Too much power ?
Discussion
With all the usual discussions about bhp amongst the power crazy amongst us (me included) I have found myself questioning why.. Why do we need this monstrous power from a sports car that we have fun in on public roads. Leaving aside those who track and sprint and who need the power to fulfill there off road hobbies, why do we have this obsession with power? I only bring this up now because I gave the old girl a bootfull today and whilst it put a manic grin on my face it also had me in danger of hitting three figures in not many more seconds.
Without going into how quick my Chim is, (Oh ok, if you must know, around 360bhp and awesome throttle reponse), at around six and a bit rpm in second gear we're doing 70mph. Well near enough. This means that if you want max acceleration and hear that V8 singing, in my case between 4 and 6.5k rpm, then you can only really boot it in 1st and 2nd gear. Soon as you boot it in third you're over the legal speed limit and heading rapidly for three figures. So whats the point of having third fourh and fifth? They're just there for economical (ish) cruising.
OK, I'm being a bit simplistic here, but what's this all about? Is it knowing that you've got it but you can't use it? Or is it that you know, when that porka comes up behind you and there's no risk of getting caught, that you're going to just blow it away
But then how immature is that 
Maybe it's just knowing that you have the power to out accelerate the majority of other cars on the road (especially those poxy German chipped up diesel barges and the arrogant tw*ts that drive them), or maybe it has nothing at all to do with power. Maybe its just the noise and the individuality factor. I don't think so. What I do think is that a large number of TVR owners just can't tolerate the thought that that there might be other cars on the road that are quicker. Which is why we spend huge amounts of our hard earned on power that we're never ever going to use.
End of rant.
Chilli
Without going into how quick my Chim is, (Oh ok, if you must know, around 360bhp and awesome throttle reponse), at around six and a bit rpm in second gear we're doing 70mph. Well near enough. This means that if you want max acceleration and hear that V8 singing, in my case between 4 and 6.5k rpm, then you can only really boot it in 1st and 2nd gear. Soon as you boot it in third you're over the legal speed limit and heading rapidly for three figures. So whats the point of having third fourh and fifth? They're just there for economical (ish) cruising.
OK, I'm being a bit simplistic here, but what's this all about? Is it knowing that you've got it but you can't use it? Or is it that you know, when that porka comes up behind you and there's no risk of getting caught, that you're going to just blow it away
But then how immature is that Maybe it's just knowing that you have the power to out accelerate the majority of other cars on the road (especially those poxy German chipped up diesel barges and the arrogant tw*ts that drive them), or maybe it has nothing at all to do with power. Maybe its just the noise and the individuality factor. I don't think so. What I do think is that a large number of TVR owners just can't tolerate the thought that that there might be other cars on the road that are quicker. Which is why we spend huge amounts of our hard earned on power that we're never ever going to use.
End of rant.
Chilli
haircutmike said:
You need better tyres, I rarely spin mine with triple 8's.
I know they're T/D tyres but I am interested to try the R1R's that are the same rubber compound but more suited to the road.
Interesting. I have T1Rs all round. The roads have been particularly greasy around here at the moment. I can't wait for summer!I know they're T/D tyres but I am interested to try the R1R's that are the same rubber compound but more suited to the road.
SpecB said:
Interesting. I have T1Rs all round. The roads have been particularly greasy around here at the moment. I can't wait for summer!
I've had several sets of T1R's and there is no comparison, they let go very early.Great for a bit of fun when under control but does't inspire confidence.
I can honestly hustle my heavier Bee Emm oil burner quicker on greasy country roads then the chim on T1R's it just inspires confidence and I don't even know what tyres it has
.haircutmike said:
You need better tyres, I rarely spin mine with triple 8's.
I know they're T/D tyres but I am interested to try the R1R's that are the same rubber compound but more suited to the road.
I know they're T/D tyres but I am interested to try the R1R's that are the same rubber compound but more suited to the road.
Those tyres would be my choice but they cost a fortune
Why not use T1R`s for road use and stick with the R888`s just for the track .
I bet those R1R`s would not last very long ..
SILICONEKID340HP said:
haircutmike said:
You need better tyres, I rarely spin mine with triple 8's.
I know they're T/D tyres but I am interested to try the R1R's that are the same rubber compound but more suited to the road.
I know they're T/D tyres but I am interested to try the R1R's that are the same rubber compound but more suited to the road.
Those tyres would be my choice but they cost a fortune
Why not use T1R`s for road use and stick with the R888`s just for the track .
I bet those R1R`s would not last very long ..
haircutmike said:
SILICONEKID340HP said:
haircutmike said:
You need better tyres, I rarely spin mine with triple 8's.
I know they're T/D tyres but I am interested to try the R1R's that are the same rubber compound but more suited to the road.
I know they're T/D tyres but I am interested to try the R1R's that are the same rubber compound but more suited to the road.
