The journey to owning a TVR Chimaera 400...
Discussion
plfrench said:
Great write up!
I think if I'd parked mine where yours was in the second photo I'd have had an inferno on my hands!! Mine seems to kick out a ridiculous amount of heat
when i park in a Goodwood field on a hot dry day i wonder about this, and whether if i had such a car i'd have to wait half an hour to ensure my p&j was safe. or maybe carry a litre of water and spray the grass underneath? I think if I'd parked mine where yours was in the second photo I'd have had an inferno on my hands!! Mine seems to kick out a ridiculous amount of heat
Edited by plfrench on Monday 8th August 16:08
lovely car op. these things just don't age. or is it me.
crowfield said:
Great looking car. Mine is a 98 Chimaera 400, and I also have a Honda Accord Executive Estate as a daily runaround, although mine is the 2.0ltr petrol. 
^^^Superb colour!I have to say, I can't think of anything I would replace the Accord Estate with for the money, it's bloody fantastic. Carries everything, excellent cruiser, and is also pretty damn fun to hustle along too, with an excellent seating position and a peach of an engine. Makes a great combo with the TVR- just not so much fuel wise in 2.4 flavour.
Squirrelofwoe said:
^^^Superb colour!
I have to say, I can't think of anything I would replace the Accord Estate with for the money, it's bloody fantastic. Carries everything, excellent cruiser, and is also pretty damn fun to hustle along too, with an excellent seating position and a peach of an engine. Makes a great combo with the TVR- just not so much fuel wise in 2.4 flavour.
Colour is Cooper Green. My Accord is , like yours, a fantastic reliable car. Lacks a bit of power ( the 2.4 must be better ) , but as a daily runaround it is unbeatable and on a run across the country recently, did 38MPG overall - not bad for a 2ltr petrol. And it's got all the toys - leather, electric heated seats, dual zone climate, electric roof. The only thing missing is sat nav. But come the weekend, I can't wait to get out in the TVR !I have to say, I can't think of anything I would replace the Accord Estate with for the money, it's bloody fantastic. Carries everything, excellent cruiser, and is also pretty damn fun to hustle along too, with an excellent seating position and a peach of an engine. Makes a great combo with the TVR- just not so much fuel wise in 2.4 flavour.
crowfield said:
Colour is Cooper Green. My Accord is , like yours, a fantastic reliable car. Lacks a bit of power ( the 2.4 must be better ) , but as a daily runaround it is unbeatable and on a run across the country recently, did 38MPG overall - not bad for a 2ltr petrol. And it's got all the toys - leather, electric heated seats, dual zone climate, electric roof. The only thing missing is sat nav. But come the weekend, I can't wait to get out in the TVR !
Yeah they are certainly well equipped, mine even has the built-in touch screen navigation too. The performance of the 2.4 is pretty decent, up to 4-5k rpm it's as quick as my previous Accord Type R, and they've done a very good job of making it feel like there is a decent amount of torque there too. I've not had a situation yet where I've found it lacking! The only downside is I can get maybe 33mpg at best (dual carriageway with cruise on), typically it's closer to 28-30, but obviously it's pretty sensitive to how it's driven.Great cars though. Like you say, it also makes you really enjoy the TVR at the weekend!
swerni said:
Am loving my 4.0 Chim.
Wished I got one has ago
That's a great pic! Looks superb in that colour, what's the name of it? I looked at one in that colour and although it hadn't been a standout colour for me originally, to see it in person was a completely different story.Wished I got one has ago
Sillyhatday said:
Great car OP. A TVR is on my list, any TVR, preferably a V8 one.
TVR comes on my priorities higher than furniture too
It's just not like any other car out there, it's complete sensory overload! As I mentioned earlier, the other two TVRs I'd love to try are an AJP V8 engined Cerbera, and either a T350 or (lottery win) Sagaris. But the first one on my list HAD to be an RV8 engined car for noise reasons alone, and fortunately (money wise) I've always preferred the looks of the Chim over the Griff. TVR comes on my priorities higher than furniture too
The sound the RV8 engine makes really is just something else! At idle it sounds like a WW2 aircraft engine, with none of the 'precision' you get with newer V8s or the distinctive NASCAR sound of the American V8s. It just sounds properly old-fashioned and raw. The noise is always one of the first things anyone has commented on with my car- I've even had strangers walk over and wait for me to start it up as I've gone back to the car in a car park. The attention it gets has taken a bit of getting used to.
