Running Costs?

[pstruck]

Ok, I know this will have been covered (if not exhausted) previously, but I just want some ball-park figures to be going on with.
Managed to get a couple of resonable insurance quotes (£600 for 1997 450 Chim)...not half as scary as I thought.

Fuel costs I can do, also tyres I reckon I've sussed.
Question is servicing and parts:
Peninsular (my local... are they the best nearby?) quote 'fixed service costs'... but I can imgine this increasing once the car is in there! Seen many references to "..just had £1000 major service...", etc.

I know there are many contributing factors, but I need to get some idea before I 'take the plunge' and take on a greater financial burden than I can manage.

Any words of wisdom?

[ocean1]

Servicing at specialist places rather than dealers is much cheaper, allways had mine done at Offord Motor Company around £250 for a minor and £300 for a major if memory serves.

[bjc]

I've had my Chimeara for 14 months with no really scary costs.

£500 for service parts and labour at a specialist in Bristol (included full set of supressor caps)
£200 for brake pads all round plus work on the calipers
£150 for paintwork after a car park scratch

A lot better than I was expecting when I bought it

[ATG]

Main dealer services have kebabed me a couple of times, e.g. £1000+ when I was expecting ~£500, and have often included such niceties as footprints on the seats or the ECU and loom being left in a heap in the passenger footwell.

But do not fear! As Ocean1 says, the independents are vastly better value. Had my Chim serviced few weks ago by David Batty ... standard minor 6000 mile service plus I requested realignment of a headlight, check of front wheel alignment and lubrication of both electric windows

Including VAT, £220. (£63 of which is the price of the new oil). Don't even have to pay on the day ... you get an invoice in the post a few weeks later. Absolute bargain, and a better service than you'd get from most dealers.

[Trefor]

They are reasonable to run, esp. for the performance/grin factor. However, if you go down the road of upgrading the brakes/suspension/engine then that's what starts costing you money.

[shpub]

Budget 750 a pop for a service. Some will be a lot less. Some may be more...
Steve
www.tvrbooks.co.uk

[Steve_T]

See my profile - Should give a fair idea of costs. Summary, service regularly and deal with problems early to keep the costs more predictable.

Cheers,

Steve

[GarryM]

pstruck said:

Peninsular (my local... are they the best nearby?) quote 'fixed service costs'... but I can imgine this increasing once the car is in there! Seen many references to "..just had £1000 major service...", etc.

Peninsula are the only nearby option. They were until very recently specialists but are now main dealers. The prices have remained (much) the same. They have looked after my car for a couple of years and I think they do a very good job.

The fixed prices are just that - the extra costs come from having to replace things that are not service items.

Edited to add: Ask Peninsula to check over the car you decide you want to buy. Hopefully they will spot any parts that need replacing so you can budget for them/negotiate the selling price.

>> Edited by GarryM on Wednesday 30th July 14:02

[chimhunter]

Check out the FAQ. Use the links at the top of the page and go to 'This Forum'/'FAQ'. Theres a thread with a rather similar title.

Rob

[yiw1393]

Echo what GarryM said.

Peninsula do what it says on the tin. You pay for extras that are non service items - can you fix that scratch? Put 2 rear tyres on, etc,etc.

They are still maintaining (for the time being at least) their facility at Cullompton, which might prove to be cheaper than running down to the showroom + workshop on the Sidmouth road. But that's just a guess.

Rich

[Mark.S]

I could of sworn I posted to this thread earlier

My profile has a full run down of costs for a 4ltr Chimaera over 1yr/15000 miles.

[Corin Denton]

If you are joining the TVRCC you should contact Sunninghill Insurance, for me this year at 30yrs old the premium was £450 with protected no claims and free track day cover, this was over £300 pounds cheaper that the next best quote (Tesco)
As for servicing it's pretty much fixed price although last time I went in (36k service Peninsula) I payed £100 over what I was quoted it appeared that at that stage of the car's life it has the gearbox and diff oil changed but I'm bound to gripe seeing as I run an auto service station and have always serviced my own cars! With a TVR history is king, I know that I would never buy a TVR with anything other than the correct history and Peninsula are by far your best option given your location, always got the time to answer any questions you may have.
I've got my 42k service with them on the 11th Aug so I'll let you know how I get on.


