TriumphSpitfire

Triumph Spitfire Models

Triumph built five versions of the Spitfire at Canley between 1962 and 1980: the Spitfire 4, the Spitfire 4 Mk II, the Mk III, the Mk IV and the Spitfire 1500. The 4 in the first car's name counts its cylinders, not a Mark; Mk I and Mk V are later names that no badge carried; and American 1500s of the 1973 and 1974 model years wore the Mk IV's body.

Three Spitfires side by side on grass, facing the camera: dark green with wire wheels, white, and red.
Three Spitfires at the Aldham Old Time Rally, Essex, in June 2025: a green Mk III and two in the Mk IV body, a white one modified with a side stripe and alloy wheels, and a red one.kitmasterbloke, CC BY 2.0

Canley Classics' production table lists the Spitfire as five versions, all built at Canley, in Coventry, between October 1962 and August 1980. Their names were never quite a series. The first two shared a number that was not a Mark, the next two dropped the number for a Mark alone, and the last had no Mark at all. Owners have since filled the gaps with names of their own.⁠1​2

Spitfire 4 and Spitfire 4 Mk II

The first version was the Spitfire 4, and Classic Car Africa explains the 4: it counted the cylinders. When the second version replaced it in December 1964, the number stayed and a Mark was added. It was the Spitfire 4 Mk II: Canley's table lists it as "Spitfire 4 MK II" and the Vintage Triumph Register as "Spitfire 4 Mk2", and it carried its Mark on the boot (trunk) lid. The Triumph Sports Six Club keeps the two cars on one page, "Spitfire 4/Mark II", and Standard-Triumph's Italian brochure of 1966 called the second one simply "Spitfire Mk. II".

"Mk I" came later. The first car was never badged or sold under that name, which stuck once there were later Marks to tell it from.

The GT6 of 1966, a six-cylinder fastback coupé on the Spitfire's chassis, is not one of the five: Canley's table gives it rows of its own.⁠3​1​2​4​5​6​7

A dark green early Spitfire with its hood stowed and plain steel wheels, parked on a grassy show field.
An early Spitfire on a show field in August 2024, its bumper below the grille as on the Spitfire 4 and the Mk II; nothing in the picture says which of the two it is.Calreyn88, CC BY-SA 4.0

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Mk III and Mk IV

The 4 was dropped with the Mk III, built from January 1967, and Canley's table and the Register list it and its successor without it. The Mk IV, announced in October 1970, was Giovanni Michelotti's restyle of the car he had first drawn. The maker's brochures for it wrote the Mark in figures: the Italian brochure of 1972 and the French one of 1973 are both titled Triumph Spitfire Mk4.⁠1​2​4​8​9​10​11

A white Spitfire Mk III with its black hood up and chrome bumper across the grille, on a show-field lawn.
A white Spitfire Mk III on a show field in June 2011, the front bumper raised to cross its grille.Graham Robertson, CC BY 2.0

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The American cars

Cars built for the United States changed on a timetable of their own, dated by American model year. From the 1969 model year, the federal Mk IIIs carried their instruments in front of the driver. The US Mk IVs of the 1971 and 1972 model years have commission numbers with an FK prefix, as triumphspitfire.com lists them.

For the 1973 and 1974 model years, cars for the United States had the engine of the coming Spitfire 1500 in the Mk IV body, with FM commission numbers, and were sold as the Spitfire 1500. The Vintage Triumph Register and British Leyland's own brochure for the 1974 model year call them 1500s; Classic & Sports Car files them under the Mk IV. The "1978½" cars, according to triumphspitfire.com's table, compiled from owners' Heritage look-ups, were 1500s built from June 1978 and sold as a half-year, not a separate model. North American Spitfires dates the changes.⁠2​12​13​14

A dark green Spitfire 1500 with its hood up and black rubber bumpers, parked on wet grass.
A dark green Spitfire 1500 in North American form, with amber side-marker lamps and full-width black rubber bumpers, at Kissimmee, Florida, in January 2024.Pokemonprime, CC BY 4.0

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The Spitfire 1500

The rest of the world had the 1500's longer-stroke engine from late 1974 (December, in Canley's table), and with it the last version, the Spitfire 1500, with no Mark in its name. Reviewing it in March 1975, Motor Sport found it little changed outside from the Mk IV apart from bold "Spitfire 1500" transfers (decals) on its bonnet (hood) and boot.

Owners and sellers often call it the "Mk V", a name found in no factory or period source read; the 1500's own page sets out the evidence.

