should i or not......
Discussion
had the newer tvr over the years kind of tempted on an early s 1988 ish any thing to look for usual chassis im aware . what niggles should be avoided, there doesnt seem to be many around ? would that be people hold onto them or they have all been thrown away by now lol.
if i can find one with say 60/70k and in a good condition with odd cosmetics what would or should i be looking to spend, have seen 3 on the web prices seem to vary so much any hints etc very welcomed as if i dont have enough cars here to play with lol thanks all
if i can find one with say 60/70k and in a good condition with odd cosmetics what would or should i be looking to spend, have seen 3 on the web prices seem to vary so much any hints etc very welcomed as if i dont have enough cars here to play with lol thanks all
I took on 'bringing back to life' an early S (1988 S1) deliberately because I wanted to keep the older ones going having once had a Grantura, and I guess I must also have some latent masochistic tendencies!
Couple of issues with the early cars:
The doors are quite a bit smaller and because of the way they open it does make entry a good bit more restricted than the later cars. If you are big (or old like me!) a later car might be better.
The early cars with the 2.8 engine means dealing with the mechanical K-jetronic system. Brilliant when it works (ask Glenrobbo!) but a bit of a nightmare to diagnose if it doesnt (ask me!) and there are now relatively few people out there with 'the knowledge'. There is a lot more support and knowledge re the 2.9 EFi engine.
Whatever you get you can rely on masses of friendly support from members of this forum: if there is 'S' knowledge out there it will be held by forum members! Much of that knowledge is freely available by searching the past posts on here. Google search by 'TVR S then subject'
Me? I'd join the more exclusive group of S1 owners and brag about how early your S is!
Good luck and great to hear someone else who is going to save one. There can be few cars which give so much fun for the money, either restoring or driving them! There appear to be more and more S's getting restored. Keep us in touch
Couple of issues with the early cars:
The doors are quite a bit smaller and because of the way they open it does make entry a good bit more restricted than the later cars. If you are big (or old like me!) a later car might be better.
The early cars with the 2.8 engine means dealing with the mechanical K-jetronic system. Brilliant when it works (ask Glenrobbo!) but a bit of a nightmare to diagnose if it doesnt (ask me!) and there are now relatively few people out there with 'the knowledge'. There is a lot more support and knowledge re the 2.9 EFi engine.
Whatever you get you can rely on masses of friendly support from members of this forum: if there is 'S' knowledge out there it will be held by forum members! Much of that knowledge is freely available by searching the past posts on here. Google search by 'TVR S then subject'
Me? I'd join the more exclusive group of S1 owners and brag about how early your S is!
Good luck and great to hear someone else who is going to save one. There can be few cars which give so much fun for the money, either restoring or driving them! There appear to be more and more S's getting restored. Keep us in touch
If you go for a early S1 like Glens they have two bonnet pulls which can be a pain sometimes, and the speedo is the same as a proper car:-) but you can't see it very well think that's why they changed it, the 2.8 is not as fast as the 2.9,
I do prefer the dash on the S1s and they sound better mines got 125000 on the clock now, did about 600 miles last weekend in the heat and rain and is fine, roof only leaks when it's raining
I do prefer the dash on the S1s and they sound better mines got 125000 on the clock now, did about 600 miles last weekend in the heat and rain and is fine, roof only leaks when it's raining
Mine is a 1989 S2 with over 100,000, the speedo shows less because this was replaced by the previous owner just before I purchased her over 5 years ago.
The is no garage queen and no show car but has been reliable and has gone through each MOT since my ownership.
I did mention in a post last year around Oct-Nov time about selling her as I still owe money to family after my Divorce but after some encouragement from the fine members on this forum to keep the S2 and some breathing space with repaying the money I still owe I still get that massive grin factor every time I start her up and go for a blast.
If I was to sell then I would be looking for close to the 3k mark.
To give you a brief idea on her overall condition so you can perhaps gauge what you get for this price range I will list what I think is the good and the not so good.
Good
Has been well maintained during my ownership and by the previous owner with plenty of receipts.
All roofing was renewed just before I purchased her.
Out riggers repaired
Chassis fully waxed
Has the full V8 style stainless exhaust fitted which sounds fantastic.
I had the steering rack refurbished 18 Month's ago and fitted new track rod ends.
Fitted a new genuine Ford gearbox mount last year and had the propshaft balanced.
