Triumph entered three Spitfires for the 1964 Alpine Rally, the car’s rally debut. All were fitted with aluminium panels, Vitesse close-ratio gearboxes, hardtops, & aluminium cylinder heads. Initially they performed well, however a car driven by a Belgian tourist crashed into Jean-Jacques Thuner & John Gretener’s car, whilst Roy Fidler & Don Grimshaw’s blew its engine, leaving only Terry Hunter & Patrick Lier. They had an almost perfect rally, however, they were held a little too long at the Entreveux service halt & the team then slightly underestimated a section time, meaning the pair missed out on a coveted ‘ Coupe des Alpes’ by one minute.