Triumph Speed Twin & Thunderbird Bible

Chapter 1

A brief history of the company

The origins of the Triumph motorcycle company go back to 1885, when a young German, Siegfried Bettmann, moved to London and started an import/export business selling pedal cycles branded with his name.

In 1886, Bettmann changed the company name to Triumph, reasoning that its meaning was self-explanatory, and also because it translated well into many European languages. During 1887, Bettmann was joined by Mauritz Shulte, a young German engineer. A year later they moved to Coventry and rented a small factory with the intention of manufacturing their own machines. Bettmann and Shulte reasoned that Coventry, being the centre of the cycle industry, would be an ideal manufacturing base since it was close to suppliers and boasted a plentiful supply of skilled labour.

In 1902, the company produced its first motorcycle, using a Belgian 2¹⁄4hp Minerva engine clipped to a bicycle frame. It was not long, however, before a Shulte-designed engine was built, and 1905 saw a totally in-house Triumph of 3hp (363cc) offered for sale.

By 1915, the engine capacity had increased to 550cc, and the machine now looked like a proper motorcycle (gone were the pedals of previous years). The machine was fitted with a three-speed gearbox, though a belt was still used for the final drive. This motorcycle, the Model H, was supplied to despatch riders during WWI, and soon gained a reputation for quality and reliability in the mud of the Western Front. The term ‘trusty Triumph’ originated in this period, and the company used it when advertising the model.

Triumph had experimented with a 600cc vertical twin as early as 1913, but the 1914-18 war halted development. This was the first known vertical twin from Triumph. Later, in 1933, a Val Page-designed 633cc vertical twin was produced. Unfortunately, being rather old fashioned in appearance, it did not win public acclaim.

1935 saw the company fall into financial difficulty, like so many others during the depression of the 1930s. So serious were the problems, in fact, that the company went into bankruptcy, and closed completely in 1936.

The pedal cycle part of the company was sold to Raleigh Cycles, Nottingham, and the motorcar side to the Standard Motor Company, Coventry. Most of the motorcycle manufacturing business was purchased by Mr Jack Sangster, then owner of Ariel Motors, Birmingham, for the reputed figure of £30,000. The factory and the plant were leased from a Mr Graham, the official receiver appointed by Lloyds Bank, and spares were sold on commission, thus reducing the original outlay.

It didn’t take long for the newly formed ‘Triumph Engineering Company Limited’ to start motorcycle production. This was largely because Sangster had sent one of his most competent Ariel men, Edward Turner, to Coventry to be General Manager and Chief Designer.

This appointment was to prove inspirational, and, as we now know, the company went on to become one of Britain’s most successful motorcycle firms. It wasn’t long before the youthful, 35 year old Edward had designed a vertical twin which would determine the course of motorcycle design for the next three decades. Although the vertical twin concept was copied by most of the British manufacturers, good as they were, the Triumph stayed pre-eminent.

When the first Triumph twins arrived in the USA, just prior to WWII, they were an outstanding success; taking on and beating the Indians and Harleys, which were often twice the engine capacity of the Triumph, and winning races on the speedway tracks and in hill climbs. Edward Turner, who regarded himself as chief salesman as well as designer and financial director, soon saw a potential sales outlet in the USA. To this end he had started corresponding with a Mr Bill Johnson of Pasadena, a lawyer and keen motorcyclist. This correspondence soon blossomed into a strong personal and business relationship and, when Johnson wanted to open a motorcycle store, the Triumph marque was a natural choice.

Having set up a successful West Coast sales outlet, Triumph now looked to the East Coast. The company engaged the services of Mr Dennis McCormack, a 48 year old mechanical engineer who, before becoming an American citizen, had actually been born in Coventry. McCormack took a lease on premises in Joppa Road, Towson, near Baltimore in Maryland, and set up the Triumph Corporation, subsequently known as Tri-Cor. This East Coast outlet soon began to rival Jomo in terms of sales and service.

Turner was not slow to capitalise on the US setup, and spent many months each year visiting the two distributorships.

