Triumph World announced the return of Duckhams Oils and our partnership with the TR Register Car Club in their April / May issue of the popular magazine. The publication covers interests across all models of Standard and Triumph including those of the two-wheeled variety.
Editor Simon Goldsworthy of Triumph World also included a copy of the Duckhams advert from our archive showing the period recommendation of Q20w-50 for the Triumph Dolomite Sprint.
The Triumph Dolomite Sprint
Revealed at the 1971 London Motor Show, the Triumph Dolomite was designed to replace not only the early front-wheel drive saloon cars like the 1300 but also the Toledo and even Herald Vitesse. The model launched Triumph into the increasingly important, but in those days very new, compact performance saloon market.
The car was initially launched with an 1850 slant – 4 engine but competitors from Europe like the BMW 2002 had superior performance to this base model, a fact that had begun to hurt sales for Triumph. British Leyland responded quickly with a true innovation, the Triumph Dolomite Sprint.
The car was an incredibly big step forward in engine technology for the time and was the world’s first production car to use multiple valves – 16v to be exact. This was a revelation from the Spen King lead team at British Leyland, as now the world had an affordable compact saloon with sports car performance, producing a comfortable 130bhp.
The public agreed and the cars sold well over their 7-year production period of 1973 – 1980. The critics followed suite with Motor magazine summarizing with the words “Britain leads the way!” In 1974 the innovative cylinder head and engine won a British Design council award and the engine even made it’s way into the BL sports car of the period the Triumph TR7, albeit in limited numbers.
The Dolomite Sprint went on to be a formidable competition car in both Rallying and Touring cars where it was campaigned between 1974 – 78 taking the manufacturers title with Tony Dron in 1974 followed by the driver championship for Andy Rouse in 1975.
What then was the oil that the BL engineers relied upon to ensure that this innovative engine took the world by storm by inventing the multi-valve performance saloon car? Duckhams Q20w-50 of course!