Help With Buying A TVR
Discussion
I am looking for advise on buying my first TVR either Chimaera or Cebera having looked around it would seem that most have an engine / gearbox change at very low mileage and seem very unreliable.
I plan to use this as an everyday car but only cover around 4000 miles a year anyway before i dip my toe in and would be greatful of all advise on what to look for hopefully this will help me from buying a lemon.
Thanks
Graeme
I plan to use this as an everyday car but only cover around 4000 miles a year anyway before i dip my toe in and would be greatful of all advise on what to look for hopefully this will help me from buying a lemon.
Thanks
Graeme
Chim and Cerbera couldnt be more different. OK They share some styling but thats as far as it goes.
Chim the better every day car, chim the easier car to live with , chim more reliable, chim MUCH cheaper to run but still expensive etc.......
What do you want the car for ?
Whats your budget.
Tread carefully in the sub 18K cerb bracket.
Do you know about the engines etc?
Most AJP Cerbs and most Chims will not have had major engine work. They have niggle problems but not engine problems generally.
A Chim will generally cost £1000 - £1500 outside of dealerships a yearto run plus fuel and ins.
A cerb will be about £3k pa.
If you cant afford £3K for a cerb then dont do it.
The cerb is the better handling car of the two. The cerb is faster. The cerb is a supercar bargain. The chim is a modern classic.
If you look at S6 Cerbs then tread more carefully.
Have you thought about a griff or a Tuscan?
If it is your first TVR I would say go gor a 4.5 ltr Chim or a 5ltr Griff.
Chim the better every day car, chim the easier car to live with , chim more reliable, chim MUCH cheaper to run but still expensive etc.......
What do you want the car for ?
Whats your budget.
Tread carefully in the sub 18K cerb bracket.
Do you know about the engines etc?
Most AJP Cerbs and most Chims will not have had major engine work. They have niggle problems but not engine problems generally.
A Chim will generally cost £1000 - £1500 outside of dealerships a yearto run plus fuel and ins.
A cerb will be about £3k pa.
If you cant afford £3K for a cerb then dont do it.
The cerb is the better handling car of the two. The cerb is faster. The cerb is a supercar bargain. The chim is a modern classic.
If you look at S6 Cerbs then tread more carefully.
Have you thought about a griff or a Tuscan?
If it is your first TVR I would say go gor a 4.5 ltr Chim or a 5ltr Griff.
WAC768 said:Do yourself a favour and buy a rover powered one.
I am looking for advise on buying my first TVR either Chimaera or Cebera having looked around it would seem that most have an engine / gearbox change at very low mileage and seem very unreliable.
I plan to use this as an everyday car but only cover around 4000 miles a year anyway before i dip my toe in and would be greatful of all advise on what to look for hopefully this will help me from buying a lemon.
Thanks
Graeme
gazzab said:
Chim and Cerbera couldnt be more different. OK They share some styling but thats as far as it goes.
Chim the better every day car, chim the easier car to live with , chim more reliable, chim MUCH cheaper to run but still expensive etc.......
What do you want the car for ?
Whats your budget.
Tread carefully in the sub 18K cerb bracket.
Do you know about the engines etc?
Most AJP Cerbs and most Chims will not have had major engine work. They have niggle problems but not engine problems generally.
A Chim will generally cost £1000 - £1500 outside of dealerships a yearto run plus fuel and ins.
A cerb will be about £3k pa.
If you cant afford £3K for a cerb then dont do it.
The cerb is the better handling car of the two. The cerb is faster. The cerb is a supercar bargain. The chim is a modern classic.
If you look at S6 Cerbs then tread more carefully.
Have you thought about a griff or a Tuscan?
If it is your first TVR I would say go gor a 4.5 ltr Chim or a 5ltr Griff.
In reply i have a max of £17K
will use it daily for work etc
dont know about the engines
not thought about the griff or tuscan due to budget
i take the £1000 - £1500 is for service and general running?
as you can see my knowledge of the cars is very limited therefore all advise will be useful
Cheers
Graeme
Personally, I think a late as poss Chim 450 would be the perfect introduction into the (usually) wonderful world of TVR - it looks great, sounds great (but then, they all do!), and it doesn't cost the earth to service, as there are loads of V8 specialists out there. From what I have read, a Cerb would cost a little more to keep.
Having said that, they're all great, and whatever you chose, I very much doubt they'll disappoint.
Having said that, they're all great, and whatever you chose, I very much doubt they'll disappoint.
