Prospective new owner - Chim or Cerb?
Discussion
Afternoon, I'm after some advice. I'm looking to purchase my first TVR and am interested in either a 4.0/4.5 Chimeara or 4.2 Cerbera, budget of between 15 & 17k.
I much prefer the looks of the Cerb but having never owned either am really after some advice from people with experience of these beasts.
I know they are tempremental and can be unreliable but which would be the best to run as a first time owner and would be cheapest in terms of reliability. I know they do cost a bit to keep on the road and have factored a couple of grand per year into my budget for this.
Which of the 2 drives the best, is the cheapest to service/repair?
I've seen many posts on the merits of the individual cars but not any directly comparing the 2.
Thanks in advance for your help
Tony
>>> Edited by TONY.BROWN on Friday 22 October 15:52
I much prefer the looks of the Cerb but having never owned either am really after some advice from people with experience of these beasts.
I know they are tempremental and can be unreliable but which would be the best to run as a first time owner and would be cheapest in terms of reliability. I know they do cost a bit to keep on the road and have factored a couple of grand per year into my budget for this.
Which of the 2 drives the best, is the cheapest to service/repair?
I've seen many posts on the merits of the individual cars but not any directly comparing the 2.
Thanks in advance for your help
Tony
>>> Edited by TONY.BROWN on Friday 22 October 15:52
Welcome to PH. You've come to the right place and a look round the forums and the reviews will give you loads of useful information. 
Griff!Cheers Griff,
Did consider one but they just look a little too medallion man to me.
The Tuscan in my opinion is the best looking of them all, but if you could tell me where I can get a mint one for my budget I'd be there straight away. Also very wary of the S6 engine after reading the posts here and would rather stick with the much loved V8.
Tony
Did consider one but they just look a little too medallion man to me.
The Tuscan in my opinion is the best looking of them all, but if you could tell me where I can get a mint one for my budget I'd be there straight away. Also very wary of the S6 engine after reading the posts here and would rather stick with the much loved V8.
Tony
Tony
Had a Griff before I bought my Cerbera. Both were great cars but the Cerbera will cost you more to run. I have owned my Cerbera a year now and I have just updated my running costs on the car profile section.
Members who have updated these sections does allow you to see what these cars cost to maintian and run.
My Cerbera is fab but I know the next year I aim to replace tyres, potentially the starter motor and a service/MOT - another 1500 pounds for all that.
Best to keep looking through the forums and members notes on what has happened to ther vehicles. Getting help to find a car was the route I took, but you could be brave and trust your own judgement using your new found knowledge and testing loads of cars.
Best of luck
Gary
Had a Griff before I bought my Cerbera. Both were great cars but the Cerbera will cost you more to run. I have owned my Cerbera a year now and I have just updated my running costs on the car profile section.
Members who have updated these sections does allow you to see what these cars cost to maintian and run.
My Cerbera is fab but I know the next year I aim to replace tyres, potentially the starter motor and a service/MOT - another 1500 pounds for all that.
Best to keep looking through the forums and members notes on what has happened to ther vehicles. Getting help to find a car was the route I took, but you could be brave and trust your own judgement using your new found knowledge and testing loads of cars.
Best of luck
Gary
can't afford one of those medallion thingies. Cheers Gary,
Noticed you had work done on yours by Offords, I presume you mean the one by St Neots? Was thinking about popping in there tomorrow for a chat about ownership etc, what do you think of them? Are they likely to give me good impartial advice or just try to sell me anything and are the cars they sell towards the top end in terms of quality?
Noticed you had work done on yours by Offords, I presume you mean the one by St Neots? Was thinking about popping in there tomorrow for a chat about ownership etc, what do you think of them? Are they likely to give me good impartial advice or just try to sell me anything and are the cars they sell towards the top end in terms of quality?
Tony
In the past I have run a 4.0 Chim and a 4.2 Cerb. Neither were unreliable. Servicing was certainly cheaper for the Chim and parts are cheaper as many parts are sourced for Rover, Ford etc.
