Buying a chimaera from abroad?
Discussion
Hi,
Is this a sensible idea?
I need a new car/toy and in terms of bang and drools for bucks combined with the known history of the Rover V8 engine I've decided it has to be Chimaera, a car the looks of which I've always loved.
Trouble is I live in France which poses a couple of problems.
Firstly I have to buy in the UK and import it to France as it is not financially viable to buy one over here with the local prices being asked.
Secondly I need it to be as reliable as possible, specialists being few and far between here being an understatement.
I've learnt by experience that I am not mechanically competent – many years of MG, Landrover and Westfield ownership have convinced me of this - so I do not intend attempting to fix any complex problems myself. Anything serious and it might even be cheaper to ship it back to the UK as I live only a few miles from a ferry port.
So I can look at taking a trip over and seeing as many cars as I can in a few days which will obviously be limiting or I can use the services of one of the “locators”.
If I take a trip over then after ferry, hotel, beer and curries it's gonna cost me a load which might be better spent on using a local “locator”.
Is it possible to buy a “reliable” chimaera?
Is it better to buy at the cheaper end and get the niggles sorted or pay top dollar?
Does anyone have any experience with regards to this or advice they can give please?
Any views welcome
Anatomick
Is this a sensible idea?
I need a new car/toy and in terms of bang and drools for bucks combined with the known history of the Rover V8 engine I've decided it has to be Chimaera, a car the looks of which I've always loved.
Trouble is I live in France which poses a couple of problems.
Firstly I have to buy in the UK and import it to France as it is not financially viable to buy one over here with the local prices being asked.
Secondly I need it to be as reliable as possible, specialists being few and far between here being an understatement.
I've learnt by experience that I am not mechanically competent – many years of MG, Landrover and Westfield ownership have convinced me of this - so I do not intend attempting to fix any complex problems myself. Anything serious and it might even be cheaper to ship it back to the UK as I live only a few miles from a ferry port.
So I can look at taking a trip over and seeing as many cars as I can in a few days which will obviously be limiting or I can use the services of one of the “locators”.
If I take a trip over then after ferry, hotel, beer and curries it's gonna cost me a load which might be better spent on using a local “locator”.
Is it possible to buy a “reliable” chimaera?
Is it better to buy at the cheaper end and get the niggles sorted or pay top dollar?
Does anyone have any experience with regards to this or advice they can give please?
Any views welcome
Anatomick
Hi Anatomick
The simple answer is buy the best car you can, (top Dollor)!
Logic says buy the latest car as possible that's had the issues sorted.
New Ecu, rebuilt or low mileage engine and gearbox,
Immobiliser issue resolved,
Outriggers/chassis re conditioned or a guarantee that the original chassis is in good condition
Decent shock absorbers fitted.
Emissions tested
Off the top of my head those are the expensive repairs that usually require Tvr experts to sort out.
Most other components are simple and easy to get repaired locally.
If you cost up the price of doing this to a tired Tvr it won't be cheap.
Far better to buy a loved car that's had these upgrades/repairs already completed.
Having done these mods to my own car via Tvr experts and lots of work myself I'll give you an idea
Car cost 10K 5 years ago
Upgrades which include all the above plus new roof and re spray via Tvr experts
Add another 15K at least.
Yes that's 25K but I couldn't sell the car for anywhere near that price, but I do have a very fast and reliable car.
Mine includes huge Brembo front brakes and new wishbones and bushes etc etc.
What is your budget if you don't mind me asking because that will determine what you can get for your money.
You can get lucky and pay much less than I've spent and get a reliable car.
Buying from a respected Tvr dealer should at least get you a decent warrantee so that's a consideration but again the car will have to be an exceptional example for a dealer to be able to offer such a guarantee so again likely it's going to be a 15K+ car!
Others may have a different view and some will probably say they've paid less than 10K and have a great car, it won't be as great as mine simply because it will have old wiring and heat related issues.
Look on my profile and others to see what some cars have had done.
Get informed because a Tvr that's problematic will cause you huge pain if it's stuck in France and not working reliably.
Finally get a good one and you won't be disappointed because they can be very usable and basically reliable.
I went from the midlands to St Tropez in 24 hours and 940 odd miles, played the film star in the sun then came home in about the same time.
I hope I'm not putting you off because owning a Tvr is a unique experience and this site is a big help for all us owners to share knowledge and support each others ownership.
Goodluck and I hope you find the right car.
The simple answer is buy the best car you can, (top Dollor)!
Logic says buy the latest car as possible that's had the issues sorted.
New Ecu, rebuilt or low mileage engine and gearbox,
Immobiliser issue resolved,
Outriggers/chassis re conditioned or a guarantee that the original chassis is in good condition
Decent shock absorbers fitted.
Emissions tested
Off the top of my head those are the expensive repairs that usually require Tvr experts to sort out.
Most other components are simple and easy to get repaired locally.
If you cost up the price of doing this to a tired Tvr it won't be cheap.
Far better to buy a loved car that's had these upgrades/repairs already completed.
Having done these mods to my own car via Tvr experts and lots of work myself I'll give you an idea
Car cost 10K 5 years ago
Upgrades which include all the above plus new roof and re spray via Tvr experts
Add another 15K at least.
Yes that's 25K but I couldn't sell the car for anywhere near that price, but I do have a very fast and reliable car.
Mine includes huge Brembo front brakes and new wishbones and bushes etc etc.
