Went to look at this yesterday

[dave tvr]

I went to look at this cerb yesterday



http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/t...


But , the sellers website isn't quite accurate , they say on Saturdays they shut at 2pm , this is not the case , they shut at 1pm !! I got there at 1.15 pm after a morning at work. I was left drooling at the window as it was at least at the front of the showroom. From what I could see its not the standard exhaust and has a brake disc upgrade to cross drilled discs, a few tiny scratches on the front, the interior looks gorgeous,I will be calling them durring the week to get some more info on it then re visit on sat , I'm looking forward to it already !!

[dave tvr]

Gazzab said:

Make sure it's had plenty spent on it over the last couple of years. Ideally it should have had a rebuild.
The cross drilled brakes will be standard I think (and not that great ie they can crack).
The near side wing to bonnet alignment looks a bit pissed. Check for front end damage repair. Also near side headlight cowling looks misshaped compared to other side.

Edited by Gazzab on Sunday 17th August 13:36

A rebuild is the one thing not mentioned in the ad , a worry if it's not been done, then I assume a rebuild will be just round the corner at 33000 miles, but will check. That price with a rebuild , yes ,
No rebuild then no, not at that price,
A top end rebuild at least
I thought the discs were an upgrade, my last cerb didn't have them, a 2001 Sp6
Thanks

[dave tvr]

Milky400 said:

Before discounting it because of a lack of rebuild, speak to the guys who service it... Not all SP6 spit there balls out, there are plenty out there that have done many many miles on original engine and still going strong

I was expecting that after my rebuild comment, but you are right, just need to find out the cars history,
Thanks

[dave tvr]

robsco said:

You could be right Bob - if my freakish memory of number plates serves me, LT02XRC was the registration. It was certainly a 2002 Speed Six with clear indicators, and was for sale for yonks.

Oh I hate it when this happens , you're not thinking of the 4.5 with the constant gasket problems in the same colour that also had lots more problems ! It was on eBay aswell.
But any heads up anyone can give is great, people's info and great memory's are priceless on here
Thanks

[dave tvr]

viperbluecerb said:

I am pretty sure this is the same Cerbera I went to look at toward the back end of 2012. Was for sale at a dealer called Bransons in the Southend-on-Sea area for quite some time. I only went to see it once before anyway deciding on a different car so don't have any more info to offer other than the fact that it was definitely there for a long period.

Jackpot ! Now I remember it , I've been watching the adds for so long I thought I must have seen it, not that this has filled me with confidence as I do remember it being there for a while and I dis counted at the time, I think the place it was being sold at put me off.
As always you lot have helped out again , thanks

[dave tvr]

coetzeeh said:

The car in the photo stood at Barnet TVR for at least 2 years until their demise - it was then bought by Castle TVR and stood there for a year before Tomej bought the car in approx 2011/2.

Car devloped a head gasket problem about six months into his ownership and he decided to move on - it then appeared at the dealer in Kent/Essex.

Barnet bought the car from a chap who used to live in Leighton Buzzard area and it was serviced there by a garage that I had never heard of.

When I saw the car at Castle it had not had a rebuild.

Cosmetically the car was superb incl. a very clean chassis.

Thank you for the information , I'm starting to wish that tvr power or str8 six had a mobile inspection service !!

[dave tvr]

coetzeeh said:

The car in the photo stood at Barnet TVR for at least 2 years until their demise - it was then bought by Castle TVR and stood there for a year before Tomej bought the car in approx 2011/2.

Car devloped a head gasket problem about six months into his ownership and he decided to move on - it then appeared at the dealer in Kent/Essex.

Barnet bought the car from a chap who used to live in Leighton Buzzard area and it was serviced there by a garage that I had never heard of.

When I saw the car at Castle it had not had a rebuild.

Cosmetically the car was superb incl. a very clean chassis.

I've phoned the sellers and spoke to the secretary there, she's emailing me the history and work done then viewing on Saturday.
You know alot about this cerb , do you know of it or do you just have a brilliant memory?
Just trying to avoid buying a lemon ! I've already been ripped off by dream machines, I don't want it to happen again !!
Thanks

[dave tvr]

coetzeeh said:

The car in the photo stood at Barnet TVR for at least 2 years until their demise - it was then bought by Castle TVR and stood there for a year before Tomej bought the car in approx 2011/2.

Car devloped a head gasket problem about six months into his ownership and he decided to move on - it then appeared at the dealer in Kent/Essex.

Barnet bought the car from a chap who used to live in Leighton Buzzard area and it was serviced there by a garage that I had never heard of.

When I saw the car at Castle it had not had a rebuild.

Cosmetically the car was superb incl. a very clean chassis.

