The SEAC returns!
Discussion
Just returned from holiday and could not help myself click through the postings while I have been away, came across this one
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
which has now been followed by this posting, and I could not help myself, but comment.....
I know I am biased, but the 420 SEAC is a very special run of 37 cars
They were manufactured without any interest in profit, but were specifically designed to go racing and the by-product was that TVR needed to sell 150 to legalise the model for racing (which they failed to do, hence it got banned!)
If you talk to many who worked at the factory at the time, the SEAC was a nightmare to manufacture and because of the high specification of the parts used, TVR made a loss on each one even though the list price in 1988 was £31,000 almost 75% more expensive than the 350i at the time. I was told by one person that the last SEAC to leave the factory was sold to a customer for over 50K! and that still did not cover all the manufacturing costs.
This was one hell of a car and it should be revered and remembered for what a massive achievement the car was at the time – it destroyed the competition both on the road and on the track in the late 80’s
As to value, who knows what they are really worth or could be worth? If we look at what the competition was doing at the time and what these cars are worth now, then SEAC’s are nowhere near their relative values, this just makes it better for us TVR fans.
In 1986, Ferrari produced a model loosely based on the 328 to go racing and it manufactured only 220 of them, the 288 GTO. 328’s sell regularly for 40k, the 288 GTO sell for well over 10 times this amount. You may say that the GTO was a very different car to the 328, but so was the SEAC over the standard ‘wedge’ if you can call such a great car ‘standard’.
Someone, buy this car now, make it as perfect as you can before the word gets out how utterly brilliant and intoxicating these cars can be.
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
which has now been followed by this posting, and I could not help myself, but comment.....
I know I am biased, but the 420 SEAC is a very special run of 37 cars
They were manufactured without any interest in profit, but were specifically designed to go racing and the by-product was that TVR needed to sell 150 to legalise the model for racing (which they failed to do, hence it got banned!)
If you talk to many who worked at the factory at the time, the SEAC was a nightmare to manufacture and because of the high specification of the parts used, TVR made a loss on each one even though the list price in 1988 was £31,000 almost 75% more expensive than the 350i at the time. I was told by one person that the last SEAC to leave the factory was sold to a customer for over 50K! and that still did not cover all the manufacturing costs.
This was one hell of a car and it should be revered and remembered for what a massive achievement the car was at the time – it destroyed the competition both on the road and on the track in the late 80’s
As to value, who knows what they are really worth or could be worth? If we look at what the competition was doing at the time and what these cars are worth now, then SEAC’s are nowhere near their relative values, this just makes it better for us TVR fans.
In 1986, Ferrari produced a model loosely based on the 328 to go racing and it manufactured only 220 of them, the 288 GTO. 328’s sell regularly for 40k, the 288 GTO sell for well over 10 times this amount. You may say that the GTO was a very different car to the 328, but so was the SEAC over the standard ‘wedge’ if you can call such a great car ‘standard’.
Someone, buy this car now, make it as perfect as you can before the word gets out how utterly brilliant and intoxicating these cars can be.
Just reading last week’s Autocar (29th August) page 21, Steve Cropley’s column
For those who have not seen the article, I thought it would be interesting to quote him (hope he does not mind);
“SATURDAY – Do you ever want to ‘do a Richard Bremner’: find some barn space and start storing interesting cars for the future?
I do, all the time, and at present I’m convinced prices of modern-era TVRs are due to skyrocket very soon. The magic combination of fantastic-sounding, single-minded cars, a history stuffed with fascinating characters and declining supply of genuine cars makes me want to buy the cheapest half dozen from Pistonheads classifieds and park them somewhere safe and dry until they have doubled in price.
About the year after next.”
The word is going to get out .........
For those who have not seen the article, I thought it would be interesting to quote him (hope he does not mind);
“SATURDAY – Do you ever want to ‘do a Richard Bremner’: find some barn space and start storing interesting cars for the future?
I do, all the time, and at present I’m convinced prices of modern-era TVRs are due to skyrocket very soon. The magic combination of fantastic-sounding, single-minded cars, a history stuffed with fascinating characters and declining supply of genuine cars makes me want to buy the cheapest half dozen from Pistonheads classifieds and park them somewhere safe and dry until they have doubled in price.
About the year after next.”
The word is going to get out .........
anthonysant said:
Just reading last week’s Autocar (29th August) page 21, Steve Cropley’s column
For those who have not seen the article, I thought it would be interesting to quote him (hope he does not mind);
“SATURDAY – Do you ever want to ‘do a Richard Bremner’: find some barn space and start storing interesting cars for the future?
I do, all the time, and at present I’m convinced prices of modern-era TVRs are due to skyrocket very soon. The magic combination of fantastic-sounding, single-minded cars, a history stuffed with fascinating characters and declining supply of genuine cars makes me want to buy the cheapest half dozen from Pistonheads classifieds and park them somewhere safe and dry until they have doubled in price.
About the year after next.”
The word is going to get out .........
And you all wondered why I was buying them!!!! For those who have not seen the article, I thought it would be interesting to quote him (hope he does not mind);
“SATURDAY – Do you ever want to ‘do a Richard Bremner’: find some barn space and start storing interesting cars for the future?
I do, all the time, and at present I’m convinced prices of modern-era TVRs are due to skyrocket very soon. The magic combination of fantastic-sounding, single-minded cars, a history stuffed with fascinating characters and declining supply of genuine cars makes me want to buy the cheapest half dozen from Pistonheads classifieds and park them somewhere safe and dry until they have doubled in price.
About the year after next.”
The word is going to get out .........
No seriously we love our cars for what they are, but sooner or later other people will realise they are special and the prices will go up. Which in one way is good but it also means people will just be buying them as investments and that may be not so good!
Andy
Gassing Station | Wedges | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff