TVR Factory tuscan spider 7 wheel conversion kit

[trinitycall]

Hi all,

i'm going for a tvr factory wheel conversion kit comprising of:-

x4 tuscan spider 7 wheels 16" all round
x4 toyos
x4 upgraded brakes

I would be interested to know chimaera owners views on changing from 15" to 16" wheels on the front and as to what effect this will have on the ride.

Also, is there any opinion on changing from standard chimaera wheels to the low profile spiders? is there a risk the ride may change for the worse?

Main motivation for the change is two fold:-
1. the upgraded breaking system i.e. safety angle; and

2.i'm loving the look of the spider 7 wheels.

Regards,

N

p.s. - has anyone had this upgrade done on their chimaera?



>>> Edited by trinitycall on Tuesday 21st September 08:54

[raceboy]

When you say 'I'm going for' are you already booked in, as last I heard/read it was about a 7-8 month wait and that was before the new boss rolled up, is it still available via the factory I know a few indies are kitted up to do this now though

[tvrbob]

Last time I heard from Neill Anderson he was gathering final numbers and finding out whether TVR were going to continue with this offer. Don't hold me to it but I got the feeling the offer was being considered only for people already on the list.

[chris43]

tvrbob said:

Last time I heard from Neill Anderson he was gathering final numbers and finding out whether TVR were going to continue with this offer. Don't hold me to it but I got the feeling the offer was being considered only for people already on the list.

I was on the list for 9 months and finaly, just recently, gave up!!
I wish anyone considering the official TVR conversion the best of luck.

>> Edited by chris43 on Monday 20th September 17:40

[trinitycall]

I have been told that the work can be done end of Nov.

I guess all the ordering was done some time ago.

Regards,

N

[mike@brill]

I got mine done back in april (93 4.0l) and the ride is as good - the brakes are sensational - and as you are already sold on the looks ... say no more!Although mine were eventually delivered with Bridgestone S02"s!!! DO IT IF YOU STILL CAN - It was a BIG bargain.

[puffsorted]

If not you could always resort to trying these - if you can still get them. They are 17" TSW spyders,

www.aopf79.dsl.pipex.com/images/sidebysidesmall.jpg


puffsorted

[tvron]

I had conversion done dec 2003. As other comments brakes fabulous looks good. I had problem with rears touching but adjusting camber solved this. Following this I fitted nitrons to give choice of ride handling. I have not noticed any real problems except front feels like steering rack working a bit harder but this may be that I had SO3 s on before and I found these very good.
I think kit is good but fitting cost at tvr dealer were quite high (about £550 incl vat) but bear in ming this really replaces running gear as well ie bearing brakes etc so car is back to good condition depending on mileage

[Nano2nd]

will TVR not ust supply the "kit" DIY fashion?

[speedeight]

Can people post pics of their conversions?

I've seen it on one Chimaera but it would be good
to see it on different cars.

[pebbledash]

Nano2nd said:

will TVR not ust supply the "kit" DIY fashion?

yup, but you have to send back each of the hubs, less bearings etc, to get the surcharge back..

[budd]

How much is the surcharge? and could someone post (or e-mail me through my profile )a contact number that lets me speak directly to somebody at the factory who can say yes or no (re the conversion). As I'd prefer to do the work myself only getting the parts together should an issue, if the surcharge is not to great maybe holding on to the std parts is the best choice.

[Nano2nd]

budd said:

How much is the surcharge? and could someone post (or e-mail me through my profile )a contact number that lets me speak directly to somebody at the factory who can say yes or no (re the conversion). As I'd prefer to do the work myself only getting the parts together should an issue, if the surcharge is not to great maybe holding on to the std parts is the best choice.

could you let me know how you get on? i would be just interested in the hubs and brakes myself as i don't like the look of the 16" spiders. I would prefer some 18" jobbies myself

[budd]

My idea was to use the spiders for the road (with the nice new Toyos)then get some cheap Cerb 16's (no one seems to want these and they often come up on e-bay)fitted with road legal cut slicks (yoko A032r or dunlop formula R etc)for track use. I agree that sometimes the Spiders don't look quite right, but I think this is largely down to the colour of the car , mines bright red and think that will look OK. Selling my 7 spokes on e-bay should help with the funding if the hub surcharge is to high , if not I would retain the std wheels and hubs(and brakes) so the car could be returnd to std if required. BTW I think you could cause real handling problems fitting 18s (it would look good though)it is said that the 16s work better than the optional 18s on the Tamora, (although most owner opt for the larger rims) I would imagine this to be the case for the Griff/Chim,

[pebbledash]

The surcharge was £30 and Item when I had my conversion done last year.

I beleive there are 4 or 6 items that need returning to the factory..

if you wish to speek to the factory, you could do no worse that Neil Anderson. as I beleive he designed the conversion...

[Nano2nd]

i wonder what they do with the old parts? are the new bits modifies old bits then?

so worst case scenario would be 8 x £30 = £180 so not too bad.

agreed about the 7 spokes, last set i seen on eBay fetched about £900 IIRC, bet that guy was happy!

[pebbledash]

Nano2nd said:

i wonder what they do with the old parts? are the new bits modifies old bits then?

from what I gather, when the kit was first offered they had, spares for the hubs (which are part of the return) which were modified for the conversion. however they did not have enough to do many, so the idea was (I think) to get the changed parts back and refeb and mod them etc..

the disks are tamora/tuscan/t350 items that are machined to change the offset IIRC.

but I may be wrong..


>> Edited by pebbledash on Wednesday 22 September 11:21

[tvrbob]

No refurb parts now. Neill is only providing 'all new' kits. He had lots of problems with the timing of retruns so is not offering that anymore. The kit price has gone up to compemsate. Neill tells me that he is still awaiting replies from those still on the waiting list. He needs to gather knowledge of the scale of this job so that he can ask the new management team whether he can continue.

[Nano2nd]

how much is the new price bob?

[tvrbob]

Nano2nd said:

how much is the new price bob?

I can't recall, something near £1500 but if you don't know then it probably means you're not on the list. I believe the list is closed.