Handing out the Bula stamp of approval, one post at a time!

I came across a shop in Redwood City, CA called Fat Cat Motorsports. They did work on a recently restored Triumph Spitfire Mark IV, basically turning the rear leaf suspension into a double wishbone. The customer was happy that the car handles better. What a way to modernize a classic car .

Lying in wait:

The car in front of the shop:

If you are not familiar with this car or the company, here’s some information:

The Triumph Spitfire is a small English two-seat sports car, introduced at the London Motor Show in 1962. The vehicle was based on a design produced for Standard-Triumph in 1957 by Italian designer Giovanni Michelotti. The platform for the car was largely based upon the chassis, engine, and running gear of the Triumph Herald saloon, and was manufactured at the Standard-Triumph works at Canley, Coventry. As was typical for the manufacture of cars in this era, the bodywork was fitted onto a separate structural chassis, but for the Spitfire, being designed as an open top or convertible sports car from the outset, the ladder chassis was reinforced for additional rigidity by the use of structural components within the bodywork. The Spitfire was provided with a manual hood for weather protection, the design improving to a folding hood for later models. In addition factory manufactured hard-tops could also be purchased and fitted for use in winter months.

The Mark IV brought the most comprehensive changes to the Spitfire. It featured a completely re-designed cut-off rear end, giving a strong family resemblance to the Triumph Stag and Triumph 2000 models, both of which were also Michelotti-designed. The front end was also cleaned up, with a new bonnet pressing losing the weld lines on top of the wings from the older models, and the doors were given recessed handles and squared-off glass in the top rear corner. The interior was much improved: a proper full-width dashboard was provided, putting the instruments ahead of the driver rather than over the centre console. This was initially black plastic however was replaced by a wooden one in 1973.
The engine continued at 1296 cc, but in 1973 was modified with larger big-end bearings to rationalize production with the TR6 2.5 litre engines, which somewhat decreased its “revvy” nature; there was some detuning, to meet new emissions laws, which resulted in the new car being a little tamer than the Mark III. Peak power was reduced to 63 bhp (47 kW) at 6000 rpm, and the peak torque was now 69 ft·lb (94 N·m) at 3500 rpm. With the overall weight also increasing to 1,717 lb (779 kg) the performance dropped as a consequence, 0 to 60 mph (97 km/h) now being achieved in 16.2 seconds and the top speed reducing to 90 mph (140 km/h). The overall fuel economy also dipped to 32mpg. The gearbox gained synchromesh on its bottom gear.
An all-new hardtop was also available, with rear quarter-lights and a flatter rear screen.
By far the most significant change, however, was to the rear suspension, which was de-cambered and redesigned to eliminate the unfortunate tendencies of the original swing-axle design. The Triumph GT6 and Triumph Vitesse had already been modified, and the result on all these cars was safe and progressive handling even at the limit.
The Mark IV went on sale in the UK at the end of 1970 with a base price of £735

From Wikipedia

If you have a classic car that you would like to fit a specific need, do not hesitate to call the shop. From what I have seen, they’ve done wonders, especially on Miatas. They focus on track and autocross, but I am pretty sure they can help out with street applications.