My T350 bubble/burble has burst.......

[lig]

There has been this little niggle in the back of my mind for some time now….should I increase the mortgage and get a T350T??? Hmmm ….however a good friend of mine bought one the other week and he took me out for a spin at the weekend and sadly (or maybe a blessing in disguise) I was disappointed.

Firstly I am about 6ft 4” tall and the cabin was cramped and I couldn’t get comfy. I am sure that with my helmet on I would not fit in as there was only about 1” head clearence.

Secondly the engine sounded bad…. loads of engine noise and no exhaust note but I am sure it sounds good from the outside??

The ride was really firm, too firm in my opinion, I have nitrons fitted to my Griff and it feels a ‘better’ ride. It did feel very tight and held the road very well but was too bumpy for me!

In comparison it was more of a ‘race’ car than the Griff but I guess this is to be expected. It also felt a bit ‘weedy’ and although it ‘supposedly’ has more horses, my Griff felt better on the torque front - I’m sure due to the V8.

At the end of the day I was glad to get back in the Griff and my T350T bubble is very much burst…..

Heres to good old Griffs!!

(better not post this on the T350 forum ;-)

Lig..

[lig]

That should be bubble....or maybe burble......

[angusfaldo]

lig said:

(better not post this on the T350 forum ;-)

You probably should post this on the T350 forum and ask for some honest comments on what your experiences were. Being a driver instead of a passenger is very different. Maybe it is worth test driving one?

[Big Al.]

lig said:

That should be bubble....or maybe burble......

Sorted.

[_DeeJay_]

angusfaldo said:

lig said: (better not post this on the T350 forum ;-) You probably should post this on the T350 forum and ask for some honest comments on what your experiences were. Being a driver instead of a passenger is very different. Maybe it is worth test driving one?

IMHO, that's fair comment. I've owner both and the Griff is a softer ride (from suspension setup through seats), there is less room in the t350 and the Griff definately has more grunt low down. The sound (assuming standard exhausts) is also much better from the v8 (I convinced myself to get a sport exhaust having heard a v8 yesterday).

I was in a 4.3 Chimaera yesterday and all of the above were evident.

However, it depends on how you were driven. The T350 is a completely different car to drive, so much so, they could be from different manufacturers. If you could get to drive on a twisty road (or an A road with a lot of roundabouts) you'll appreciate the t350 much more.

The traction is amazing in comparison to the older cars - you get very little body roll and can carry much more speed through bends. Mine has had the geometry setup correctly and it's such a confidence inspiring drive. Unlike my older TVR's, I relish the next bend and find the quick rack and accurate steering almost telepathic.

If you keep the s6 in the upper part of the rev range (4-7k), the Griff will feel asthmatic in comparison.

The whole layout of the cabin is also much more up-to-date and a big improvement - from the very well placed machined dials to the configurable LCD display.

At the end of the day, it's horses for courses. I prefer my t350 but can appreciate the older cars. The 20k price difference would be hard to justify if I tried, but if I had both in my garage 9/10 times I'd take the t350.

There was also a PH'er who had an SE Griff and a T350. It'd be interesting to get his opinion (especially as he sold the Griff as he never drove it anymore )

D




>> Edited by _DeeJay_ on Wednesday 4th May 11:24

[k595]

I agree with Lig

Its a totally different type of car more like an italian, high reving etc

Decided not to buy a T350 in the end partly due to two breakdowns in two days when I borrowed a demo car for 2 days. Very hard ride and over a long distance the exhaust boom gave me a headache - must be getting old - you have to rev the nuts of it to make it move high stress driving - Griff more relaxed and far bigger inside

Still have the griff but bought a Z3 M coupe very similar in many ways to a T350 but more reliable, comfy, almost as quick, with aircon that actually works and half the price. Looks pretty good too in my view anyway.

Would recommend this option to anyone with a T350 urge. True the griff doesn't go out often but then it didn't before the BM arrived either....

