Still haven't found an S - BUT
Discussion
Just found a Blue S2 in the TVRCC Classifieds and just wondered if anybody new the car. Its looks good to me and am thinking of going to see it but have to travel from Manchester. Would like to try and get a 'heads-up' before travelling such a distance. The car is in South Wales and is £5250.
andyhough said:
Just found a Blue S2 in the TVRCC Classifieds and just wondered if anybody new the car. Its looks good to me and am thinking of going to see it but have to travel from Manchester. Would like to try and get a 'heads-up' before travelling such a distance. The car is in South Wales and is £5250.
Andy YHM
This is without making ang judgements of either car because I have seen neither and I am sure all my windows will be broken by S2 owners but personally, and I have owned a few of each I would rather have a bad S4 than a good S2.You can make a bad S4 into a good S4 but you can only ever make an S2 into an S2. In spite of many words of wisdom written in these forums S4's are better than S3's and they are better than S2's and they are better than S1's. This is simply because TVR develop the cars at the customers expense, always have done and probably always will, so the further into a production a model is generally speaking the better they are. This is possibly not true of the Cerbera but now that all my windows are smashed they cant get any more broken.
Unfortunately for Andy, and I have tried probably in vain to explain it is not possible to buy a £5000 S Series and never spend anything on it. Andy is borrowing the money to buy so any "incidental" expenses will be disaster.Incidental expenses will be Fuel tank, they all will need one soon; trailing arms they will all need them soon; manifolds, they will all need them soon; Chassis rails, they will all need them soon.These are of course generalisations and I know there are some truly cherished cars around but if you had an excellent above average S series for sale you would not sell it for sub 5K.
His first post a few days ago" S1,2 3 wanted" attracted its first reply from BERGS2 saying there are lots of sub 5K S's around. A quick look at his profile tells me he paid £4500 for the car and just short of £3000 in maintainace in a year, then sold it.It may now be a good car but it was not a 5K car.
IT IS NOT WHAT YOU PAY FOR IT BUT WHAT IT COSTS THAT IS IMPORTANT.
I suggest he looks at both cars not the speedo's or the colour, then gets some good advice based on what he sees. Mileage on a 12+ year old car is not an issue, 40000 miles round London is a lot further than 100000 miles round Cheshire if you understand what I mean.
Before you all accuse me of trying to convince Andy he should buy one of my cars, I dont have any. Since the unfortunate events of March this year wheen I could have been killed I have not bought any cars and my stock level is nil. sTeVeR
Unfortunately for Andy, and I have tried probably in vain to explain it is not possible to buy a £5000 S Series and never spend anything on it. Andy is borrowing the money to buy so any "incidental" expenses will be disaster.Incidental expenses will be Fuel tank, they all will need one soon; trailing arms they will all need them soon; manifolds, they will all need them soon; Chassis rails, they will all need them soon.These are of course generalisations and I know there are some truly cherished cars around but if you had an excellent above average S series for sale you would not sell it for sub 5K.
His first post a few days ago" S1,2 3 wanted" attracted its first reply from BERGS2 saying there are lots of sub 5K S's around. A quick look at his profile tells me he paid £4500 for the car and just short of £3000 in maintainace in a year, then sold it.It may now be a good car but it was not a 5K car.
IT IS NOT WHAT YOU PAY FOR IT BUT WHAT IT COSTS THAT IS IMPORTANT.
I suggest he looks at both cars not the speedo's or the colour, then gets some good advice based on what he sees. Mileage on a 12+ year old car is not an issue, 40000 miles round London is a lot further than 100000 miles round Cheshire if you understand what I mean.
Before you all accuse me of trying to convince Andy he should buy one of my cars, I dont have any. Since the unfortunate events of March this year wheen I could have been killed I have not bought any cars and my stock level is nil. sTeVeR
Interesting point Steve (sorry to hear that you've not bought any stock recently!).
Running costs are available in some members' profiles. It could be interesting to compare newer cars vs older.
My old S4 used to cost me something like £1500-£2000 a year to run if I remember correctly.
Running costs are available in some members' profiles. It could be interesting to compare newer cars vs older.
My old S4 used to cost me something like £1500-£2000 a year to run if I remember correctly.
thegamekeeper said:
Unfortunately for Andy, and I have tried probably in vain to explain it is not possible to buy a £5000 S Series and never spend anything on it.
