Looking to buy - Some thoughts on these Cerberas

[Onz]

First time posting in the Cerbera section!

Having had a house purchase fall through at the last minute I've decided to sack off looking for another for the time being and invest (!) in a second car for the forseeable future, after much thought I think I've settled on finding a Cerbera.

I've done plenty of reading (and lurking) on the TVR and Cerbera forums recently trying to prepare myself - looks like it may take a little time to find the right one but I'm in no great rush!

I wonder if I may get your thoughts on a couple of cars that meet my (loose) budget and criteria:

Firstly a trade car: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1631382.htm does anyone here know of the car or the garage that is selling it? The fact their website doesn't give a specific address for the garage and the only contact number is a mobile rings some alarm bells to me!

Secondly, a private car: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1691118.htm I've seen that this is owned by a PH member which gives a degree of comfort and seen the post in this forum regarding his advert. My main query here is your thoughts on buying a car that has been DIY serviced - not so much with regards to whether it is 'ok' but more with regards to selling it on - whether it will detract prospective buyers?

Thanks for any help you can offer

[DanTVR]

Firstly, congratulations on an excellent choice! After owning a good cerbera you will never look back. Secondly I would go for the private car. I agree that the diy servicing can put some people off but if its an enthusiast car you can bet that any work will have been done to a high standard. Dare I say better than some tvr independents. Best advice I can give you is to get the car fully inspected for peace of mind. Iirc the seller encourages this in his advert. I bought my car from a PHer and you can tell its a much better example of the breed than some non enthusiast cars I have seen. Good luck!

[Gray_101]

DanTVR said:

Firstly, congratulations on an excellent choice! After owning a good cerbera you will never look back. Secondly I would go for the private car. I agree that the diy servicing can put some people off but if its an enthusiast car you can bet that any work will have been done to a high standard. Dare I say better than some tvr independents. Best advice I can give you is to get the car fully inspected for peace of mind. Iirc the seller encourages this in his advert. I bought my car from a PHer and you can tell its a much better example of the breed than some non enthusiast cars I have seen. Good luck!

+1

I think the private car is well worth a look

Edited by Gray_101 on Thursday 6th May 09:59

[JensenA]

Gray_101 said:

DanTVR said:

Firstly, congratulations on an excellent choice! After owning a good cerbera you will never look back. Secondly I would go for the private car. I agree that the diy servicing can put some people off but if its an enthusiast car you can bet that any work will have been done to a high standard. Dare I say better than some tvr independents. Best advice I can give you is to get the car fully inspected for peace of mind. Iirc the seller encourages this in his advert. I bought my car from a PHer and you can tell its a much better example of the breed than some non enthusiast cars I have seen. Good luck!

+1

I think the private car is well worth a look

Edited by Gray_101 on Thursday 6th May 09:59

+ 1 to both the above

[peteA]

Onz said:

First time posting in the Cerbera section!

Having had a house purchase fall through at the last minute I've decided to sack off looking for another for the time being and invest (!) in a second car for the forseeable future, after much thought I think I've settled on finding a Cerbera.

I've done plenty of reading (and lurking) on the TVR and Cerbera forums recently trying to prepare myself - looks like it may take a little time to find the right one but I'm in no great rush!

I wonder if I may get your thoughts on a couple of cars that meet my (loose) budget and criteria:

Firstly a trade car: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1631382.htm does anyone here know of the car or the garage that is selling it? The fact their website doesn't give a specific address for the garage and the only contact number is a mobile rings some alarm bells to me!

Secondly, a private car: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1691118.htm I've seen that this is owned by a PH member which gives a degree of comfort and seen the post in this forum regarding his advert. My main query here is your thoughts on buying a car that has been DIY serviced - not so much with regards to whether it is 'ok' but more with regards to selling it on - whether it will detract prospective buyers?

Thanks for any help you can offer

Private car - don't be put off by self service - these cars are of an age now where some DIY servicing will be common...at the end of the day its a TVR and will demand some TLC! I do a lot of work on my own car but also use local independants - last work was tappet check/adjustment at SSCC.

Trade car - don't know the garage so cant comment.

Best tip is to go and see as many as you can and buy on condition...try not to have an exact spec in mind as trying to find the perfect car will be difficult. Use the search facility to look up some of the often asked questions.

Good luck and enjoy - you wont regret buying a cerb!

[Byker28i]

The second one is a known good car.
Check out: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

I've been trying to persuade someone at work to look at it rather than a tuscan

[.Mark]

peteA said:

...try not to have an exact spec in mind as trying to find the perfect car will be difficult. Use the search facility to look up some of the often asked questions.

Good luck and enjoy - you wont regret buying a cerb!

The perfect car - especially a Cerbera is damn difficult to find. I'm a fussy so and so when it comes to colour combo's but in the last week or so may just have found the right one.

It's difficult not to buy the first one you see, but if you hold out long enough then the right one may just be round the corner. Having a TVR to drive already, does, I find, make the waiting a little easier.

[bobbins]

Yep - don't rush in. I was looking for two years before buying. Get to see as many as you can and if you can get lifts out in them so much the better, it'll help.

Take good condition and chassis over colour and mileage.