Re : TVR appoints new CEO; laments factory issues

[imuir]

BigChiefmuffinAgain said:

But are they actually "ready to go" and build a car, even in small quantities ? The article seems to suggest that there is only the 1 car in existence. It doesn't sound like this has had any testing or development work done to it, crash testing, hot and cold testing etc... I've never seen any "spy pics" of any other cars - it sounds like they have only just concluded a deal on a new engine ( which will have to be engineered to fit and tested, I assume ).

They may well be holding off doing any of this, which involves spending a lot of money, until they have made more progress on the factory but it does feel that they are quite a long time from actually having a car to deliver to anyone. Not sure about this one....

TVR testing and development has always been done by customers

[PAUL500]

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[Reciprocating mass]

So les Edgar took over tvr in 2013,
the new demo car arrived in 2017 was it ? and we are now into 2020, I hope they do succeed, but it won’t be with this car imo, by the time there is any chance of production they will be having to do a re design at the very min, the thing will be ancient by the time it arrives
And any chance of selling more than a handful will be gone, how much more time will there be before it all goes down the tubes

[NotNormal]

Seems to be a similar marketing exercise to that of Rich energy!!
A product no one can buy, but yet is able to create so many column inches. Only difference is TVR haven't let a madman loose on an official Twitter account......Maybe that'll be the next move to keep people talking

[8Speed]

Too many people being negative about the whole project without any of us knowing the complete story.
I wish them luck - I know it's a tough hill to climb but I hope they make it.
Too much negativity from some armchair pundits

[Taffy66]

As a proud Welshman who due to the nature of my business has no choice but to do regular dealings with the WAG, i see things from a different angle..Based on my experience with the WAG they are most corrupt,useless,lazy,greedy and self-serving institution created by the human race..When i first heard that the WAG was involved in TVR's resurgence any optimism i'd had quickly evaporated..
I'm a huge TVR fan and most likely would consider placing a deposit on one, but not until WAG get their act together and i can see cars going down the production line..
TVR have built up a great talented team of people ensuring the car will be brilliant to drive, unfortunately they've jumped in bed with the awful WAG..Good luck to them but i wouldn't hold my breath personally..!

[p4cks]

Gandahar said:

Tim, what's happening with your order?

Christ, don't ever ask him a question we'll be here all week

[eliot]

Factory (or lack thereof) is just a handy diversion from the reality of not having funding imo. There are endless specialists that could be contracted to make hand built prototypes for r&d whilst waiting for the ‘factory’

Also see; ‘dog eat my homework’

[AJL308]

Zygot said:

We need to look to history of a small scale manufacturer trying to build a new sports car from scratch in a new factory, with an untested workforce
In this situation.......
What would John DeLorean do?

This is going the way of the Jensen S-V8 of the mid 90's. It'll end the same way too. A few dozen cars built then receivership, the remaining shells and parts being thrown together over about a decade by tiny "specialist" firms after the rights have changed hands multiple times. The final shells being built up around 2032, or thereabouts.

[Tuna]

Digga said:

Recent history is instructive in this though.

As good as Berriman is, if the company screws up, it's not happening. There was a whole team of very, very talented people - many with bright, shiny careers at JLR etc. - who moved to Dyson, only for him to stcan the whole car project.

It's quite possible it was right to cancel the Dyson project. If something is brilliant (see: very talented people), but economic suicide, should the company go ahead?

Same with TVR really - lots of people weighing in on what the company should or shouldn't do, but it's up to Edgar to make the call on whether it's a going concern or they need to change tack. The recent hire suggests he's still committed to seeing the project launch, even if the delays are long.

As for the 'it's ancient' - shoving a brand new Ford V8 into a lightweight chassis was an ancient idea when Peter Wheeler first did it - it still works as a niche proposition. If they get out some demonstrators, then people can make realistic claims as to whether the package as a whole works.

[AJL308]

cookie1600 said:

Kenny Powers said:

No one said it was. That's exactly the point.

+1

So what can you do while kicking your heels with a car ready to go, waiting for the builders to turn up? Sub the first few out to a specialist or find smaller, temporary, rented premises and use some of your own engineers to get a trickle of cars going before the bigger plant comes on stream.