>> Edited by Corin Denton on Wednesday 30th July 20:03

[pstruck]

Thanks Corin
I've only had a couple of insurance quotes so far, just to see if ownership is viable. Tesco quoted just over £600, which was cheaper than I was expecting. Will certainly give Sunninghill a try.
PS.. copy of 'the bible' ordered and on its way!

[manek]

pstruck, you could look at it on a per mile basis. I ran a Chimaera for four years and judging by the car profiles on here, my costs were pretty much in line with those of others, ie about 55-60p per mile, at an average of 10k miles a year.

Obviously, the fewer miles you do, the cheaper each mile becomes, though because of the frequent and expensive 6k services, the effect isn't as marked as you might imagine since fixed overheads (insurance, & tax) will be well under half your total running costs.

Hope this helps.

> Edited to fix typos.

>> Edited by manek on Thursday 31st July 10:08

[Bob the planner]

My costs have been a bit higher than Manek's probably due adding in insuarance costs. On 8k a year I am about 80-100p/mile depending on timing of services and insurance.

Bob

[Corin Denton]

Bob the planner said:

My costs have been a bit higher than Manek's probably due adding in insuarance costs. On 8k a year I am about 80-100p/mile depending on timing of services and insurance. Bob

!!!!!

That would make up to £8,000 a year!!!

Jeez, what are my costs then ....

Insurance - £ 450
Tax - £ 150
Servicing - £ 325
Rubber - £ 150
Fuel - £ 1,000
Cleaning products - £ 150
Maintenance - £ 200
Enhancements - £ 500

That would make all but £3k based on 4,000 miles a year or 75p per mile, leave out any enhancements and do more miles and it would be cheaper again.

[duncan hermer]

The only 'words of wisdom' i can add to those already mentioned are to 'be prepared for the worst'. By that i mean something going wrong at any time - this isn't typical of a TVR, more typical of any car i suppose.

One thing i know is that i would be distraught (sp?) if my TVR was sat idle in the garage because i hadn't budgeted for/accounted for something that either cropped up at a service or 'just happened'. As Corin said, history is King and when you come to sell the car, you seriously won't shift it if it has no history or has unfixed niggles - well not without being battered down on the price anyway.

This is all a case of personal finance budgeting and only you know if you can afford it. I guess in a roundabout way i'm trying to say that there are likely to be costs over and above the car itself, insurance, fuel, tyres and servicing and a TVR's no good left in the garage (or under the cover whatever your plan is?..)

To confirm - the only things i've had to fork out for in 8 months ownership and 4,000 miles are:

1. New leads - 70.00 (went for Magnecor which are the Gucci of the leads world)
2. New seatbelt fitted - 150.00. Ended up more expensive as they had to rethread the bolt hole in the chassis. Reason seatbelt failed? I was being a div and tried a bit of DIY. NEVER again!

[Incorrigible]

Corin Denton said:

Bob the planner said: My costs have been a bit higher than Manek's probably due adding in insuarance costs. On 8k a year I am about 80-100p/mile depending on timing of services and insurance. Bob !!!!! That would make up to £8,000 a year!!! Jeez, what are my costs then .... Insurance - £ 450 Tax - £ 150 Servicing - £ 325 Rubber - £ 150 Fuel - £ 1,000 Cleaning products - £ 150 Maintenance - £ 200 Enhancements - £ 500 That would make all but £3k based on 4,000 miles a year or 75p per mile, leave out any enhancements and do more miles and it would be cheaper again.

You're ignoring depreciation

More miles you do it should be cheaper pence/mile, don't forget a new top of the range ordinary car (V6 alfa/mondeo, Fiat coupe) will cost ~£1.50 a mile in the first few years

[Bob the planner]

Corin Denton said:

.... Insurance - £ 450 Tax - £ 150 Servicing - £ 325 Rubber - £ 150 Fuel - £ 1,000 Cleaning products - £ 150 Maintenance - £ 200 Enhancements - £ 500 ....

I expect to use a set of tyre more than every 4 years - I may have to pay more than you (£500/set) Also my insurance is higher .

As Ben pointed out depreciation can be a hefty whack (36p/mile for me although this will get less with longer ownership).

Servicing has been more than £275 a time ! I don't have the time or space to do it myself.

A lot of the expenditure can be down to shopping around/who you know/having the time,confidence or inclination to sort it yourself. Thats why there is probaly a wide variation in running costs.

Bob