New generation drivers destroying TVR's?
Discussion
bobfather said:
Yes wet roads with FWD trained and novice drivers will kill TVR's. One greatly misunderstood contributor is down shifting without understanding the danger of rear wheel grip loss. When shifting down without matching engine speed the combination or RWD, wet roads and light rear end serve to brake the rear wheels resulting in irretrievable loss of directional control
+1 Is tantamount to pulling on the handbrake if you're not careful. And if you're not aware of this "gotcha" you've got no idea why the rear end is suddenly letting go whilst not on the power, or what to do to get it back under control.
When I bought my first TVR (Chimaera 500) in the late 90's, my first year's insurance premium was through the roof and thankfully it dropped the second year.
The insurance company that was used to dealing with TVRs told me that 80% of crashes in the first year involved the car and driver alone.
Maybe we weren't all that good back then either
I know two or three people my age-ish (44) who I wouldn't trust with a TVR, I think it comes down to skill (learnt or innate), and not letting red mist take over.
You might think I drive like a grandmother (mine drove like she stole her car), but even in modern cars I've never had ABS/Traction/Stability assist me or locked brakes on the road or (touch wood) any major accident.
I did however manage to spin an xr4x4 180deg in a bend I entered too quickly after braking downhill and that taught me an awful lot about weight distribution !
The insurance company that was used to dealing with TVRs told me that 80% of crashes in the first year involved the car and driver alone.
Maybe we weren't all that good back then either
I know two or three people my age-ish (44) who I wouldn't trust with a TVR, I think it comes down to skill (learnt or innate), and not letting red mist take over.
You might think I drive like a grandmother (mine drove like she stole her car), but even in modern cars I've never had ABS/Traction/Stability assist me or locked brakes on the road or (touch wood) any major accident.
I did however manage to spin an xr4x4 180deg in a bend I entered too quickly after braking downhill and that taught me an awful lot about weight distribution !
I once hit a 90 degree right hand bend at the end of a long straight on a very narrow B road somewhere in the midlands on the way to Ludlow. Doing nearly 90mph... I didn't realise the road went right because there was a farm track straight on and the bend was in a slight dip... and travelling that fast in a Lotus 7 I couldn't really see that well anyway... In my defense it was in 1969 and I was very young... Took me another year to achieve Driving God status...
Dunno why I mentioned that.....
(If anyone's interested, I went straight on down the farm track
)
For nearly half a mile
And then had to stop in a nearby hostelry and change underwear...
Dunno why I mentioned that.....
(If anyone's interested, I went straight on down the farm track
)For nearly half a mile
And then had to stop in a nearby hostelry and change underwear...
Derek Smith said:
There was a series of advanced driver instruction In Sprint in the middle 00s. It generated a lot of interest and comment, much more than I expected.
Hi Derek, I hope you're well.I think the articles in Sprint were provided by Julian at Ride Drive - really worth reading if you can get hold of them. Two of the best things I found to improve my driving of the TVR were a Ride Drive day with a current Class 1 Lancashire police driver (sadly Ride Drive is no more), and reading Roadcraft (the police driving manual).
julianc said:
Two of the best things I found to improve my driving of the TVR ....
For me it was a) going on track days and b) learning to heel and toe instinctively. I bought my Tuscan at 28 after owning an RWD BMW but the lack of driver aids was noticeable. Nothing quite prepares you for the first time fishtailing a TVR under acceleration or the rear end trying to overtake you on a downshift.....
Before getting to grips with it on track, I pretty much pottered about everywhere in the TVR without really pressing on as I was convinced it was trying to kill me
Several track days fixed this.In terms of heel and toe - I made the conscious decision to learn to do this and decided to always H+T in all cars even on the commute - It took about 2 years before it became entirely natural. Now I do this without even thinking about it.
Bob
julianc said:
Hi Derek, I hope you're well.
I think the articles in Sprint were provided by Julian at Ride Drive - really worth reading if you can get hold of them. Two of the best things I found to improve my driving of the TVR were a Ride Drive day with a current Class 1 Lancashire police driver (sadly Ride Drive is no more), and reading Roadcraft (the police driving manual).
