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Copyright ©2000-2007
by Eric Kieboom &
Jacob Poortstra
All Rights Reserved
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From 1962 to 1980, Standard-Triumph and later British Leyland (see also Spitfire history) marketed the Spitfire in more and less enthusiastic ways in the USA and on the home market. This is a selection of mostly US-market advertisements. Click on a thumbnail to open the full-size ad in a new browser window.
We're very much indebted to fellow Triumph Spitfire enthusiast Howard R. Baugues for supplying most of these ads. Thanks, Howard.
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It's 1962 and it's here: Spitfire!
And already Standard-Triumph was playing the value-for-money trump card. Most important selling points: low price (just $2199), Michelotti-styled, twin carbs, roll-up windows (direct competitor Austin didn't have this on its Healey Sprite yet), all-round independent suspension and that ridiculously small 24-feet turning circle.
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Still only $2199.-, but now performance comes into play: 'goes over 90 m.p.h.'. The Spitfire4 (now aka Mk1) accelerated from zero to 60 m.p.h. in 16.5 seconds. In those days, that was quite something for a car of this price.
One little lie in this ad: 'easily erected, all weather top'. It might have been all weather, but compared to the Mk3 version, it certainly wasn't 'easily erected'.
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Still 1962, still $2199.-, but this ad is in colour. And what a beautiful ad it is. A crop of this lovely picture returned in the 1962 US-market sales brochure.
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Price remained a strong selling point. The Triumph Spitfire always cost more than the Austin Healey Sprite it was directly competing with, but it also always outsold it.
This ad looks the same as the one two ads up, but it isn't. There's a different text on this one, which goes more into the technical specs.
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The Triumph Spitfire came with Girling brakes (disc brakes front, drum brakes rear) and dampers. And Girling wasn't ashamed to tell the world.
The car in the photograph (412VC) was a prototype which was also used in various rallies.
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'New Triumph Spitfire 4 takes the lead among light sports cars'.
For once, the advertising babble was true, the Spitfire really led the small sports cars market in those days. Front disc brakes, tiny turning circle, a modicum of comfort even.
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'You'd act sassy too... if your name was Spitfire'. If my name were Spitfire, I'd dislike my parents for it.
The most direct competition still had sidescreens, drum brakes all round and a rear axle on cart springs, so the ad enthuses about the Spitfire's roll-up windows, disc brakes, and all round independent suspension. All that for atill just $2199.-, who could possibly resist? Only those who bought Austin Healey Sprites...
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For some reason, the US marketing department of Standard-Triumph seemed to believe that marketing the Spitfire to people who'd think of themselves as 'swingers' was a good idea. I don't know if the word 'swinger' had the same multiple meanings in the early 1960's as it has today, but looking at the rest of the text, I seriously doubt this ad would get approved by the people at the top today.
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Yes, another 'swinger' ad. Somewhat doubtful advertising, if you ask me.
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'You'd be proud too... if your name was Spitfire'. I'd be pretty pee'd off if my name were Spitfire, but never mind.
Here's the first reference in an ad to the aircraft that bore the name first: 'nothing looks like the Spitfire... except maybe that plane'.
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