What to check when buying a Triumph Herald 1969

[Shaye]

Hi I'm new to classic cars and due to view a 1969 Triumph Herald tomorrow. I was wondering what I should be looking for and checking when viewing the car. 

[thescrapman]

Rust, rust and rust basically.

Not sure if you can get to buyers guide

https://www.tssc.org.uk/tssc/cars_final.asp?model_ID=42

looks a nice clean car in your photos

[JohnD]

Shay,

1/ Join the TSSC, if you haven't already!

2/ when you can again, go to Local Area Group meets (see https://www.tssc.org.uk/tssc/areas_google.asp) and ask an experienced member to come along with you to inspect prospects.

3/ Buy a copy of the Haynes "Guide to Purchase and DiY Restoration, Spitfire.GT6.Vitesse & Herald".    My old copy - don't know about the latest - has a large section on what to look for, plus costings for repair, expressed in 'tyres' so inflation proof.  Clever!    And very useful in bargaining with the seller!    "That rusted swingletree farshap will cost me at least monkey to fix!  Come down £500!"

4/  Never, ever, buy the first car you see.

5/ if anything looks wrong, walk away!  There's always another.

[Steve P]

That would be a good personal reg no. for me (Povey).

If you buy it,lose that air filter,more restrictive than the original.

Steve (Povey)

[Colin Lindsay]

Vitesse bumpers too. Unusual colour scheme but looks solid.

3 hours ago, JohnD said:

4/  Never, ever, buy the first car you see.

I still regret NOT doing that a few years ago, the car is still beautiful and a lot less bother than the one I did buy.

3 hours ago, JohnD said:

5/ if anything looks wrong, walk away!  There's always another.

But only if substantially wrong? Minor things can simply be easy replacements. Having said that, do be careful when a seller tells you something is an 'easy fix', it may be to them with years of experience or the right contacts, but can be a problem for new owners. In the end it all comes down to how much work you're prepared to do, or do you just want an immediate driver with everything sorted.

Looks like a Gumtree sale?

[Pete Lewis]

looks quite a tidy one from the pics,  bear in mind a good body and worn mechanicals is a better bet than good mechs and a lousy body

cant see the door fits and have to agree with steve about the silly air filter   noisy and restrictive , if thats the only bit of bling it should be a good start to be out and about 

very soon .depends if the asking price is  fair or silly  does it have a valuation certificate ???

Pete

[JohnD]

But was that the first car you had looked at, Colin?  The first of that type/marque?    Always look on that as a learning curve.    For the first car, you know nothing.

Picky, picky.     If you are unsure, walk away.  That's where 1/, 2/, 3/, and 4/ come into play!  

As for valuation certs!   Not worth the paper, unless based on a physical examination/inspection.    TSSC's are on photographs!  Might not even be the same car!

[dave.vitesse]

As already said rust is the major thing to look for as it is the most expensive to put right. Get under the car and check the chassis for rust plus any repairs that look doubtful. Look at the chassis under the diff as this tends to rot through when the drain holes block up and would be a major problem.

Also check the MOT history on the DVLA site.

Dave