RE: PH Fleet: TVR Chimaera and Mazda MX-5

RE: PH Fleet: TVR Chimaera and Mazda MX-5

Author
Discussion

Martin 480 Turbo

602 posts

188 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Garlick, after the last paragraph you got me here, shedding a tear... I just love old Holywood movies and how they built tension towards a relieving end.

Kerping a car "forever" is not given to many chaps, but exactly what I plan doing with the E30 that the missus has since she was 23 (15 years ago...)


Martin 480 Turbo

Edited by Martin 480 Turbo on Thursday 11th April 18:36

disco666

233 posts

147 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Had my Chimp 10 years this month!
Bought it with my first bonus for £15k, probably worth £15k now- ok, it's had to have a new (bored to 5.4, upgraded internals) engine but aside from that been reliable.
I can't see myself getting rid of it. Aside from the emotional attachment, what could I get for the same money to match the blend of performance, practicality, style and of course the noise?
Lightweight, manual, analogue, styling unconstrained by legislation.
They truly do not make them like that anymore.
Like everybody else on here, I mourned the death of TVR, but looking back maybe it's not so bad- they could not sell cars like that today, so maybe best to quit on a high.

Garlick

40,601 posts

241 months

Thursday 11th April 2013
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Martin 480 Turbo said:
Garlick, after the last paragraph you got me here, shedding a tear... I just love old Holywood movies and how they built tension towards a relieving end.

Kerping a car "forever" is not given to many chaps, but exactly what I plan doing with the E30 that the missus has since she was 23 (15 years ago...)


Martin 480 Turbo

Edited by Martin 480 Turbo on Thursday 11th April 18:36
It was a bit emotional...sorry!

ayseven

130 posts

147 months

Friday 12th April 2013
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Thank you for raising the price of TVRs. It's sometimes better to pretend they're all as unreliable as...

Garlick

40,601 posts

241 months

Friday 12th April 2013
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Interesting point on pricing. Owners of all types of classic cars enjoy seeing rising prices for cars they own but sometimes I've seen threads from TVR owners exclaiming how much our cars are being advertised for, some seem to want them to always be cheap!

Even as a chap who wants to keep my car, I still think we'll see all TVRs appreciate nicely over the next 10 years. Surely proper classic status will beckon with reducing numbers and more cars being modified?

Martin 480 Turbo

602 posts

188 months

Friday 12th April 2013
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Garlick said:
It was a bit emotional...sorry!
No need to appologise, we are men of the 21st century, aren't we,
a little emotion is not wrong any more, just "latin" smile

Martin

beancounter

68 posts

223 months

Friday 12th April 2013
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....and I thought it was just me!I celebrated becoming middle aged by buying a new Chimaera 500 in 1999 (had a couple of years with a Chim 400 as a 'warm-up' act). My wife said it was a TRT (testosterone replacement therapy) not a TVR. Anyway, like a puppy, it was not just for Xmas and as I enter the next phase of my life so has the car. Last year it had a major body-off chassis restoration and some engine work to get a bit nearer the optimistic BHP figures quoted by the factory. At long last my son became insurable to drive the car and now we can both enjoy the unique experience. Driving a Chimaera is an experience because it sounds wonderful, is comfortable and spacious by comparison with other 2 seat sports cars and attracts positive attention rather than the negative attention of certain other brands. You'll gather that mine is not for sale and that my son is looking forward to inheriting it when I can no longer get in it (hopefully after many more years albeit i would prefer him to pay for the next chassis rebuild!.

mike parfitt

36 posts

261 months

Friday 12th April 2013
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Re keeping the car until your 80's understand what you mean, have had my 4.5 chim for 8 years, but in the garage next to it is my 350i wedge (now with 3.9 stage 2 power) which this august will have spent 20 years in my hands.

J4CKO

41,634 posts

201 months

Friday 12th April 2013
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Chim is strongly looking like my next car.

Trevor450

1,754 posts

149 months

Friday 12th April 2013
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Mine is staying too. I have wanted a Chimaera since sitting in one at a Birmingham motor show in the 90s aged 18 or so and that has never changed.

It let me down for the first time in over a year of ownership last week but the satisfaction of mending it myself and being able to take it for a drive afterwards left a warm glow of satisfaction and contentment. It isn't perfect, but it is mine.

Richyvrlimited

1,826 posts

164 months

Sunday 14th April 2013
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killingjoker said:
I notice the difference with my mk2.
Placebo is an amazing thing.

Super unleaded/vpower etc etc is an utter waste of money in an otherwise stock MX5/roadster/miata.

Now if it's been modified to the point of aftermarket ECUs and/or forced induction it's a completely different story.

killingjoker

950 posts

194 months

Monday 15th April 2013
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Richyvrlimited said:
Placebo is an amazing thing.

Super unleaded/vpower etc etc is an utter waste of money in an otherwise stock MX5/roadster/miata.

Now if it's been modified to the point of aftermarket ECUs and/or forced induction it's a completely different story.
I notice the difference in my mk2. Do i need to repeat that again? Yawn.

Ab Shocks

1,686 posts

221 months

Monday 10th June 2013
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Funnily enough I've had this combination of cars at the same time and one of the funny aspects was that on my regular run up to the NW the TVR was always better on fuel cruising at 80, or rather cruising in the Chimmy and revving the nuts off the MX-5. lol