[_DeeJay_]

k595 said:

Decided not to buy a T350 in the end partly due to two breakdowns in two days when I borrowed a demo car for 2 days. Very hard ride and over a long distance the exhaust boom gave me a headache

What went wrong (in the 2 days), and did the car have a sports exhaust? Mine's std and it's really very quiet. The engine note is louder if you labour the engine (so either use 4th on the motorway or keep it above 90).

I do 2x3hr trips a week as well as the daily commute and get out of the car as fresh as a a daisy .

I'm not surprised many stick with the older cars though as the new cars are completely different in character.


>> Edited by _DeeJay_ on Wednesday 4th May 11:42

[k595]

Throttle cable snapped - could happen to anyone I suppose - then it just stopped and refused to start for 30minuites - apparantly the ecu got confused or something electronic like that - but far too annoying for a 40k car in my view

I asked about the exhaust and was told it was standard - but I'm not sure it was well loud

Ride is so hard same as the RS6 gets on your tits after a while

They are good cars though especially with the 3 year warrantee if I had a local dealer - to keep mending it - and didn't have to think twice about spending 40k then i'd probably get one but wouldn't use it a great deal as couldn't trust it to get me where I'm going which is a great shame.

But it agree it certainly is not a griff replacement its a very different car

[_DeeJay_]

Throttle cables seem to be consumables on TVR's. My Griff and Cerb went through a fair few!

The ECU thing is odd - mine does it (has done it twice) but I didn't think it was a common problem. It's off to get it sorted out this week though.

I'm relying on mine to do a decent mileage and be used every day - we'll see if that is realistic or not!

I suppose the real issue for TVR is that they do not offer a Griff replacement at the moment, so they are likely to lose those customers to their rivals. A shame IMHO.

[saggy]

Try a T350 with TVRPower Super Sports cans - auditory assault!!!!!

[loose cannon]

surely if you put a set of 18 inch rubber bands on a griff the outcome would be the same a damn hard ride
and more agile round the corners as the tyres wont be folding over in protest quite so much surely the newer tvr's chassis isnt a great deal different from old. just a bit more width and length here and there.plus the different hubbs and arm's,
i should imagine the sp6 engine has a similar behaviour pattern to my old m3 were anything under 4000 rpm and it was still pulling back the covers and yawning which dont get me wrong was great but just a entirely different experience to a v8
i for one would still not kick a t350 out of my garage
i would like to have a selection of all tvr's
but cant see it happening
come to think of it if i had my way the millenium dome would be far to small as a garage and that would be for the sallon cars in my collection
then i woke up

[targarama]

The T350 isn't that hard. It's just that a std Griff/Chim are soft as hell. Helps get the power down I guess.

Can't see how it could be too hard for anyone interested in a good handling sports car. Mine really is no harder than my girlfriend's Audi TT.

[DJC]

lig said:

There has been this little niggle in the back of my mind for some time now….should I increase the mortgage and get a T350T??? Hmmm ….however a good friend of mine bought one the other week and he took me out for a spin at the weekend and sadly (or maybe a blessing in disguise) I was disappointed. Firstly I am about 6ft 4” tall and the cabin was cramped and I couldn’t get comfy. I am sure that with my helmet on I would not fit in as there was only about 1” head clearence. Secondly the engine sounded bad…. loads of engine noise and no exhaust note but I am sure it sounds good from the outside?? The ride was really firm, too firm in my opinion, I have nitrons fitted to my Griff and it feels a ‘better’ ride. It did feel very tight and held the road very well but was too bumpy for me! In comparison it was more of a ‘race’ car than the Griff but I guess this is to be expected. It also felt a bit ‘weedy’ and although it ‘supposedly’ has more horses, my Griff felt better on the torque front - I’m sure due to the V8. At the end of the day I was glad to get back in the Griff and my T350T bubble is very much burst….. Heres to good old Griffs!! (better not post this on the T350 forum ;-) Lig..

Strangely enough Lig I thought pretty much exactly the same as you when I drove a Tam. No torque below 3k rpm and it sounds like a wet fart when u do finally wake the loud pedal up.
Yes the ride is w@ank compared to a 'Grif.

Things get a little better in a 'Gris, engine and noise wise. Then you realise you actually have another inch of loud pedal left, slam it to the floor and the world goes insane.