Dolomite owner’s view
ROB Marshall isn’t just a Dolomite owner; he’s also an official at the Triumph Dolomite Club. We asked him why the Dolomite was popular when it was launched in 1972 and how it has attracted enthusiasts throughout the following decades.
“The first thing is image: Triumph was a bit posh,” Marshall explained. “By the time the Dolomite was launched, Triumph was part of British Leyland and it was in the specialist car division of Jaguar, Rover and Triumph. Jaguar made the bigengined, luxury saloons, Rover made the six-cylinder saloons and Triumph made the smaller, more compact sporting cars.
“The Dolomite had a nice wooden dashboard and the car was trimmed properly – there was no bare metal anywhere – so it was a cut above the Austins and Morrises. There was a certain desirability. Of course, there was also the motorsport angle. Everyone remembers the Sprint, but even the basic Dolomite was rallied for a while. The Dolomite lasted a very long time. The basic shape came from the Triumph 1300 of the mid-sixties, so by the time the Dolomite arrived it had started to look a little bit high and old-fashioned.”
Although this classical styling may not have worked in the Dolomite’s favour when up against the sleek designs of its rivals from Germany and elsewhere, Marshall reckons it’s something that makes the Triumph saloon attractive to anyone wanting to take on a car from the seventies.
“They are very usable cars,” Marshall added. “I hate to use the term, but it’s a practical classic. That’s the thing that endeared them for a long time: it’s a car to use rather than one to polish. That hit survival rates, but they’re still remarkably good value. You can pick up a really good Dolomite for £10,000.”
“The Triumph Dolomite was a cut above Austins and Morrises. There was a certain desirability”