TVR Chimaera | PH Auction Block
PH Auctions are finally here! Obviously there was only one place to start...
Hard to believe that PistonHeads has been the home of buying and selling enthusiast-owned cars for 25 years now. And even when you're not in the market, we all know the classifieds have a way of drawing you back in, like a moth to a laptop screen. There's just too much good stuff out there - and too few hours in the day to look at it.
Well, the time has come to allocate us even more procrastinating time, folks. PH Auctions has finally landed, and our first batch of cars will be going live over the next few days. The opening round covers the very best of PH, with hot hatches, track tools and supercars all represented. We'll get to those in due course, but when your foundations are built on Blackpool rock, there was only one place for us to begin. So in a masterstroke of organisation (and definitely not the result of lucking out), we’ve got this stunning British Racing Green TVR Chimaera to signal the start of a new era.
Launched in 1992 as a grand touring-orientated alternative to the Griffith, the Chimaera was an immediate hit and would ultimately go on to become the best-selling model in the firm's history. It was such a hit that TVR is said to have built more Chimaeras between its year of release and its discontinuation in 2003 than the marque’s entire back catalogue combined. Don’t think of the Chimaera as the Griffith’s ‘accessible’ sibling, mind. Yes, it was a little more softly sprung than the Griff, but the car still featured independent double wishbone suspension all round and a complete absence of driver assists. The full TVR experience then, only now a touch more forgiving on longer journeys.
Like all British sports cars ever, the Chimaera was offered with an assortment of engines. This 1995 example comes with the Rover 4.0-litre V8 up front, developing 240hp, 270lb ft of torque and one hell of a rumble. Remember, there’s little over a tonne of metal, glass fibre and leather to shift, which is why the Chimaera is able to muster a 0-60mph sprint in just 5.1 seconds with, relatively speaking, not a huge amount of grunt. It’ll be absolutely brimming with feedback, too, with the steering free of assistance and a long, weighty throttle pedal serving as your only form of traction control.
Of course, that’s all part of the excitement of TVR ownership. Crucially, though, you’ll want to head into this one with the knowledge that it’s been well-maintained by someone who knows their TVRs inside and out. Thankfully, the seller of this Chimaera looks to be of that ilk. Having covered a little over 49,000 miles since 1995, the car has undergone a full Waxoyl protection underneath, along with new seals for the gearbox and differential. Polybushed suspension will have the ride feeling as tight as a drum, while a replacement engine gasket should ensure the Rover V8 keeps burbling away for many more miles to come.
Save for a few stone chips here and there - which is obviously to be expected of a 28-year-old car - the Chimaera is said to be in pristine condition. And just look at the interior. A mix of green and cream leather matches the exterior perfectly, especially the green carpets that extend all the way up to the door inserts. It’s something the general public really needs to see (and hear), so pop the targa top off and make the most of the late summer we’re apparently in for. The first round of PH Auctions officially opens on Saturday, so there's plenty of time to prepare an opening bid!
SPECIFICATION | TVR CHIMAERA
Engine: 3,950cc V8
Transmission: six-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 240@5,250rpm
Torque (lb ft): 270@4,000rpm
MPG: N/A
CO2: N/A
Year registered: 1995
Recorded mileage: 49,000
I've now had 5 and this one may be nice but IME, no pas rules it out. Yes, on the move, it's actually a nicer steer (I had a '96 Chimaera without), but at parking speeds, far too hard to turn.
Hopefully PH have done their diligence on the car, paperwork and sellers to give you some piece of mind - certainly better than a private sale and lots of documented details of each car being offered. I believe they will all be on display at the PH 25 year party this month too.
Before placing a bid, it is your responsibility to conduct research on the vehicle.
So just like a typical auction, even eBay would be a safer bet for buyers because you can walk with no payment if it's not up to snuff, here they want you cash once the auction has ended, or they'll at least settle for the buyers 6% fee.
Before placing a bid, it is your responsibility to conduct research on the vehicle.
So just like a typical auction, even eBay would be a safer bet for buyers because you can walk with no payment if it's not up to snuff, here they want you cash once the auction has ended, or they'll at least settle for the buyers 6% fee.
The ebay model is awful. Someone can waste 7 or 10 days bidding to win your car and at the end of the auction just say nah, changed my mind. There's no real deterrent and no way of stopping it. It's brilliant free entertainment for idiots.
Having to register and knowing there'll be an immediate hefty commission debit the moment you win the auction will deter the vast majority of timewasters and chancers.
Oh, and people love them. Only Saturday I had someone next to me in a queue of traffic wind his window down and shout "Give it a blip for me mate" accompanied by a massive grin and thumbs up.
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