New Cerb 4.2 Owner

[Bigadz]

Hi all,

The start of my Cerb relationship began on the 23rd of December, she is a clatter cam 4.2, 97 in Rosso Red and she has done a reasonable 67k. I took time to do the necessary checks on outriggers, clutch, tappets, electrics, and credit to the previous owner who really has kept her in fine condition, the bodywork has very few stone chips at all and the grey leather is spotless. I have fallen in love!

Couple of questions maybe some of you could help,

They seem to run fairly warm, I have read this is normal, the fans do cut in at 95 and bring stabilise it at 90, just shifting about in slow traffic it seems to creep up but from what I have read this is quite normal anyway?

I need a new sub, looks like an 8" is this correct? I found a Pioneer TS-SSW841D which has a shallow depth fit so should do the job.

Is there anything I should do straight away as new Cerb owner, other than drive her ass off!?

Edit: I just remembered, my Rev needle is a bit crazy, seems to swing wildly before stabilising, any ideas?

Edited by Bigadz on Wednesday 28th December 13:13

[scotty_d]

Hi Welcome to the fold. As for heat i have never seen my car above 90 even in heavy traffic or on a hard track day. I do however have a big cooling Aid in my bonnet but i think yours sounds normal for a standard car.

As for the sub it is a After market thing in a Cerb mine came with a 8" sub but one of the first things i did was get shot of it and fit the helmet holder back in , And get my Track day lid in

My rev gauge does this as well always has since i have owned the car never really bothered me as it does it in between shifts then steady's up bit of a pain but i can live with it. But i hope some one has a answer or a easy fix. I have heard the 100 amp fuse can cause this but not in my case as i have changed mine out for a midi fuse and the issue is still there.

[Bigadz]

Thanks scotty,

I read about the fuse idea but some people said it has no effect so was unsure. I guess a big air vent in the bonnet helps with these!? I can see why they run quite warm with the block being sat so far back and having relatively little ventilation as standard.

[scotty_d]

As for things to do to the car just make sure it is all healthy and in good order and make sure your chassis is protected with something particularly at this time of year with all the salt and road grim.

And just enjoy and be careful out there at this time of year i don't drive my TVR's much over the winter more summer time toys.

[Bigadz]

Yeah I wasnt planning on using the car much at this time of the year. I am into detailing so I will be carrying out painttwork correction in the next few days anyway, just with the odd run about to keep her fresh when the weather is decent enough, luckily the weather has kept the roads salt free so far..

[robsco]

Congratulations on the purchase. The rev counter is part of the charm I'm afraid - it might be worth replacing the big fuse but if that doesn't help then the rev counter might need to be taken apart, sent away and refurbished (which I understand to be a pain in the backside). I just live with it and chuckle to myself when it does the "dance of life" around the gauge through gearchanges.

As for engine temperatures, that sounds fairly normal. When I took my cats off it reduced the temps about 10 degrees so mine runs at around 80 under normal circumstances, creeping up to about 90 in traffic but rarely any higher. Cat removal will make cabin temperatures more bearable in the summer months too.

[gerradiuk]

Hi Big welcome to Cerbdom!

Mine seemed to get hot & it was because the fans were not kicking in, guage used to travel up at an alarming rate ! so as a matter ofcourse i would fit a new one of these : http://www.thetvrshop.com/TVR/Parts_details/TVR%20...
& you might as well get this as well
https://delta.securesslhost.net/~shenglt/catalog/p... then go for this (Free)
http://www.thetvrsite.com/cerbera/ecu-diagnostic-s...
There you go mate, have fun & enjoy the SOUND!!

[C3BER]

You must run these cars and I mean must. Keeps the air flowing inside to stop damp and the rubbers nice and rubbery . Your discs will go rusty very quickly due to heat and the cold air so keep them clean with more driving. My milage is 64k on a 2001 plate and runs like a dream.

[Bigadz]

Thanks for the feedback guys, I will look into the sensor issue. Good to know there are a few Cerbs out there which have done a few miles now.

[Jcerb]

I would say keep any eye on your tyre pressures! When i first had mine the rear drivers side was down about 5 psi iirc and i got a major tank slapper when racing someone on a straight(accelerating hard in 2nd) which resulted bouncing back, front, back, front into the kurb which was st scary, luckily just damaged the wheels but tought me to respect the beast!!

[Byker28i]

Welcome to ownership. I have exactly the same car. Well done on buying the nicest, fastest colour

Get the diagnostic software and see whether the gauge is reading correctly
http://www.thetvrsite.com/

It could be that the capillary pipe is running close to the exhaust and getting heat from that. Mine runs around 80 on a run, 90 in traffic at this time of year, but when I first got it it ran 95-105. New rad rebuild, rerouting the capilary and a mod to the ecu to bring the fans on 5 degrees earlier (done when I had the car mapped) all helped.

