The Triumph TR7 is a sports car manufactured in the United Kingdom from September 1974 to October 1981 by British Leyland Motor Corporation (BLMC), which changed its name to British Leyland (BL) in 1975. The car was launched in the United States in January 1975, with its UK home market debut in May 1976. The UK launch was delayed at least twice because of high demand for the vehicle in the US, with final sales of new TR7s continuing into 1982. It was initially produced at the Speke, Liverpool, factory, moving to Canley, Coventry, in 1978 and then finally to the Rover Solihull plant in 1980. Design and features The car, characterised by its "wedge" shape and by a swage line sweeping down from the rear wing to just behind the front wheel, was commonly advertised as "the shape of things to come". The design was penned by Harris Mann who also designed the wedge-shaped Princess. The car has an overall length of , width of , wheelbase of and height of . The coupé has a kerbside weight of . During development, the TR7 was referred to by the code name "Bullet". The original full-size model wore MG logos because it was styled at Longbridge, which was not a Triumph factory. Power is provided by a 1,998 cc eight-valve four-cylinder engine that shares the same basic design as the Triumph Dolomite 1850 engine, albeit increased to 2 litres and fitted with larger carburettors, mounted in-line at the front of the car. Power is at 5,500 rpm, maximum torque is at 3,500 rpm, the North American version produces . Australian buyers received the same version in order to meet local emissions regulations. Drive is to the rear wheels via a four-speed gearbox initially, with an optional five-speed manual gearbox and a three-speed automatic available from 1976. The front independent suspension uses coil spring and damper struts and lower single link at the front, and at the rear is a four-link system, again with coil springs. There are front and rear anti-roll bars, with disc brakes at the front and drums at the rear. Revisions The interior trim was revised in March 1977, with the broadcord seat covers being replaced with red or green "tartan" check inserts with black leather effect vinyl edging. The tartan trim is also reflected in the door cards in padded matching red or green tartan cloth