The first two letters in my VIN are SM, and the decoder I used stated S is for United Kingdom and M is for Asia with the build location being Thailand. So, does this mean my R3 was built in Thailand at a Triumph factory by Thai workers trained in the UK, OR, built in the UK by British workers who after their shift would go to the pub and drink Singha beer??? It would appear that the greater the bureaucracy the less clear the documentation.
I took one of those well advertised DNA tests that supposedly shows ones ancestry. It showed me to be of diverse European ancestry, English, Irish, Dutch, French, German, and Scandinavian descent. This leads me to believe my forebears pretty much mated with anyone who would hold still long enough. Given that, my new R3 GT has Triumph badging on the tank, wheels and so forth and I'm taking it on faith that in it's bones and DNA it is distinctly British, regardless of where it was assembled.
You all now have some insight into my thought process for which I offer my deepest condolence.