Triumph Stag History

The Stag (1970–1977) was Triumph's elegant four-seat grand tourer, styled by Michelotti and fitted with a distinctive integral roll-over T-bar and a removable hardtop option. It used a bespoke Triumph 3.0-litre V8 — essentially two slant-four engines on a common crankcase — giving a rich exhaust note to suit the car's character.

That engine, however, was the Stag's undoing: poorly sited water pump, cooling passages prone to silting, and gasket and timing-chain weaknesses gave it a lasting reputation for overheating and self-destruction. Only about 25,900 were built, and many surviving cars have since been re-engineered; the Stag remains a beautiful but cautionary classic.