Do I really want a Chimaera? Part 1

[tamago]

Until I sat in my friends Halcyon Blue 4.0 in the heat of Kuala Lumpur, I never considered buying a TVR. That ride last year changed my whole perception of TVR's and when I came back from Malaysia, I was looking through all the car mags and have been PH virtually everyday. Also decided to buy "the bible" and join the TVRCC just to see the classifieds in SPRINT...

I know this is a room mainly for fellow owners to air their problems in order for others to help but coming from a series of European/Japanese cars, it appears to me that the problems the average Chim owner experiences would seriously diminish the potential ownership prospects. This is because:
1- Private money is going into this purchase and it will be a T reg or later (I have a private plate) so it will be around £20K at least, even though winter is coming.
2 - Potential servicing intervals (6000 miles is very short!)
3- It will have to live outside (albeit behind electronic gates as I don`t have underground parking) and I am reading about leaks/milky glass water in footwells due to water ingress etc
4- The ease of reselling these cars, I am sure everyone appreciates TVRs but by and large the motoring public are a conservative lot and wouldn't seriously consider a TVR due to their perception of being unreliable and expensive to fix.

So the dilemma I am now facing is whether my hard earned cash should go into:
a) Honda 2000 - I love the styling and the engine of this car, personally the bad press is not warranted.
b) Lotus Elise series 2 (there are top finance packages out there so I for £10K I could opt for a 111S with air-con!)
c) BMW M3 E36 (unadvenurous but the "sensible" option).
It appears that even buying a Chim can be hit and miss ... My mind changes almost daily, heart says Chim and head says S2000/Elise/sensible rag top.
Help, I am having second thoughts! It is a lot of money and I don`t want to spend £20k on trouble. I guess I only live once, but I don`t want to live and regret it!!

I can't be the only one in this dilemma!?!

Any words of inspiration!??!!

>>> Edited by tamago on Friday 25th October 00:50

[tamago]

THANK YOU for all your posts! Thanks to Douglasr as the S2000 is most probably the car I'd get if I decide against the Chim. In fairness to Douglasr, I think he has publically stated that all things being equal, he would rather go for the Chim, but for the dealer and potential servicing problems up in Scotland.

I live in near Canary Wharf in London so most of my long distance driving will be on the Continent. Having an electrical or mechanical gremlin paralysing the Chim in Reims or Bordeaux would be a nightmare No-one would know how to "fix" a TVR on the continent...
I am sure you all read the recent article in Autocar where the Tuscan's throttle cable snapped while the tester was in Paris....

But I just want to say what a community the TVR ownership can be - I can tell from SPRINT and these boards that everyone will happily chat/wave to each other when they see another TVR on the roads, the same has happened to me a couple of times from fellow Alfa drivers (but has never happened to me when I was in my 3 series!!! )and the feeling is brill - to have like minded people acknowledging your car...

Thanks to you all - am still deciding and will go for some test drives when we get some clear weekends, hope I will have something to report shortly!

p.s. whoops - I am adding this as i just read Douglasr's comment above... i stand corrected re him wanting a Chim

>> Edited by tamago on Friday 25th October 13:51

>> Edited by tamago on Friday 25th October 13:52

>> Edited by tamago on Friday 25th October 13:52

[tamago]

Thanks again to you all. It is true that I probably didn't expect to receive impartial answers on this board but I wanted to get responses re the issues which concerned me from current Chim owners.

Just came down from the NEC this weekend, TVR stand crowded beyond belief but saw a very nice modified S2000 by Tachbrook Honda.

I haven't forgotten that, like many of you, I am very fortunate to be in a position to choose between a Chim/S2000 and hopefully will have something to report shortly. If it is a Chim, it will be bought with a TVR cover, a spare battery and tubes of sealant for its outdoor life!