How about, less than any other cars I have owned then.
thegamekeeper said:
Incidental expenses will be Fuel tank, they all will need one soon; trailing arms they will all need them soon; manifolds, they will all need them soon; Chassis rails, they will all need them soon.These are of course generalisations and I know there are some truly cherished cars around but if you had an excellent above average S series for sale you would not sell it for sub 5K.
twaddle
Am I some freak of nature then in that I can find cars that have been well maintained for under £5000, run them for a while with no costs other than servicing and a bit of waxoyl, and then sell them with no depreciation?
YES there are cars around for sale that will have a lot of problems and are not the bargain they seem..
BUT
If you buy wisely and actually inspect all the things that you list as "all will need one soon" then why should the car cost you a fortune.
Realistically, an S1 with replaced outriggers, new shocks, wishbones, fueltank cradle, exhaust mainfolds, exhaust etc etc and an extensive well documented history is still unlikely to cost over £5000 merely because of its age and placement in the marketplace. It doesn't mean its going to fall apart !
In the case of my last car.. it had had over £3000 spent on sorting it in the 8000 miles before I bought it, for the last owner yes it had cost him money, but it wasn't going to cost me all that again was it.?
Cheers,
Matt
PS I agree about the S4 thing though.. a very good car
>> Edited by M@H on Friday 27th August 10:23
I'll add my ten penn'oth just for the hell of it.....
I paid £7250 in the end for my S3, after knocking off a bit for small cosmetics. By no means a concourse car, but it is in nice condition. However, as it has a cherished history, the only bills I paid in year 1 was a major service (including a waxoyl), and two exhaust clips.
I now face selling the S due to the new arrival (4 wheel kind!) and therefore requiring a service a little earlier than usual. Admittedly, I'm paying out extras to make sure the S is tip-top for sale, but the running costs really have been very low.
The caviats remain for prospective buyers, and I may have been lucky to an extent, but if you do your homework, you can find a car that shouldn't plague you with bills.
I agree with many of the points raised above, but when you look at a car, get underneath and check the chassis, check the trailing arms etc etc. If the known trouble spots are not in trouble, chances are they'll remain that way as long as you look after the car.
[
]As I've said before, preventative maintenance is much cheaper than fixing after the event![/]
I paid £7250 in the end for my S3, after knocking off a bit for small cosmetics. By no means a concourse car, but it is in nice condition. However, as it has a cherished history, the only bills I paid in year 1 was a major service (including a waxoyl), and two exhaust clips.
I now face selling the S due to the new arrival (4 wheel kind!) and therefore requiring a service a little earlier than usual. Admittedly, I'm paying out extras to make sure the S is tip-top for sale, but the running costs really have been very low.
The caviats remain for prospective buyers, and I may have been lucky to an extent, but if you do your homework, you can find a car that shouldn't plague you with bills.
I agree with many of the points raised above, but when you look at a car, get underneath and check the chassis, check the trailing arms etc etc. If the known trouble spots are not in trouble, chances are they'll remain that way as long as you look after the car.
[
]As I've said before, preventative maintenance is much cheaper than fixing after the event![/]Cost of motoring is sodding expensive, and some would argue so it should be as it is a luxury that pollutes and clogs etc... My limited experience of having an S now for 9 months as a daily runner has been frought with unforseen expenses and is costing me a pretty penny... BUT - A few years ago I bought a SEAT Ibiza. Sold it 18 months later having had 2 services at around £250 - £300ea, paying back over £1500 in loan interest and loosing £3400 in depreciation, now that was expensive! Currently have an Audi 80 have lost £2000 over 2 years depreciation plus a few 'costs'.
The S is a great car and I love owning it so I don't mind the expense but actually is it really that expensive in real terms???
The S is a great car and I love owning it so I don't mind the expense but actually is it really that expensive in real terms???
andyhough said:
I'm begining to wondcer if 5K isn't really enough and I might just be buying a rather expensive headache.
I see the scaremongering is working then. Would you have bought this if it was still for sale..?
www.pistonheads.com/sales/detail.asp?i=27029&s=4
and what about this one..?
www.pistonheads.com/sales/detail.asp?i=27954&s=4
Cheers,
Matt
M@H said:
And it will be worth less than ten in the marketplace when they have finished... (more like 7-8k I'd have thought)
Cheers,
Matt
Agreed but shows that if you really want something you just go for it finances allowing. £15K is what my friends paid for their wedding, all they now have to show for it is a photo album and some hazy memories!
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