Time for a change?
Discussion
I haven't used the tvr much over the last year or two after a few problems. Although these have largely been fixed I wonder if I have fallen out of love with it. Doesn't have the same smile factor anymore.
The car does need some suspension work and although I've had two new roofs (the first one had to go back as it was awful) I still get excessive wind noise.
So a couple of choices, put some serious time and money into mine (I have very little time of late so a garage will need to do most of the work) or sell up and join the dark side with a porker 996 with silly wing.
Really don't know what to do, maybe I just need to drive a well sorted chim for some inspiration?
Any thoughts?
The car does need some suspension work and although I've had two new roofs (the first one had to go back as it was awful) I still get excessive wind noise.
So a couple of choices, put some serious time and money into mine (I have very little time of late so a garage will need to do most of the work) or sell up and join the dark side with a porker 996 with silly wing.
Really don't know what to do, maybe I just need to drive a well sorted chim for some inspiration?
Any thoughts?
How long have you owned it? I went through this dilemma, love the car to bits for around 5 years then the effort of ownership, issues getting the car to run nicely and overcoming chassis problems caused me to question why I was holding onto it. Having got through some irritating problems I now have a perfect car which I'm slowly making better still. Now my car is everything I ever wanted.
Keep it, you'll regret selling for a girly Porsche
Keep it, you'll regret selling for a girly Porsche
bobfather said:
How long have you owned it? I went through this dilemma, love the car to bits for around 5 years then the effort of ownership, issues getting the car to run nicely and overcoming chassis problems caused me to question why I was holding onto it. Having got through some irritating problems I now have a perfect car which I'm slowly making better still. Now my car is everything I ever wanted.
Keep it, you'll regret selling for a girly Porsche
Had it over 6 years, just seems to be an uphill battle these days with no joy from it.Keep it, you'll regret selling for a girly Porsche
The wind noise is the main thing that drives me nuts, it's unbearable at anything over 70 and even under 70 it isn't great. It was fine when I got it, year before last i had a new roof and it was so bad I took it to another place to redo it. Even though the fit of the new one was better it's still much louder than it used to be.
I did take it to a specialist in Surrey to have a look at it, really nice guy I spoke to over the phone but when I took to the garage the guy I saw was rude and said he'd be more than happy if it was his, makes me wonder what the cars they sell are like. He said there's nothing we can do you just have to put up with it. This was bull, they just didn't want to deal with it, you can pretty much put your finger in the gap.
What I don't want to is end up spending a whole load more money sorting the suspension and still have a car that I can no longer bear to drive on the motorway
Jon, can you put up,a pic of this GAP your talking about. Is this just behind your right ear at the rear of the door glass. There's always going to be some wind noise but when the windows are up on mine there's not much wind noise and stays dry when it's raining. Maybe your window glass needs adjusting?
Engineer1949 said:
if you drive predominately on motorways with the roof up buy something else wrong car if on the other hand you blast around the b roads and lanes roof off who cares
john
John has a point there Jon.john
I know exactly what you mean as mine is quieter internally since I've done all the sound and heat insulation in the cabin but I now hear wind noise and whistles from all the little gaps everywhere which stand out more so than before!
I too i'm at the point where I'm thinking of a change.
If travelling, especially with my wife with the roof on the noise is very irritating and conversation is limited, (yes I know
) but, take it for a cross country B-road blast and it is like no other.I would suggest that for your type of travelling if it includes a lot of distance and motorway work then you will require a hard top or something like a Boxster S, (don't shoot me down)
KEVS500 said:
It's an age thing. (You, not the car!). Can't comment on wind noise with roof up, I don't drive it like that. Never been able to hear any passenger anyway. No point in having a radio. They're good for one thing only - open and loud dry motoring at speed. Heaven!
Jon is young!phazed said:
Jon is young!
Yes, thankfully I'm only 31. I don't do massive amounts of motorway driving as I have a daily for that but I do like to go places and normally that involves motorway. As I said, it used to be better and I have tried to adjust the glass but not had much joy. The passenger door card is in bits at the moment as the passenger window will no longer go up without help. All rather frustrating really. I will post some pictures later in the week, car is currently abandoned on my parents drive while I sort out a replacement garage to house it.
Its also difficult to replace such a unique car
The good news is that I have someone coming to look at my passenger window (which now requires help to go up), my central locking which has stopped working and the stereo which also died.
Sounds like an earth fault and maybe they are related, so hopefully he will be able to trace it. I have changed the corroded door switches and the central locking relay yesterday.
At least that will be some of the niggles sorted if he can fix those issues.
Sounds like an earth fault and maybe they are related, so hopefully he will be able to trace it. I have changed the corroded door switches and the central locking relay yesterday.
