The cost of 1 years Cerbera ownership.
Discussion
bandit
The warranty paid for the clutch. I'd had only had it a month when it went. The dealer fought them tooth and nail and I didn't pay a penny. They even got me a hire car. TMS? the dogs bollox mate!!!!
and Brooklands who were landed with my car as I was working near Exeter at the time, I was very impressed with them too
The warranty paid for the clutch. I'd had only had it a month when it went. The dealer fought them tooth and nail and I didn't pay a penny. They even got me a hire car. TMS? the dogs bollox mate!!!!
and Brooklands who were landed with my car as I was working near Exeter at the time, I was very impressed with them too
guys, is the cerbera an expensive car to own/run even if its had all the major work carried out on it by a previous owner ? I mean, surely once all the niggles have been ironed out nothing major will go wrong in the future?! The reason i'm asking is because i'm looking at getting either a v. good second hand cerbera or going the whole hog and getting a new tamora and i don't really know what to do when i hear all this moaning !!!
The Cerbera I bought was relativly new when I bought it (18 months old) and I'm hoping that everythings been sorted now. I say this as everything that can go wrong has gone wrong already since I've owned it.
Continuing the nightmare though the car started pulling on the motorway this morning which could mean more engine problems
It's only done 400 miles since the rebuild. Back to the garage for the 20th time tomorrow.
If you are going to buy one (and they are great fun when they work) I would make sure you put a couple of grand in the bank for unforseen problems and buy a second car that's reliable...best advice I can give really.
Good luck !
Continuing the nightmare though the car started pulling on the motorway this morning which could mean more engine problems
It's only done 400 miles since the rebuild. Back to the garage for the 20th time tomorrow. If you are going to buy one (and they are great fun when they work) I would make sure you put a couple of grand in the bank for unforseen problems and buy a second car that's reliable...best advice I can give really.
Good luck !
Well, I met up with the guy who bought mine the other day and he has had it six months now and spent a massive total of......f*** all. So, the answer is yes, buy a good one, if you know what to look for like I did and you should have very few bills.
Golden rules:
1. If you can, get a warranty.
2. Buy as new as you possibly can. R Reg onwards is best.
3. Ring the factory and/or the dealer who has done the servicing and find out the history of the car. Whether it has had a rebuild, upgrade etc.
4. Build a relationship with your dealer and he will fight your warranty claims more forcefully.
4.Accept from day 1 of ownership that it could cost you money.
5. If you do get a good one it will be the most exciting car you will ever own.
I will never regret owning a Cerb, it was fantastic.
Golden rules:
1. If you can, get a warranty.
2. Buy as new as you possibly can. R Reg onwards is best.
3. Ring the factory and/or the dealer who has done the servicing and find out the history of the car. Whether it has had a rebuild, upgrade etc.
4. Build a relationship with your dealer and he will fight your warranty claims more forcefully.
4.Accept from day 1 of ownership that it could cost you money.
5. If you do get a good one it will be the most exciting car you will ever own.
I will never regret owning a Cerb, it was fantastic.
Anyone who buys a TVR and expects it to be as cheap to run and reliable as a 'mass produced' car is kidding themselves...
THe 2 people I know who have them, run them as 'special day' cars - they don't drive them to work every day and they don't go shopping in them etc. etc.
Generally speaking they are quite happy - they accept the costs as something they have to live with and they aren't surprised by the need to visit dealers at least 4-5 times a year on the back of a breakdown truck...
On the depreciation front - TVRs are not cheap things to run tho - I know someone who has an early Boxster and it's still worth 80% of what he paid for it!!
As TVRs are getting more and more expensive - this will count against them more and more of course...
You pays your money WITH YOUR EYES OPEN and you takes your chances...
The world would be a poorer place without cars like the Cerbera - and the people prepared to put up with them.
TTFN
JP
THe 2 people I know who have them, run them as 'special day' cars - they don't drive them to work every day and they don't go shopping in them etc. etc.
Generally speaking they are quite happy - they accept the costs as something they have to live with and they aren't surprised by the need to visit dealers at least 4-5 times a year on the back of a breakdown truck...