The line ended in August 1980. The last Spitfire, a yellow 1500, is in the British Motor Museum's collection at Gaydon.⁠1​15​16​2​17

A green Spitfire with wire wheels and its hood folded, beaded with rain on wet stone paving.
No transfer on the bonnet: this green car at the Warwick Classic Car Show in August 2018 has the Mk IV body, but its looks alone do not say whether it is a Mk IV or a 1500.Vauxford, CC BY-SA 4.0
A yellow Spitfire 1500 with its hood folded on a show field, with rows of Triumph Stags behind.
A yellow Spitfire 1500 on a show field in August 2011, its name on the transfer across its bonnet.Jeremy, CC BY 2.0

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Versions

Sources for Versions

Spitfire 4
1,147 cc: Bill Boddy ("W.B."), "Sports cars under £700: the £641 Triumph Spitfire 4", with data panel "The Triumph Spitfire 4", Motor Sport, Apr 1963⁠18; Canley Classics, "Engine Number Identification Chart"⁠19; Triumph Spitfire Club (Netherlands), "Spitfire modellen", "Aankoop informatie", "Clubinfo", home⁠20
45,753 built: Triumph Sports Six Club, Model pages: Spitfire 4/Mark II (model_ID=24), Mark III (23), Mark IV (25), 1500 (26)⁠4; Classic & Sports Car, A–Z of classics: Triumph Spitfire I, II, III, MkIV, 1500⁠13; Wikipedia (EN), "Triumph Spitfire", 2026⁠21; triumphspitfire.com ("Spitfire & GT6 Magazine and Information Warehouse"), Reference pages (group): models and options; Mk I–1500 options-and-changes logs; engine numbers; 1979–80 VINs; what year is my car; final drive; general specification data; stock tyres; wheel alignment; lubrication; tuning; fuses; paint and trim codes; side stripes; decal and badge placements; wire wheels; head swaps; substitute parts; suppliers; new owner; pre-purchase checklist; spotters guide, pages modified 2023⁠14
45,573 built: Canley Classics, "Production Figures"⁠1; Triumph Spitfire Club (Netherlands), "Spitfire modellen", "Aankoop informatie", "Clubinfo", home⁠20; triumphspitfire.com ("Spitfire & GT6 Magazine and Information Warehouse"), Reference pages (group): models and options; Mk I–1500 options-and-changes logs; engine numbers; 1979–80 VINs; what year is my car; final drive; general specification data; stock tyres; wheel alignment; lubrication; tuning; fuses; paint and trim codes; side stripes; decal and badge placements; wire wheels; head swaps; substitute parts; suppliers; new owner; pre-purchase checklist; spotters guide, pages modified 2023⁠14
Mk II
1,147 cc: Canley Classics, "Engine Number Identification Chart"⁠19; Triumph Spitfire Club (Netherlands), "Spitfire modellen", "Aankoop informatie", "Clubinfo", home⁠20; Classic & Sports Car, A–Z of classics: Triumph Spitfire I, II, III, MkIV, 1500⁠13
37,409 built: Canley Classics, "Production Figures"⁠1; Triumph Sports Six Club, Model pages: Spitfire 4/Mark II (model_ID=24), Mark III (23), Mark IV (25), 1500 (26)⁠4; Classic & Sports Car, A–Z of classics: Triumph Spitfire I, II, III, MkIV, 1500⁠13; Wikipedia (EN), "Triumph Spitfire", 2026⁠21; Triumph Spitfire Club (Netherlands), "Spitfire modellen", "Aankoop informatie", "Clubinfo", home⁠20; triumphspitfire.com ("Spitfire & GT6 Magazine and Information Warehouse"), Reference pages (group): models and options; Mk I–1500 options-and-changes logs; engine numbers; 1979–80 VINs; what year is my car; final drive; general specification data; stock tyres; wheel alignment; lubrication; tuning; fuses; paint and trim codes; side stripes; decal and badge placements; wire wheels; head swaps; substitute parts; suppliers; new owner; pre-purchase checklist; spotters guide, pages modified 2023⁠14
Mk III