Absolutely spot on , just got an email from the seller with the history, all done at barnet tvr which I believe no longer exists and then castle tvr and lastly PSR automotive which is a porsche lotus garage.
The gaps in the history would support what youve said about it being stuck at Barnet.
What's my next move ?

[dave tvr]

coetzeeh said:

I was in the market for a Cerb 4/5 years ago and this was one of the cars I followed.

I took comfort from the fact that the guys at Barnet would not buy a car into stock unless it was a good car but the absence of history (invoices) and the fact that there was no rebuild/refresh did worry me enough not to pursue.

I suspect the fact that it had not run (not any material distance) in a long time was the cause of the head gasket perishing?

If I were in your shoes I would at the very least get Power/Str8 6 to do a full inspection before you make a decision. Has the head gasket been replaced?

Sorry I don't want to sound too subjective but even good Cerbs are not cheap to run let alone one with no history. A Power inspection and 1 year warranty from them will give peace of mind.

Good luck! Fantastic cars!



I agree , from what I've read barnet tvr did have a good rep. The inspection would be a perfect idea but how do I get a car in one garage 120 miles north to tvr power ?? Buy it then take it back if I'm not happy?
I suspect DMS will give a 3 month warranty but I'll ask.
Thanks

Edited by dave tvr on Tuesday 19th August 19:27

[dave tvr]

Just an update - went to look at the car again on Saturday , got there at 11.00 , and , they were shut.
Yes I didn't call beforehand but I had told them on Tuesday that I would be there on Saturday.
So started the emails to the seller. As it has no rebuild I want some sort of checks done to the engine, leakage, compression, tune , to try and give some sort of indication of health without taking the engine apart. The car isn't far from Elmwoodtvr but this would be done at my cost I'm told , and hes not moving from the 17k price tag. Personally I think the seller should pay concidering the bits of history I know. I wonder how much the inspection would cost? Any ideas ?
I'm stumped .

[dave tvr]

Gazzab said:

I think it's fair that you should pay for an inspection but it will really need to be done at a tvr specialists own garage ie with tools and ramps.
If the car hasn't had much spent on it over that last few years then be prepared to dig deep.
The front end repairs would put me off (judging by the pics).
I am sure he is happy to wait for someone who just buys without inspections etc...

The inspection would be done at Elmwood tvr just up the road from him, it would be different if he was a tvr dealer but he's not , just a mormal garage. The front end issue you noticed is quite evident when you look at it, crash damage or just misaligned bonnet? Something else to check. Let's see what Elmwood charge .

[dave tvr]

Well after speaking to tomej , I will not be going after this car , he was told it needed a rebuild back in 2011 after the gasket needed replacing . After that it went to some places where tvrs shouldn't go before ending up in that garage in Essex, Bransons i think it was. Bang goes another one, no pun intended.

[dave tvr]

WhyTwo said:

Looks like Tomej has probably put this enquiry to bed but if you did want to get an inspection done Rob Ingelby comes wit ha good reputation http://www.findasportscar.co.uk/ you could get him to take a look

I could be wrong but I thought I read on here somewhere that he had stopped doing inspections?

[dave tvr]

Just as a final thing to this , I offered the seller a low price this morning with the new confirmation that is does need a rebuild and that information came from a previous owner via castle tvr, the seller politely dismissed this still claiming how great the car was because he's driven it and has confidence in it ( I'm glad he does!) and dismissed all the history I had found out about the car and that I shouldn't listen to people on pistonheads. I stated that the information on here is nothing short of excellent and normally where the truth lies about many matters, he said he's never seen a cerb for sale ever at the price I offered so I kindly directed him to some current and past cars that had been sold at that price and a recent sp6 Tuscan from fernhurst that was in need of a rebuild as another example.
I don't expect to hear from him again.
So , onto the next cerb , Barry from tvr ecosse has a cerb that's looks good , currently having a new clutch fitted, just need to get some info on it .
Thanks to all again , I suspect you've saved me from some very expensive bills !!

[dave tvr]

Ha ha ! Wouldn't you Adam and eve it !
Seller emails me today , and I quote , ' it seems that the engine has a gasket fault/leak as there's oil on the show room floor and it's needs an engine rebuild, if you are still interested I will let it go for 11k as the engine needs a rebuild ' .
Well after all that it was nice to know that I was right about the engine .
Unfortunately for him I'm now dealing with another car !

[dave tvr]

steve320ise said:

You just cant beat that gut feeling , which does sometimes come down to money, best of luck Dave

Thanks Steve , how's your rebuild going on the blue cerb? I almost bought that one too.

[dave tvr]

DKL said:

Now appears to be on eBay (blue sp6) with no mention of needing an engine rebuild.

Ha ha , yes I saw it too last night, I'm sure the reg. is different to but the service history is exactly the same, it obviously didn't find it's way to power for a rebuild which was what the seller told me he was going to do then sell it for 20k if I didn't buy it.