Secured my first TVR - Here come the questions!
Discussion
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Did this car come with a warrantee as its being sold via a car dealership by any chance.
By law I think it has too have a warrantee these days. I’d get your chassis checked out by a known TVR guru ASAP if I were you.
This looks remarkably similar to a car mentioned in another thread a few weeks ago which appeared to have a rusty chassis. Before you commit any more money to this car get that chassis checked properly. I don’t wish to alarm you but if the chassis is in poor condition it’s unlikely to pass an MOT and your windows the least of your problems.
What notes did the seller mention re the chassis condition. If it has holes of any description it should not have a valid MOT!
CAN SOMEONE tag the other thread onto here so this new owner can check the details as I am less than useless with computers and don’t know how to do it.
Better to beware than not and hopefully chassis is more solid than the pics might suggest.
Oh and welcome to TVR ownership, you’ll love it
By law I think it has too have a warrantee these days. I’d get your chassis checked out by a known TVR guru ASAP if I were you.
This looks remarkably similar to a car mentioned in another thread a few weeks ago which appeared to have a rusty chassis. Before you commit any more money to this car get that chassis checked properly. I don’t wish to alarm you but if the chassis is in poor condition it’s unlikely to pass an MOT and your windows the least of your problems.
What notes did the seller mention re the chassis condition. If it has holes of any description it should not have a valid MOT!
CAN SOMEONE tag the other thread onto here so this new owner can check the details as I am less than useless with computers and don’t know how to do it.
Better to beware than not and hopefully chassis is more solid than the pics might suggest.
Oh and welcome to TVR ownership, you’ll love it
Hmmm, that's not good. It had an MOT last May with only minor advisories.
In one sense I know that it's bad to have a bad chassis, but I also am not against totally doing a body off restoration on this car in time, so it could be worse if that is the case.
The owner before the dealer had it inspected by a third party and the report says "the vehicle in our opinion has a very good strong chassis, however it is recommended it is now treated with rust prevention and wax oil to prevent further decay"
In one sense I know that it's bad to have a bad chassis, but I also am not against totally doing a body off restoration on this car in time, so it could be worse if that is the case.
The owner before the dealer had it inspected by a third party and the report says "the vehicle in our opinion has a very good strong chassis, however it is recommended it is now treated with rust prevention and wax oil to prevent further decay"
May be a different car, this was the thread: www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=1770765
OP..assuming its not the same car, congratulations ☺
OP..assuming its not the same car, congratulations ☺
well....it turns out it is the same car 
I'll be honest, I didn't get as good pictures as that, but I did see some of that from the underneath, and it does look bad in the pictures, but where I did test, it all seems to be surface corrosion. I will certainly get it checked but for £9k, a lot of the rest is good, and I don't think its as bad as those pictures make out in my opinion...
I'll be honest, I didn't get as good pictures as that, but I did see some of that from the underneath, and it does look bad in the pictures, but where I did test, it all seems to be surface corrosion. I will certainly get it checked but for £9k, a lot of the rest is good, and I don't think its as bad as those pictures make out in my opinion...
I’d say the riggers are a pain but not a big problem. You need to remove at least one front wheel and check the chassis top tube ( circular) as it runs from front to back and specifically where it runs past the engine at the top wishbone pick up point or lugs,, if it is rotten there it will require body off and a lot more work to make safe.
I have no wish to upset you as today should be a very special day but I felt compelled to offer this advice. Look very closely indeed.
Hopefully this is a red Herrin but its often the case that chassis can be very poor if not looked after properly. To put this in perspective I’d estimate 80% of Chims on original riggers are rotten so it’s hardly the end of the road,,, check main tubing as that’s where the real problems lie.
I have no wish to upset you as today should be a very special day but I felt compelled to offer this advice. Look very closely indeed.
Hopefully this is a red Herrin but its often the case that chassis can be very poor if not looked after properly. To put this in perspective I’d estimate 80% of Chims on original riggers are rotten so it’s hardly the end of the road,,, check main tubing as that’s where the real problems lie.
At least you're willing to do stuff yourself! That rubber sheet in the door is attached to the top of the door frame behind the door panel, or should be. It is meant to be there, deflecting rainwater that gets in the door away from the electrical wires, sort of. You've already had the speaker out so to get the door panel off you have to reach a very long thin arm inside to get the nuts off. I replace the hardest to reach ones with wing nuts afterwards. Being an early model, you will likely only have 3 nuts in there (later ones have 4), one to the left as you look in the driver's door speaker hole, and 2 round to your right.
