New (to me) TVR 2500M project car, couple questions...
Discussion
A freind & I recieved this car as payment for a tow job, and are looking into restoring it. The trouble as we have found is that there aren't too many & parts are hard to find!
The body is in great shape, just needs a little buffing & a couple very small spots of delamination of the fiberglass. The vinyl top, however, is pretty tattered in one corner & not able to be saved. Should I remove it and try to paint-match the roof to the body, paint the whole car, or replace the vinyl roof? If the roof is to be replaced, where can I get a replacement? Perhaps making a new one ourselves, what material (modern or period accurate?)
Also, I found there are easy ways to upgrade the brakes and all sorts of other smalll things to make the car more responsive, would this detract from the value for a collector/afficianado?
The frame is in amazing condition with only minor paint flakes and surface rust. If we pulled the body off and cleaned up the frame, should we do something like modern truck bed liner, or will this detract from the collectable value? Maybe just a good paint job to keep future rust at bay?
I think we are planning to re-sell the car as soon as it is fixed up. We run a little speed-shop and build a lot of race engines, and if we were to keep it we would swap something like a built & turbocharged BMW M20 motor and Getrag 265 transmission into it. But after researching, we found that these cars are pretty rare and I (personally) feel that doing this would destroy one of the last remaining examples of a mid-70s sports cars that laid the foundation for so many sports cars today...
So, all things considered, what direction should we go with this thing? Restore for a collector, restore for an enthusiast, or modify for speed?
Glad for any input!
Tony
The body is in great shape, just needs a little buffing & a couple very small spots of delamination of the fiberglass. The vinyl top, however, is pretty tattered in one corner & not able to be saved. Should I remove it and try to paint-match the roof to the body, paint the whole car, or replace the vinyl roof? If the roof is to be replaced, where can I get a replacement? Perhaps making a new one ourselves, what material (modern or period accurate?)
Also, I found there are easy ways to upgrade the brakes and all sorts of other smalll things to make the car more responsive, would this detract from the value for a collector/afficianado?
The frame is in amazing condition with only minor paint flakes and surface rust. If we pulled the body off and cleaned up the frame, should we do something like modern truck bed liner, or will this detract from the collectable value? Maybe just a good paint job to keep future rust at bay?
I think we are planning to re-sell the car as soon as it is fixed up. We run a little speed-shop and build a lot of race engines, and if we were to keep it we would swap something like a built & turbocharged BMW M20 motor and Getrag 265 transmission into it. But after researching, we found that these cars are pretty rare and I (personally) feel that doing this would destroy one of the last remaining examples of a mid-70s sports cars that laid the foundation for so many sports cars today...
So, all things considered, what direction should we go with this thing? Restore for a collector, restore for an enthusiast, or modify for speed?
Glad for any input!
Tony
Your post would probably get better response in the classics section.
There are a few specialist who post on here and will be able to point you in the right direction for parts etc and I understand there is a healthy classic TVR contigent in the USA, so probably a lot of support to go with it.
In my opinion, I think an origonal restoration is the best way to go nowadays, as alot of these cars have been modified over the years,and good standard ones are getting rarer.
There are a few specialist who post on here and will be able to point you in the right direction for parts etc and I understand there is a healthy classic TVR contigent in the USA, so probably a lot of support to go with it.
In my opinion, I think an origonal restoration is the best way to go nowadays, as alot of these cars have been modified over the years,and good standard ones are getting rarer.
Definitely a case for restoring as 'original' as you can get....
Good idea to join the TVR car club www.tvrcc.com as that will get you a load of contacts, information and parts suppliers.
The 2500M was mostly exported to the States and the 3000M (its 'sister' car) sold in the UK. Engine apart they are very similar and I didn't find any problem getting spares for my 3000M.
Good luck with the resto. Look forward to seeing some photos.
Chris
RO Somerset TVRCC
Good idea to join the TVR car club www.tvrcc.com as that will get you a load of contacts, information and parts suppliers.
The 2500M was mostly exported to the States and the 3000M (its 'sister' car) sold in the UK. Engine apart they are very similar and I didn't find any problem getting spares for my 3000M.
Good luck with the resto. Look forward to seeing some photos.
Chris
RO Somerset TVRCC
There is a fairly regular poster on here that lives in the US.
His Pistonheads id is V8TVR1978- iirc. I'm sure if you look in the "TVR in USA" pages you'll see some of his posts.
I think he has slotted a V8 Ford into an M Series car...for his daughter I believe.
The dealer with most experience of the M series cars here in the UK is 'David Gerald'. Might be worth Googling for contacts.
Nick
His Pistonheads id is V8TVR1978- iirc. I'm sure if you look in the "TVR in USA" pages you'll see some of his posts.
I think he has slotted a V8 Ford into an M Series car...for his daughter I believe.
The dealer with most experience of the M series cars here in the UK is 'David Gerald'. Might be worth Googling for contacts.
Nick
Edited by nawarne on Wednesday 16th November 13:42
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