A TRIUMPHANT ROLL!

A controversial choice, perhaps, but the Triumph Dolomite Sprint deserves far greater respect than it receives. While the likes of the Alfa Romeo GTV, BMW 2002tii and Ford Escort RS200 are held up as 70s performance gems, the rear-wheel drive, Michelotti-designed Dolly Sprint is largely forgotten. In its day, the Sprint more than lived up to its name, while offering the practicality of four doors. A rare highlight of the British Leyland era.

Designed to be a sporting relative of the Herald, the 6-cylinder Vitesse, the Dolomite was unveiled at the October 1971 London Motor Show. However, several industrial upsets including a number a strikes pushed full production to October 1972. The name "Dolomite" was used by Triumph on prior models. Longer than the Triumph 1500 and using the majority of the running gear from the rear-wheel drive Triumph Toledo, the Dolomite wasn't necessarily ground breaking.

Initially, the only version available used the slant-four 1854cc engine, which mated to an alloy OHC head to an iron block, providing 91 bhp. Ironically, this same engine was provided to Saab for use in its 99 model.

The Dolomite was offered in an array of colors ranging from Mimosa Yellow to Magenta and even Maple as seen below.

Most American Triumph enthusiasts have only seen a Dolomite Sprint in history books as the car was never sold in the United States or Canada. However, there are at least a dozen or more privately imported Dolomite Sprints on the road in the US and hopefully the numbers will continue to grow.

#Triumph #Dolomite #Sprint