Everything seemed to be pointing to a very rosy future for Triumph, but a certain Herr Hitler was soon going to change this. One cold November night in 1940, the Coventry factory was completely destroyed in one of the worst bombing raids the city had experienced. However, with true Coventrian grit and determination, the remains were sifted through and anything that could be of use was transported to the nearby town of Warwick. Spares were soon being produced from the tin shed that served as a factory and, by mid 1941, complete motorcycles were being manufactured for the allied armed forces.

A completely new factory was built in 1942 just outside Coventry, near Meriden Village (allegedly the centre of England). Up until 1945, however, the factory only produced machines for the War Department (these were the 3SW and SSW 350 and 500cc side valves, and the 3HW 350cc overhead valve).

On the cessation of hostilities, Triumph was in an enviable position. The post-war twins were in great demand and the company had a nearly new factory in which to produce them. With telescopic front forks replacing the old girder units, a spring hub at the rear wheel, and a few engine modifications, Triumphs were ready for the post-war boom.

Despite this apparently bright future, though, there were many frustrations to overcome in the immediate post-war years. Steel rationing was in force, with priority being given to exporters (luckily, though, Triumph was one of these). Petrol and raw materials like rubber were also in short supply. Even electricity was rationed, being available only on certain days of the week. Triumph’s answer to this was to install its own generator.

Although motorcycles were produced despite these problems, the demand was so great that it couldn’t be satisfied, and waiting lists grew ever longer. There were even waiting lists in the 1950s and 1960s, and it was suggested that Edward Turner kept the market short intentionally, thereby boosting demand.

In 1951, Jack Sangster sold his interest in the Triumph Engineering Co. Ltd. to the Birmingham Small Arms Company (BSA), whilst Turner stayed on at Triumph as Managing Director. Although the rivalry between Triumph and BSA didn’t diminish, the profits, which had previously stayed with the Triumph company and its shareholders, would in future go into the BSA group purse.

Jack Sangster and Edward Turner were on the BSA board of directors, but the Triumph company was left to run with very little BSA interference, possibly due to the fact that profits at Meriden were so good.

During May 1961, Bert Hopwood rejoined the Triumph company as Director and General Manager. Jack Sangster resigned as Chairman of BSA, and Mr Eric Turner (no relation to Edward) was appointed in his place.

In 1964, Edward Turner announced his retirement as Divisional Executive Director, but remained on the BSA group board in a non-executive capacity. By mid-1964, Mr Harry Sturgeon had been appointed Chief Executive of the BSA Motorcycle Division, and Bert Hopwood gained the title of Engineering Director and Deputy Director of the Division. Unfortunately, Harry Sturgeon became ill and died of a brain tumour in 1966. His short time as Chief Executive, however, had seen the motorcycle group’s turnover increase by nearly 40%. This was a welcome rise in production, since all the group’s models had been in great demand, especially in the USA.

One might have assumed that, as Deputy Director, Bert Hopwood would have been promoted, but this was not the case. Instead, a Mr Lionel Jofeh was appointed by Eric Turner, and given the title of Managing Director of the group’s Automotive Division, the inept management of which hastened the eventual downfall of the group. For some reason Jofeh took a great dislike to the Triumph setup, and detested any successes achieved by the company, even threatening to dismiss anyone who was seen to be favouring Triumph over BSA!

Jofeh soon established a group engineering centre at Umberslade Hall, an old country mansion near Hockley Heath, midway between the Triumph and BSA factories. Mr Mike Needham, who came from the aircraft industry, took up the post of Deputy Engineering Director and undertook to set up Umberslade. He collected the design and development staff, which would ultimately number over three hundred, from the three existing factories. A couple of men were left in the design department at Triumph to cover day to day anomalies, and to liaise with Umberslade should the need arise.

It seemed that all was not going well with the motorcycle group, as high level jobs with fancy titles (and attendant high salaries) were being created almost daily. Departments, which had previously been housed in one factory, were split up, and duplication of functions was commonplace. The latter became apparent when the engineering meetings, which had previously taken place in ordinary-sized offices, had become so well attended that BSA had difficulty finding locations large enough to accommodate everyone.