Those tyres would be my choice but they cost a fortune
Why not use T1R`s for road use and stick with the R888`s just for the track .
I bet those R1R`s would not last very long ..
.I enjoy reading all the posts about increasing power... induction upgrades, cams, ecu...blowers, turbos, LS conversions, mostly way beyond my budget.
Then... I drive the car and am reminded that it already has more grunt than grip in 1st, 2nd and 3rd on all but the driest, sunny day on a near perfect road surface in a straight line.
My focus then shifts to improving handling/grip...I've already changed to SP12's with new rubber (made a big difference)... maybe if i fit poly bushes and Nitrons I could get more of the power down more often?
I might then need bigger brakes too...in case I do a track day.
Then once the handling and braking is sorted I could look for more power...induction, cam, ecu, blower, turbo, LS conversion etc...but then it'll have more grunt than grip... and repeat
Love it!!
Have budgeted for poly bushes and Nitrons in the spring (pun intended)....bring it on
Then... I drive the car and am reminded that it already has more grunt than grip in 1st, 2nd and 3rd on all but the driest, sunny day on a near perfect road surface in a straight line.
My focus then shifts to improving handling/grip...I've already changed to SP12's with new rubber (made a big difference)... maybe if i fit poly bushes and Nitrons I could get more of the power down more often?
I might then need bigger brakes too...in case I do a track day.
Then once the handling and braking is sorted I could look for more power...induction, cam, ecu, blower, turbo, LS conversion etc...but then it'll have more grunt than grip... and repeat
Love it!!
Have budgeted for poly bushes and Nitrons in the spring (pun intended)....bring it on
For me it's two things :
Firstly mid-life crisis (but not in THAT way) - I mean : in my 20s these Tivs truly were equal to supercars. 20 years later all sorts of (and otherwise quite boring) cars boast 250bhp/tonne (or ftlbs) and the TVR edge has been blunted. A lot. So I wanted to recover all of the lost ground. And some.
Secondly, at unrestricted Autobahn speeds the RV8 cars are exposed as lacking the stamina to deliver on the early promise, Chilli mentions Tdis for good example, which grates on me because a big capacity powered sports car should outperform all comers through the gears all the way to top.
So there we have it. And bearing in mind the other sacrifices (like questionable handling), damned if i'm going to settle for mental acceleration up to 100 and then a brick wall.
ETA - there is one last good reason. EVEN in my case where, for reasons we need not go into again, the project has cost me £10k more than it should have, I would've had to pay at least double if not triple even the inflated cost to acquire any other new or used convertible with performance in the same book let alone same page. The list of choices with 400+bhp/tonne is a very short and very expensive list.
Firstly mid-life crisis (but not in THAT way) - I mean : in my 20s these Tivs truly were equal to supercars. 20 years later all sorts of (and otherwise quite boring) cars boast 250bhp/tonne (or ftlbs) and the TVR edge has been blunted. A lot. So I wanted to recover all of the lost ground. And some.
Secondly, at unrestricted Autobahn speeds the RV8 cars are exposed as lacking the stamina to deliver on the early promise, Chilli mentions Tdis for good example, which grates on me because a big capacity powered sports car should outperform all comers through the gears all the way to top.
So there we have it. And bearing in mind the other sacrifices (like questionable handling), damned if i'm going to settle for mental acceleration up to 100 and then a brick wall.
ETA - there is one last good reason. EVEN in my case where, for reasons we need not go into again, the project has cost me £10k more than it should have, I would've had to pay at least double if not triple even the inflated cost to acquire any other new or used convertible with performance in the same book let alone same page. The list of choices with 400+bhp/tonne is a very short and very expensive list.
Edited by Jammy Dodger on Sunday 19th February 10:39
Jammy Dodger said:
For me it's two things :
Firstly mid-life crisis (but not in THAT way) - I mean : in my 20s these Tivs truly were equal to supercars. 20 years later all sorts of (and otherwise quite boring) cars boast 250bhp/tonne (or ftlbs) and the TVR edge has been blunted. A lot. So I wanted to recover all of the lost ground. And some.
Secondly, at unrestricted Autobahn speeds the RV8 cars are exposed as lacking the stamina to cut it, Chilli mentions Tdis for good example, which grates on me because a big capacity powered sports car should perform through the gears all the way to top.
So there we have it. And bearing in mind the other sacrifices (like questionable handling), damned if i'm going to settle for mental acceleration up to 100 and then a brick wall.
A sentiment I think most owners, who remember what TVR was to the rest of the world 10-15 years ago, can relate to.Firstly mid-life crisis (but not in THAT way) - I mean : in my 20s these Tivs truly were equal to supercars. 20 years later all sorts of (and otherwise quite boring) cars boast 250bhp/tonne (or ftlbs) and the TVR edge has been blunted. A lot. So I wanted to recover all of the lost ground. And some.
