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John Butruce's 1972 TR6 with a Ford 302 V8

John Butruce · 1972 Triumph TR-6

Triumph TR6

britishv8.orgas published in British V8 Newsletter, Volume XV Issue 3, December 2007

Read the full write-up at britishv8.org ↗

Photo: britishv8.org

A 1972 Triumph TR6 rebuilt with a Ford 302 V8

John Butruce swapped a Ford 302 V8 and C4 automatic into his TR6, driving it daily for years before tearing it down in 1987 to repaint the car and fit a narrowed Ford 9 inch rear axle. The car returned to the road in 1999 and has since covered 20,000 miles, making it a long-term, road-proven example of this conversion.

Specs

As the owner states it.

Engine
Ford 302 from a 1970 Torino, stock intake manifold, heads, and cam
Ignition
Mallory distributor
Charging
Ford alternator
Exhaust
Quiet dual exhaust with Ford iron manifolds and 2 small stock-type mufflers
Cooling
Griffin aluminum radiator, Moroso water pump
Transmission
C4 automatic from a 1969 Ford F100, shortened Ford driveshaft
Rear axle
Narrowed Ford 9 inch with 3.25:1 final drive ratio
Suspension front
Uprated front springs, Koni shocks, lowered by spacing lower A-arm plate
Suspension rear
TR4A leaf springs and KYB shocks
Brakes
Stock front discs, Ford drum rear brakes
Wheels/Tires
Stock TR6 wheels with BF Goodrich Comp T/A 225-60-R15 tires
Interior
Stewart Warner gauges in a custom aluminum dashboard

Parts used

What the owner names in the write-up, grouped the way the Parts page groups them. Where one of the shops we index lists the same thing for this car, it is shown underneath with a link to the shop.

Engine 1

  • Ford 302 V8 engineFord

    Sourced from a 1970 Torino, retained stock intake manifold, heads and cam, installed as the swap engine

Fuel & Ignition 1

Cooling 2

Gearbox & Drivetrain 3

  • Ford C4 automatic transmissionFord

    Taken from a 1969 Ford F100 and fitted behind the 302

    In the shops
    BW-8 Automatic Transmission ↗Moss Motors – Triumph TR6/TR250· $0.00 USD
    DG250 Automatic Transmission ↗Moss Motors – Triumph TR6/TR250· $0.00 USD
    BW-35 Automatic Transmission ↗Moss Motors – Triumph TR6/TR250· $0.00 USD
  • Shortened Ford driveshaftFord

    Modified to connect the C4 transmission to the rear axle

  • Narrowed Ford 9 inch rear axleFord

    Installed during the 1987 teardown with a 3.25:1 final drive ratio

Suspension & Steering 4

Brakes 2

Wheels & Tyres 2

Interior 2

  • Stewart Warner gaugesStewart Warner

    Installed in a custom aluminum dashboard

    In the shops
    Water Temperature Gauge (Stewart Warner) ↗Sports & Classics· $39.95 USD
  • Custom aluminum dashboard

    Built to house the Stewart Warner gauge set

Electrical 1

  • Ford alternatorFord

    Handled charging for the V8-powered TR6

Other 1

  • Ford iron exhaust manifoldsFord

    Used with two small stock-type mufflers to create a quiet dual exhaust

Photos

All 11 pictures in the write-up, in the order they were posted, shown from britishv8.org. A picture opens larger here, with the way through to the page it is on.

John Butruce's 1972 TR6, with a Ford 302 V8Photo: britishv8.org
Ford 302 in a carefully detailed engine bayPhoto: britishv8.org
Mallory distributorPhoto: britishv8.org
Griffin aluminum radiator. Moroso water pump.Photo: britishv8.org
Ford alternatorPhoto: britishv8.org
Stewart Warner gauges in a custom aluminum dashboardPhoto: britishv8.org
California 4DAY256Photo: britishv8.org
Quiet dual exhaust with 2 small stock-type mufflersPhoto: britishv8.org
header tankPhoto: britishv8.org
reassembly after paintingPhoto: britishv8.org
Donate Now!Photo: britishv8.org

How it was done

The engine swap

The owner fitted a Ford 302 V8 sourced from a 1970 Torino, keeping the stock intake manifold, heads and cam. Ignition came from a Mallory distributor, with a Ford alternator handling charging. A quiet dual exhaust setup used Ford iron manifolds paired with two small stock-type mufflers. The swap was completed in 1983.

Cooling and driveline

Cooling duties were handled by a Griffin aluminum radiator with a Moroso water pump. Power went through a C4 automatic transmission taken from a 1969 Ford F100, connected via a shortened Ford driveshaft.

Daily driving and teardown

After the engine swap, the TR6 served as a daily driver from 1983 until 1987. At that point the owner completely disassembled the car for a full repaint and further updates, most notably installing a narrowed Ford 9 inch rear axle with a 3.25:1 final drive ratio.

Suspension and brakes

Up front, uprated springs and Koni shocks were fitted, with the car lowered by spacing the lower A-arm plate. The rear retained TR4A leaf springs paired with KYB shocks. Braking stayed with stock front discs, while Ford drum brakes were used at the rear.

Wheels and interior

The car rides on its original stock TR6 wheels, wrapped in BF Goodrich Comp T/A tires sized 225-60-R15. Inside, the owner built a custom aluminum dashboard fitted with Stewart Warner gauges.

Back on the road

Following the 1987 teardown, repaint and rear axle upgrade, the TR6 returned to the road in 1999. As of the article's publication in December 2007, the car had been driven roughly 20,000 miles since its return to service.

A summary in our own words. The full account, with all its detail, is the owner's: read it at britishv8.org ↗

Worth knowing

  • Sourcing a Ford C4 automatic and driveshaft from a period pickup gave a durable, easy-swap driveline pairing.
  • Narrowing a Ford 9 inch rear axle during the teardown allowed better matching to the TR6 chassis width.
  • Lowering front suspension by spacing the lower A-arm plate avoided needing custom spring rates.
  • Keeping the engine internals stock (heads, cam, intake) simplified the swap and long-term reliability.
  • A full disassembly and repaint after years of daily driving was worthwhile before adding driveline upgrades.

britishv8.org

Read in full on 6 September 2026. The work, the words and the pictures are John Butruce’s; this page is a catalogue of them in our own words, and a signpost.

Read the full write-up at britishv8.org ↗

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