What is your budget if you don't mind me asking because that will determine what you can get for your money.
You can get lucky and pay much less than I've spent and get a reliable car.
Buying from a respected Tvr dealer should at least get you a decent warrantee so that's a consideration but again the car will have to be an exceptional example for a dealer to be able to offer such a guarantee so again likely it's going to be a 15K+ car!
Others may have a different view and some will probably say they've paid less than 10K and have a great car, it won't be as great as mine simply because it will have old wiring and heat related issues.
Look on my profile and others to see what some cars have had done.
Get informed because a Tvr that's problematic will cause you huge pain if it's stuck in France and not working reliably.
Finally get a good one and you won't be disappointed because they can be very usable and basically reliable.
I went from the midlands to St Tropez in 24 hours and 940 odd miles, played the film star in the sun then came home in about the same time.
I hope I'm not putting you off because owning a Tvr is a unique experience and this site is a big help for all us owners to share knowledge and support each others ownership.
Goodluck and I hope you find the right car.
OP,
There are quite a few threads on this subject and there is no really solid answer. You could pay top dollar from a place like Fernhurst and get a well sorted car with new outriggers and a few other things addressed as well. You could commission a specialist to find a few for you and these may be as good as a car you would find at Fernhurst but will generally be from private sellers. The specialist should inspect the car and give a written report that allows you to make a judgement call on if you want the car based on the inspection, price point and what could need doing further down the line. You could come over and look at a few yourself and see a few you like the look of but unless you know what you are looking for with regard to known issues like outriggers needing replacing, manifolds blowing etc. you could buy a car that will need a lot of work on it in a short time.
There was a thread on here a little while back about Fernhurst as their prices had dropped significantly recently as the quiet winter period is now upon the market. However, you are able to negotiate with Fernhurst about jobs such as outriggers, engine work etc. and get a price to put the car on the road in as good a condition as your wallet allows.
My car was bought in March 2010 as a project with my eyes open about known issues I would need to address and I've spent quite a bit on it since then, all detailed in my profile
As per Alun above the car has more money in it than it is likely to sell for but is insured at an appropriate level just in case something nasty happens
If you can give us an idea of your budget there are a few good guys on here who know of cars for sale that would fit into this and allow you to have a good base to enjoy the car from and do some work on it at a later date as and when budget allows and/or work is then needed.
One good piece of news is that as you say you are near a ferry port you should be able to get over and onto the M20 easy enough and Dan Taylor at Taylor TVR is a great person to maintain your car
There are quite a few threads on this subject and there is no really solid answer. You could pay top dollar from a place like Fernhurst and get a well sorted car with new outriggers and a few other things addressed as well. You could commission a specialist to find a few for you and these may be as good as a car you would find at Fernhurst but will generally be from private sellers. The specialist should inspect the car and give a written report that allows you to make a judgement call on if you want the car based on the inspection, price point and what could need doing further down the line. You could come over and look at a few yourself and see a few you like the look of but unless you know what you are looking for with regard to known issues like outriggers needing replacing, manifolds blowing etc. you could buy a car that will need a lot of work on it in a short time.
There was a thread on here a little while back about Fernhurst as their prices had dropped significantly recently as the quiet winter period is now upon the market. However, you are able to negotiate with Fernhurst about jobs such as outriggers, engine work etc. and get a price to put the car on the road in as good a condition as your wallet allows.
My car was bought in March 2010 as a project with my eyes open about known issues I would need to address and I've spent quite a bit on it since then, all detailed in my profile
As per Alun above the car has more money in it than it is likely to sell for but is insured at an appropriate level just in case something nasty happens
If you can give us an idea of your budget there are a few good guys on here who know of cars for sale that would fit into this and allow you to have a good base to enjoy the car from and do some work on it at a later date as and when budget allows and/or work is then needed.
One good piece of news is that as you say you are near a ferry port you should be able to get over and onto the M20 easy enough and Dan Taylor at Taylor TVR is a great person to maintain your car
Thanks for the info.
There's no fixed budget but anything over about 15K is going to take a lot of justifying to the other half. Especially as it's going to cost a bit to get it re-registered over here.
Yep I've noticed Fernhurst seem to have a good range and they're priced competitively. Hmmmm.
There's no fixed budget but anything over about 15K is going to take a lot of justifying to the other half. Especially as it's going to cost a bit to get it re-registered over here.
Yep I've noticed Fernhurst seem to have a good range and they're priced competitively. Hmmmm.
Slightly backtracking, you don't have to get a re conditioned car to get a good one, especially if a dealer understands your needs and will make sure the cars solid enough to live abroad, I've often seen cars registered abroad at my local Tvr centre, booked in once a year and driven over here for fun, serviced and checked over and then driven home again, bit of a fun weekend by the looks of it
The base mechanicals are reliable components so I'm sure there's some clever old mechanics in France who will be more than into learning to look after it, it's a very simple car if you can sort the electrical wiring (alarm) and ignition components the car won't break down.
Go for it.
4.0 litre cars are cheaper ( but shouldn't be )
Goodluck.
The base mechanicals are reliable components so I'm sure there's some clever old mechanics in France who will be more than into learning to look after it, it's a very simple car if you can sort the electrical wiring (alarm) and ignition components the car won't break down.
Go for it.
4.0 litre cars are cheaper ( but shouldn't be )
Goodluck.
Edited by ClassiChimi on Thursday 10th November 21:14
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