Worth the gamble?

[ribol]

I am thinking of driving my 2000 Chim 400 to Lugano, Switzerland and maybe even back. I would like to think that a trip like this is achievable without needing any help from a recovery service but I know from past experience that long journeys can bring out the worse in cars. I am not bothered about the noise, fuel costs or speeding fines but I would be really p****d off if I ended up pushing it home.

My question is has anybody been on a longish journey in their Chim and survived it, failing that, what went wrong?

Ivan

[plipton]

Did you see Fish and Mrs Fish's trip oop north in Sprint this month?

If their Tuscan can make it there and back I'm pretty sure a V8 will be fine (get International Rescue's number first just in case)

Good luck and take loadsa pix for sprint!!

[trefor]

Did a number of Italian lakes and many Alpine passes last summer in my '95 Chimaera. Fantastic time! Car didn't put a foot wrong or consume and oil/water (OK, the oil moved down the dipstick a smidge, but not enough to top up even). Includes mega traffic jams in Milan and 'brisk' trips up and down various mountains.

Go for it - these cars get better the more you use them.

Just get the car checked out before you leave in case something is about to fall off and get AA 5 star cover and take some spares (do a search for what to take).

Enjoy!

Trefor/.

Edited to add > Go through as many tunnels as possible!!

>> Edited by trefor on Friday 14th March 21:22

[hut49]

I can't think of anthing else I'd rather do more than take the Chimaera on a long run around Europe. I don't have any reservations about it from a mechanical or comfort perspective. Given the chance I would drive it tomorrow to the South of France

Hutch

[sparkythecat]

I took my 98 4 litre Chimp to Le Mans last year. Six weeks prior to this, it had its 24,000 mile service at the TVR factory. I packed a few spares (fan belt,light bulbs fuses etc) and a few tools including a multimeter. I thought I had all the bases covered. The car behaved faultlessly up until the journey home. We had reached Dunkirk when for some unkown reason the car dumped its coolant in the street. It had in fact blown the gasket between the timing cover and the engine block. This is something that could not have been predicted and no ammount of preventative maintainance could have prevented. Fortunately I had also taken the precaution of joining the ACO - the French RAC/AA equivalent. I was impressed with the prompt and professional service I received from them. They attended quickly, identified the problem, and whilst unable to fix it, they trailered me right to the boarding ramp of the ferry. I was then able to fill the car with water and drive it aboard. On reaching good old Blighty, I refilled with water and disembarked. I was then at the mercy of the RAC, whose levels of service in this instance fell far below those of their French counterparts. In fairness, they did get me home - eventually. If you are crossing France to Switzerland - you may wish to consider joining the ACO. I would advise anyone going to Le Mans to do this. 12 months membership was only a fraction of the price of taking out 2 weeks European RAC cover, and I recouped quite a good percentage of that cost in the discounts obtained on my Le Mans tickets. The only downside is that whilst the call centre operators speak english, the mechanics we encountered did not. Good Luck on your journey

[ribol]

No bad news yet then, I thought the suggestion would have got laughed off the forum

Ivan

[RobM]

sparkythecat said: I took my 98 4 litre Chimp to Le Mans last year.........

fantastic advice sparky, thanks



>> Edited by RobM on Saturday 15th March 02:42

[magnus]

I am thinking of driving my 2000 Chim 400 to Lugano, Switzerland and maybe even back. I would like to think that a trip like this is achievable without needing any help from a recovery service but I know from past experience that long journeys can bring out the worse in cars. I am not bothered about the noise, fuel costs or speeding fines but I would be really p****d off if I ended up pushing it home.

My question is has anybody been on a longish journey in their Chim and survived it, failing that, what went wrong?

Ivan

TVR Gold Portfolio Chimaera and Griff later models. Jeremy Clarkson drives a Griff500 down to Lucerne and back--might interest you. Overheated once if I remember correctly but otherwise OK. If you have sports exhaust don't forget your aspirin tabs. Good luck!