Secondly, at unrestricted Autobahn speeds the RV8 cars are exposed as lacking the stamina to cut it, Chilli mentions Tdis for good example, which grates on me because a big capacity powered sports car should perform through the gears all the way to top.
So there we have it. And bearing in mind the other sacrifices (like questionable handling), damned if i'm going to settle for mental acceleration up to 100 and then a brick wall.
Jammy Dodger said:
ETA - there is one last good reason. EVEN in my case where, for reasons we need not go into again, the project has cost me £10k more than it should have, I would've had to pay at least double to acquire any other convertible with performance in the same book let alone same page. The list of choices with 400+bhp/tonne is a very short and very expensive list.
And that was true even when we were paying upwards of £40k for a new one.Sure, 15 years ago £40k was a lot more money for a car than it is today, but anything that could theoretically beat a good Chim or Griff 500, cost so much more and was so rare; you never saw one (whatever it was).
well; I did see a McLaren F1 going the other way once
I think the main point being made is on the actual proportion of driving time we get the opportunity to explore the cars capabilities. The vast majority of the time we drive 'normally', maybe a little boot now and then for overtaking, maybe the odd traffic light drag race, but then how far does that go?, 2nd gear only probably before getting nervous of getting a ticket.
All TVR IMHO are capable enough to put a grin on your face, get second looks, keep up with all but special cars on the road.
I need my car to get me from A to B reasonably economicaly, then to perform thanks to my choice of power adder as needed, then hopefully to return me home again. If it does all that and i get one or two of those special oppotunities on the journey then my weekend is complete.
Just refill the bottles ready for the next weekend to enjoy.
All TVR IMHO are capable enough to put a grin on your face, get second looks, keep up with all but special cars on the road.
I need my car to get me from A to B reasonably economicaly, then to perform thanks to my choice of power adder as needed, then hopefully to return me home again. If it does all that and i get one or two of those special oppotunities on the journey then my weekend is complete.
Just refill the bottles ready for the next weekend to enjoy.
Jammy Dodger said:
dbv8 said:
The vast majority of the time we drive 'normally'
speak for yourself (not big, not clever, calculated risks, ALWAYS respectful of conditions - all those things - but like to drive it like i stole it whenever possible. That is what it was MADE for)
If i am travelling a distance I do consider the fuel costs. 200 miles at 27mpg is a nice little saving towards the weekends costs.
Jammy Dodger said:
For me it's two things :
Firstly mid-life crisis (but not in THAT way) - I mean : in my 20s these Tivs truly were equal to supercars. 20 years later all sorts of (and otherwise quite boring) cars boast 250bhp/tonne (or ftlbs) and the TVR edge has been blunted. A lot. So I wanted to recover all of the lost ground. And some.
Secondly, at unrestricted Autobahn speeds the RV8 cars are exposed as lacking the stamina to deliver on the early promise, Chilli mentions Tdis for good example, which grates on me because a big capacity powered sports car should outperform all comers through the gears all the way to top.
So there we have it. And bearing in mind the other sacrifices (like questionable handling), damned if i'm going to settle for mental acceleration up to 100 and then a brick wall.
ETA - there is one last good reason. EVEN in my case where, for reasons we need not go into again, the project has cost me £10k more than it should have, I would've had to pay at least double if not triple even the inflated cost to acquire any other new or used convertible with performance in the same book let alone same page. The list of choices with 400+bhp/tonne is a very short and very expensive list.
But if you chose a car from that list, you'd actually be able to use the power (with a lot of electronic aids watching over you, mind) Firstly mid-life crisis (but not in THAT way) - I mean : in my 20s these Tivs truly were equal to supercars. 20 years later all sorts of (and otherwise quite boring) cars boast 250bhp/tonne (or ftlbs) and the TVR edge has been blunted. A lot. So I wanted to recover all of the lost ground. And some.
Secondly, at unrestricted Autobahn speeds the RV8 cars are exposed as lacking the stamina to deliver on the early promise, Chilli mentions Tdis for good example, which grates on me because a big capacity powered sports car should outperform all comers through the gears all the way to top.
So there we have it. And bearing in mind the other sacrifices (like questionable handling), damned if i'm going to settle for mental acceleration up to 100 and then a brick wall.
ETA - there is one last good reason. EVEN in my case where, for reasons we need not go into again, the project has cost me £10k more than it should have, I would've had to pay at least double if not triple even the inflated cost to acquire any other new or used convertible with performance in the same book let alone same page. The list of choices with 400+bhp/tonne is a very short and very expensive list.
Thing is, a Griff or Chim is a lightweight car with moderate aerodynamics, just one step away from a Caterham - which is the exact opposite of what you'd choose for sheer Autobahn thrust. Horses, courses...
Edited by 900T-R on Monday 20th February 10:57
Gassing Station | Chimaera | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff