Triumph Herald 13/60

I love my Herald,it,s noisy, slow,cramped,draughty,and the whole world wants to overtake it,which suits me just fine.I,m sitting there with the hood down and smile on my face.The main thing is about these cars is the fact they are now well out on there own nowadays.People look twice at them and want to know about them which is no bad thing.My wife, myself and our bulldog on the back seat pull up in car park somewhere always get asked about it.If you enjoy driving but not going too fast then this car gives you the time to take in whats around you on a warm smmers day, I,m very lucky to live in south Devon and from April till October the hoods down and the cars well used.Parts and maintance present few problems,it,s almost all easy to find and get at.Give one a go you won,t regret it

My Triumph Herald has been in my family sinceit was made. It was neglected but now we are bringing back to health. I wouldn't trade it for all the money in the world. I think it is brilliant. It never goes wrong, it never breaks and it is cheap to maintain. It's cheap, economical and it is an ideal first car. Mechanics can't complain that they can't get to the engine because the whole front end can be pulled forward to give better access. The interior is roomy but the driving position is a little odd. But it is cheap to run and your friends will be after you all the time as the won't know what it is unlike the Mini. When buying one, watch out for the usual things, rust, corrosion and also check the rear suspention because it is complicated and prone to a few problems. AS long as you don't push it to the limit you'll be OK. Buy it, join a local classic car club and it is really good. There is even a Herald specialist in Licoln. And if you want a sportier car then there is the Spitfire and GT6 sports cars and the Vitesse Saloon and convertible

I love my Triumph Herald to bits and wouldn't swap her for the world, as a first car she was a great tool for practicing my mechanical skills. Yes she has her quirks but thats what makes her a classic! Buy one and join an enthusiasts club and you gain not only a car but a network of good friends and plenty of opprtunities for fun days out and proper old fashioned sunshine motoring.

The Herald 13/60 was the final development of Triumph's small 1950's saloon. Seriously outmoded and outclassed by its rivals even when new the 13/60 still sold well as a niche product on economy, an attractive interior and a sporty image (not backed by reality!), exactly the same qualities that attract buyers today.

At the risk of offending some enthusiasts, I'd recommend avoiding the earlier cars. The first 1-litre cars are now over 45 years old and are really too slow for everyday traffic, whilst the 1200s still came with drum brakes.

Though it's a matter of opinion, I think Michellotti's facelift for the whole Triumph range was a brilliant design coup, giving the cash-strapped company's ageing line (Spitfire, 2000, Herald, Vitesse, TR, GT6) a new lease of life at almost no cost and the resulting 13/60 Herald was one of the most successful.

How should you rate a Herald for performance now? A second-hand 1.2 Corsa is so far away in terms of go, handling and comfort that the poor Herald should get a zero but in the context of the time it was regarded as quite lively. Adjust your driving for the fact that the traffic around you has vastly better standards of handling, braking and safety and it's usable everyday. For compensation, a Herald has far more style than the smoky ten-year old you could have bought for the same money, and it's not going to stuff you with a £500 bill when the ECU packs up.

The ultimate Herald for sheer fun has to be the 13/60 convertible. You'll pay rather more for one than a saloon, but it has the kind of style that none of the small contemporary saloons posses. 13/60 convertibles evoke a swinging London and Mary Quant image where a Morris Minor softtop is Women's Institute and, well, Hattie Jaques.

Think carefully before you buy a convertible for everyday use as the hood bears little resemblance to the ones on modern cars. Are you really prepared to live with a single, flappy, leaky, noisy layer of fabric between you and winter? Some aftermarket glassfibre hardtops were made, but they are very large, heavy items to store during summer.

The interior of the Herald was a big selling point when new, with a nice veneered dashboard and floor carpets compared to the painted tin and rubber mats of its rivals, but it may look rather tired by now. A refurbishment can be done but parts like real moulded transmission tunnel carpets are expensive, so a car with good interior and scruffy exterior is the better buy.

Rust will always be lurking but, unlike most of its contemporaries, on the Herald it is rarely terminal. None of the body panels on the Herald are structural, most simply unbolt (though "simply" is relative with 40-year-old threads) and there are repair sections available for just about everything. The chassis has some simple bent-metal outrigger sections that can corrode, but replacement is a simple and cheap job, well within the scope of amateur welding.