Driving one is guaranteed to put a smile on your face!
I'd also like to report that my new sofa is extremely comfy, even if it took a long time to acquire one...
Congratulations on your purchase Dave, great write up as well. Loving the man maths of with interest rates being so low it would be financially negligent not to buy one, that did make me chuckle!
Good to here you are enjoying the TVR. By modern standards they are pretty crap cars but they are fantastic fun to drive. I have had mine for 7 years now and I would sell my furniture before the car so you have definitely done things the right way round.
Keep this thread up to date if you can I so we can continue to enjoy reading it.
Matthew
Good to here you are enjoying the TVR. By modern standards they are pretty crap cars but they are fantastic fun to drive. I have had mine for 7 years now and I would sell my furniture before the car so you have definitely done things the right way round.
Keep this thread up to date if you can I so we can continue to enjoy reading it.
Matthew
Matthew Poxon said:
Congratulations on your purchase Dave, great write up as well. Loving the man maths of with interest rates being so low it would be financially negligent not to buy one, that did make me chuckle!
Good to here you are enjoying the TVR. By modern standards they are pretty crap cars but they are fantastic fun to drive. I have had mine for 7 years now and I would sell my furniture before the car so you have definitely done things the right way round.
Keep this thread up to date if you can I so we can continue to enjoy reading it.
Matthew
I guess it is the 'crapness' that makes them so beguiling. Modern cars, including performance ones, are so complete that it makes them a bit too easy to drive. The speed that modern cars offer is too accessible thanks to nannying electronics that it becomes a complete non event driving something like an M4. The same simply cannot be said of a TVR! Good to here you are enjoying the TVR. By modern standards they are pretty crap cars but they are fantastic fun to drive. I have had mine for 7 years now and I would sell my furniture before the car so you have definitely done things the right way round.
Keep this thread up to date if you can I so we can continue to enjoy reading it.
Matthew
So almost 3 months in and I've covered around 1,600 miles- compared to the mere 2,000 miles in 3 years covered by the previous owner! 
Even as the weather has got worse I've managed to get out in it at least once a week. I generally only take it out in the dry, but I'm not too bothered about it being sunny etc as it's still a superb car to drive even with the roof on. The fact the top panel is hard plastic actually makes it feel like a mini-coupe.
I've been caught out in heavy rain a couple of times, but once again there were zero dramas. Once of the days was after a meetup with a few other Chim owners from on here- I had a 30 minute drive down the M40 in absolutely torrential rain. No signs of water ingress and wipers worked superbly (they were replaced by the previous owner). It was this particular drive that made me realise just how competent these can be as 'cars' rather than just as summer toys. It completely set aside many of the reservations I had initially had after first getting it- namely being paranoid about getting it home and back under it's cover if it so much as started to cloud over etc...
My plan when I bought it was always for it to be a regular use car, rather than a summer-only garage queen (I don't even own a garage). It lives on my drive under a triple-layer breathable car cover, and this has been fantastic. No issues yet with the paintwork etc. The other benefit to the regular use is that I've not yet had to connect the trickle charger
As the autumn turns into winter and the weather gets even worse, I might take it over to store in the workshop at my parent's place, but as it's not heated it won't be a huge benefit over storing it under the cover- just marginally more weather proof. Either way, it will still very much be used whenever possible on dry days.
Over the weekend I got a few pictures with my cousin's new Mustang GT, quite amusing seeing the size difference between the two of them!
Even as the weather has got worse I've managed to get out in it at least once a week. I generally only take it out in the dry, but I'm not too bothered about it being sunny etc as it's still a superb car to drive even with the roof on. The fact the top panel is hard plastic actually makes it feel like a mini-coupe.
I've been caught out in heavy rain a couple of times, but once again there were zero dramas. Once of the days was after a meetup with a few other Chim owners from on here- I had a 30 minute drive down the M40 in absolutely torrential rain. No signs of water ingress and wipers worked superbly (they were replaced by the previous owner). It was this particular drive that made me realise just how competent these can be as 'cars' rather than just as summer toys. It completely set aside many of the reservations I had initially had after first getting it- namely being paranoid about getting it home and back under it's cover if it so much as started to cloud over etc...
