Heated Gear Knob
Discussion
A 2002 car should have the heat sink fitted, which should have been retro fitted to early cars, so you will just have to get used to it. Mind you, worth getting your dealer to check it as someone who was supposed to have fitted it at TVR during build might have simply forgotten. Roof off hot sun on a long drive my knob gets particularly hot, but not too hot to touch 
Cheers
Whitey
Cheers
Whitey
It only gets comfortably warm. If the heatsink is fitted, would you expect it to get warm rather than hot? If so, that would suggest the presence of a heatsink on my car (registered June '02). If, on the other hand, the knob should remain stone cold then the heat sink ain't there.
Frankly I quite like it. Doesn't bother me at all.
Frankly I quite like it. Doesn't bother me at all.
itchy said:
Just picked up an 02 Tuscan 4.0 a few weeks ago. Imagine my delight when I discovered the undocumented, comes-as-standard heated gear knob. Bonus!
I was really dissapointed that my new Tuscan S Mark 2 doesn't have this - you know what they say, 'cold hands, warm heart'....
Evidentally, after complaints about hot gear knobs they found a way to overcome this :-(
"My knob is rather warm but not hot, it is a great comfort on a cold winters morning to warm my left hand gently on my warm knob."
...yes, a great comfort if the door does not open accidentaly while you are driving, if the rev counter finally decides to go over 600 rpm at idle, if some seal does not come undone and you start seeing white smoke, if the window, boot lid and door decide that they will work and let you in for that matter, if the gears will engage without a fight, if the engine revs up without hesitation and does not request yet another adjustment costing 2-3 hundred pounds, if the indicator does not fill up with water and slowly begin rusting away, if the speedometer decides to work and not go from 0 to 200 miles and stay there recording milage while you are stuck in traffic, if you can open your oil and coolant tanks to fill up on the necessary fluids, if the seat manages to stay in place and not throw you back under accelaration, if you ever do manage to achieve the claimed speed of 165mph+, if the LCD screen does not get stuck in false alarm mode (check electronic injection!) while the car decides to run without any faults -for a change...if, if ,if, if...
I am sick and tired of my Tuscan...on a bright sunny day with the roof down on a country road and the exhaust purring, it is heaven on earth...an unprecedented experience...the rest of the time I long for my M3! I believe I own one of the finest most looked after beautiful (crystal topaz)2001 examples...the engine has shown no signs of breaking down and apart from the aforementioned problems it is far more reliable than your average Tuscan...I find the handling, the brakes and the accelaration superb...no complaints there...but I am going to sell it! I will buy a brand new Exige with that reliable 1.8 Toyota engine and bult quality and stop worrying about what little thing will go wrong next to annoy me, ruin my weekend or send me for an uneccessary visit to the TVR centre...I am not sure I can announce it here (is there a classifieds section?), but my "Karmin" us up for sale...look out for her...if you can put up with her little ways, then she will put a smile on your face...me? Well, I am getting too old for this sh1t...
...yes, a great comfort if the door does not open accidentaly while you are driving, if the rev counter finally decides to go over 600 rpm at idle, if some seal does not come undone and you start seeing white smoke, if the window, boot lid and door decide that they will work and let you in for that matter, if the gears will engage without a fight, if the engine revs up without hesitation and does not request yet another adjustment costing 2-3 hundred pounds, if the indicator does not fill up with water and slowly begin rusting away, if the speedometer decides to work and not go from 0 to 200 miles and stay there recording milage while you are stuck in traffic, if you can open your oil and coolant tanks to fill up on the necessary fluids, if the seat manages to stay in place and not throw you back under accelaration, if you ever do manage to achieve the claimed speed of 165mph+, if the LCD screen does not get stuck in false alarm mode (check electronic injection!) while the car decides to run without any faults -for a change...if, if ,if, if...
I am sick and tired of my Tuscan...on a bright sunny day with the roof down on a country road and the exhaust purring, it is heaven on earth...an unprecedented experience...the rest of the time I long for my M3! I believe I own one of the finest most looked after beautiful (crystal topaz)2001 examples...the engine has shown no signs of breaking down and apart from the aforementioned problems it is far more reliable than your average Tuscan...I find the handling, the brakes and the accelaration superb...no complaints there...but I am going to sell it! I will buy a brand new Exige with that reliable 1.8 Toyota engine and bult quality and stop worrying about what little thing will go wrong next to annoy me, ruin my weekend or send me for an uneccessary visit to the TVR centre...I am not sure I can announce it here (is there a classifieds section?), but my "Karmin" us up for sale...look out for her...if you can put up with her little ways, then she will put a smile on your face...me? Well, I am getting too old for this sh1t...
Did you really just devalue the car you are considering selling?
I'd hope that trusty Toyota engine in the Lotus will prevent any window/bootlid/door/speedo/tight coolant cap/tricky seat/false alarm issues.
Was the breaking point the warm gear knob (& hence your reason for posting on this thread) ?
I'd hope that trusty Toyota engine in the Lotus will prevent any window/bootlid/door/speedo/tight coolant cap/tricky seat/false alarm issues.
Was the breaking point the warm gear knob (& hence your reason for posting on this thread) ?
Hmm, I suppose in the scheme of things the 'heated gear knob' is a minor issue. For me it just teaches me to change gear quicker!