1,296 cc: Mike Cotton ("M.L.C."), "Triumph Spitfire to Monaco", Motor Sport, Jun 1967⁠22; Canley Classics, "Engine Number Identification Chart"⁠19; Triumph Spitfire Club (Netherlands), "Spitfire modellen", "Aankoop informatie", "Clubinfo", home⁠20
65,320 built: Canley Classics, "Production Figures"⁠1; Triumph Sports Six Club, Model pages: Spitfire 4/Mark II (model_ID=24), Mark III (23), Mark IV (25), 1500 (26)⁠4; Classic & Sports Car, A–Z of classics: Triumph Spitfire I, II, III, MkIV, 1500⁠13; Wikipedia (EN), "Triumph Spitfire", 2026⁠21; Triumph Spitfire Club (Netherlands), "Spitfire modellen", "Aankoop informatie", "Clubinfo", home⁠20; triumphspitfire.com ("Spitfire & GT6 Magazine and Information Warehouse"), Reference pages (group): models and options; Mk I–1500 options-and-changes logs; engine numbers; 1979–80 VINs; what year is my car; final drive; general specification data; stock tyres; wheel alignment; lubrication; tuning; fuses; paint and trim codes; side stripes; decal and badge placements; wire wheels; head swaps; substitute parts; suppliers; new owner; pre-purchase checklist; spotters guide, pages modified 2023⁠14
Mk IV
1,296 cc: Bill Boddy ("W.B."), "Road test: The Triumph Spitfire Mk. IV", Motor Sport, Jan 1971⁠8; Canley Classics, "Engine Number Identification Chart"⁠19; Triumph Spitfire Club (Netherlands), "Spitfire modellen", "Aankoop informatie", "Clubinfo", home⁠20
70,021 built: Canley Classics, "Production Figures"⁠1; Triumph Sports Six Club, Model pages: Spitfire 4/Mark II (model_ID=24), Mark III (23), Mark IV (25), 1500 (26)⁠4; Classic & Sports Car, A–Z of classics: Triumph Spitfire I, II, III, MkIV, 1500⁠13; Wikipedia (EN), "Triumph Spitfire", 2026⁠21; Triumph Spitfire Club (Netherlands), "Spitfire modellen", "Aankoop informatie", "Clubinfo", home⁠20; triumphspitfire.com ("Spitfire & GT6 Magazine and Information Warehouse"), Reference pages (group): models and options; Mk I–1500 options-and-changes logs; engine numbers; 1979–80 VINs; what year is my car; final drive; general specification data; stock tyres; wheel alignment; lubrication; tuning; fuses; paint and trim codes; side stripes; decal and badge placements; wire wheels; head swaps; substitute parts; suppliers; new owner; pre-purchase checklist; spotters guide, pages modified 2023⁠14
1500
1,493 cc: BL Cars / Jaguar Rover Triumph Ltd, Triumph Spitfire 1500 (sales brochure), UK, 12/1978, Publication No. 3254/D⁠16; Clive Richardson ("C.R."), "Road Impressions – The Triumph Spitfire 1500", Motor Sport, Mar 1975⁠15; Canley Classics, "Engine Number Identification Chart"⁠19; Triumph Spitfire Club (Netherlands), "Spitfire modellen", "Aankoop informatie", "Clubinfo", home⁠20; British Motor Museum, "Spitfire 1500 (last of line), 1980", accession 1980-1-190⁠17
95,829 built: Canley Classics, "Production Figures"⁠1; Classic & Sports Car, A–Z of classics: Triumph Spitfire I, II, III, MkIV, 1500⁠13; Malcolm McKay, "Triumph Spitfire buyer's guide: what to pay and what to look for", Classic & Sports Car, 10 May 2019⁠23; Wikipedia (EN), "Triumph Spitfire", 2026⁠21; Triumph Spitfire Club (Netherlands), "Spitfire modellen", "Aankoop informatie", "Clubinfo", home⁠20; triumphspitfire.com ("Spitfire & GT6 Magazine and Information Warehouse"), Reference pages (group): models and options; Mk I–1500 options-and-changes logs; engine numbers; 1979–80 VINs; what year is my car; final drive; general specification data; stock tyres; wheel alignment; lubrication; tuning; fuses; paint and trim codes; side stripes; decal and badge placements; wire wheels; head swaps; substitute parts; suppliers; new owner; pre-purchase checklist; spotters guide, pages modified 2023⁠14
91,137 built: Triumph Sports Six Club, Model pages: Spitfire 4/Mark II (model_ID=24), Mark III (23), Mark IV (25), 1500 (26)⁠4