My plan when I bought it was always for it to be a regular use car, rather than a summer-only garage queen (I don't even own a garage). It lives on my drive under a triple-layer breathable car cover, and this has been fantastic. No issues yet with the paintwork etc. The other benefit to the regular use is that I've not yet had to connect the trickle charger
As the autumn turns into winter and the weather gets even worse, I might take it over to store in the workshop at my parent's place, but as it's not heated it won't be a huge benefit over storing it under the cover- just marginally more weather proof. Either way, it will still very much be used whenever possible on dry days.
Over the weekend I got a few pictures with my cousin's new Mustang GT, quite amusing seeing the size difference between the two of them!
Looking good Dave!
I'm not far behind, covered about 1200 miles so far and all holding up well. Replaced the tyres now which has helped following on from the slightly hairy swim back up the M42 when we met up
Like you, it's always getting its weekly 'exercise' so not had any need to connect the charger yet.
Waiting for the chassis refurb quote to come through from Neil Garner after they had it for a week to suss out what was what.
I'm not far behind, covered about 1200 miles so far and all holding up well. Replaced the tyres now which has helped following on from the slightly hairy swim back up the M42 when we met up
Like you, it's always getting its weekly 'exercise' so not had any need to connect the charger yet.
Waiting for the chassis refurb quote to come through from Neil Garner after they had it for a week to suss out what was what.
plfrench said:
Looking good Dave!
I'm not far behind, covered about 1200 miles so far and all holding up well. Replaced the tyres now which has helped following on from the slightly hairy swim back up the M42 when we met up
Like you, it's always getting its weekly 'exercise' so not had any need to connect the charger yet.
Waiting for the chassis refurb quote to come through from Neil Garner after they had it for a week to suss out what was what.
Have you got that rear window hole / air-vent plugged up yet?! I'm not far behind, covered about 1200 miles so far and all holding up well. Replaced the tyres now which has helped following on from the slightly hairy swim back up the M42 when we met up
Like you, it's always getting its weekly 'exercise' so not had any need to connect the charger yet.
Waiting for the chassis refurb quote to come through from Neil Garner after they had it for a week to suss out what was what.
Are you planning on having the full refurb done this winter?
not quite, although Ricardo at Neil Garner felt sorry for me and stuck a bit more gaffa tape on free of charge!Yes, the plan is to have the refurb done over the winter. I asked them to quote for one of the narrow rear windows too, as I like the way they fold down further giving a better rear view. They don't look quite as good roof up, but tend to have it down all the time anyway
I've seen those narrow windows, I think for me the perfect solution eventually would be one of Steve Heath's removable hardtops.
Got a few other things on the list before that though, and my Accord has decided it needs a new clutch which has put paid to any TVR upgrades until next year sadly!
Got a few other things on the list before that though, and my Accord has decided it needs a new clutch which has put paid to any TVR upgrades until next year sadly!
TR4man said:
That Mustang certainly looks a beast of a car - but of the two, I know which I prefer!
The Mustang is quite something, feels a very different car to the TVR though. It feels a lot more 'clinical' both inside and in the way it goes. Everything feels very digital- which I guess it is to a degree.This one is fitted with the Borla Atak exhaust system and sounds fantastic (in an American NASCAR kind of way), and is probably as loud as my TVR (with sleeved exhaust). However when inside the Mustang, with the windows up you can still barely hear anything at lower revs it is that well insulated.
Oh and it feels huge getting into it after the TVR! Seriously big. When sat in my TVR my head barely reaches the top of the Mustang door...
The easiest way to describe them though is the cliched 'analogue vs digital'. You start the TVR up and the sound is like coaxing a WW2 aircraft engine into life, a couple of turns before it fires, then settling down into an un-even sounding idle that feels like it's trying to shake the car apart
With the Mustang on the other hand, you press the start button and the engine is just 'on' instantly. No fuss, no drama, perfectly smooth.
In addition to that, the Mustang is fantastically well spec'd- all the toys you'd expect plus the heated AND chilled seats, reversing camera with parking guides, his also has the Sync-3 entertainment system which is like a mini PC in the dash! Oh and the 7 speaker audio with sub. Then you have all of the stability/traction aids & different driving modes etc...
My TVR on the other hand doesn't even have power steering
Both superb cars, but for me the Mustang is just too digital/clinical for my tastes- which are the exact reasons why my cousin prefers the Mustang over the TVR! Horses for courses.
For what it's worth I am also something of a classic Mustang fan, my ultimate dream garage would include either an original Boss 429 Mustang or a 'Resto-mod' GT500/'Eleanor' recreation
To me however, my TVR has far more in common with the classic Mustangs than the new Mustang does!
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff