Will I get fed up if I buy a Tuscan?
Discussion
I fancy having a Tuscan in the garage to take out for a 20 mile drive every month or so during summer so perhaps 160 miles per year.
I would warm it up and drive it with sympathy but would it start? Would it breakdown? Would it get a flat battery?
It's not the bills so much as the fact im busy and really couldn't be bothered if it broke down/didn't start etc. I don't do any of my own work on my cars.
Would I end up wanting to flog it after 5 minutes?
I would warm it up and drive it with sympathy but would it start? Would it breakdown? Would it get a flat battery?
It's not the bills so much as the fact im busy and really couldn't be bothered if it broke down/didn't start etc. I don't do any of my own work on my cars.
Would I end up wanting to flog it after 5 minutes?
jonah35 said:
I fancy having a Tuscan in the garage to take out for a 20 mile drive every month or so during summer so perhaps 160 miles per year.
I would warm it up and drive it with sympathy but would it start? Would it breakdown? Would it get a flat battery?
It's not the bills so much as the fact im busy and really couldn't be bothered if it broke down/didn't start etc. I don't do any of my own work on my cars.
Would I end up wanting to flog it after 5 minutes?
by the sounds of it Jona, you work away, and from reading your profile your from smoggy,I would warm it up and drive it with sympathy but would it start? Would it breakdown? Would it get a flat battery?
It's not the bills so much as the fact im busy and really couldn't be bothered if it broke down/didn't start etc. I don't do any of my own work on my cars.
Would I end up wanting to flog it after 5 minutes?
, so maybe you work on the rigs?. Take plenty of test drives, best bet, join the TVR car club, go to your local meet and be polite and start asking questions, and go out for a spin in one, as you will be showing genuine interest. like any high end sports car they are temprimental. No car can be expected to run well with so little use let alone a Tuscan. Mechanical & fluid systems need regular work to ensure seals, bearings etc stay in good shape. Damp needs to be dried out - even a garage in the UK don't create California conditions.
If you can't use it more, get some nice artwork or video instead.
If you can't use it more, get some nice artwork or video instead.
Thanks all. Yes, the use would be low but with family and UK weather using it every weekend would be tough. Plus long weekend journeys would be done in a comfortable, modern car so use sadly would be limited. Then there's work on top so may not do much miles.
If I did use it more, would it be more reliable?
Yes, I'm going to pop to a local meet. Thanks all.
If I did use it more, would it be more reliable?
Yes, I'm going to pop to a local meet. Thanks all.
If it's not the bills get an apr rs TT with over 600bhp it'll do sub 3 seconds to 60, drive for 100 miles and be put away like a normal car.
http://www.goapr.co.uk/products/stage3_25tfsi.html
http://www.goapr.co.uk/products/stage3_25tfsi.html
Edited by m4tti on Sunday 2nd November 22:00
If you are only planning to drive it 160miles a year you may as well just hire one a few times a year. You'd be looking at about 1500 a year upkeep + insurance+tax = say about 2k a year upkeep if you buy one - so basically you could hire one on 4 different 3 day weekends each year for the same money risk free!
S6PNJ said:
jonah35 said:
From what you guys are saying I think you're alluding to the fact that it wouldn't be reliable?
I think any car being run for 160 miles per year would be unreliable!Dischordant said:
If you are only planning to drive it 160miles a year you may as well just hire one a few times a year. You'd be looking at about 1500 a year upkeep + insurance+tax = say about 2k a year upkeep if you buy one - so basically you could hire one on 4 different 3 day weekends each year for the same money risk free!
Sorry gents please could we stick to the original question.I want it in my garage to drive when I want to buy the one I want in the colour i want and not to hire one, to bother with forms, to bother getting it delivered, to have the hassle of renting etc because by the time I know I want to take it out I don't want to have to call up a company to get one delivered etc.
I don't want to hire a car!
Thanks all.
After 10 yrs of ownership and some 40k miles, I would highlight that 20 miles is barely getting the oil warm in a Tuscan, especially if driven off shortly after starting as recommended. By the time the car had really started to loosen up it would be then heading back home which for the cost of both purchase and ownership, just does not seem a worthwhile exercise in my opinion. I have also found the car drives more and more responsively with both age (perhaps experience!), and also length of journeys, and given I have now completed a shade under a dozen long distance European trips in it without issue, this is tried and tested.
There is also the concern that if there was an issue during your ownership - and no pre-purchase inspection anywhere can guarantee nothing will happen - then it could well be out of action for the very slot of limited time you have.
There is also the concern that if there was an issue during your ownership - and no pre-purchase inspection anywhere can guarantee nothing will happen - then it could well be out of action for the very slot of limited time you have.
I think the advice you have been given is fair due to the lack of info you have given on what you are looking at buying. The last of the tuscans are going to be 8 years old and you have not said what age you are looking at. Whether it has had an engine rebuild, who has maintained it, how many miles it has done, what work has been done to it, condition of chassis etc but you name a few important considerations. They are hand built and everyone is different, if you buy a nice example with a warranty then you should get a year out of it, just because you are doing low miles doesn't mean it doesn't need to be maintained annually and as your not going to be doing it yourself you need to be allowing a couple of grand a year aside. I have yet to come across a TVR that won't have a flat battery after 3-4 weeks if not being maintained on a trickle charger and not being used. 20 miles isn't going to be enough to warm everything through and get rid of moisture, condensation etc I would envisage problems, a tuscan or any other tvr isn't like a moden euro box, they aren't built for practicality, emissions and mpg and do not take kindly to lack of driving experience of rear drive performance cars. Drive one see if it is for you, then work out whether you would use it more than your thinking you would, and whether it would fit into your life style.
I have had my Tuscan for 7 years now. Last year I used it last in September then had it insured as laid up over the winter whilst it sat in my garage with trickle charger attached. Went out 6 months later in March and she fired up immediately and I drove to the MOT station without issue to then have it serviced for summer use.
Going for a 20 mile journey once a month isn't going to be great though. It can easily take 10-15 minutes driving to get the oil up to the required 60 degrees before you can exceed 3000 rpm so you want to be doing more like 50-60 miles each journey to make it worth while. Like any high performance car, I would say the more you use it the better for the car. I have never had anything seize up on the car from just sitting in my garage and over winter it has regularly sat for 3-4 months without being used but then I try to use it more from March to October and do about 1500-2000 miles including a trip or two to Europe.
Going for a 20 mile journey once a month isn't going to be great though. It can easily take 10-15 minutes driving to get the oil up to the required 60 degrees before you can exceed 3000 rpm so you want to be doing more like 50-60 miles each journey to make it worth while. Like any high performance car, I would say the more you use it the better for the car. I have never had anything seize up on the car from just sitting in my garage and over winter it has regularly sat for 3-4 months without being used but then I try to use it more from March to October and do about 1500-2000 miles including a trip or two to Europe.
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