We're not talking Honda or Nisan here, we aren't even talking Mclaren or Aston Martin, more Atom or Radical sized outfits. Couldn't they even start a batch going from say Hi-Tech Automotive in South Africa to get some product on the roads and generate cash-flow?

It all has a whiff of running out of investment and I'm 100% behind the return of the marque.

Edited by cookie1600 on Thursday 23 January 15:20

For the first Interceptors and FF's in 1966/67 Jensen had them built by Vignale in Italy (the design was by Touring) while the factory was altered and, I think, the last CV-8's were completed.

[ridds]

That interior really hasn't aged well at all in the last couple of years.

[AJL308]

8Speed said:

Too many people being negative about the whole project without any of us knowing the complete story.
I wish them luck - I know it's a tough hill to climb but I hope they make it.
Too much negativity from some armchair pundits

You can only comment on the facts as they are currently known. The current facts make the situation look decidedly unstable. Would you invest £10K in shares in TVR if you could? I wouldn't and I love TVR's.

[CO2000]

chickensoup said:

Building was getting a £5Million refurbishment in 2018
sounds a bit like an excuse

& the WHOLE roof needing repaired all at once, not just some locaised repairs

[Monkeylegend]

If funding was not the issue TVR would be saying so, no reason not too.

The reason projects get delayed like this is not because of a leaking roof.

[BigChiefmuffinAgain]

imuir said:

BigChiefmuffinAgain said:

But are they actually "ready to go" and build a car, even in small quantities ? The article seems to suggest that there is only the 1 car in existence. It doesn't sound like this has had any testing or development work done to it, crash testing, hot and cold testing etc... I've never seen any "spy pics" of any other cars - it sounds like they have only just concluded a deal on a new engine ( which will have to be engineered to fit and tested, I assume ).

They may well be holding off doing any of this, which involves spending a lot of money, until they have made more progress on the factory but it does feel that they are quite a long time from actually having a car to deliver to anyone. Not sure about this one....

TVR testing and development has always been done by customers

I know. I was one...

[cookie1600]

Tuna said:

Same with TVR really - lots of people weighing in on what the company should or shouldn't do, but it's up to Edgar to make the call on whether it's a going concern or they need to change tack. The recent hire suggests he's still committed to seeing the project launch, even if the delays are long..

Of course that's right, but maybe you've hit on the nub of the problem as far as potential buyers are concerned. Whether he (or TVR the company) have sufficient finances and resources to get the vehicle up to a decent rate of production is something only a few people really know.

But the perception by people on the outside, including many who have put deposits down, seems to be that there is little progress towards fulfilling supply and not many updates. See the other thread here:

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Read some of the latest comments from people prepared to buy one, including the ever enthusiastic Shmee. You need to sustain forward motion, not keep moving the manufacturing date - whatever the reason. People simply won't wait for ever, no matter how keen or how little a £5k deposit means to them. There are similar alternatives for sale right now.

Unless you're prepared to wait for your TVR without any indication of when it will arrive and you really don't see any new TVR cars being made, let alone a factory to make them in, how long does your enthusiasm last?

[cookie1600]

BigChiefmuffinAgain said:

But are they actually "ready to go" and build a car, even in small quantities ? The article seems to suggest that there is only the 1 car in existence. It doesn't sound like this has had any testing or development work done to it, crash testing, hot and cold testing etc...

I fear you're right. But then why blame the building work rather than getting a few more out there, perhaps built completely by hand and at least reassuring buyers the project is moving in the right direction.

I would have thought it was better to lose a few bob on a dozen cars and get the publicity of it still being a real project, while also keeping deposit payers and prospects on the boil? TVR is still costing money to run every day and so far it's only got deposits - no full sales.

'The dog ate my homework' won't work forever.

[ate one too]

Should've built the things in China ....

Tesla Gigafactory 3 is a factory in Shanghai, China by Tesla, Inc. The facility will produce battery cells along with Tesla Model 3 and Tesla Model Y cars, at an initial production rate target of 250,000 electric cars per year. The first China-built Tesla cars were delivered in December 2019, just twelve months after beginning site grading on the gigafactory in December 2018.


The Shanghai regional government approved the agreement to build the production facility in July 2018, and a long-term lease was signed for about 86 hectares (210 acres) of land in October 2018.

Edited by ate one too on Thursday 23 January 17:56

[Peter H 111]

Saw their car outside Buckingham Palace at the Weekend - looked fairly nice