  1. Spitfire 4

    1962–1964 · 1,147 cc

    45,753 built or 45,573

  2. Mk II

    1964–1967 · 1,147 cc

    37,409 built

  3. Mk III

    1967–1970 · 1,296 cc

    65,320 built

  4. Mk IV

    1970–1974 · 1,296 cc

    70,021 built

  5. 1500

    1973–1980 · 1,493 cc

    95,829 built or 91,137

  • the tick marks the second figure in print

Pictures, top to bottom: Akela NDE, CC BY-SA 2.0 fr; kitmasterbloke, CC BY 4.0; Avaldia, CC BY-SA 3.0; Akela NDE, CC BY-SA 2.0 fr; WORhausen, CC BY-SA 3.0.

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Sources

Sources are given as plain text; their addresses are on the sources page.

  • Primarymade at the time, by the maker or by people who were there
  • Referenceserious later work: clubs, specialists, magazines, books
  • Uncheckedencyclopaedias and enthusiast sites: cited beside a good source, named in the sentence, or marked Unchecked
  1. Canley Classics, "Production Figures", Spitfire table, Spitfire 4 to Spitfire 1500 rows; rows "Spitfire 4" and "Spitfire 4 MK II"; GT6 rows; rows for the Mk III and Mk IV; row "Spitfire 1500", December 1974–August 1980; Production Figures table, row "Spitfire 4"; Production Figures table, row "Spitfire 4 MK II"; Production Figures table, row "Spitfire MK III"; Production Figures table, row "Spitfire MK IV"; Production Figures table, row "Spitfire 1500". Reference
  2. Vintage Triumph Register, "Spitfire" (production history, production dates and numbers, buyer's guide tabs), production history; production dates and numbers, "Spitfire 4 Mk2"; production dates and numbers; production dates and numbers: 1969, 1971–1972, 1973–1974 "FM1-up"; production history, end. Reference
  3. Classic Car Africa, "The Wallflower", Mk I and Mk II sections. Reference
  4. Triumph Sports Six Club, Model pages: Spitfire 4/Mark II (model_ID=24), Mark III (23), Mark IV (25), 1500 (26), Spitfire 4/Mark II page; Mark IV page; model_ID=24, "Quantity: 45,753/37,409"; model_ID=23, "Quantity"; model_ID=25, "Quantity"; model_ID=26, "Quantity". Reference
  5. Standard-Triumph, Spitfire Mk. II (sales brochure), Italy, Ref. 352/666/IT-DUC, 1966, title. Primary
  6. Grace's Guide, "Triumph: Spitfire", picture caption. Unchecked
  7. Graham Robson, "One Design, Many Derivatives", Moss Motoring, 26 Oct 2022, GT6. Reference
  8. Bill Boddy ("W.B."), "Road test: The Triumph Spitfire Mk. IV", Motor Sport, Jan 1971, p. 59; Jan 1971 p. 59, engine paragraph. Primary
  9. Graham Robson, "Harry Webster – My Technical Mentor", Moss Motoring (Moss Motors), 12 Jun 2019, Michelotti and the prototype. Reference
  10. British Leyland, Triumph Spitfire Mk4 (sales brochure), Italy, 1972, title. Primary
  11. British Leyland (France), Triumph Spitfire Mk4 (sales brochure), France, 11/1973, T.919, title. Primary
  12. British Leyland Motors Inc., Spitfire 1500 (sales brochure), USA, 1974 model year, SP741, 1973, title and specification. Primary
  13. Classic & Sports Car, A–Z of classics: Triumph Spitfire I, II, III, MkIV, 1500, MkIV; A–Z entry "Spitfire 4"; A–Z entry. Reference
  14. triumphspitfire.com ("Spitfire & GT6 Magazine and Information Warehouse"), Reference pages (group): models and options; Mk I–1500 options-and-changes logs; engine numbers; 1979–80 VINs; what year is my car; final drive; general specification data; stock tyres; wheel alignment; lubrication; tuning; fuses; paint and trim codes; side stripes; decal and badge placements; wire wheels; head swaps; substitute parts; suppliers; new owner; pre-purchase checklist; spotters guide, pages modified 2023, models and options; 1500 model-year table; Mk I page; models page; models page, "95829 cars made". Unchecked
  15. Clive Richardson ("C.R."), "Road Impressions – The Triumph Spitfire 1500", Motor Sport, Mar 1975, p. 25; Mar 1975 p. 25, text. Primary
  16. BL Cars / Jaguar Rover Triumph Ltd, Triumph Spitfire 1500 (sales brochure), UK, 12/1978, Publication No. 3254/D, title; models and options; Dec 1978 brochure, Specifications. Primary
  17. British Motor Museum, "Spitfire 1500 (last of line), 1980", accession 1980-1-190, object record; accession 1980-1-190, object record. Primary
  18. Bill Boddy ("W.B."), "Sports cars under £700: the £641 Triumph Spitfire 4", with data panel "The Triumph Spitfire 4", Motor Sport, Apr 1963, Apr 1963 test text. Primary
  19. Canley Classics, "Engine Number Identification Chart", engine chart, prefix FC; engine chart, prefix FD; engine chart, prefix FH; engine chart, prefix FM. Reference
  20. Triumph Spitfire Club (Netherlands), "Spitfire modellen", "Aankoop informatie", "Clubinfo", home, engine-number table, prefix FC; "Spitfire modellen" page, production figures; engine-number table, prefix FD; engine-number table, prefix FH; engine-number table, prefix FM. Reference
  21. Wikipedia (EN), "Triumph Spitfire", 2026, production figures, citing Robson 1982 p. 187. Unchecked
  22. Mike Cotton ("M.L.C."), "Triumph Spitfire to Monaco", Motor Sport, Jun 1967, Jun 1967 p. 26, text. Primary
  23. Malcolm McKay, "Triumph Spitfire buyer's guide: what to pay and what to look for", Classic & Sports Car, 10 May 2019, production figures. Reference

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