Sagaris month 7
Discussion
My car sat in a garage for month 6 so nothing to report there. It would have gathered dust if it weren't for being covered with sheets.
One thing that was a pleasant surprise was it starting first time without any complaint. I was worried the battery would have run down as it was more like 6 weeks without use, but happily no problems.
Month 7 at least involved two long journeys worth mentioning. They were both around the south and southwest of England. The latter was happily dry, so allowed greater use of the throttle pedal. This is the thing that transforms the car from cool, funky, characterful cruiser into a ballistic, mad but deeply impressive device. It's the intensity of the experience that all TVRs share that sets them apart for me. After owning this incredible car I just can't get my head round why anyone would want a car with an automatic gearbox and traction control etc. A good manual shift is such a big part of the pleasure for me and I can't see that changing any time soon. Traction control? Outside of first gear my car puts down full throttle in the dry. I should ad this is with the CR box. Maybe the standard box might offer a bit of wheelspin in second for all I know. But on my car traction is superb.
I used to be big fan of turbos but the S6 has cured me for good I think. They just seem so crude in their power delivery now, which is fun to a point but after that they are pretty clumsy and can only make driving in the wet more tricky. The S6 with the long travel throttle is a fantastic combination.
All the previous positives remain as before. Positive reaction from other people, surprising fuel economy, relative practicality, no squeaks or rattles from the interior what so ever. The car is starting to develop an appetite for oil but as it's still on the unsynthetic stuff (until 6000miles) I'm not too surprised. Consumption totals 1 litre in 3200 miles. But with a few miles the power does seem to be increasing through the rev range. The final lunge after 7000revs is unendingly thrilling and with the revs kept up the car is devastatingly rapid. So much so I rarely get to do it though more than two gears. One thing for other CR box owners is to not forget to use first gear. It's higher than the ordinary box's second so it's a proper driving gear. Exiting hairpins and the like make the car shocking quick as it connects you straight into the hot end of the powerband, where the same thing in second is much more leisurely as the car pulls through 3000 revs cleanly but not in any particular hurry. The Sagaris trump card continues to be the sublime and beautifully judged supsension. The grip, poise and agility are second to none yet there is no 'nervousness' to pay for it. The car is always composed. No dive, no squat, no roll. Just lots of grip and go. So much so you have to use more throttle than you might think to get the tail out but I imagine this will get easier as the tyres wear! The steering is, for me, also one of the car's better features. Very communicative and accurate.
Negatives? I'm thinking of getting rid of the bonnet rubbers that can make the bonnet look untidy. I'd appreciate the thoughts from other Sagaris owners regarding this. But overall the bonnet design is the greatest and only significant area of concern. I have had the clips nearest the driver work loose a few times. This is OK as it's easy to fix but it only happens at high speed - not so OK. Slow down and you'd never know they were loose. I still wonder if blocking in the vents was such a good idea as I can only imagine they would have released a lot of under bonnet pressure. What's your view on this DJC?
Any changes? I'd still love to have my vents cut out front and rear and I'm still after an even louder exhaust. And if TVR don't get round to making any bonnet mods, maybe a carbon fibre bonnet with racing clips would finish the wish list. Oh and the wing mirrors from the prototype would really finish it off for me. Contrary to some ph'ers beliefs I wouldn't swap a Sagaris in that spec for anything.
Other than that it's the most enjoyable car to drive I've ever owned.
>> Edited by the pits on Friday 4th November 08:09
One thing that was a pleasant surprise was it starting first time without any complaint. I was worried the battery would have run down as it was more like 6 weeks without use, but happily no problems.
Month 7 at least involved two long journeys worth mentioning. They were both around the south and southwest of England. The latter was happily dry, so allowed greater use of the throttle pedal. This is the thing that transforms the car from cool, funky, characterful cruiser into a ballistic, mad but deeply impressive device. It's the intensity of the experience that all TVRs share that sets them apart for me. After owning this incredible car I just can't get my head round why anyone would want a car with an automatic gearbox and traction control etc. A good manual shift is such a big part of the pleasure for me and I can't see that changing any time soon. Traction control? Outside of first gear my car puts down full throttle in the dry. I should ad this is with the CR box. Maybe the standard box might offer a bit of wheelspin in second for all I know. But on my car traction is superb.
I used to be big fan of turbos but the S6 has cured me for good I think. They just seem so crude in their power delivery now, which is fun to a point but after that they are pretty clumsy and can only make driving in the wet more tricky. The S6 with the long travel throttle is a fantastic combination.