Certainly not a reason to buy a Lotus... My two penneth is that I have bought a car for a little over 20 grand which has the looks, sound and performance of a car which would cost 100k. Whilst each one of us would like major engine issues to go away, and the little annoying faults such as seals not to happen, I would expect that almost no-one on here has the funds to go out and spend 100k on a Ferrari, Lambo or similar. The other option is to opt for a more 'everyday' car. The other is to loose a bit of the performance and looks and go for a Lotus.
I'm still happy with my Tuscan, with the niggles. In the scheme of things in the value for money stakes I think I'll always be a winner, but each to his own!
Certainly not a reason to buy a Lotus... My two penneth is that I have bought a car for a little over 20 grand which has the looks, sound and performance of a car which would cost 100k. Whilst each one of us would like major engine issues to go away, and the little annoying faults such as seals not to happen, I would expect that almost no-one on here has the funds to go out and spend 100k on a Ferrari, Lambo or similar. The other option is to opt for a more 'everyday' car. The other is to loose a bit of the performance and looks and go for a Lotus.
I'm still happy with my Tuscan, with the niggles. In the scheme of things in the value for money stakes I think I'll always be a winner, but each to his own!
Hmm, I suppose in the scheme of things the 'heated gear knob' is a minor issue. For me it just teaches me to change gear quicker!
Certainly not a reason to buy a Lotus... My two penneth is that I have bought a car for a little over 20 grand which has the looks, sound and performance of a car which would cost 100k. Whilst each one of us would like major engine issues to go away, and the little annoying faults such as seals not to happen, I would expect that almost no-one on here has the funds to go out and spend 100k on a Ferrari, Lambo or similar. The other option is to opt for a more 'everyday' car. The other is to loose a bit of the performance and looks and go for a Lotus.
I'm still happy with my Tuscan, with the niggles. In the scheme of things in the value for money stakes I think I'll always be a winner, but each to his own!
Certainly not a reason to buy a Lotus... My two penneth is that I have bought a car for a little over 20 grand which has the looks, sound and performance of a car which would cost 100k. Whilst each one of us would like major engine issues to go away, and the little annoying faults such as seals not to happen, I would expect that almost no-one on here has the funds to go out and spend 100k on a Ferrari, Lambo or similar. The other option is to opt for a more 'everyday' car. The other is to loose a bit of the performance and looks and go for a Lotus.
I'm still happy with my Tuscan, with the niggles. In the scheme of things in the value for money stakes I think I'll always be a winner, but each to his own!
"Did you really just devalue the car you are considering selling?"
When I went to exchange my M3 for a Tuscan the kind dealer and the homework I had done on the subject ensured that I knew exactly what I was getting myself in for...I think it is fair to do so with anyone who is buying a car -especially a TVR- off you. For TVR standards my car is mint and what I am mostly sick and tired off is that there is always something to fix...i.e: I have fixed it!
"I'd hope that trusty Toyota engine in the Lotus will prevent any window/bootlid/door/speedo/tight coolant cap/tricky seat/false alarm issues."
...if you did read to the end of my sentence you would have noticed the term "built quality" which would have most likely prevented the above sarcastic remark...At the same time, a reluctance to exceed 600rpm from idle is an engine -albeit secondary- issue which needed to be addressed by balancing the throttle bodies and changing the spark plugs and the plug leads...(which resolved the problem until the next time I will need to dish out 2-300 pounds on tuning the speed 6 on top of the £1,200 for the service).
I was made aware of all of the above before falling in love with and buying the car. I will ensure that the same goes for the next owner, who can then make an informed choice.
I hope the above clarifies the situation.
When I went to exchange my M3 for a Tuscan the kind dealer and the homework I had done on the subject ensured that I knew exactly what I was getting myself in for...I think it is fair to do so with anyone who is buying a car -especially a TVR- off you. For TVR standards my car is mint and what I am mostly sick and tired off is that there is always something to fix...i.e: I have fixed it!
"I'd hope that trusty Toyota engine in the Lotus will prevent any window/bootlid/door/speedo/tight coolant cap/tricky seat/false alarm issues."
...if you did read to the end of my sentence you would have noticed the term "built quality" which would have most likely prevented the above sarcastic remark...At the same time, a reluctance to exceed 600rpm from idle is an engine -albeit secondary- issue which needed to be addressed by balancing the throttle bodies and changing the spark plugs and the plug leads...(which resolved the problem until the next time I will need to dish out 2-300 pounds on tuning the speed 6 on top of the £1,200 for the service).
I was made aware of all of the above before falling in love with and buying the car. I will ensure that the same goes for the next owner, who can then make an informed choice.
I hope the above clarifies the situation.
Slightly late to this post, but my July 2003 also has a tendency to have a gear knob which is mildly short of "roasting" - accompanied by the handbrake which is also very very toasty after anything more than an hour of driving.
Given the age of the car, I would have expected the factory heat-sink to have been fitted? Any similar experiences or poss solutions?
Given the age of the car, I would have expected the factory heat-sink to have been fitted? Any similar experiences or poss solutions?
Have a late 2003 (Lady Topaz first love)) and the gear knob only ever gets warmish - no probs with hand brake so can only surmise that the factory fitted the heat sink mods in the middle of 2003?
Can't really see problems with "hottish" gear knobs unless you drive with left hand permanently on the gear stick and not on the steering wheel
Can't really see problems with "hottish" gear knobs unless you drive with left hand permanently on the gear stick and not on the steering wheel
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