I'm fine, thanks. I had to sell my Chim due to not being able to depress the clutch. I have to drive auto now. I think the articles in Sprint were provided by Julian at Ride Drive - really worth reading if you can get hold of them. Two of the best things I found to improve my driving of the TVR were a Ride Drive day with a current Class 1 Lancashire police driver (sadly Ride Drive is no more), and reading Roadcraft (the police driving manual).
The first really powerful TVR I drove was a Tamora, my favourite TVR. I dropped back from a Micra before a corner, accelerated into it but misjudged it slightly and nearly rammed the Micra on exit. Nothing was coming so I pulled out to pass but used too much throttle - nothing wrong with my right leg.
The back stepped out but it was so easy to catch. A beautifully balanced car. It made me feel as if I was a good driver.
I envy you yours, not to mention your left leg.
Derek Smith said:
I'm fine, thanks. I had to sell my Chim due to not being able to depress the clutch. I have to drive auto now.
The first really powerful TVR I drove was a Tamora, my favourite TVR. I dropped back from a Micra before a corner, accelerated into it but misjudged it slightly and nearly rammed the Micra on exit. Nothing was coming so I pulled out to pass but used too much throttle - nothing wrong with my right leg.
The back stepped out but it was so easy to catch. A beautifully balanced car. It made me feel as if I was a good driver.
I envy you yours, not to mention your left leg.
Great that you're fine.The first really powerful TVR I drove was a Tamora, my favourite TVR. I dropped back from a Micra before a corner, accelerated into it but misjudged it slightly and nearly rammed the Micra on exit. Nothing was coming so I pulled out to pass but used too much throttle - nothing wrong with my right leg.
The back stepped out but it was so easy to catch. A beautifully balanced car. It made me feel as if I was a good driver.
I envy you yours, not to mention your left leg.
I feel for you regarding the Chim, but I hope you're still enjoying the driving.
The Tamora is certainly a great car to drive. Only a month or so now until my first replacement clutch since new. Immediately after, she'll also be having a new roof as the window split a few months ago and the age of the roof requires a new one to guarantee a new plastic window will fit properly. She's therefore having a lot more spent on her than I've spent on my wife, who is now looking more closely at handbags and diamond rings!
Keep well, I really enjoy reading your posts.
CHIMV8 500 said:
When I bought my first Tiv in 2005 I had to prove that I had driven some sort of high powered rear wheel drive before they would agree to insure me...I am 50 this year
Bring it back I say
CHIMV8, I bought my first TVR last Nov at the age of 32 so would like to think I'm still classed as a young driver part of the 'new generation', and the majority of insurers I spoke to wanted to know what experience I had of high powered RWD cars before giving me a quote. Due to my lack of experience this in turn sent the premium through the roof, which is understandable.Bring it back I say
I know the performance capability in these motors so will definitely be doing an advanced driving course, not just to get an understanding of the car but I don't fancy wrapping my pride and joy round a tree.
It is not just young drivers who crash these cars. YouTube is full of overweight older guys continually crashing their supercars, (overweight may sound a bit harsh but most of them are American ).
It is hugely entertaining to see ordinary folk who haven't the sense to remove their foot off the throttle when it all goes pear shaped.
As for youngsters, I took No3 son a few weeks after his 17th birthday on a track day. After learning to drive and passing in a crappy Peugeot 106 he managed to spin my chim on the sighting lap!
Roll on a few years and at the ripe old age of 23, he Is only a couple seconds behind me on a Sprint circuit.
It is hugely entertaining to see ordinary folk who haven't the sense to remove their foot off the throttle when it all goes pear shaped.
As for youngsters, I took No3 son a few weeks after his 17th birthday on a track day. After learning to drive and passing in a crappy Peugeot 106 he managed to spin my chim on the sighting lap!
Roll on a few years and at the ripe old age of 23, he Is only a couple seconds behind me on a Sprint circuit.
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