Acceptable Use Policy
  • Contact us

AROnline © Keith Adams 2001-2023 - please refer to the 'Terms of use' pages.