T350c Running Costs

[NailedOn]

I am driving my T350c around 4,000 to 6,000 p.a. It is garaged and well maintained. No non-standard extras on top of the original Red Rose spec.
I am finding myself in a never ending sequence of repairs: Is this usual or am in the middle of a cluster?

The car has the original engine and gearbox with 40,000 on the clock.
I thought it was in good shape when I bought it but it is costing about £3-4k p.a. in service and repairs.

So far I have not even changed the tyres and exhaust but bar a full-on blow out it seems that everything that can go wrong does. (I am touching wood here given the SP6 choc box tendency)
I am happy to pay for consumables but do these cars age gracefully or are they a money pit?

I will not list the repairs so as not to identify the car and dealer. If I am being ripped off they are doing it nicely! I don't think for a moment they are because mainly I am taking the car in with fault after fault.

Not happy...

[ShiDevil]

Correct me if i'm wrong, but you had a Tamora, which will have pretty much the same issues, so how did that compare?

[Choo]

I had my T350 for 2 years or so and it was pretty much bullet proof. Was doing about the same mileage, wasn't red rose but was very much consumable based. Had a couple of niggles on the sag but neither have really been a money pit. Have you thought of taking it to another specialist for an another perspective? Happy to PM and discuss too.

[NailedOn]

ShiDevil said:

Correct me if i'm wrong, but you had a Tamora, which will have pretty much the same issues, so how did that compare?

You are correct! I had a Tam RR from new. It ran like clockwork but had water ingress from the hood that could not be fixed. I traded it for my first T350c, also new. I ran that for two years without any particular problems. That is what lead me to buy another.
I guess my concern is that age is catching up. The car is a late 2003. So older than my Tam & first T350c.
It feels like I am funding a classic!

[Don1]

How are the £3-4k costs breaking down? (Sorry, poor choice of words).

[shorts!]

I budget for about £1000 per 5000 miles for normal servicing and consumables. I average 20-25000miles a year (and have done for 9 years) so consumables include clutches, discs and pretty much everything apart from any painting or rebuild costs.
hopefully you are going through a bad pstch and thee next year will be cheaper.

[Skipe]

In my 4 years of ownership my car has cost roughly £3k per annum on average, I do between 4-5k per year and don't do any maintenance myself because I'm a clown with that stuff all my expenses go through Str8six pretty much.

That average also includes the engine going in 2011 so all in all i think your just having a bad run.

Hope the luck changes.

Edited by Skipe on Friday 14th June 13:37

[NailedOn]

Don1 said:

How are the £3-4k costs breaking down? (Sorry, poor choice of words).

Thanks for the replies and email advice.

Here's the approximate list of work:
Throttle bodies
Clutch & flywheel
Springs & shockers
Radiator & fan
Major anti-corrosion work on chassis
Various oil leaks from gearbox and diff
New diff
Various rattles and groans

I have not (yet) replaced the engine or box, or the tyres or exhaust.
In addition to the above the car has an annual service.

I've checked the invoices and it is a tad under £3k p.a including services. I drive around 4k a year so 75p/mile maintenance is too high.
I was loosely planning to keep the car around another 4 or 5 years, but if it is going to set me back another £12-15k in that time. it's going to have to go.

[m4tti]

NailedOn said:

Thanks for the replies and email advice.

Here's the approximate list of work:
Throttle bodies
Clutch & flywheel
Springs & shockers
Radiator & fan
Major anti-corrosion work on chassis
Various oil leaks from gearbox and diff
New diff
Various rattles and groans

I have not (yet) replaced the engine or box, or the tyres or exhaust.
In addition to the above the car has an annual service.

I've checked the invoices and it is a tad under £3k p.a including services. I drive around 4k a year so 75p/mile maintenance is too high.
I was loosely planning to keep the car around another 4 or 5 years, but if it is going to set me back another £12-15k in that time. it's going to have to go.

Hold on... the stuff youve listed above will likely never have to be done again. At least not for the next 5 years:

Throttle bodies
Clutch & flywheel
Springs & shockers
Radiator & fan
Major anti-corrosion work on chassis

Most of the above I did on the Tuscan in the first year. You should be servicing now going forward..

[leef44]

Sorry to hear about your situation but I get the feeling that it is not drastically out of proportion but on the high end. I do about 2000 miles a year in my 2003 car (34k on the clock). All in I spend £1.5k to £2k p.a. (i.e. service, repairs, checks on niggly things which tend to end up being nothing but my paranoia - nothing found and problem goes away). I'm a complete numpty at these things so slightest thing I take it to my local TVR specialist to get looked at.

But then if you work out cost per mile then I'm higher than you. But then I don't think it really works like that. I think the minimum is about £1.5k p.a. (averaged over a few years)

[Don1]

I would say that most of the jobs done so far should be one-off jobs - the servicing costs should die down to the normal amount, unless you are bit by the modifying bug!

[Hoolio]

Skipe said:

In my 4 years of ownership my car has cost roughly £3k per annum on average, I do between 4-5k per year and don't do any maintenance myself because I'm a clown with that stuff all my expenses go through Str8six pretty much.

That average also includes the engine going in 2011 so all in all i think your just having a bad run.

Hope the luck changes.

Edited by Skipe on Friday 14th June 13:37

Though the very same car cost me 14k over 14 months (including; full engine re-build, new rad, new suspension, a stupid problem with the hatch). That said, if none of these had to be done it would have been a very cheap TVR to run.

[NailedOn]

Thanks for the replies. This is helpful info. I am encouraged by the fact that most of the work I've done should be good for several years.
One way I have in mind to get the £/mile down is to drive further!

[Skipe]

Hoolio said:

Though the very same car cost me 14k over 14 months (including; full engine re-build, new rad, new suspension, a stupid problem with the hatch). That said, if none of these had to be done it would have been a very cheap TVR to run.

I've still got all your receipts, no expense spared!

Will be passing them on when the next carer comes along...

[Hoolio]

Skipe said:

I've still got all your receipts, no expense spared!

Will be passing them on when the next carer comes along...

Didn;t stop be buying a Sag either