The door glass being slightly loose in the frames is common too, it is often very tight at the bottom. If it goes all the way down and up on battery power alone without the engine running, I'd be pleasantly surprised. The glass is bonded to a horizontal metal piece (may be unsecure) which in turn is bolted onto the window regulator drive. It's door panel off to get at it. This is what it is like with the long rubber piece removed. I bonded it back on again after because it annoyingly gets in the way:
Those 2 holes in the plate are what the glass runner bolts to.
Yes they are all carbon fibre effect targa top with canvas top. Don't break it, they're £hundreds second hand.
Speedo looks from the MoT history to not have been working for a couple of years. I saw another car that had the same mileage on MoTs for 6 years! Reflects badly on the owner IMHO. It may be the detector down by the rear diff but if it isn't, unless you can tap it like mad or even prise off the bevel edge and get it working, it's probably a send away job. But it hasn't stuck at an exact thousand so it may be a complete failure.
Second hand ones are often on ebay too.
15psi oil pressure at idle isn't unusual, there are threads on here about oil pressure senders under-reading too. 10 psi on a hot engine at idle is common.
Rubber seal for door and targa section comes off a roll. TVR Parts do it all or you may try other trimmers. When I changed mine, I didn't bother pop riveting the ends on like thay do at the factory. I found it unnecessary.
What you think is the hood coming away at the sides may just be the Velcro sections coming away that the hood inside edges stick to in the up position. A common thing.
The dashboard isn't original I think. There was an aluminium dash option from about 1999 I think (I had a W reg Chimaera with a factory one). Some prefer the wood look. I don't personally. Mine is carbon fibre effect wrapped on my current '96 car because the veneer had split badly.
Not my cup of tea those seats but somebody may do you a swap.
The door glass being slightly loose in the frames is common too, it is often very tight at the bottom. If it goes all the way down and up on battery power alone without the engine running, I'd be pleasantly surprised. The glass is bonded to a horizontal metal piece (may be unsecure) which in turn is bolted onto the window regulator drive. It's door panel off to get at it. This is what it is like with the long rubber piece removed. I bonded it back on again after because it annoyingly gets in the way:
Those 2 holes in the plate are what the glass runner bolts to.
Yes they are all carbon fibre effect targa top with canvas top. Don't break it, they're £hundreds second hand.
Speedo looks from the MoT history to not have been working for a couple of years. I saw another car that had the same mileage on MoTs for 6 years! Reflects badly on the owner IMHO. It may be the detector down by the rear diff but if it isn't, unless you can tap it like mad or even prise off the bevel edge and get it working, it's probably a send away job. But it hasn't stuck at an exact thousand so it may be a complete failure.
Second hand ones are often on ebay too. 15psi oil pressure at idle isn't unusual, there are threads on here about oil pressure senders under-reading too. 10 psi on a hot engine at idle is common.
Rubber seal for door and targa section comes off a roll. TVR Parts do it all or you may try other trimmers. When I changed mine, I didn't bother pop riveting the ends on like thay do at the factory. I found it unnecessary.
What you think is the hood coming away at the sides may just be the Velcro sections coming away that the hood inside edges stick to in the up position. A common thing.
The dashboard isn't original I think. There was an aluminium dash option from about 1999 I think (I had a W reg Chimaera with a factory one). Some prefer the wood look. I don't personally. Mine is carbon fibre effect wrapped on my current '96 car because the veneer had split badly.
Not my cup of tea those seats but somebody may do you a swap.
Classic Chim said:
I’d say the riggers are a pain but not a big problem. You need to remove at least one front wheel and check the chassis top tube ( circular) as it runs from front to back and specifically where it runs past the engine at the top wishbone pick up point or lugs,, if it is rotten there it will require body off and a lot more work to make safe.
I have no wish to upset you as today should be a very special day but I felt compelled to offer this advice. Look very closely indeed.
Hopefully this is a red Herrin but its often the case that chassis can be very poor if not looked after properly. To put this in perspective I’d estimate 80% of Chims on original riggers are rotten so it’s hardly the end of the road,,, check main tubing as that’s where the real problems lie.
Appreciate your advice, it's a shame if it is the case and has certainly taken the shine off the day but it is what it is, I will take it down to Str8six at some point soon and see what they say (unless there is another recommended garage in Bucks?)I have no wish to upset you as today should be a very special day but I felt compelled to offer this advice. Look very closely indeed.
Hopefully this is a red Herrin but its often the case that chassis can be very poor if not looked after properly. To put this in perspective I’d estimate 80% of Chims on original riggers are rotten so it’s hardly the end of the road,,, check main tubing as that’s where the real problems lie.
ill try to look at the positives, if I need new outriggers, or at worst a new chassis, then I'll have a chim with a brand new chassis, can't be a bad thing
ianwayne said:
At least you're willing to do stuff yourself! That rubber sheet in the door is attached to the top of the door frame behind the door panel, or should be. It is meant to be there, deflecting rainwater that gets in the door away from the electrical wires, sort of. You've already had the speaker out so to get the door panel off you have to reach a very long thin arm inside to get the nuts off. I replace the hardest to reach ones with wing nuts afterwards. Being an early model, you will likely only have 3 nuts in there (later ones have 4), one to the left as you look in the driver's door speaker hole, and 2 round to your right.
