I made my first visit to France in this car, in 1984. We crossed the Channel by ferry to St.Malo, then drove South visiting Mont St.Michel, crossing the Loire at Saumur, then I remember Chinon and its castle, before reaching the southernmost part of our trip, St.Jean de Luz near the Spanish border. It was there that I saw my first topless sunbathers; dozens, maybe hundreds of them, as far as the eye could see on the sandy beach. It's quite possible that on that day I saw more bare breasts than in the rest of my life altogether. Oh happy days !
We drove back North through the Périgord, Armagnac, Cognac, St.Emilion and crossed the Loire at Chenonceaux. The TR6 wasn't suited to the hot weather. The fuel pipe from the tank in the rear was too near the surface and got overheated by the sun. The gasoline would vaporize and cause an airlock in the pipe and the car would judder to a halt as the fuel supply stopped. We bought an icebox and each morning filled it with ice cream, frozen peas and other stuff. Each time we got an airlock something was taken out of the icebox and placed on the pipe to condense the vapor, then off we would go for another 50 or 100 km until the next breakdown. The British car industry, may it rest in peace, made some beautiful vehicles, but their unreliability was their downfall.
This car though is still going strong. It was already 15 years old in 1984, but this photo was taken at an owners' meeting in England earlier this month, a credit to its owner.
Beautiful beautiful car, love the colour. …it’s very special!