‘Critical path analysis’ and ‘production evaluation’ were the ‘in things’ at Triumph. Even though they did little to aid production, the motions still had to be gone through. This caused much frustration and ill feeling amongst the workforce.

The Research and Development department at Umberslade Hall was becoming a luxury that the motorcycle division couldn’t afford. It certainly seemed to the folk at Meriden that there was a lot of input to the department, in terms of staff and resources, but little to show for it (unless one took into account the increase in the number of peacocks around the grounds).

For the 1971 season, the Triumph factory was supposed to be building a new 650cc motorcycle designed by the Research and Development department at Umberslade Hall. The production build dates came and went, with the factory yet to see any drawings, so no jigs and fixtures could be produced which would have enabled production to commence. Eventually, the new 650 reached Triumph some three months late. Unfortunately, however, it was found that an assembled engine unit could not be fitted into the frame. Numerous modifications were made by the Meriden design staff, much to the chagrin of the Umberslade team.

Another design error concerned the height of the seat on the completed machine. At 34in from ground level it was simply too high for most people. Triumph complained at this, only to be told by Umberslade that the frames had not been made correctly, as per the drawings, so it was Triumph’s problem. To counter this accusation, Triumph had the frames independently inspected and, although the report did indeed show that the frames were taller than the drawings specified, it was only by ¹⁄32 inch). Triumph was completely vindicated.

By now, as one can imagine, feelings between Meriden and Umberslade were getting quite bitter, and various derogatory names were found for the mansion (Slumberglades was the favourite).

In July 1971, due to the financial state of the group, Jofeh agreed to resign his post as Managing Director and his contract was bought out. A new Chief Executive, Mr Brian Eustace, was appointed in November, replacing Eric Turner who stayed on in an advisory capacity. It was announced that the Motorcycle Division’s losses amounted to over £8 million. Share value fell to just 7¹⁄2p, from a 1971 figure of 87p. One London newspaper commented that BSA had managed to snatch disaster from the jaws of success.

The Research and Development centre at Umberslade Hall was closed down early in 1972, and selected staff were drafted back to Meriden. By this time, Lord Shawcross had become Chairman of the Board, and announced that all of the group’s 500 and 650cc motorcycles would now be built at Meriden, with all other projects shelved for the time being. Unfortunately, this directive was never implemented, and the two factories struggled on with a redundancy-depleted workforce.

Late in 1972, Mr Dennis Poore, Chairman of Norton Villiers Ltd., started discussions with BSA/Triumph and the government in an attempt to save the motorcycle industry. In March 1973, the government was informed by the Minister of State that proposals for a new motorcycle company, comprised of Norton Villiers and BSA/Triumphs, had been accepted. By the middle of the year, the new company, Norton Villiers Triumph Ltd., had been formed, with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) injecting £4.8 million into the venture. As the Triumph factory closed for the annual two-week holiday, everyone looked forward to a secure future.

All was not what it seemed, though. Bert Hopwood, who had been appointed responsible for the final design at Meriden, resigned within one month of his appointment, and Poore announced that the Triumph factory was to close, and that all motorcycle production would be at BSA’s Small Heath site. This announcement led to the workers taking over the Meriden factory from September 14, 1973.

The Triumph factory remained closed for eighteen months until the workers’ co-operative was set up, and Triumph motorcycles were produced again at Meriden.

Unfortunately, the Triumph Engineering Co. Ltd. brand name had been sold off separately, so the new title, Meriden Motorcycles, had to be registered by the co-operative.

Meriden Motorcycles operated until 1983 but was never well funded, working very much on a day-to-day basis with no money for development.

Finally, in 1983, Meriden Motorcycles was wound up by the liquidators, and all remaining stock, machine tools, jigs and fixtures went under the hammer. The site was sold separately and is now a desirable housing estate. The Triumph name lives on, however, as the avenues are called Bonneville Close and Daytona Drive!

Chapter 2

The Speed Twin

The Speed Twin was first unveiled