On the depreciation front - TVRs are not cheap things to run tho - I know someone who has an early Boxster and it's still worth 80% of what he paid for it!!
As TVRs are getting more and more expensive - this will count against them more and more of course...
You pays your money WITH YOUR EYES OPEN and you takes your chances...
The world would be a poorer place without cars like the Cerbera - and the people prepared to put up with them.
TTFN
JP
Hi ap_smith
Just read your post about the amount you are paying on insurance and had to speak up!!
I'm 24 and have just bought a S-Reg Chimaera 400. I paid, FC + Legal Cover + NCB Protection, £1200. Out of interest I also obtained a quote for a Cerbera 4.5 - <£1500. I have 7yrs NCB and no points.
How the h3ll are you paying £3000 - you say it's because you are 27, well that's clearly not the problem. Either you are being ripped off by some scumbag insurance company and/or you have points or limited NCB - can you clarify?
Whilst I'm here, I might as well comment on this whole TVR reliability thing. I read these boards carefully for many weeks before making my choice. I could have stretched my budget and gone for a Cerbera 4.5 - purchase price and insurance would have been OK. However, because of my age trying to run a second car was ridiculously expensive (because non of the insurers I tried were willing to offer me my NCB on two cars at once, despite the fact that I clearly can't drive them both at once!) and my insurance quote for my Renault Megane 1.6RT came in at £1400 FC! Additionally, there is no way I could meet the running costs that many owners seemed to be talking about. So.... I made the sensible decision (I hope!) and bought a Chimaera which has 10yrs of development behind it and a basic, unstressed engine based on a mass-produced design to use as my only car.
But, before anyone tells me the Chimaera is not as exciting as the Cerbera (and I'm bl00dy sure it isn't!) I did my research and made my choice - I just hope it turns out to be the right one. I think people should recognise that, sadly, Cerberas are not generally an everyday car, so the best way to look at it is to compare it to a Ferrari 360M - £110,000. OK, that means you can 'spend' about £60,000 on repairs, insurance, depreciation, having your bum waxed, before you've paid what you would for a Ferrari that's not as fast and uglier inside and out. Just a thought.
Finally, I just want to make it clear that I'm not trying to say that it is acceptable for TVR to make such unreliable cars - I imagine many owners would pay another 10-20% for a car that at least approached something like a Porsche or Ferrari for reliability. TVR should get themselves sorted out in this regard.
Cheers.
roadsweeper.
Just read your post about the amount you are paying on insurance and had to speak up!!
I'm 24 and have just bought a S-Reg Chimaera 400. I paid, FC + Legal Cover + NCB Protection, £1200. Out of interest I also obtained a quote for a Cerbera 4.5 - <£1500. I have 7yrs NCB and no points.
How the h3ll are you paying £3000 - you say it's because you are 27, well that's clearly not the problem. Either you are being ripped off by some scumbag insurance company and/or you have points or limited NCB - can you clarify?
Whilst I'm here, I might as well comment on this whole TVR reliability thing. I read these boards carefully for many weeks before making my choice. I could have stretched my budget and gone for a Cerbera 4.5 - purchase price and insurance would have been OK. However, because of my age trying to run a second car was ridiculously expensive (because non of the insurers I tried were willing to offer me my NCB on two cars at once, despite the fact that I clearly can't drive them both at once!) and my insurance quote for my Renault Megane 1.6RT came in at £1400 FC! Additionally, there is no way I could meet the running costs that many owners seemed to be talking about. So.... I made the sensible decision (I hope!) and bought a Chimaera which has 10yrs of development behind it and a basic, unstressed engine based on a mass-produced design to use as my only car.
But, before anyone tells me the Chimaera is not as exciting as the Cerbera (and I'm bl00dy sure it isn't!) I did my research and made my choice - I just hope it turns out to be the right one. I think people should recognise that, sadly, Cerberas are not generally an everyday car, so the best way to look at it is to compare it to a Ferrari 360M - £110,000. OK, that means you can 'spend' about £60,000 on repairs, insurance, depreciation, having your bum waxed, before you've paid what you would for a Ferrari that's not as fast and uglier inside and out. Just a thought.