I take it the sub is in the helmet holder space between the rear seats? If do then thats an aftermarket fit and it's probably easiest to take out the speaker and replace with a similar item. There's quite a lot of room there for the gap so not sure you'd need a shallow depth speaker. I have a Pioneer under seat subwoofer fitted under the helmet holder as it's 80mm high. I just needed to trim out a little of the base of the helmet holder but it works great. Only 150W but it's enough to add fill.

Check the oil regularly, check the tyre pressures regularly, try to drive it regularly as they like being driven. Use an optimate or similar battery conditioner to keep the battery charged when not in use.
This time of year drive carefully, don't put your foot down unless in a straight line. They will wheelspin easily in first and second if treated harshly and it's easy to provoke the back end to step out.

Keep an eye on the corners of the outriggers/chassis, especially behind the front wheels. They are a mud trap which will lead to corrosion.

Oh and check out the website above for lots of useful stuff. Wiring diagrams etc.

[Byker28i]

rev needle swinging - replace the big fuse. It's a good indication usually that the fuse has cracked. It's situated on the very back of the engine. Take of the valence and look down where two thick black power leads run in. There's a black plastic capped holder.

When you put the new fuse in, if needed file out the spade terminal gaps so there's no strain on fitting.

[Bigadz]

Thanks Byker, I was very happy to get this colour and maybe a bit lucky as well...

I shall look at replacing that fuse, is it a standard type?

The speaker is in the middle of the rear seats yes, I found quite a nice German sub - Helix Esprit which is very subtle which looks quite nice and not too shouty.

Also what tyre pressures are favoured? Mine has the 4.5 wheels on it.

[Jcerb]

Hi Bigadz. I run RL7's: 245/40/17(R)(26 PSI) and 235/40/17(f)(24 PSI) I recently used this profile as it is bang on with the sat nav, used to run 16" saturns 245/45/16(R) and 225/49/16(F) so keeping rolling radius the same, I ran the same pressures in the saturns. Also if the suspension is tired the transformation of decent coilovers makes a world of difference! So much more stable. Mines done 65,000 had it for a year and done 4,000. I find the main problems with the cars are people/dealers bodging things. This is why they become unreliable recently i found my 100 amp fuse had lost an end and had been wedged under the terminal! Thats why the alternator wasn't working(as it worked lose!), so i'd change that just as a precaution. Check coil packs aren't cracked around their potting compound(shiny top)as water drains in when you wash them and causes them to miss fire. The guys on here are a great bunch as you can see to lend a helping hand

[Bigadz]

Thanks J really useful post, interesting to know as your mileage and useage is very similar to mine. You guys have been very useful already!

I have T1-R's I need to check but I am pretty sure they are 255/40/17 Rear and 235/40/17 Front. They are quite lowish pressures but It sounds like it makes sense. My car has recently fitted Gaz Golds and Polybushed (I need to verify the bushes have been done). It seems like simple things such as fuses are the route of many problems from what I have read!

She is a noisy one when started but does settle down after a few mins. Its just been serviced, clutch 6k ago and a rather large bill for outriggers earlier in June so touch wood all looks okay for the time being mechanically.
I have read about some 4.5's being rebuilt but not so many 4.2' AJP's. Am I right in thinking that this is less common for the slightly less stressed 4.2's to be rebuilt? I think I will need to get a trickle charger for the battery as well, as the car may have periods of a couple of weeks with no running.

[scotty_d]

I run 17" wheels with that profile around 25 psi ish. i start there and tweek them depending on what i am doing. Mostly let more air our if anything.

Will be running spiders next year for road use if there stay round lol

[tonywilliams]

Hi and welcome to Cerbera ownership. I've only had my Cerb about 4 months.

The temprature on my Cerb usually stays between 80 and 90 although in traffic or town driving will start to creap up, the 2 fans should cut in at 95 and 98 degrees and switch off again when the temprature drops to 90. The temprature gauge can over read in some cars although the fans work at the correct temprature, the only way to confirm this is with a laptop plugged in.

As someone else has said drive it regularly to help keep the damp out and all should be fine.

[Byker28i]

I run 24 psi on my tyres - I use Eagle F1's but T1-r's are also good.

I have 235/40 - 17 on the front, 255/40-17 on the rear. I'm running RL7's as well.

[Bigadz]

Thanks, I will be giving her a run out this weekend, after she gets some wax so I will adjust them then.

[HarryW]

Byker28i said:

I run 24 psi on my tyres - I use Eagle F1's but T1-r's are also good.

I have 235/40 - 17 on the front, 255/40-17 on the rear. I'm running RL7's as well.

24 all round works for me.