TVR Newbie... seeks advice.

[carlosfandango2]

Hi all,

All the way from Jap plastic missile world, greetings.

I've liked TVR's for a long time and now find myself in a position to buy and maintain one.

I have a few FI Celica's at the moment and was thinking that a nice TVR would be a nice swap and would be logistically easier - i.e. maintaing and finding time to drive one car instead of 3.

So, I have a budget of around £10K, this would be to buy a well maintained car that wont need a few grand thrown at it to get it to run properly, or to buy a car for less and use the rest of the 10K to get it working properly. But i dont currently have the time to buy a right dog and fix it. + i have to do some research first before i go buying one, as i havent a clue about them other than they look nice and I want a V8 powered one - unless you can persuade me otherwise.

So, ive looked on the autotrader and seen what i could buy for the money.

what would you reccomend i spend £10K on from an enthusiats point of view with a little self spannering thrown in?

regards

Carlos

[V8 Archie]

For £10k I'd recommend an S for £7k+ and keep the rest as a kitty in case something goes wrong. The only problem for you is that that will mean V6 power. (I think the V8 Ss are normally around £10k+).

You're going to struggle to find a sorted V8 for £10k I reckon.

Alternatively, you could probably find a decent wedge (with a V8).

Happy hunting anyway.

[carlosfandango2]

cheers Archie.

ive looked at the S3 cosworth 24 valve powered, tbh i need a V8 otherwise it isnt worth considering - the v6's just dont have th scope that i'm looking for.

Ive looked at the 350i and think the car will need a lot of looking after cosmetically and probably a lot of bodywork to keep on top of - a bit too dated realy, would be a cool summer weekend car though. I need something that looks less aggressive and has modern rounded curves.

ive seen quite a few 10 year old 4.0 V8 Chim's for sale for around the 10K mark. Would i be buying a box of trouble at those prices?

what are the 4.0 V8's like? are they Rover? how easy is it to supercharge or turbo them and relative costs to FI them?

any known weaknesses in the build or maintenance issues beyond the norm?

whats the estimated bhp of the average 4.0. & 0-60?

would a chim take kindly to being driven throughout the year covering around 15K miles per annum - or are they truly weekend vehicles?

regards

carlos

[Pies]

V8 Archie said:

For £10k I'd recommend an S for £7k+ and keep the rest as a kitty in case something goes wrong. The only problem for you is that that will mean V6 power. (I think the V8 Ss are normally around £10k+). You're going to struggle to find a sorted V8 for £10k I reckon. Alternatively, you could probably find a decent wedge (with a V8). Happy hunting anyway.

Not seen a V8 sell for £10k for a while now (except dealers) £9k seems to get a good V8