Finally, I just want to make it clear that I'm not trying to say that it is acceptable for TVR to make such unreliable cars - I imagine many owners would pay another 10-20% for a car that at least approached something like a Porsche or Ferrari for reliability. TVR should get themselves sorted out in this regard.
Cheers.
roadsweeper.
Roadsweeper, glad you took the some may say 'sensible decision' and chose the Chim over the Cerb.
The Cerbera is quite a specialised vehicle, need a lot of fettling and I for one, couldn't afford to run one – so had no option in my case– the Chim won through against the Griff tho' cos Chim's are gorgeous IMO!!
Good luck with your purchase. 15 years older by the way – insurance 415.00!!
The Cerbera is quite a specialised vehicle, need a lot of fettling and I for one, couldn't afford to run one – so had no option in my case– the Chim won through against the Griff tho' cos Chim's are gorgeous IMO!!
Good luck with your purchase. 15 years older by the way – insurance 415.00!!
I've been looking thru our accounts and have worked out what I spent on my cerbera 4.2 in the last 5 years.
Car - Ross Pearl, 4.2 bought new may 97 £40,000
now 34k miles, in virtually perfect nick. (Not an Advert !) Notibly the car did hardly any miles in 2001 and that's the most expensive year.
Here's the list :
Necessary Work:
£
72 1K SERICE May-97
66 HEADLAMP LENS Jun-97
403 6K SERVICE Oct-97
526 12K SERVICE Feb-98
315 FRONT TYRES May-98
415 18K SERVICE Sep-98
633 24K SERVICE Mar-99
595 WARRANTY May-99
52 RE TUNE Jan-99
583 30K SERVICE May-00
525 EXT WARRANTY Jun-00
250 INSURANCE EXCESS May-01
327 VAT ON RESPRAY May-01
500 CRACKED MANIFOLD, BATTERY, INICATORS, BRAKE PADS Jun-01
1300 TAPPIT SERVICE 36K, Jun-01
530 WARRANTY Jun-01
1435 CLUTCH Aug-01
163 STEERING RACK Dec-01
23 EXHAUST REPAIR Mar-02
total 8173
Nice to have work:
242 SPORT EXHAUST Mar-99
250 4.5 LW HEADLIGHT CONVERSION May-01
582 SUSPENSION UPGRADE Jul-01
440 WINDSCREEN (HAD DELAMED A BIT) Aug-01
150 CARPETS ETC. Dec-01
525 17" WHEELS + TYRES Feb-02
Total : 2189
General Stuff - -can't avoid
1000 PETROL 01/02 FIN YR
3500 5 YEARS INSURANCE
800 5 YEARS TAX
2000 PETROL 98/00
2000 PETROL 97/98
900 6 OTHER TYRES
Total : 10,200
(Prob only a couple of grand more than my 9-3 conv)
The cost of repairs/servicing and warranty only comes to 24p per mile.
Add in about 20k ov deprectiation then 82 p per mile.
Costs include VAT
>> Edited by dyb on Tuesday 12th March 00:23
Car - Ross Pearl, 4.2 bought new may 97 £40,000
now 34k miles, in virtually perfect nick. (Not an Advert !) Notibly the car did hardly any miles in 2001 and that's the most expensive year.
