Another Restoration
Discussion
After noticing a head gasket issue, my car was booked into Steve at SD Autotec near Boroughbridge. Sadly, once he had the car on the ramp he found some holes in the passenger side outrigger that would be an MOT failure.
I authorised the body to be taken off and I had a trip down to the workshop this morning to have a chat with Steve and decide a way forward.
The good news is that everything is repairable. Steve actually has a refurbished chassis in stock from a 1999 car which would fit mine at a good price but I have decided as mine is salvageable and my car is very original, to have my outriggers replaced, chassis stripped and then zinc coated and powder coated. This means the chassis number will be correct for the car.
Depending on the integrity of the wishbones and their bushes then these will either be painted or stripped and powder coated as well.
The diff has a leak so this will be sent off to be refurbished. The gearbox is clean and leak free.
All the brakes will be replaced and hoses swapped for braided items.
The engine is going to require a full rebuild due to oil consumption and the head gasket which had blown at number 8. It has had attention before (camshaft presumably) but someone in the past has bodged a few things that need putting right. This will consist of new bottom end bearings etc, piston rings etc and rebuild the heads with new rockers etc. A new camshaft will be installed along with a new oil pump. The engine will be tidied up with the rocker covers being sent off for powder coat in original black.
As the engine is out the clutch will be replaced and flywheel skimmed. There will be all sorts of other bits and pieces that will be replaced or refurbished so essentially I will be getting what amounts to a new car more or less.
It does look very sorry for itself at the moment! It isn't what I would have expected having paid good money for the car at a well respected dealer less than two years ago but that's life, I suppose. It is a warning that even the later cars are not immune from the rot and sometimes you may well be better off with an earlier one!
I authorised the body to be taken off and I had a trip down to the workshop this morning to have a chat with Steve and decide a way forward.
The good news is that everything is repairable. Steve actually has a refurbished chassis in stock from a 1999 car which would fit mine at a good price but I have decided as mine is salvageable and my car is very original, to have my outriggers replaced, chassis stripped and then zinc coated and powder coated. This means the chassis number will be correct for the car.
Depending on the integrity of the wishbones and their bushes then these will either be painted or stripped and powder coated as well.
The diff has a leak so this will be sent off to be refurbished. The gearbox is clean and leak free.
All the brakes will be replaced and hoses swapped for braided items.
The engine is going to require a full rebuild due to oil consumption and the head gasket which had blown at number 8. It has had attention before (camshaft presumably) but someone in the past has bodged a few things that need putting right. This will consist of new bottom end bearings etc, piston rings etc and rebuild the heads with new rockers etc. A new camshaft will be installed along with a new oil pump. The engine will be tidied up with the rocker covers being sent off for powder coat in original black.
As the engine is out the clutch will be replaced and flywheel skimmed. There will be all sorts of other bits and pieces that will be replaced or refurbished so essentially I will be getting what amounts to a new car more or less.
It does look very sorry for itself at the moment! It isn't what I would have expected having paid good money for the car at a well respected dealer less than two years ago but that's life, I suppose. It is a warning that even the later cars are not immune from the rot and sometimes you may well be better off with an earlier one!
Interesting as mines a 99!
I bet yours has spent a lot of its life outdoors, I can't say for sure regarding the outriggers but mines in much better nick mainly because it has been garaged the last 8 years and only done 1800 miles in that time
You're doing the right thing doing the full chassis, that'll be good for the rest of its life then.
I bet yours has spent a lot of its life outdoors, I can't say for sure regarding the outriggers but mines in much better nick mainly because it has been garaged the last 8 years and only done 1800 miles in that time
You're doing the right thing doing the full chassis, that'll be good for the rest of its life then.
If you can afford it, getting the chassis done in one big hit is the best solution, rather than doing the outriggers and then 18 months later finding out wishbone & bushes need replacing. Chassis main rail work, so requiring another body lift, looking forward to this thread and watching a master piece unfold 
, great work
Mark
, great workMark
Those outriggers are in good shape compared to mine! 98' with 60k on clock and I have holes you can fit fingers through and the passenger side, just behind front wheel arch, has cracked completely through! its getting outriggers only start of January, strangely the centre spine doesn't even have as much as a chip in the powder coat and is solid.
Admirer of Steve's work from previous threads so this topic should be good, keep up the pictures!
Admirer of Steve's work from previous threads so this topic should be good, keep up the pictures!
Trevor450 said:
No point in half measures IMO. The car is a 2000 on a W - a very late MkII.
