would you buy cat C?
Discussion
No, not the eBay one...
Lets say you know of a my2000 cat C car on offer for 11k, and you are pretty sure it did not suffer any structural or mechanical damage (photos of accident damage suggest that much), apparently cracking the wings, bumper and bonnet is enough to get cat C'ed. Mint otherwise, factory engine rebuild in 2004, and fully repaired (very recent accident). Obviously subject to proper inspection.
Would you? My reasoning is that money saved is money in the piggy bank for future repair bills.
This would be my first TVR, some friends have already declared me certifiable because of these thoughts
Cheers
S
Lets say you know of a my2000 cat C car on offer for 11k, and you are pretty sure it did not suffer any structural or mechanical damage (photos of accident damage suggest that much), apparently cracking the wings, bumper and bonnet is enough to get cat C'ed. Mint otherwise, factory engine rebuild in 2004, and fully repaired (very recent accident). Obviously subject to proper inspection.
Would you? My reasoning is that money saved is money in the piggy bank for future repair bills.
This would be my first TVR, some friends have already declared me certifiable because of these thoughts
Cheers
S
Depends on your finances. The depreciation is next to nothing, so in reality all the car costs you is the cost of running and maintaining it.
Unless of course you plan on keeping it for a very long time you wouldn't really be saving anything other than the 0.5% interest you could get in the bank
Unless of course you plan on keeping it for a very long time you wouldn't really be saving anything other than the 0.5% interest you could get in the bank
Yes, however if no structural damage wouldn't it be more likely to be cad d? Just make sure you're being told the truth and are happy with the quality of the repair. If just body work then I think it's a no brainier really.
Cad d would knock about 25% off the value of the car in my experience, not sure about cad c though.
Cad d would knock about 25% off the value of the car in my experience, not sure about cad c though.
Cockey said:
Yes, however if no structural damage wouldn't it be more likely to be cad d? Just make sure you're being told the truth and are happy with the quality of the repair. If just body work then I think it's a no brainier really.
Cad d would knock about 25% off the value of the car in my experience, not sure about cad c though.
That's the thing... afaik cat D just means the car was not economical to repair. Question is does this ring true if the only damage is the front panels? I figured the cost to repair the fiber glass panels (I'm presuming the material makes cat C'ing more likely) relative to the value of a my2000 was too great... Cad d would knock about 25% off the value of the car in my experience, not sure about cad c though.
Then again I could just be inclined to be over optimistic because I want one SO MUCH
... tell me if I am plz!
There have been various tales about how some insurance companies have written off TVRs for very little apparant damage due to lack of knowledge etc. If you can get a full alignment check carried out on it and are sure it is safe then it is probably a decent car to buy. Personally I would also want the car to have a full check by someone like TVR Power to get an idea on the engine and other equipment as they can be money pits if not up to standard.
I found the thread
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
The general concensus seems to be stay away from very expensive cars that have been written off because a greater amount of damage would be tolerated before it achieves cat C. Whereas at the other end of the scale a vx220 was written off because they could not source the expensive and rare bumpers..
I figure that the tuscans panels are even more rare and more expensive, add to that the specialist job of the actual repair, and it could get the C quite easily.
I guess the only way to get peace of mind is to go and see it with my own eyes before the repair gets done.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
The general concensus seems to be stay away from very expensive cars that have been written off because a greater amount of damage would be tolerated before it achieves cat C. Whereas at the other end of the scale a vx220 was written off because they could not source the expensive and rare bumpers..
I figure that the tuscans panels are even more rare and more expensive, add to that the specialist job of the actual repair, and it could get the C quite easily.
I guess the only way to get peace of mind is to go and see it with my own eyes before the repair gets done.
I bought mine as a Cat D. It hadn't had any structural damage, only bodywork. The reason I bought the one I did is that it had already had a TVR Power 4.3 rebuild 8 months before I bought it and Dom knew the car. I therefore had no worries about anything mechanical. The car was a bit tired, the suspension needed doing and the bodywork repair hadn't been done to a great standard so I used the money I saved buying a Cat D on new suspension and a full respray and repair to get the car exactly how I wanted.
I also got the car Autolign inspected at Powers Bodyshop once I'd had those jobs done. It got a clean bill of health and is now recorded as accident inspected. It doesn't really bother me as I can never really see me selling it and I have no niggling worries when driving it as I know all the jobs have been done to a high standard.
It depends what you want from the car, a cheap way towards high performance, or a baseline to build a car that is yours and is done to how you want it.
I have kept the blog on it up to date in 'my garage' if you want to see some of the costs I've incurred, they've all been worth it though. Next on the list is a full retrim and it'll be perfect.
I also got the car Autolign inspected at Powers Bodyshop once I'd had those jobs done. It got a clean bill of health and is now recorded as accident inspected. It doesn't really bother me as I can never really see me selling it and I have no niggling worries when driving it as I know all the jobs have been done to a high standard.
It depends what you want from the car, a cheap way towards high performance, or a baseline to build a car that is yours and is done to how you want it.
