4.0 or 4.0hc

[funbobby]

hi all, quick question,is the hc standard on later models or was it just done to some models and from experience do you think i will notice much difference?? if it is standard what year roughly was it introduced?

[gadgit]

Do a search on the forum!

Just put in 400hc,. and you should find all you want to know. As it says, check that it is an HC with the vin and engine No.

The HC is about 275 BHP and even just an improved air induction system will gine you about 6 bhp and up to 281BHP for a car that is as heavy as a match box. 0--60 in under 4.6 sec. Which is about the same as the new Audi R8 apparently????????? thats around £67,000.........................if you can get one??

Is that enough power for you? if thats to much, buy the 400 standard. (thats still quick)

[JR]

HC was an optional extra which was introduced just (a year IIRC) before the 4.3 was dropped. NB:-

wheeljack888 said:

Mines a 1996 4.0HC and at the rollers it produced 198bhp at the wheels, an estimated 235 bhp at the flywheel. So if its 202hp at the wheels I would be very happy! But if its estimated for the flywheel I would be a little dissapointed. If so it could be a worn cam because HC's do have double valve springs and an aggressive lobe profile, this can therefore expected to have a shorter than normal life. I took my engine apart last year, which had done 45k, and the cam was looking a little worn on the hardening, but all measured up OK, I expect it to live for another 10-15k but thats potentially 2 years motoring for me! And hopefully by then I'll have my 4.6 that I'm very slowly building.

If your interested I can confirm the following differances over standard 3.9 RV8s for my 4.0 HC (maybe slightly different on others):

TVR435R/M camshaft
Vernier camshaft sprocket and duplex roller chain
Double spring valves
Machined pockets in piston crowns for valve clearance
Standard diameter but Waisted Inlet Valves
I'm assuming shorter valve guides to allow for higher lift.
The heads have been machined to accept double springs but are unfortunately not ported though.

So the short of it is, if you want more power the double springs & valve cutouts will allow you to have a much more aggresive cam than normal 4 litre Rover V8's.

Cheers
Phil

[gadgit]

Sorry if i've mislead anyone, didn't mean to, and yes I was only giving the figures from the TVR paperwork.

Anyway, Funbobby provided you read all the posts in the history you will understand how it works (the HC) and I suppose the only way for you to know, is to try them both out.
Expect a slightly lumpy tickover on a healthly HC, this appears to be common as the cam does not appear happy at tickover. Mine Also appears to run better on tesco 99 ron? (possibly another mith) but its smoother than all the other high grades of fuel. Starts on the button, no problems.

Good luck with whatever you buy!!!

[funbobby]

bit confused here,some are saying its an optional extra and some are sayin it was standard from certain year can anyone confirm which? think i need to but bible asap!! thanks again

[That Daddy]

funbobby said:

bit confused here,some are saying its an optional extra and some are sayin it was standard from certain year can anyone confirm which? think i need to but bible asap!! thanks again

Optional extra

[JR]

That Daddy said:

funbobby said:

bit confused here,some are saying its an optional extra and some are sayin it was standard from certain year can anyone confirm which? think i need to but bible asap!! thanks again

Optional extra

Yep. No one is saying that it was ever standard.

[funbobby]

reading through previous posts there are suggestions it is standard.ok if its not then least that clears it up.thanks

[JR]

As I'm sure that most will tell you just look for a good car. If you buy a 4.0 it's not hard to drop in a 4.6 but a rough chassis will cost a lot more to replace.

[Rum Runner]

You will find the motor much more free revving , but with some loss of low down tractability , but they also sound great , they sing !.

[That Daddy]

Rum Runner said:

You will find the motor much more free revving , but with some loss of low down tractability , but they also sound great , they sing !.

Spot on,and the idle sounds pukka.

[neal1980]

Interesting point when i stripped mine non hc i found it had from the list above:

yes - TVR435R/M camshaft (since replaced with reel steel cam)
no - Vernier camshaft sprocket and duplex roller chain
yes -Double spring valves
yes -Machined pockets in piston crowns for valve clearance
yes -Standard diameter but Waisted Inlet Valves

And i agree it seems to rev very well i regually hit the limiter at 6,200 and have for 5 years now! it loves to be revved, when i saw another 4.0 it didnt tho maybe state of tune etc? Maybe TVR chucked what ever they had lying around at the time.

Neal

[spend]

neal1980 said:

...Maybe TVR chucked what ever they had lying around at the time....