All the previous positives remain as before. Positive reaction from other people, surprising fuel economy, relative practicality, no squeaks or rattles from the interior what so ever. The car is starting to develop an appetite for oil but as it's still on the unsynthetic stuff (until 6000miles) I'm not too surprised. Consumption totals 1 litre in 3200 miles. But with a few miles the power does seem to be increasing through the rev range. The final lunge after 7000revs is unendingly thrilling and with the revs kept up the car is devastatingly rapid. So much so I rarely get to do it though more than two gears. One thing for other CR box owners is to not forget to use first gear. It's higher than the ordinary box's second so it's a proper driving gear. Exiting hairpins and the like make the car shocking quick as it connects you straight into the hot end of the powerband, where the same thing in second is much more leisurely as the car pulls through 3000 revs cleanly but not in any particular hurry. The Sagaris trump card continues to be the sublime and beautifully judged supsension. The grip, poise and agility are second to none yet there is no 'nervousness' to pay for it. The car is always composed. No dive, no squat, no roll. Just lots of grip and go. So much so you have to use more throttle than you might think to get the tail out but I imagine this will get easier as the tyres wear! The steering is, for me, also one of the car's better features. Very communicative and accurate.
Negatives? I'm thinking of getting rid of the bonnet rubbers that can make the bonnet look untidy. I'd appreciate the thoughts from other Sagaris owners regarding this. But overall the bonnet design is the greatest and only significant area of concern. I have had the clips nearest the driver work loose a few times. This is OK as it's easy to fix but it only happens at high speed - not so OK. Slow down and you'd never know they were loose. I still wonder if blocking in the vents was such a good idea as I can only imagine they would have released a lot of under bonnet pressure. What's your view on this DJC?
Any changes? I'd still love to have my vents cut out front and rear and I'm still after an even louder exhaust. And if TVR don't get round to making any bonnet mods, maybe a carbon fibre bonnet with racing clips would finish the wish list. Oh and the wing mirrors from the prototype would really finish it off for me. Contrary to some ph'ers beliefs I wouldn't swap a Sagaris in that spec for anything.
Other than that it's the most enjoyable car to drive I've ever owned.
>> Edited by the pits on Friday 4th November 08:09
Geeeeessss pits how could you 
How can you own a sagiass and leave it in the garage for 6 weeks and not drive it that sacrilege.
But I not going to teacher u how to suck eggs I'm only a mere T350c owner
Tho I cant believe that its doing the car & engine much good sitting all that time.
>> Edited by zooooom on Thursday 3rd November 15:45
How can you own a sagiass and leave it in the garage for 6 weeks and not drive it that sacrilege. But I not going to teacher u how to suck eggs I'm only a mere T350c owner
Tho I cant believe that its doing the car & engine much good sitting all that time.
>> Edited by zooooom on Thursday 3rd November 15:45
Mine sometimes doesnt get used for 3 weeks due to business travel (I'd love to bring it here to California though). Its not a problem as long as the car gets used properly when it is used - by this I mean long journeys where everything gets fully warmed through for a good long period.
Look how long some older exotica gets left in the garage, most seem to run just fine.
T/.
Look how long some older exotica gets left in the garage, most seem to run just fine.
T/.
Strip off the rubber on the bonnet, but have pads put in either side and both ends as spacers.
Hexham did an excellent job with this at 6k service.
Re coming loose - several times: I'm OK with the current arrangement, but will be having a recess put in the underside of the retaining bar for the tee piece to lock into.
Been thinking about the vents too. Possiby cut out, but with fine mesh grilles recessed in them, rather than wide open.
Seem to remember that rubbish was kicked up onto the screen etc through the original ones.
Good write up, happy motoring Pits!!
Hexham did an excellent job with this at 6k service.
Re coming loose - several times: I'm OK with the current arrangement, but will be having a recess put in the underside of the retaining bar for the tee piece to lock into.
Been thinking about the vents too. Possiby cut out, but with fine mesh grilles recessed in them, rather than wide open.
Seem to remember that rubbish was kicked up onto the screen etc through the original ones.
Good write up, happy motoring Pits!!
the pits said:
Outside of first gear my car puts down full throttle in the dry. I should ad this is with the CR box. Maybe the standard box might offer a bit of wheelspin in second for all I know. But on my car traction is superb.
You would get wheel spin in 2nd without the CR ‘box. I did on my Tuscan. The CR box makes the car so much more driveable. You can get the power down much more easily (especially in the wet) without massive wheelspin when changing from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd.
the pits said:
I'm thinking of getting rid of the bonnet rubbers that can make the bonnet look untidy. I'd appreciate the thoughts from other Sagaris owners regarding this.