What was your build number / last 4 digits on your VIN?Must be pretty close to mine - it's a 2000 on a W also!
I'm build 2154. Might well have shared some factory time together!
It's done 32k miles, outriggers in good shapre (original) but have been cared for / POR15'd etc. Engine seems to be running well, no issues.
Mine's also a 2000 w reg.
Needed new outriggers when I bought it, so went to the full body off. It took me two years !!
I'm sure I read somewhere that is was around 1999-2000 that TVR started to do the powdercoating in house, so the first chassis weren't great.
I wait to be corrected?!?!?
Needed new outriggers when I bought it, so went to the full body off. It took me two years !!
I'm sure I read somewhere that is was around 1999-2000 that TVR started to do the powdercoating in house, so the first chassis weren't great.
I wait to be corrected?!?!?
macdeb said:
Another 2000 W reg' here. No Chassis issues at all, Though bought mine at 6k miles 9 years ago and it has lived in a heated garage since, dry days out and only now has 17k miles 
Good luck with the build.
that's good going mac, only 11,000 miles in 9 years . l think l did nearly that in my first year of ownership !!!Good luck with the build.
mark
Malcster said:
What was your build number / last 4 digits on your VIN?
Must be pretty close to mine - it's a 2000 on a W also!
I'm build 2154. Might well have shared some factory time together!
It's done 32k miles, outriggers in good shapre (original) but have been cared for / POR15'd etc. Engine seems to be running well, no issues.
Not sure. I will have to delve into my files when I get back to the office after Christmas. Must be pretty close to mine - it's a 2000 on a W also!
I'm build 2154. Might well have shared some factory time together!
It's done 32k miles, outriggers in good shapre (original) but have been cared for / POR15'd etc. Engine seems to be running well, no issues.
portzi said:
macdeb said:
Another 2000 W reg' here. No Chassis issues at all, Though bought mine at 6k miles 9 years ago and it has lived in a heated garage since, dry days out and only now has 17k miles
Good luck with the build.
that's good going mac, only 11,000 miles in 9 years . l think l did nearly that in my first year of ownership !!!Good luck with the build.
mark
have a good Christmas mate
This is an excellent thread Mark. I was thinking of doing the same thing myself but you've beaten me to it! I've had my '98 Chimaera for 20 months now. It was inspected before I bought it and Rob Ingleby said the outriggers had a couple of years in them, possibly more. He poked and prodded and said he wanted to find a hole but couldn't. To me this was code for 'nearly knackered. It indicated to me that their days were numbered.
So has it failed an MOT? No. (Last MOT was October and it passed without advisories.) Will it pass next year? Who knows. Are the outriggers holed on top in those difficult to reach places? Probably... I aim to keep the car for some years so I figured that it was best to get some life out of some new outriggers and have the job done at my convenience, rather than in a panic after a failed MOT.
Also, it makes sense to have it done during the winter, when the car sees little use - especially with the weather is the way it is now! Shockers are original and one has just started weeping, so Nitrons will go on as part of the underpinning refurb.
So it's booked in on Monday 13th January. By the following weekend the body will be off and I will take plenty of pictures. Can't wait to see if my hunch is correct!
It seems too much for me to start another outrigger thread but if anybody is interested I'm happy to post and share the experience. A good number of us will be in this situation in the coming years. First it's flaky immobilisers, then it's rusty outriggers...
I've had my '98 Chimaera for 20 months now. It was inspected before I bought it and Rob Ingleby said the outriggers had a couple of years in them, possibly more. He poked and prodded and said he wanted to find a hole but couldn't. To me this was code for 'nearly knackered. It indicated to me that their days were numbered.So has it failed an MOT? No. (Last MOT was October and it passed without advisories.) Will it pass next year? Who knows. Are the outriggers holed on top in those difficult to reach places? Probably... I aim to keep the car for some years so I figured that it was best to get some life out of some new outriggers and have the job done at my convenience, rather than in a panic after a failed MOT.
Also, it makes sense to have it done during the winter, when the car sees little use - especially with the weather is the way it is now! Shockers are original and one has just started weeping, so Nitrons will go on as part of the underpinning refurb.
So it's booked in on Monday 13th January. By the following weekend the body will be off and I will take plenty of pictures. Can't wait to see if my hunch is correct!
It seems too much for me to start another outrigger thread but if anybody is interested I'm happy to post and share the experience. A good number of us will be in this situation in the coming years. First it's flaky immobilisers, then it's rusty outriggers...
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