I don't think that sounds very fair, if they ran out of the std bits then giving you upgraded bits for free is a bonus in my book It may have happened more often than it should have, but that surely is a positive for the lucky owners?

In fairness to TVR I'm not sure any tuner can port & blueprint an engine by hand with exactly repetitive results. Isn't it this distinct character (ie difference) that is present in all our cars that is the major attraction for most of us?

Dave

[Colin L]

400HC was dropped into a number of 400 cars, reason was they had them on the factory floor and need the space.

So yes there are some 400's out there with a free HC upgrade.

As for the power figures, well you just need to close the ears and believe in the force of the V8....

Cam Life is not limited to 30 - 50,000 miles. If a car is used on a daily / weekly basis, then if you do the oil changes at the right time you can actually get like mine over 110,000 miles with no trouble.

There has been over 130 litres of Mobil 1 in my car, all changed at the right times + those other extras service work which I like, full service every 5K.

Engine wear if mainly done on start up from cold, so if you leave the car for a week or two, or just 5 days, you actually harm the engine more, than using it every or nearly every day.

So in the long run, you pay a lot more in fuel costs, but less on engine rebuild work.

With the big bonus of that TVR smile ever day....

Colin L

[Chimbat]

Mine is an HC and I'd agree with the comments here. Much crisper than the std 4 litres I looked at when I was buying. I'm not sure how much more power it really produces as I have never measured it but it certainly feels a lot quicker because of the way the engine behaves. It revs much more freely and feels like other cars I have driven with highly tuned cams - lumpy tickover and a bit of flat spot at one point in the rev range - I rather like that. And yes, they do seem to sound particulalry good.

[fb2]

Colin L,

I'll admit I'm not a mechanical genius so forgive me but I don't understand why that should be the case. I know the engines take a long time to cool (burnt knuckles to prove it) but even if driven every day surely leaving overnight will mean the engine's totally cold? Why would leaving it longer than this do harm?

(this is an honest question and not a dig)

Duncan

[That Daddy]

Because the longer the engine is left idle the more the oil film runs of the vital engine components i.e cam lobes,so when the engine is run again after a prolonged layup you get metal to metal contact(not ideal)this is also not helped by owners startin the motor up occasionally and letting it warm up on idlelots of overfueling and high loadings on the valvegear.

[gadgit]

I've just found an original price list for the 96 range. Dated 27 august 1996. the brochure says Spring 1996.

The 4.0 litre was £30,650 inc vat + optional extra's
The 4.0 litre HC was £31,650 inc vat +options
The 5.0 litre HC was £34,595..............

met paint £325 inc vat
PAS £950
Full hide £1920
Wool carp £290
air con £1875
Heated seats £200

The Griff was £34,595 inc vat +extra's
Cerb was £37,000 inc vat + extra's

If anyone would like me to post details or pics from the brochure, just say so.
would I be breaking any copyright now the firm is deceased??
The Chimaera range is listed as three Models, 4.0ltr, 4.0ltrHC and 5.0ltrHC
The 5.0ltr is only listed as an HC version.

Oh, and of course the brochure has pics of Team 50, the TVR aerobatic display team? Oh yes!!

[That Daddy]

gadgit said:

I've just found an original price list for the 96 range. Dated 27 august 1996. the brochure says Spring 1996.

The 4.0 litre was £30,650 inc vat + optional extra's
The 4.0 litre HC was £31,650 inc vat +options
The 5.0 litre HC was £34,595..............

met paint £325 inc vat
PAS £950
Full hide £1920
Wool carp £290
air con £1875
Heated seats £200

The Griff was £34,595 inc vat +extra's
Cerb was £37,000 inc vat + extra's

If anyone would like me to post details or pics from the brochure, just say so.
would I be breaking any copyright now the firm is deceased??
The Chimaera range is listed as three Models, 4.0ltr, 4.0ltrHC and 5.0ltrHC
The 5.0ltr is only listed as an HC version.

Oh, and of course the brochure has pics of Team 50, the TVR aerobatic display team? Oh yes!!

CoolBloody hell the PAS option was not cheap

[lifebegins@400]

Have just bought a 4.0HC also, my first TVR and very impressed with it - exhibits all the traits previously described although I have no doubt a standard 400 would seem mighty fine also - did my homework on P-heads which was very useful - funbobby - just make sure you're not paying over the odds for something with an 'HC' sticker on the plenum cover! Like I said, if you're a newbie like me then any sorted Chimaera is going to be grin-factor 10.

Andy