I always found the Chim easier to drive than the cerb which required lots of concentration. On the road the performance is not that different because the low down torque of the Rover engine compensates for the lack of horses. However on the track where you can use the AJP's power the Cerbera is very fast.
Both cars benefit from suspension upgrades.
I think that a 2k/year budget is just about in Cerb teritory if you buy a sorted one.
Common sense says start with the chim but I know from personal experience that the first time you get passed on a track day by a cerb you will have to have one...
Cheers
Bob
In the past I have run a 4.0 Chim and a 4.2 Cerb. Neither were unreliable. Servicing was certainly cheaper for the Chim and parts are cheaper as many parts are sourced for Rover, Ford etc.
I always found the Chim easier to drive than the cerb which required lots of concentration. On the road the performance is not that different because the low down torque of the Rover engine compensates for the lack of horses. However on the track where you can use the AJP's power the Cerbera is very fast.
Both cars benefit from suspension upgrades.
I think that a 2k/year budget is just about in Cerb teritory if you buy a sorted one.
Common sense says start with the chim but I know from personal experience that the first time you get passed on a track day by a cerb you will have to have one...
Cheers
Bob
99.9% of the time a Chimaera will be cheaper to run than a Cerbera, when ever I've asked the question from people that know about these things, the usual answer is Cerb costs are roughly double Chimaera running costs. As has been said the Cerb is made up of mainly TVR/exotic bits, were as the RV8 cars are jumped up ford/vauxhall/Rover doner kit cars 
Cerb brake bits come in a box marked AP Racing, so tend to be quite expensive, Chimaera brake bits come in box marked Ford Sierra so tend to quite cheap
They drive very differently as well, the Chimaera will be a lot more forgiving, especially if your not coming from a powerfull RWD car
And for your budget you've got the pick of Chimaeras, but will be scraping the bottom of the barrel Cerb wise
Cerb brake bits come in a box marked AP Racing, so tend to be quite expensive, Chimaera brake bits come in box marked Ford Sierra so tend to quite cheap They drive very differently as well, the Chimaera will be a lot more forgiving, especially if your not coming from a powerfull RWD car
And for your budget you've got the pick of Chimaeras, but will be scraping the bottom of the barrel Cerb wise
Find a dealer that has both (engine size is not so important) and drive them for comparison.
They may share some styling but are so different you wouldnt't believe it.
It also depends on what you intend to do with it and whether you want the wind in the face experience.
Depending on past experience you might find the Chimaera a safer starting point though (but not that safe if you hoof it!)
They may share some styling but are so different you wouldnt't believe it.
It also depends on what you intend to do with it and whether you want the wind in the face experience.
Depending on past experience you might find the Chimaera a safer starting point though (but not that safe if you hoof it!)
I love them both (but have only owned a chimaera). However given your budget I would think that you would be better off getting a chimaera. Should be able to get a nice example chimaera for that money. Whereas for a cerb you will may have to compromise on milage/age/condition. All this which in the cerbera world can cost you lots of money, so eyes wide open and get it thouroughly checked over.
However depending on what you have owned before both cars are extremely quick, high torque, gorgeous sounding motors. One is just quicker than the other.
If I only had 17k I would get a Chimaera, but if I had 15k then I would start looking for nice 4.2 cerbs.
Edited to say: As soon as I posted this a v.nice cerb in your budget just popped up in the classified with James Agger. Well respected indie and the car has just been serviced by Jools who knows more about cerbs than most other people on this planet.
>> Edited by aaandy on Friday 22 October 17:01
However depending on what you have owned before both cars are extremely quick, high torque, gorgeous sounding motors. One is just quicker than the other.
If I only had 17k I would get a Chimaera, but if I had 15k then I would start looking for nice 4.2 cerbs.
Edited to say: As soon as I posted this a v.nice cerb in your budget just popped up in the classified with James Agger. Well respected indie and the car has just been serviced by Jools who knows more about cerbs than most other people on this planet.
>> Edited by aaandy on Friday 22 October 17:01
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