WAC768 said:
In reply i have a max of £17K
will use it daily for work etc
dont know about the engines
not thought about the griff or tuscan due to budget
i take the £1000 - £1500 is for service and general running?
as you can see my knowledge of the cars is very limited therefore all advise will be useful
Cheers
Graeme
£1000 - £1500 (or £3K) is for servicing and repairs AND excludes tyres, fuel and insurance. Do lots of miles and this number can go up a lot!
£17K gets you some of best Chims but cheaper end Cerbs.
Need more info re your reqs realy to judge the best car for you.
Qs
1) How many miles pa
2) Are you very handy with spanners
3) Can you afford £3k pa for servicing and repairs?
4)Can you afford less than 20mpg
5) Are you chlled out with the odd breakdown
6) Where will you source a car from?
7) Do you want a convertible?
8) Do you have kids?
9) Do you want to track the car (regularly)?
10) Are you used to very fast cars?
11) Which car do you really WANT?
BUT so far I say get a 4.5 Chim or a 5ltr Griff.
>> Edited by gazzab on Sunday 8th January 22:38
A Griff would be well within your budget, so don't rule it out unless you prefer the styling of the Chim.
As for reliability, there's over 95k miles on ours, and it's still going well. It's been pretty reliable too - 2 problems both relating to old age/high milage. We use it every day too - last autumn it was our only car for a while.
I echo all the other comments about fuel economy, fast cars etc...
As for reliability, there's over 95k miles on ours, and it's still going well. It's been pretty reliable too - 2 problems both relating to old age/high milage. We use it every day too - last autumn it was our only car for a while.
I echo all the other comments about fuel economy, fast cars etc...
Search round these forums and make sure you do your research. Chims for instance need servicing every 6k at roughly 600 a go.
17K would get you a very nice chim of a reasonable age which will help with things not going wrong (hopefully).
I went for the chim due to the fact I could get a later model one for the cash I had, I wanted a convertable, thought that the running costs would be cheaper than cerbs etc and that RV8 noise..
Although the Chims are thought of as entry level TVRs don't forget its not exactly like buying the base model fiesta!
17K would get you a very nice chim of a reasonable age which will help with things not going wrong (hopefully).
I went for the chim due to the fact I could get a later model one for the cash I had, I wanted a convertable, thought that the running costs would be cheaper than cerbs etc and that RV8 noise..
Although the Chims are thought of as entry level TVRs don't forget its not exactly like buying the base model fiesta!
I have run both a Chim400 and a Cerb 4.2 V8 as daily cars. I had each for circa 12 months / 12000 miles.
They cost practically the same to insure, did about the same MPG and the tyres were roughly the same cost.
Neither car ever let me down and left me stranded.
Year running costs in my case:
Chim - 6000m service £328 (independant) Water pump gasket £380 (main dealer
)
Cerb - 6000m service £500 (independant) coils, HT leads, lamps, wiring, plugs, shocks etc etc etc about £5k.....
Plus the Rover V8 in the Chim was generally more town / commute friendly.
They cost practically the same to insure, did about the same MPG and the tyres were roughly the same cost.
Neither car ever let me down and left me stranded.
Year running costs in my case:
Chim - 6000m service £328 (independant) Water pump gasket £380 (main dealer
) Cerb - 6000m service £500 (independant) coils, HT leads, lamps, wiring, plugs, shocks etc etc etc about £5k.....
Plus the Rover V8 in the Chim was generally more town / commute friendly.
gazzab said:
Chim and Cerbera couldnt be more different. OK They share some styling but thats as far as it goes.
Chim the better every day car, chim the easier car to live with , chim more reliable, chim MUCH cheaper to run but still expensive etc.......
What do you want the car for ?
Whats your budget.
Tread carefully in the sub 18K cerb bracket.
Do you know about the engines etc?
Most AJP Cerbs and most Chims will not have had major engine work. They have niggle problems but not engine problems generally.
A Chim will generally cost £1000 - £1500 outside of dealerships a yearto run plus fuel and ins.
A cerb will be about £3k pa.
If you cant afford £3K for a cerb then dont do it.
The cerb is the better handling car of the two. The cerb is faster. The cerb is a supercar bargain. The chim is a modern classic.
If you look at S6 Cerbs then tread more carefully.
Have you thought about a griff or a Tuscan?
If it is your first TVR I would say go gor a 4.5 ltr Chim or a 5ltr Griff.
