Discussion
RB Will said:
Thanks
that thread is useful.
I'm considering spending a bit extra and maybe getting one via Str8six as they come with pretty good prep and a 12 month warranty so should have at least one pain free year lol. They are the nearest dealer to me I think. I'm in Swindon. I know David Hendry in Malmesbury used to do them but they seem to just do Subaru and Ssangyong or something now.
Or would I be better off finding a nice private sale and keeping the cash as a potential bork fund?
Going to STR8SIX is a very good choice.that thread is useful.
I'm considering spending a bit extra and maybe getting one via Str8six as they come with pretty good prep and a 12 month warranty so should have at least one pain free year lol. They are the nearest dealer to me I think. I'm in Swindon. I know David Hendry in Malmesbury used to do them but they seem to just do Subaru and Ssangyong or something now.
Or would I be better off finding a nice private sale and keeping the cash as a potential bork fund?
popegregory said:
RB Will said:
I'm in Swindon. I know David Hendry in Malmesbury used to do them but they seem to just do Subaru and Ssangyong or something now.
If you know Malmesbury then you can find Neil Garner who occasionally has something for sale I used to use them for 12 years, really cannot recommend them now. Happy to answer PM's
I now go to Str8Six, who are brilliant. They rebuilt my engine too and gave my car a health check, identifying many worn parts that I'd paid previously to be replaced, parts that weren't assembled properly, cost me another £2k to correct
I can't be far from you. Mines in for a service and MOT currently but happy to talk you through everything, let you look at mine, and I can scare you with bills
It's Kudu. I searched for kudo and got a limo hire business!
https://kudu-automotive.co.uk/home/green-tvr
https://kudu-automotive.co.uk/home/green-tvr
OP, I’m near Swindon with a 2002 Speed Six. You’re welcome to come out for a burble and convince yourself that it is/isn’t fast enough. If you think it is, then IME you’ll get a better car for less money by sacrificing 2 cylinders- and a more maintainable engine going forwards. I paid £20k for a near immaculate mk3 with rebuild and Str8Six history up to its ears, I wanted an AJP8 initially but none in my budget could touch it for condition- and for the road I think it’s plenty quick enough. A good 4.5 really will rip your face off though, they’re pretty special 
I mean a sorted 4.5 is the daddy.. But to get there it will need Joolz' short induction and a remap.
A later 4.2 is a 4.5 with 4.2 induction. You can make good power with this setup too.
From the factory not much difference between a genuine 4.2 and SP6.. It seems many SP6's came with a 3.73 diff as opposed to the 3.45 so they make up for their less power with gearing.
The SP6 is plenty quick enough etc, but the AJP is the Cerb.. It is the only TVR that came with the engine making it a bit more special.
A later 4.2 is a 4.5 with 4.2 induction. You can make good power with this setup too.
From the factory not much difference between a genuine 4.2 and SP6.. It seems many SP6's came with a 3.73 diff as opposed to the 3.45 so they make up for their less power with gearing.
The SP6 is plenty quick enough etc, but the AJP is the Cerb.. It is the only TVR that came with the engine making it a bit more special.
Jhonno said:
I mean a sorted 4.5 is the daddy.. But to get there it will need Joolz' short induction and a remap.
A later 4.2 is a 4.5 with 4.2 induction. You can make good power with this setup too.
From the factory not much difference between a genuine 4.2 and SP6.. It seems many SP6's came with a 3.73 diff as opposed to the 3.45 so they make up for their less power with gearing.
The SP6 is plenty quick enough etc, but the AJP is the Cerb.. It is the only TVR that came with the engine making it a bit more special.
A 4.5 Red Rose is the daddy. Long induction gives better torque on mine. A later 4.2 is a 4.5 with 4.2 induction. You can make good power with this setup too.
From the factory not much difference between a genuine 4.2 and SP6.. It seems many SP6's came with a 3.73 diff as opposed to the 3.45 so they make up for their less power with gearing.
The SP6 is plenty quick enough etc, but the AJP is the Cerb.. It is the only TVR that came with the engine making it a bit more special.
Again thanks for the input guys. And thanks to the locals offering rides. I may well take you up on those in time.
I will be looking for an AJP powered one. I'm not too fussed on outright speed / power as long as there is a bit of noise and drama there. Are the 4.2 and 4.5 similar in noise and character? Is one more sedate, one more knife edged? I do like cars to be a bit on edge, keeps me on my toes lol.
The Cerb will be joining my 510bhp Impreza P1 which likes to try and kill me at every opportunity, linear power delivery is not its strong suit!
I've also had a straight six powered car before so a V8 car will be another tick off the list
I will be looking for an AJP powered one. I'm not too fussed on outright speed / power as long as there is a bit of noise and drama there. Are the 4.2 and 4.5 similar in noise and character? Is one more sedate, one more knife edged? I do like cars to be a bit on edge, keeps me on my toes lol.
The Cerb will be joining my 510bhp Impreza P1 which likes to try and kill me at every opportunity, linear power delivery is not its strong suit!
I've also had a straight six powered car before so a V8 car will be another tick off the list
I turned down six Cerberas before buying my 4.5, which is now a 4.7 Red Rose because I'm an unlucky idiot and despite being fastidious in my research as well as diligent in my assessment of the cars, I managed to buy a crap one.
During my looking around for a car, I took in a good mix of 4.2s and 4.5s in various states of niceness.
In terms of character, they sound broadly the same with regards to engine note overall, although you can't really draw a fair comparison between two cerberas because they all have different exhaust setups now after 20 years of owners adjusting them to suit their tastes. The 4.5 is overall marginally deeper, but they're so loud and modified I can't imagine anyone could tell one from the other on noise alone.
The 4.5 from new was often considered to have popped and banged on the overrun more, a combination of mapping, injectors used and the induction, and they're pretty hilarious if they've been tuned with this in mind. My experiences with the two V8s did concur with this, but again, they've all been played with in different ways over the last 20 years.
I settled on wanting a 4.5 because of the extra torque, popping, and also knowing that I probably wouldn't be able to have a second chance at having a crazy car, I wanted to just have the most of everything.
The biggest piece of advice I can offer is not to buy cheaply. If you're just about able to get to a 4.5 now, wait, save some more, and have more budget.
Ideally you want to see an engine rebuild by TVR Power or str8six. Be very wary of race engine builders, as they might build a good race engine, but it'll be hopeless in terms of longevity for a road car. Guess how I learned that...
During my looking around for a car, I took in a good mix of 4.2s and 4.5s in various states of niceness.
In terms of character, they sound broadly the same with regards to engine note overall, although you can't really draw a fair comparison between two cerberas because they all have different exhaust setups now after 20 years of owners adjusting them to suit their tastes. The 4.5 is overall marginally deeper, but they're so loud and modified I can't imagine anyone could tell one from the other on noise alone.
The 4.5 from new was often considered to have popped and banged on the overrun more, a combination of mapping, injectors used and the induction, and they're pretty hilarious if they've been tuned with this in mind. My experiences with the two V8s did concur with this, but again, they've all been played with in different ways over the last 20 years.
I settled on wanting a 4.5 because of the extra torque, popping, and also knowing that I probably wouldn't be able to have a second chance at having a crazy car, I wanted to just have the most of everything.
The biggest piece of advice I can offer is not to buy cheaply. If you're just about able to get to a 4.5 now, wait, save some more, and have more budget.
Ideally you want to see an engine rebuild by TVR Power or str8six. Be very wary of race engine builders, as they might build a good race engine, but it'll be hopeless in terms of longevity for a road car. Guess how I learned that...
Gassing Station | Cerbera | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff