Just how essential is a garage?
Discussion
I realise I'm likely to get a wide range of opinions here so I'll try to be as specific as I can about my situation and intentions. The basic question is, I'm house shopping and once that's done I'll be Cerbera shopping, having wanted one since 1996. So, what should the spec of the house be?
We're moving out of London to the Berks/Bucks borders, 'we' being me, mrs ape and our 2 year old. We need min 3 beds, good school catchment and preferably location within walking distance of an urban centre/town. Marlow is top of the list. I add to this, we must have off street parking for at least 2 cars, which is level and suitable for jacking, as I home spanner a fair bit. On top of this, when we view properties I am also thinking about security. I mean, rather than just having a driveway to drop the car on right at roadside, I'd prefer to be able to park it up the side of the house, perhaps behind a gate, out of sight, perhaps with a view to building at the minimum a car port to keep the weather off. The third iteration is full on garage, but this will need to be a decent size because of those long doors.
Obviously the more conditions I apply to the car storage, the harder it becomes to find the right house in budget. Easy solution - forget about the TVR or defer it until the next house. I can't do that. I've waited 20 years as it is to get into a position where I have the time, capital, income and if all goes well, the faciltiies to buy and own and maintain one.
So what is the absolute minimum I need? I'm not comfortable with the idea of the car open and on display to passers by under a car cover, but a double garage is well out of budget.
Hoping for some constructive advice!
We're moving out of London to the Berks/Bucks borders, 'we' being me, mrs ape and our 2 year old. We need min 3 beds, good school catchment and preferably location within walking distance of an urban centre/town. Marlow is top of the list. I add to this, we must have off street parking for at least 2 cars, which is level and suitable for jacking, as I home spanner a fair bit. On top of this, when we view properties I am also thinking about security. I mean, rather than just having a driveway to drop the car on right at roadside, I'd prefer to be able to park it up the side of the house, perhaps behind a gate, out of sight, perhaps with a view to building at the minimum a car port to keep the weather off. The third iteration is full on garage, but this will need to be a decent size because of those long doors.
Obviously the more conditions I apply to the car storage, the harder it becomes to find the right house in budget. Easy solution - forget about the TVR or defer it until the next house. I can't do that. I've waited 20 years as it is to get into a position where I have the time, capital, income and if all goes well, the faciltiies to buy and own and maintain one.
So what is the absolute minimum I need? I'm not comfortable with the idea of the car open and on display to passers by under a car cover, but a double garage is well out of budget.
Hoping for some constructive advice!
You need a garage. I would not touch a Cerbera that sits in the rain and snow all year round with a long pole. They are not noted for fantastic waterproofing, rot proofing or their electrical prowess. Any long periods of storage will mean having the battery on charge either in or out of the car either permanently on an accumate or just regularly charged for a few hours on a normal charger. Both a pain in the bum if it's outside in the rain. They also tend to attract attention, sometimes the wrong kind and paint/glass/stereos are expensive.
How big a garage depends on your stature. I'm quite tall and rather (very) portly and I need the door open at least 2 1/2 feet to have a chance of getting out with any dignity and paint left. My 14 year old who is 5'5" and built like a racing snake can do it in 1 ft dead easy. A bit of underlay on the wall also helps prevent chips if it's a bit tight, that's the trick my Mrs uses in our second little garage with her 2 door Supra which also has massive doors. My main garage is a 2500 square feet workshop in the field with 2 roller doors so not much of a problem there. It's cheap ooop north!
How big a garage depends on your stature. I'm quite tall and rather (very) portly and I need the door open at least 2 1/2 feet to have a chance of getting out with any dignity and paint left. My 14 year old who is 5'5" and built like a racing snake can do it in 1 ft dead easy. A bit of underlay on the wall also helps prevent chips if it's a bit tight, that's the trick my Mrs uses in our second little garage with her 2 door Supra which also has massive doors. My main garage is a 2500 square feet workshop in the field with 2 roller doors so not much of a problem there. It's cheap ooop north!
Thanks for the replies so far. The majority of the garages I've seen are at best 8', the kind designed in the 80s or earlier when cars were sensibly sized. I reckon I can get in/out with minimal openage, the trick with the TT I had until recently was to drop the window, making 1 ft possible.
It sounds like I at least need to be looking for properties with a bit of space for construction if not a garage ready to go.
It sounds like I at least need to be looking for properties with a bit of space for construction if not a garage ready to go.
Mine lived outside for 4 years and other then a few wet footwells in very heavy rain no problems.
I moved to a new build in bucks and the garage is a Decent size to jack the car up in all corners and work on had the gearbox out winter just gone and done loads of other bits. Steering rack this winter.
I have about 750mm around the car plus about 1m and half in front where I have a work bench.
I moved to a new build in bucks and the garage is a Decent size to jack the car up in all corners and work on had the gearbox out winter just gone and done loads of other bits. Steering rack this winter.
I have about 750mm around the car plus about 1m and half in front where I have a work bench.
I'll also add that I've had long enough to think about this and I'm well aware of the chassis and electrical issues around TVRs, but not having owned one yet I don't know how much of what I've heard is myth or certainty. First 2-3 replies cover both extremes!
I don't really want to faff about renting a garage. Extra cost, hard to come by down here anyway, certainly won't be £50 a month, probably nowhere near the house - so then how do you get there to take the car out, etc etc. After 10 years parking on the street in London and all that it entails, I've had it with that sort of hassle. I'm in my mid 30s and if I don't get this right now it'll be another 10 years probably and who knows, by then TVR values may have gone the way of Porsche and E30s. It's time to sort out some proper accomodation for my hobby before I get old.
I don't really want to faff about renting a garage. Extra cost, hard to come by down here anyway, certainly won't be £50 a month, probably nowhere near the house - so then how do you get there to take the car out, etc etc. After 10 years parking on the street in London and all that it entails, I've had it with that sort of hassle. I'm in my mid 30s and if I don't get this right now it'll be another 10 years probably and who knows, by then TVR values may have gone the way of Porsche and E30s. It's time to sort out some proper accomodation for my hobby before I get old.
- let's not go off topic on values!
How to push the car in - I have a set of marks painted on the drive. Park on the marks then push in, the clearance on the passenger side is actually well under 1 inch and the drivers side depends on how many bikes are in the garage at a time. Here is a picture from several years ago when the garage was fairly empty.
You do not need a garage. Mine lived outside for over 5 years without problem. What you do need to do is spend some time checking door seals, adjusting door fit, sealing round the brake and clutch master cylinders and around where the heater pipes enter the cabin and organising some means of connecting a battery conditioner if its not being used every week. Once you have done that your Cerb can be reliable and the interior will stay totally dry whatever the weather.
On the other hand, now it does have a garage it tends to get used rather less...
On the other hand, now it does have a garage it tends to get used rather less...
Edited by Tanguero on Wednesday 23 September 18:17
Englishman said:
My TVR's don't leak - except for the Cerb! I've tried everything, but when left out in heavy rain, puddles appear under the front mats! So my experience with keeping the inside of a Cerb dry is that you'd be best off with a garage, or at least a car port.
If door seal is applied with silicon sealant in the area that sweeps back near the bottom of the dash _/ then that will cure the leak once and for all.The main reason for seals not working correctly is there designed for steel bodied cars that have a flat and even thickness on seam, if you remove them on our cars you will see what i mean. Some areas can almost be too thick for the seal to seat properly and other areas can be wafer thin which allows the water to transfer to the inside.
Tanguero said:
You do not need a garage. Mine lived outside for over 5 years without problem. What you do need to do is spend some time checking door seals, adjusting door fit, sealing round the brake and clutch master cylinders and around where the heater pipes enter the cabin and organising some means of connecting a battery conditioner if its not being used every week. Once you have done that your Cerb can be reliable and the interior will stay totally dry whatever the weather.
On the other hand, now it does have a garage it tends to get used rather less...
Indeed ours lived outside for 10 years, it was keeping on the street that really did it damage, not driving it too much in the winter is fine but other cars go by all the time & spray salt all under it & over the brakes, buggered then right up On the other hand, now it does have a garage it tends to get used rather less...
On a drive with good shelter from side winds that blow the rain on to the discs & it should be ok as long as you fix all the leaks, that took me some time! The only real issue is that water goes down the big gaps at the side of the bonnet & over the chassis rails just where the exhaust manifolds burn the powder costing off
A good cover will see to that though. We cashed in the house in the outer London area & for less than a 3 bed down there have a big 5 bed, more importantly have room for at least 10 cars under cover & three acres to muck about in. More the point there are some roads to actually enjoy the Cerb in too...
Happy to report mine doesn't leak, but that aside I find a garage is a necessity if you're going to work on the car yourself.
If you've started a job you can't finish for lack of a spare part or something and it rains for a week, how will you finish the job ?
I'd rather know I can continue whatever the weather.
I do most of the spannering on my cars and wet weather has more than often put me off putting my overalls on if for some reason I couldn't use my garage.
If you've started a job you can't finish for lack of a spare part or something and it rains for a week, how will you finish the job ?
I'd rather know I can continue whatever the weather.
I do most of the spannering on my cars and wet weather has more than often put me off putting my overalls on if for some reason I couldn't use my garage.
sonnylad said:
Englishman said:
My TVR's don't leak - except for the Cerb! I've tried everything, but when left out in heavy rain, puddles appear under the front mats! So my experience with keeping the inside of a Cerb dry is that you'd be best off with a garage, or at least a car port.
If door seal is applied with silicon sealant in the area that sweeps back near the bottom of the dash _/ then that will cure the leak once and for all.The main reason for seals not working correctly is there designed for steel bodied cars that have a flat and even thickness on seam, if you remove them on our cars you will see what i mean. Some areas can almost be too thick for the seal to seat properly and other areas can be wafer thin which allows the water to transfer to the inside.
It's the usual need versus want situation. I wouldn't personally have mine if I didn't have my garage as the car Is special to me and the garage makes keeping it nice so much easier. Plus the already referenced benefits of having it out of sight and easy to leave mid job when tucked away.
So in my opinion, not essential but very useful.
So in my opinion, not essential but very useful.
Mine lived outside for a couple of year's, with no problems, but was had to work on (weather). When we moved my other half chose the house, my only stipulation that it had a large garage or space to build one.
She picked a lovely house with a massive garden and a tiny asbestos garage, within a year it was demolished, and a new 10m by 6m timber framed garage built.
She picked a lovely house with a massive garden and a tiny asbestos garage, within a year it was demolished, and a new 10m by 6m timber framed garage built.
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