Bulkhead bearing and bush is new.
Battery, Pipercross Air Filter and new swirl pot and epansion caps.
All tyres are like new.
The interior is good with no rips to the seats / carpets etc
Excellent oil pressure.
Have the Steve Heath Bible, Haynes Book.
Have a spare perfect boot lid, not sure why but was include in the purchase.
Indicators are fine (search the forum!)
Not So Good
Both doors have rubbed the paint on the sills but I'm sure this must of happened some time before my ownership as both the doors open and close ok and do not appear to have any play in them.
Bonnet has a few star cracks and the paint work in general although will polish up nicely has a few dull areas but nothing to bad.
The wheels could do with a professional polish but again not that bad really.
Many of the points I have mentioned are common to most of the TVR S models which you will find by using the search facility.
If you are in a position to spend 4-5k then I would of thought its possible to get a decent S and perhaps one with only 50-75,000 miles having said that I firmly believe one of these thats used rather than just left siting helps cut down some of the issues that get talked about.
The is no garage queen and no show car but has been reliable and has gone through each MOT since my ownership.
I did mention in a post last year around Oct-Nov time about selling her as I still owe money to family after my Divorce but after some encouragement from the fine members on this forum to keep the S2 and some breathing space with repaying the money I still owe I still get that massive grin factor every time I start her up and go for a blast.
If I was to sell then I would be looking for close to the 3k mark.
To give you a brief idea on her overall condition so you can perhaps gauge what you get for this price range I will list what I think is the good and the not so good.
Good
Has been well maintained during my ownership and by the previous owner with plenty of receipts.
All roofing was renewed just before I purchased her.
Out riggers repaired
Chassis fully waxed
Has the full V8 style stainless exhaust fitted which sounds fantastic.
I had the steering rack refurbished 18 Month's ago and fitted new track rod ends.
Fitted a new genuine Ford gearbox mount last year and had the propshaft balanced.
Bulkhead bearing and bush is new.
Battery, Pipercross Air Filter and new swirl pot and epansion caps.
All tyres are like new.
The interior is good with no rips to the seats / carpets etc
Excellent oil pressure.
Have the Steve Heath Bible, Haynes Book.
Have a spare perfect boot lid, not sure why but was include in the purchase.
Indicators are fine (search the forum!)
Not So Good
Both doors have rubbed the paint on the sills but I'm sure this must of happened some time before my ownership as both the doors open and close ok and do not appear to have any play in them.
Bonnet has a few star cracks and the paint work in general although will polish up nicely has a few dull areas but nothing to bad.
The wheels could do with a professional polish but again not that bad really.
Many of the points I have mentioned are common to most of the TVR S models which you will find by using the search facility.
If you are in a position to spend 4-5k then I would of thought its possible to get a decent S and perhaps one with only 50-75,000 miles having said that I firmly believe one of these thats used rather than just left siting helps cut down some of the issues that get talked about.
NiceCupOfTea said:
I think you are under selling, sounds worth 4.5-5k all day long.
Agreed on mileage, worst thing you can do with these cars is not use them.
IMHO you want solid mechanicals, electrical, chassis, and then you can drive without worrying about stone chips etc.
If I was offered this then I would accept, dept free almost! Agreed on mileage, worst thing you can do with these cars is not use them.
IMHO you want solid mechanicals, electrical, chassis, and then you can drive without worrying about stone chips etc.
I bought Samy in Feb to get used to rwd again. Loving it. Done nearly 4000 miles now. Tamy has done nearly 1000 since Sept.
Everything is fixable on them so I'd make sure you check the chassis as a priority above anything else.
If you want the future classic then the S1 or S4 are the ones. The S3 is the most user friendly in my opinion.
Everything is fixable on them so I'd make sure you check the chassis as a priority above anything else.
If you want the future classic then the S1 or S4 are the ones. The S3 is the most user friendly in my opinion.
AutoAndy said:
...ditto....
.I agree , bought mine mechanically sound with solid chassis,46000 miles only, but in need of respray , a refit of trim, new SS exhaust and repair of roof for 2.5k almost 3 years ago. So 4.5 - 5k now with 7000 more miles on the clock all the jobs done, would be a fair figure.
As if to prove our point, just up on sale in need of quite a lot of work.:
.
http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C522691
Edited by S2Mike on Thursday 24th July 14:27
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