One nasty trap lurks under the driver's seat where the brake pipe passes through a hole in a chassis outrigger, which fills with wet mud and corrodes. Unless your brake pipes have been changed for modern copper alloy ones, the hidden pipe will also rust where it passes through, a potentially lethal fault with single-circuit brakes.

The Herald is exceptionally simple to maintain and fix. It shares many parts with the Spitfire, Vitesse, GT6 range so almost everything is readily available at very reasonable cost. Routine servicing is well within the scope of an absolute beginner, but remember that cars of this age need much more frequent, though simple, attention than any modern(ish) hatchback. Even major repair jobs are straightforward - it is, for instance, possible to change a clutch with no more than two flat spanners and a screwdriver, sitting inside the car!

With all the small Triumphs, suspension joints at both ends are a potential weak point. Simple to fix until neglected, worn joints, especially the rear trunnions, turn a Herald from an easy drive into a very dangerous machine.

You can tune and modify the Herald as much as your budget, taste or insurance company will allow as there's a huge choice of performance possibilities for engine and suspension. For cars in regular use, use a lead-free cylinder head conversion is a desirable modification. If any cars are left with the original sealed-beam headlights, halogen replacements are an immediate safety essential.

Modern replacement brake pads and shoes have raised pedal pressure over the original asbestos ones, so adding a brake servo is a wise move.

A big improvement can be made if you can find or improvise an electric radiator fan to replace the engine mounted one. Not only do you gain a little power and some economy but the engine noise decreases by an amazing amount.

So is a 35-year old Herald a viable alternative for budget motoring compared to a not-very-new Citron, Renault or Vauxhall? A qualified yes - if you can take the culture shock of 1960s heaters, wipers, seats and lights and almost constant maintenance you'll be rewarded with cheap insurance, low running costs and fun of ownership that's difficult to match at the price.

Nowt general about the Triumph Herald.You can fall in love with the Triumph Herald instantly, and as soon as you drive it around for a while you realise how many people there are out there of have fond memories of this little car. Yes, as far as insurance goes it's cheap and you get the road tax perks that you would with any classic, but that has little to do with the joy of owning such a beast...everytime i'm out of the Herald for awhile I think how nice it would be to own something a little bit quicker (okay a lot quicker). Then as soon as I get back in the car the smile is plastered across my face. I think smile for mile she's unbeatable, B roads, Roundabouts, and driving in the city are all an absolute hoot, anyway it's been six years and I've still not bought that quicker car.

Triumph Heralds are excellent cars. A joy to drive. The only affordable way to drive if you are new driver and don't have much money.

I have owned my 1968 Triumph Herald 13/60 Classic Car for only 6 months and find it to be the most fun car I have owned so far. I ran a 1500 Spit' for a couple of years and as much as I enjoyed the sports car looks and performance I feel that the Herald has more to offer as an all rounder. Parts are cheap and easy to find and this car is cheaper to run and insure that a mini. I am 25 years old with no no-claims and my insurance is only £180 per year fully comp' and this includes full breakdown cover. This coupled with free road tax, well who can sniff at that?

Having only paid £800 for the car it is the best financial decision I have made yet. to sum up the 13/60 is classy, nippy (for its age and size), cheap to own and a must for anyone who wishes to start out in the world of classic cars or even for the veteran enthusiast.

I will give the car 9/10 over all as there must be a better car out there somewhere but, as yet I have not found it.

Ive owned my 1971, Triumph Herald 13/60 saloon now for 2 years, and have had so much fun driving her.

Insurance is so cheap, parts are easy to get hold of, and fuel consumption is great.

Looking for a second one now { Convertable }.

the Triumph Herald 13/60 car is well worth it, and they are real fun to drive. Cheap to insure? YES i have 1 conviction a CD10 and 1 accident, i am 40 years old, had driving licence less than five years,

My insurance fully comp is £220 with no noclaims bonus.

My rover 820 series is £874.36.with 1 years noclaims bonus.

Also for a classic car the parts are so easy to get and very cheap

Yes the herald 13/60 is a good alternative to boy racer cars, cheaper to insure even when moddified, i'm 17 and driving a herald estate with highly turned 1500 tc engine and overdrive and a 1850hl, with saab 99 turbo, and both together are 2 grand less than my freind pays for his 1.0 polo, now how about that for a tempting prospect