I have kept the blog on it up to date in 'my garage' if you want to see some of the costs I've incurred, they've all been worth it though. Next on the list is a full retrim and it'll be perfect.
Edited by magpie21 on Saturday 17th March 11:45
Edited by magpie21 on Tuesday 2nd December 11:48
Interesting blog Magpie, looks like you pretty much have done a full renovation/upgrade on a cat-C and probably ended up with better value than a non-cat
My thinking is essentially the same, basically purchase the Cat-C and spend the difference on a full TVR Power rebuild as and when required. It's already had some of the upgrades that you have done yourself.
Its gotta be a WIN! right?
Ironically all else being equal I don't think I would have the same attitude towards a cat C car of the typical metal monocoque construction... Right or wrongly the far simpler TVR construction puts me somewhat at ease.
Please let me know if you detect defective thinking, I'm pretty sure I'm already clinically obsessed with Tuscans, having trawled through 54 pages of this forum in just a few days, absorbing as much info as I can.
Any tips in particular for inspecting a cat-C TVR?
My thinking is essentially the same, basically purchase the Cat-C and spend the difference on a full TVR Power rebuild as and when required. It's already had some of the upgrades that you have done yourself.
Its gotta be a WIN! right?
Ironically all else being equal I don't think I would have the same attitude towards a cat C car of the typical metal monocoque construction... Right or wrongly the far simpler TVR construction puts me somewhat at ease.
Please let me know if you detect defective thinking, I'm pretty sure I'm already clinically obsessed with Tuscans, having trawled through 54 pages of this forum in just a few days, absorbing as much info as I can.
Any tips in particular for inspecting a cat-C TVR?
Hi Serg
I'd agree with the fact that many TVR's are classified as Cat C far easier than modern cars. Whilst my car was in the body shop there were many other TVRs that came in accident damaged while mine was being resprayed and most were declared Cat C. The body shop guys said this was primarily due to parts being increasingly hard to come by and the lack of fibreglass specialists around who can repair them to most TVR owners high standards.
As for tips on inspecting one I personally couldn't give you many. As I said, Dom at TVR Power knew the car I was looking at as he had recently done an engine rebuild on it so I spoke extensively to him and he gave me his opinion. As long as you go into it with your eyes open, which it sounds like you are, you won't get any surprises. In your shoes, with the absence of someone like Dom knowing the car, I'd want to see pictures of the damage, receipts for any work done and I'd want a specialist like TVR Power or Str8six to have a look over the car.
Hope it's helped, good luck with your purchase.
I'd agree with the fact that many TVR's are classified as Cat C far easier than modern cars. Whilst my car was in the body shop there were many other TVRs that came in accident damaged while mine was being resprayed and most were declared Cat C. The body shop guys said this was primarily due to parts being increasingly hard to come by and the lack of fibreglass specialists around who can repair them to most TVR owners high standards.
As for tips on inspecting one I personally couldn't give you many. As I said, Dom at TVR Power knew the car I was looking at as he had recently done an engine rebuild on it so I spoke extensively to him and he gave me his opinion. As long as you go into it with your eyes open, which it sounds like you are, you won't get any surprises. In your shoes, with the absence of someone like Dom knowing the car, I'd want to see pictures of the damage, receipts for any work done and I'd want a specialist like TVR Power or Str8six to have a look over the car.
Hope it's helped, good luck with your purchase.
Davewelly said:
As long as the car is straight the only issue you will have will come when you want to sell it on.
I'm not toooo worried about that. As long as the accident damage pics are kept safe I don't see how the next potential buyer could come to a different conclusion than I did! 
Sounds like I already made my mind up...
S
Serg2K said:
Davewelly said:
As long as the car is straight the only issue you will have will come when you want to sell it on.
I'm not toooo worried about that. As long as the accident damage pics are kept safe I don't see how the next potential buyer could come to a different conclusion than I did! Sounds like I already made my mind up...
S
Just enjoy it once you have brought it.
I bought a Cat C to work on, originally I was just going to use it as a track car so wasn't all that bothered. Then I used it as a daily driver and really enjoyed it. I bought it to keep and to restore over a period of time. I also wanted to play with it a bit so wasn't worried if it wasn't perfect, in fact I looked for a cheap car to use.
It doesn't suit everyone, and it isn't the answer to everyone, it just worked for me. I can use it and not worry too much about the odd stone chip, or when I get it wrong. That said I often look at some of the gorgeous concours cars and hanker after them.
I have gone over the whole car and have done quite a bit, and still have quite a bit to do.
Just because it isn't on the register doesn't mean it hasn't been crashed!
It doesn't suit everyone, and it isn't the answer to everyone, it just worked for me. I can use it and not worry too much about the odd stone chip, or when I get it wrong. That said I often look at some of the gorgeous concours cars and hanker after them.
I have gone over the whole car and have done quite a bit, and still have quite a bit to do.
Just because it isn't on the register doesn't mean it hasn't been crashed!
Gassing Station | Tuscan | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff