A 2001 TVR Tuscan development car
Two new engines based on the TVR Speed Six have been launched which promise increased power and reliability.
Wilder Engineering commissioned an independent report on the Speed Six in 2006 and engineers found that most Speed Six failures are related to the cylinder head and valve-train, which often lead to rebuilds.
The Wilder team re-developed the engine without any pre-conceptions about the alleged quality of its components.
Wilder has modified all five major castings of the TVR engine and replaced almost all the internal parts, exceptions include timing gears, provided they are serviceable.
The Wilder engines use bespoke camshafts because an improved cam profile eases hot starting and gains power.
Finger followers are Wilder’s own design, made to aspecification compatible with the camshafts, matched to the valve spring rates, and suitably lubricated – the valve-train now operates in safe conditions.
Wilder engine testing – dyno cell
The lubrication system is completely revamped with a new pressure pump, modified scavenge pumps and comprehensively revised oil ways, with oil properly metered and jetted to where it is required (including the half-time bearing that fails because it has no oil supply).
The compression ratio is lowered so the Wilder engines may be safely run on cheaper 95 octane petrol. New cylinder liners, H-beam connecting rods, lightweight pistons and advanced piston ring sets are among many other important design and specification changes.
Phil James, head of Wilder and former TVR head of marketing, said: ‘I am disinclined to criticize the quality of TVR components, there was a lot more good than bad. Quality was less of a problem than the loads placed on the parts.
'For example, the pistons and rods were not, in themselves, bad but the compression ratio was too high and we needed to reduce the side loads in the bores.
'These issues dictated new rods and pistons. Once you’re into specifying new parts on such grounds, it’s only a small step, without much cost penalty at low volumes, to really make them special – stronger and lighter.’
The result is two normally aspirated engines: the Wilder 4.1 Litre and the 3.8 litre Wilder Fury. Both generate 380bhp against a typical figure of between 330 and 350bhp for a TVR 4.0 Speed Six. The 4.1 Litre generates 320lb-ft of torque, the Fury 305lb-ft compared to 290lb-ft typically for the TVR 4.0.
A Wilder engine makes more power and torque across the entire engine speed range – using standard TVR ECU, induction and exhaust.
380bhp is the output of a standard Wilder engine, with scope to tune the engines further, much further in the case of the Wilder Fury.
Each engine is run-in and tested on a SuperFlow dynamometer for a full day and supplied with a 36 month unlimited mileage warranty.
No further running-in is necessary and the first service is at 6,000 miles or one year after installation. Wilder engines are available exclusively from Silverstone Performance Ltd. The prices to remove an existing engine, re-engineer and re-fit are: Wilder 4.1 Litre £14,987.50 inc VAT; Wilder Fury £16,489.50 inc VAT.
Wilder will be at the PistonHeads Show this weekend (stand 11538)
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