Triumph returns with radical TR25 electric sports car
Do not adjust your screen. This really is a new Triumph sports car – the first since the TR8 of 1978 – although the TR25 remains very much a concept for now. Revealed today in London, the radical roadster celebrates the 100th anniversary of the Triumph Motor Company.
The TR25 was inspired by the ‘Jabbeke’ Triumph TR2, which broke the production car speed record in 1953. The one-off streamlined special has been reimagined by Makkina, a British design house that usually works behind the scenes for major car manufacturers.
The project has the blessing of the BMW Group, which owns the Triumph name, and its electric powertrain comes from an i3S. After BMW’s successful reinvention of Mini and Rolls-Royce, could the TR25 herald (sorry, car joke) a comeback for this much-loved British brand?
‘Pure driving pleasure’
Bold without being brash, and both retro (the bug-eyed headlights) and futuristic (the aero-enhancing LED tail lights), the TR25 concept is an alternative vision for a modern sports car. Its doors open vertically, the rear buttress incorporates a reversing camera and a modest fly screen is the sum total of its weather protection.
The Triumph’s chassis and body panels are made from carbon fibre, with a default single-seat layout to ‘emphasise the fact that this car is about pure driving pleasure’. Makkina also claims near-perfect weight distribution for ‘superior handling on the roads it’s designed to tackle’.
The minimalist aesthetic continues inside, with simple digital readouts, tactile toggle switches and plenty of exposed metal. The position of the driver’s seat is fixed, but the steering wheel and pedals both adjust. Remove the cockpit cover and there’s also a flip-out jump seat suitable for short trips – perhaps a jaunt to the pub on a summer evening.
Less is more
The ‘Jabbeke’ TR2 used a boisterous 90hp 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine to achieve its record-breaking velocity of 124.889mph. Makkina’s 21st century remake has twice the power, with a 42.2kWh battery and 181hp electric motor. Weighing in at 1,090kg (nearly 200kg lighter than an i3S), it reaches 62mph in 5.3 seconds – a second quicker than a Golf GTI. A maximum speed of 115mph won’t worry the 1953 original, though.
Makkina founder and director Michael Ani is a big fan of the BMW i3. He first bought one at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2013 and has been driving them ever since. “The i3S platform proves that driving an electric car can be fun,” he said. “The combination of instant torque, acceleration, agility and silence are as compelling now as ever.”
The TR25 is that rare thing: an EV that tugs at the heart strings. A production version is unlikely, we suspect, but it certainly propels Triumph back into the public consciousness. Your move, BMW…
Tim Pitt writes for Motoring Research