The door glass being slightly loose in the frames is common too, it is often very tight at the bottom. If it goes all the way down and up on battery power alone without the engine running, I'd be pleasantly surprised. The glass is bonded to a horizontal metal piece (may be unsecure) which in turn is bolted onto the window regulator drive. It's door panel off to get at it. This is what it is like with the long rubber piece removed. I bonded it back on again after because it annoyingly gets in the way:
Those 2 holes in the plate are what the glass runner bolts to.
Yes they are all carbon fibre effect targa top with canvas top. Don't break it, they're £hundreds second hand.
Speedo looks from the MoT history to not have been working for a couple of years. I saw another car that had the same mileage on MoTs for 6 years! Reflects badly on the owner IMHO. It may be the detector down by the rear diff but if it isn't, unless you can tap it like mad or even prise off the bevel edge and get it working, it's probably a send away job. But it hasn't stuck at an exact thousand so it may be a complete failure. Second hand ones are often on ebay too.
15psi oil pressure at idle isn't unusual, there are threads on here about oil pressure senders under-reading too. 10 psi on a hot engine at idle is common.
Rubber seal for door and targa section comes off a roll. TVR Parts do it all or you may try other trimmers. When I changed mine, I didn't bother pop riveting the ends on like thay do at the factory. I found it unnecessary.
What you think is the hood coming away at the sides may just be the Velcro sections coming away that the hood inside edges stick to in the up position. A common thing.
The dashboard isn't original I think. There was an aluminium dash option from about 1999 I think (I had a W reg Chimaera with a factory one). Some prefer the wood look. I don't personally. Mine is carbon fibre effect wrapped on my current '96 car because the veneer had split badly.
Not my cup of tea those seats but somebody may do you a swap.
Looks like a lot of the minor issues could be easily fixable. Thanks for this informationThe door glass being slightly loose in the frames is common too, it is often very tight at the bottom. If it goes all the way down and up on battery power alone without the engine running, I'd be pleasantly surprised. The glass is bonded to a horizontal metal piece (may be unsecure) which in turn is bolted onto the window regulator drive. It's door panel off to get at it. This is what it is like with the long rubber piece removed. I bonded it back on again after because it annoyingly gets in the way:
Those 2 holes in the plate are what the glass runner bolts to.
Yes they are all carbon fibre effect targa top with canvas top. Don't break it, they're £hundreds second hand.
Speedo looks from the MoT history to not have been working for a couple of years. I saw another car that had the same mileage on MoTs for 6 years! Reflects badly on the owner IMHO. It may be the detector down by the rear diff but if it isn't, unless you can tap it like mad or even prise off the bevel edge and get it working, it's probably a send away job. But it hasn't stuck at an exact thousand so it may be a complete failure.
Second hand ones are often on ebay too. 15psi oil pressure at idle isn't unusual, there are threads on here about oil pressure senders under-reading too. 10 psi on a hot engine at idle is common.
Rubber seal for door and targa section comes off a roll. TVR Parts do it all or you may try other trimmers. When I changed mine, I didn't bother pop riveting the ends on like thay do at the factory. I found it unnecessary.
What you think is the hood coming away at the sides may just be the Velcro sections coming away that the hood inside edges stick to in the up position. A common thing.
The dashboard isn't original I think. There was an aluminium dash option from about 1999 I think (I had a W reg Chimaera with a factory one). Some prefer the wood look. I don't personally. Mine is carbon fibre effect wrapped on my current '96 car because the veneer had split badly.
Not my cup of tea those seats but somebody may do you a swap.
Probably best if you find the threads on here about door panel removal for reference and more photos.
There is a screw behind the ashtray that has to come out as well as others in the carpet along the top (if they're there!) after the outer section comes off. I should have mentioned to door panel is made up of 2 parts!
There is a screw behind the ashtray that has to come out as well as others in the carpet along the top (if they're there!) after the outer section comes off. I should have mentioned to door panel is made up of 2 parts!
Congratulations and welcome to the madness that is TVR. Excellent knowledge and skill in these forums so keep asking away.
My first TVR was a chimaera 400, 1995 with 76k on it. It was a bit of a dog but I didn’t realise when buying it. Ended up restoring her myself over 8 years whilst driving it every day. Loved every minute of it and now on my 3rd TVR.
