1963 Bond Equipe

Bond Equipe 2+2 (Coupe), 1963-1964

The Bond Equipe 2+2 was in production from 1963-1964. Styled in house, it is a front-engine, rear wheel drive coupe seating two adults and two children.

Launched in 1963, the Equipe was the result of a desire to take Bond upmarket from the Minicar - the previous year, Purchase Tax on four wheeled cars dropped from 55% to 25% - the same rate as a three wheeler, and making a four wheeled Bond a viable proposal. It was based around the chassis of the Triumph Herald 12/50, albeit with a Spitfire specification engine of 63bhp. The idea was simpl, a fibreglass bodied coupe that offered Spitfire performance to the family man who couldn't justify a two seater. And it was a sound formula, albeit one that many major manufacturers had already caught on to.

The Bond's big bonus was its GRP shell - provided you could keep the grot away from the Herald chassis you had a car which wouldn't corrode, which would still look as good ten years down the line as on the first day if treated with care. And because it was a Herald underneath it could be amusing to drive, with sharp steering, a tight turning circle and rear suspension which - while dangerous in the wrong hands - could be exploited in the bends by an enthusiastic and talented driver. 451 were built between April 1963 and October 1964, when Bond revised the car into the more spacious and distinctive GT4S model.

Priced to compete with the Ford Consul Capri and the Hillman Super Minx convertible, to say nothing of Morgan's Plus Four four seater, the Equipe was an expensive proposition for what amounted to a Triumph Herald Coupe. Triumph itself would sell you a Herald Coupe for three quarters of the money, or a Vitesse Convertible with change - the Vitesse offered extra performance courtesy of its six cylinder engine. Today, these are all equally valid as alternatives, as is the slightly later Equipe GT4S. If you don't need the extra rear seat room, a Triumph Spitfire offers a similar experience with wind in the hair thrills to boot.