Used my 1997 4.5 Cerbera daily and only had the fan thermostat fail. My Chimaera on the other hand had loads of niggles...sticky brake calliper, clutch seal failure, cooling system leaks etc etc. I agree thatCerbera servicing is more expensive but find a good independant and its bearable (my worst sevice bill on the Cerb was £1600).I also agree that the Cerb probably isnt the best 1st TVR as it is sooooo capable. It really does depend on the individual car you buy.
cerbyt said:
Used my 1997 4.5 Cerbera daily and only had the fan thermostat fail. My Chimaera on the other hand had loads of niggles...sticky brake calliper, clutch seal failure, cooling system leaks etc etc. I agree thatCerbera servicing is more expensive but find a good independant and its bearable (my worst sevice bill on the Cerb was £1600).I also agree that the Cerb probably isnt the best 1st TVR as it is sooooo capable. It really does depend on the individual car you buy.
suggest your experiences are not representative. The chances are that the avg Cerb will cost at least twice the avg Chim to run. Albeit your £1600 bill suggests that you must have had more to fix than just service costs.
We have done 10k miles in our 98 R Reg Griff since we got it in May last year - with zero reliability problems.
It is reckoned that you should budget a couple of grand per year for 'rainy day' contingencies so 15k should get you into decent Chims and Griffs I would have thought.
It is also a prevailing thought that these cars are better off used so daily use would be ideal!
Whatever you get you will enjoy!
It is reckoned that you should budget a couple of grand per year for 'rainy day' contingencies so 15k should get you into decent Chims and Griffs I would have thought.
It is also a prevailing thought that these cars are better off used so daily use would be ideal!
Whatever you get you will enjoy!
www.pistonheads.com/sales/53643.htm
couple of lovely 97/98 Griffs for sale.
Tempted myself for the wife.
couple of lovely 97/98 Griffs for sale.
Tempted myself for the wife.
gazzab said:
In reply i have a max of £17K
will use it daily for work etc
dont know about the engines
not thought about the griff or tuscan due to budget
i take the £1000 - £1500 is for service and general running?
as you can see my knowledge of the cars is very limited therefore all advise will be useful
Cheers
Graeme
£1000 - £1500 (or £3K) is for servicing and repairs AND excludes tyres, fuel and insurance. Do lots of miles and this number can go up a lot!
£17K gets you some of best Chims but cheaper end Cerbs.
Need more info re your reqs realy to judge the best car for you.
Qs
1) How many miles pa
2) Are you very handy with spanners
3) Can you afford £3k pa for servicing and repairs?
4)Can you afford less than 20mpg
5) Are you chlled out with the odd breakdown
6) Where will you source a car from?
7) Do you want a convertible?
8) Do you have kids?
9) Do you want to track the car (regularly)?
10) Are you used to very fast cars?
11) Which car do you really WANT?
BUT so far I say get a 4.5 Chim or a 5ltr Griff.
>> Edited by gazzab on Sunday 8th January 22:38
Thanks for all your help so for but just to answer these questions
1) About 4-5K
2) Not really but i will have ago
3) Not if i spend top budget
4) Not a problem
5) So long as it is odd
6) Still looking there are so many private & trade one's around dealer i will pay top dollar, private alot less. I would sooner get something with some warrenty if possible at least for the first six months.
7) Prefer a convertible but am very open
8) No all grown up now, just me and the wife who would not be driving it.
9) Never
10) Had a couple in my time with the Integrale been the fastest.
11) Not sure at the moment i need to see a Chim to make up my mind
Cheers
Graeme
The problem is you are likely to fall for a particular model and all sense will be lost as you'll find a way to justify everything to yourself so as to have it in your garage - its the way of all TVRs
Get to a local dealer or Indy and explain your situation (be slightly optimistic with budget as you're looking at private with your budget) and get a drive of the two to see what you think.
Thinking with the head, the advise of the 4.5 Chim is best, not paying the premium of the 5.) but still blisteringly fast. But the Cerbera, well I'm obviously biased, but there is nothing like it
Get to a local dealer or Indy and explain your situation (be slightly optimistic with budget as you're looking at private with your budget) and get a drive of the two to see what you think.
Thinking with the head, the advise of the 4.5 Chim is best, not paying the premium of the 5.) but still blisteringly fast. But the Cerbera, well I'm obviously biased, but there is nothing like it
Just looking for that special Chim myself, hopefully will buy this Friday! 
Anyway, have been told that as an everyday driver try not to drive for less than 8 miles at any time. The V8 likes to be warmed up and cars that only drive 5 mins or a couple of miles are likely to see problems.
Also agree that the 450 is the pick of the bunch, don't get the 500 unless you like brown-trouser moments. Buy the latest you can afford, age, service history and condition are more important than milage (apparently).
Anyway, have been told that as an everyday driver try not to drive for less than 8 miles at any time. The V8 likes to be warmed up and cars that only drive 5 mins or a couple of miles are likely to see problems.
Also agree that the 450 is the pick of the bunch, don't get the 500 unless you like brown-trouser moments. Buy the latest you can afford, age, service history and condition are more important than milage (apparently).
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