Doesnt really matter what condition she’s in. It’s now yours to restore as you wish. That’s the fun for me, nearly almost as much as the drive!
My first TVR was a chimaera 400, 1995 with 76k on it. It was a bit of a dog but I didn’t realise when buying it. Ended up restoring her myself over 8 years whilst driving it every day. Loved every minute of it and now on my 3rd TVR.
Doesnt really matter what condition she’s in. It’s now yours to restore as you wish. That’s the fun for me, nearly almost as much as the drive!
Technoholic said:
Appreciate your advice, it's a shame if it is the case and has certainly taken the shine off the day but it is what it is, I will take it down to Str8six at some point soon and see what they say (unless there is another recommended garage in Bucks?)
ill try to look at the positives, if I need new outriggers, or at worst a new chassis, then I'll have a chim with a brand new chassis, can't be a bad thing
You’ll get an honest answer from Str8six and you appear to have exactly the right attitude to own a Tvr. Wishbones and the like, infact most parts are actually cheap even in comparison with other vehicles of a similar description, steering ball joints etc all cheap enough. It’s sometimes better to see rusty wishbones rather than rusty painted wishbones if you get my drift so what might appear shocking, with a little TLC and wet and dry and some decent paint like Rustoleum etc can transform stuff to last another 10 years etc. ill try to look at the positives, if I need new outriggers, or at worst a new chassis, then I'll have a chim with a brand new chassis, can't be a bad thing
It’s just over the years you get to see a few bits and pieces that are sometimes left to the point of failure so if you catch them early enough there’s no reason you can’t rebuild using them.
I have no idea if you know about rigger or chassis issues which is why I felt it important to bring this to your attention.
We’re here to help eachother as best we can and you’ll find many good people offering their advice.
It’s only the centre sections of the chassis you need to be sure of as that’s about the only bit that can’t be done with body in place. Even out riggers now can be replaced without a body lift so if you are lucky it’s not such a big deal.
I think I’d be getting that chassis main section checked ASAP to settle your mind.
If the car has a number of expensive issues to repair it might become a very expensive Tvr very quickly.
It all depends on who repairs it or if you can do engine removal / body lift etc at home, it can be done for much less but at a Tvr centre it’s going to be big bucks.
I got what I thought was a bargain,( I didn’t have much Tvr knowledge) took it to Tvr Power the very next day and my dream stopped in its tracks,,, got the wallet out and carried on regardless
I’ve got a great car now though, truth is they all need work at some point as they are all getting on, many owners take this hobby / money spending experience to a different level and all of these cars can be made better,,, it’s just when!!!
Once they are at the top of the game there is no other car in its class quite like em on so many levels. They are sheds too but given a good set up and some TLC are very capable cars even by today’s standards.
STE VR said:
Congratulations and welcome to the madness that is TVR. Excellent knowledge and skill in these forums so keep asking away.
My first TVR was a chimaera 400, 1995 with 76k on it. It was a bit of a dog but I didn’t realise when buying it. Ended up restoring her myself over 8 years whilst driving it every day. Loved every minute of it and now on my 3rd TVR.
Doesnt really matter what condition she’s in. It’s now yours to restore as you wish. That’s the fun for me, nearly almost as much as the drive!
OP .. this.My first TVR was a chimaera 400, 1995 with 76k on it. It was a bit of a dog but I didn’t realise when buying it. Ended up restoring her myself over 8 years whilst driving it every day. Loved every minute of it and now on my 3rd TVR.
Doesnt really matter what condition she’s in. It’s now yours to restore as you wish. That’s the fun for me, nearly almost as much as the drive!
They are all old, and either have been restored, or will need restoring, and all will need TLC over the years.
Enjoy the car, and enjoy turning into YOUR car.. these cars grow into you.. ive had mine 10 years now (also a 1995 400, and on 104k miles when i bought it.. 140k now) and no stranger to bringing it back to where it should be..
STE VR said:
Congratulations and welcome to the madness that is TVR. Excellent knowledge and skill in these forums so keep asking away.
My first TVR was a chimaera 400, 1995 with 76k on it. It was a bit of a dog but I didn’t realise when buying it. Ended up restoring her myself over 8 years whilst driving it every day. Loved every minute of it and now on my 3rd TVR.
Doesnt really matter what condition she’s in. It’s now yours to restore as you wish. That’s the fun for me, nearly almost as much as the drive!
This entirely My first TVR was a chimaera 400, 1995 with 76k on it. It was a bit of a dog but I didn’t realise when buying it. Ended up restoring her myself over 8 years whilst driving it every day. Loved every minute of it and now on my 3rd TVR.
Doesnt really matter what condition she’s in. It’s now yours to restore as you wish. That’s the fun for me, nearly almost as much as the drive!
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