Here's the list :
Necessary Work:
£
72 1K SERICE May-97
66 HEADLAMP LENS Jun-97
403 6K SERVICE Oct-97
526 12K SERVICE Feb-98
315 FRONT TYRES May-98
415 18K SERVICE Sep-98
633 24K SERVICE Mar-99
595 WARRANTY May-99
52 RE TUNE Jan-99
583 30K SERVICE May-00
525 EXT WARRANTY Jun-00
250 INSURANCE EXCESS May-01
327 VAT ON RESPRAY May-01
500 CRACKED MANIFOLD, BATTERY, INICATORS, BRAKE PADS Jun-01
1300 TAPPIT SERVICE 36K, Jun-01
530 WARRANTY Jun-01
1435 CLUTCH Aug-01
163 STEERING RACK Dec-01
23 EXHAUST REPAIR Mar-02
total 8173
Nice to have work:
242 SPORT EXHAUST Mar-99
250 4.5 LW HEADLIGHT CONVERSION May-01
582 SUSPENSION UPGRADE Jul-01
440 WINDSCREEN (HAD DELAMED A BIT) Aug-01
150 CARPETS ETC. Dec-01
525 17" WHEELS + TYRES Feb-02
Total : 2189
General Stuff - -can't avoid
1000 PETROL 01/02 FIN YR
3500 5 YEARS INSURANCE
800 5 YEARS TAX
2000 PETROL 98/00
2000 PETROL 97/98
900 6 OTHER TYRES
Total : 10,200
(Prob only a couple of grand more than my 9-3 conv)
The cost of repairs/servicing and warranty only comes to 24p per mile.
Add in about 20k ov deprectiation then 82 p per mile.
Costs include VAT
>> Edited by dyb on Tuesday 12th March 00:23
Agreed on TVR should make more reliable car!
Agreed that the money we paid for our Cerbies wont buy you a Ferrari 360.
Also agreed on buying a Cerbie is a personal thing.
Fact:
I bought mine 18 months ago and paid for:
24k Service £960
new front shocks £240 (all in)
Insurance and patrol is a must have if you are planning to use it, and you would expect them not to be cheap, with a car like cerbie, driving around town will do <10 MPG!
Depreciation, not sure how much but it could be around 10k.
So you can do the Maths, but dont forget you bought the car with your eyes opened (I did), but also I understand the explaination to the missus is tricky too.
My point is, it's personal thing buying a Cerbie so we would all like to moan about the costs etc. but I dont think that is going to get us anywhere. There are still people want to have one and might have been put off by this...but then again they should have considered the cost factor!
So enjoy your Cerbie and roll-on the Summer!
Dan.
Agreed that the money we paid for our Cerbies wont buy you a Ferrari 360.
Also agreed on buying a Cerbie is a personal thing.
Fact:
I bought mine 18 months ago and paid for:
24k Service £960
new front shocks £240 (all in)
Insurance and patrol is a must have if you are planning to use it, and you would expect them not to be cheap, with a car like cerbie, driving around town will do <10 MPG!
Depreciation, not sure how much but it could be around 10k.
So you can do the Maths, but dont forget you bought the car with your eyes opened (I did), but also I understand the explaination to the missus is tricky too.
My point is, it's personal thing buying a Cerbie so we would all like to moan about the costs etc. but I dont think that is going to get us anywhere. There are still people want to have one and might have been put off by this...but then again they should have considered the cost factor!
So enjoy your Cerbie and roll-on the Summer!
Dan.
So quick scenario as someone who is considering buying a Cerbera.
I have a Peugeot 206 GTi and am wanting a beast of a car for weekend and assorted use (not daily to work or doing the shopping). Is a cerbera worth it? I don't have a lot of time to take it to the garage etc, and my girlfriend is against it as (1) she won't drive it and (2) she wants to be sensible with my money.
Don't want to get saddled with something that will cost me a fortune but do want a performance car.
Is a cerbera pot luck?
I have a Peugeot 206 GTi and am wanting a beast of a car for weekend and assorted use (not daily to work or doing the shopping). Is a cerbera worth it? I don't have a lot of time to take it to the garage etc, and my girlfriend is against it as (1) she won't drive it and (2) she wants to be sensible with my money.
Don't want to get saddled with something that will cost me a fortune but do want a performance car.
Is a cerbera pot luck?
I purchased a cerby 4.5 just before christmas after being pinned to the seat in flashers and totally hooked. I was under no illusions about how much a problem one could cost (just ask Beno) but i think one of the biggest reasons why any TVR cost so much is where you choose to get any work or servicing done.
I would echo the advice given to me, and do spend some time to ring round and speak to as many people who have had dealings with the car.
To date i'm over the moon with the car but the right garage is still to come.
I would echo the advice given to me, and do spend some time to ring round and speak to as many people who have had dealings with the car.
To date i'm over the moon with the car but the right garage is still to come.
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