At least that will be some of the niggles sorted if he can fix those issues.
phazed said:
I too i'm at the point where I'm thinking of a change.
phazed said:
I would suggest that for your type of travelling if it includes a lot of distance and motorway work then you will require a hard top or something like a Boxster S, (don't shoot me down)
A lot of Pork talk on the Chimaera forum recently.... QBee was at it the other day too..... 
I ran a 2.7 Boxster and a Chimaera together for a short period of time, although in theory they are both 2 seater open top sports cars, they are VERY different, the TVR just had so much more sense of speed and drama, but then I guess it depends on whether you see this as a plus or a negative.
In the end the Porsche decided to blow it's engine into lots of small pieces and the TVR is still with me, although currently up for sale as I have fell for the pull of the other big British V8 from Gaydon.
I did flirt with the idea of a 996 a few years ago, before I had the Boxster, but unless you go a lot newer or Turbo, both of which start to get expensive, the 996 does have an unhealthy rep for poor engine reliability and the fix makes a speed 6 rebuild look cheap.
In the end all cars have their Achilles heel the Chimaera is a bit kit car 'ish' but relatively reliable and cheap to fix.
In the end the Porsche decided to blow it's engine into lots of small pieces and the TVR is still with me, although currently up for sale as I have fell for the pull of the other big British V8 from Gaydon.
I did flirt with the idea of a 996 a few years ago, before I had the Boxster, but unless you go a lot newer or Turbo, both of which start to get expensive, the 996 does have an unhealthy rep for poor engine reliability and the fix makes a speed 6 rebuild look cheap.
In the end all cars have their Achilles heel the Chimaera is a bit kit car 'ish' but relatively reliable and cheap to fix.
RE; wind noise problem. That got on my nerves so I cured it by putting a long thin spacer inbetween roof panel and roof panel seal so that the window sits tight against it, cut down the top of the alloy window frame slightly to suit, always wind window down slightly then back up to seal. No more wind noise. 'If' I keep the car I will fit a Tuscan/cerbera electronic window shut gizmo so it's done automatically.
macdeb said:
RE; wind noise problem. That got on my nerves so I cured it by putting a long thin spacer inbetween roof panel and roof panel seal so that the window sits tight against it, cut down the top of the alloy window frame slightly to suit, always wind window down slightly then back up to seal. No more wind noise. 'If' I keep the car I will fit a Tuscan/cerbera electronic window shut gizmo so it's done automatically.
I did wonder if the original roof had spacer washers in between the targa top and the seal and thought they maybe weren't put back in afterwards. That's got to be a potential, will have to investigate further this week. I like the idea of the window gizmo, got to get them working properly first though!
ChilliWhizz said:
phazed said:
I too i'm at the point where I'm thinking of a change.
phazed said:
I would suggest that for your type of travelling if it includes a lot of distance and motorway work then you will require a hard top or something like a Boxster S, (don't shoot me down)
A lot of Pork talk on the Chimaera forum recently.... QBee was at it the other day too..... I still love the car, but...
Jon Brown said:
macdeb said:
RE; wind noise problem. That got on my nerves so I cured it by putting a long thin spacer inbetween roof panel and roof panel seal so that the window sits tight against it, cut down the top of the alloy window frame slightly to suit, always wind window down slightly then back up to seal. No more wind noise. 'If' I keep the car I will fit a Tuscan/cerbera electronic window shut gizmo so it's done automatically.
I did wonder if the original roof had spacer washers in between the targa top and the seal and thought they maybe weren't put back in afterwards. That's got to be a potential, will have to investigate further this week. I like the idea of the window gizmo, got to get them working properly first though!
), then the metal strip unscrews - 5 rusty self tappers. I bought a couple of metres of white coated thin strip wood from Homebase for my spacers. About 2mm thick. Drill through and fit. macdeb said:
RE; wind noise problem. That got on my nerves so I cured it by putting a long thin spacer inbetween roof panel and roof panel seal so that the window sits tight against it, cut down the top of the alloy window frame slightly to suit, always wind window down slightly then back up to seal. No more wind noise. 'If' I keep the car I will fit a Tuscan/cerbera electronic window shut gizmo so it's done automatically.
Have you looked in to the window gizmo where it open and closes automaticly? An alarm fitter at Burleigh said it was connected to the ECU and to replicate it would ve difficult.
SILICONEKID345HP said:
macdeb said:
RE; wind noise problem. That got on my nerves so I cured it by putting a long thin spacer inbetween roof panel and roof panel seal so that the window sits tight against it, cut down the top of the alloy window frame slightly to suit, always wind window down slightly then back up to seal. No more wind noise. 'If' I keep the car I will fit a Tuscan/cerbera electronic window shut gizmo so it's done automatically.
Have you looked in to the window gizmo where it open and closes automaticly? An alarm fitter at Burleigh said it was connected to the ECU and to replicate it would ve difficult.
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