I’ve only seen one without the rubbers and the panel gaps on the bonnet where almost big enough to get my fingers in on one side – it looked awful close up, but better from a distance. I would check your panel gaps very carefully, or check they can be adjusted. I’ve decided to keep my rubbers for the moment.
the pits said:
But overall the bonnet design is the greatest and only significant area of concern. I have had the clips nearest the driver work loose a few times. This is OK as it's easy to fix but it only happens at high speed - not so OK. Slow down and you'd never know they were loose. I still wonder if blocking in the vents was such a good idea as I can only imagine they would have released a lot of under bonnet pressure.
Mine have come undone a few times too – usually at about 130!
The factory has changed them but it hasn’t helped. Mine’s going back the factory again next week and they tell me they have another fix for this problem. I’ll post when I get the car back if they’ve changed the design of the clips.
I don’t think blocking the vents has affected under bonnet pressure as they only vented air from the wheel arches as far as I know. However, it could be a good idea to cut the vents out and create air channels from the engine bay to the vents instead of from the wheel arches. This would also stop any problem with debris flying through the vents. But would require a lot of fibreglass work and there might be a risk of weakening the body around the engine bay.
Blocking the wing vents will not really have affected the under bonnet t&p. The bonnet vanes are much more crucial to that. Blocking the wing vents however has affected the air pressure above the wheels and therefore the suspension dynamics. My view is that the rear still needs more work on it.
I will say one thing now about the wings. After driving through the cr@p this week and seeing how much spray the wheels were throwing out down the side, I think I am gla the went are filled in. Even with mesh filters there, I dont think I would like the amount of water and road rubbish thrown up through them and I know Sarah would absolutely loathe it. It would make wet weather driving a lot more hard work and wet weather night driving atrocious.
I will say one thing now about the wings. After driving through the cr@p this week and seeing how much spray the wheels were throwing out down the side, I think I am gla the went are filled in. Even with mesh filters there, I dont think I would like the amount of water and road rubbish thrown up through them and I know Sarah would absolutely loathe it. It would make wet weather driving a lot more hard work and wet weather night driving atrocious.
the pits said:
Agreed, but how cool would plumes of spray look flying out of the vents both from within and even better from another car! Just think DJC, you could actually see and analyse the air flow! Surely an aerodynamicists dream?
Oh yeah heaven...Not! The 3 days away last week were my first and only holiday this yr. 1/2 a week !!!! The last thing I flaming want to do on my holiday...esp at 3am in the soaking wet, throwing it down morning, when Im struggling to set the black road in the blackness with only 1/2 the M1's lights working is to give a damn about work! :P That and Sarah would skin me alive if I mentioned it, she regards it as bad enough that all my friends are all engineers also and that together our topics of conversation are usually centred around neural networks, MMI (man machine interfaces), the horrors of unit testing, the stupidity of the customer, the uselessness of management, the hatred of HR and bean counters, general pish taking of Germans and French, the complexities of common rail Diesel technology and now that one of our bretheren has transfered to Dyson, the similarities between Dyson vortex technology and filtration systems with diesel exhaust technology filtration systems. Then there are the conversations that mix F22, Typhoon, Rafale aerodynamics, power to weight ratios, inherent advantages and disadvantages of stable and unstable aircraft and generally why Concorde is the greatest aircraft ever produced and why the Govt. and the entire management of BA should be shot on site for treason. Most of the above are treated with disdain and general ignoring by the wives and gfs, apart from the last rant which usually results in a collective "good grief" from them, before dragging their blokes away to sober them up.
In short anymore car and engineer cr@p from me and she would bite me nads off with blunt teeth before grilling them over an open fire.
the pits said:
Negatives? I'm thinking of getting rid of the bonnet rubbers that can make the bonnet look untidy. I'd appreciate the thoughts from other Sagaris owners regarding this.
Pits, mine came without the bonnet rubbers and to my eye looks great without them. The gaps are all very even around my bonnet so I think this is the main thing to look for. The eye is not drawn to any unevenness. My Tuscan's shut lines were very poor in comparison.
I had one small issue with one of the front corners of the inspection bonnet rattling against the lip of the main bonnet below (which would not have happened with rubbers in place). I sorted that myself with the Tiver's trusty friend - velcro. It may not last with the heat, but has worked so far.
Gary.
Thanks Garyf, very helpful. I do think it's better sans rubbers (ooo-er!), to look at anyway.
I was just wondering about possible vibrations etc. The heat does seem to play havoc with the glue TVR use, maybe your velcro will fare better!
Looks like Reflex Charcoal is fast becoming the single most popular colour for the Sagaris. And no wonder. It looks fantastic.
I was just wondering about possible vibrations etc. The heat does seem to play havoc with the glue TVR use, maybe your velcro will fare better!
Looks like Reflex Charcoal is fast becoming the single most popular colour for the Sagaris. And no wonder. It looks fantastic.
Good report Pits....Gassing Station | Tamora, T350 & Sagaris | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff