1997 Model with 4.2 AJP...Japan Import....what to check

[LLantrisant]

i´m owning a low mileage (25k) japan import 4.2ajp cerbera. unmodified, unmolested, original and for a 23y old car in perfect condition (paint, chassis, interior)

as its a model from the first years, plus low mileage, i dont expect that the car has profited from some later upgrades etc.

so what are the "issues" i might face...or which areas i shoud pay attention or think about upgrading?

Tapets have been set by Amore, clutch and clutch hydraulics have been changed just recently, also in UK.

car is an original Japan-Model, with km/h Speedo

[pmessling]

I do a number of upgraded parts. Please send me a message if you want anymore details.

[PhilF329]

If that was on ebay earlier this year, I remember seeing that!

I believe uprights were an issue and had a recall, but don’t know which year that applied to

[DCerebrate]

General stuff from my experience of taking on a low mileage Cerb - check all hoses, brakelines. etc for tightness and perishing. Change all fuel hose for any sign of ageing and if any doubt at all change them anyway for Cohline or Gates Barricade ethanol resistant. Lubricate steering rack. Check coolant temps and if going high first suspects are fan wiring, thermostat, or radiator needs a recore. And you can almost expect the master and slave cylinders to go AWOL at some point. Check age of tyres. If chassis immaculate which the Japanese cars often are, consider Dinitrol application to keep it that way. Once you have done all the snagging you can enjoy it to the full!

[LLantrisant]

luckily all those parts have been already replaced: tyres, brake shoes and lines , wheel alignment done recently, 2 new dampers at rear (AVO), coilpacks, HT Leads, exhaust manifolds are wrapped. manifold gaskets new....plus aboviue mentioned clutch.....all this has been done when car was already in UK.

it was driven after all that around 1000miles.

chassis is immaculate....as it is the bodywork....

Edited by LLantrisant on Monday 16th November 08:12

[Byker28i]

Sounds good, but check all fuel lines. The ones around the filter apparently have a difficult to source fitting and can be bodged/missed. I wonder how I know that...

We need pictures. And congrats, must be a car with an interesting history

[pmessling]

Definitely fuel lines. Will give you peace of mind. And as above the one from the fuel filter to hard-line is a funny size I had to use an adapter.

[DKL]

Is this the one that just sold in Wiltshire? I noticed that was an import.

[LLantrisant]

y4s...its the wiltshire one

[Mr Cerbera]

Sounds like you've found yourself a good one there, Nicols (pics, please ).
Welcome to The Madhouse !

The first thing I did to mine was fit Steel-braided brake hoses.
Apart from that my only recommendation is to drive her frequently

Enjoy !!

Edited by Mr Cerbera on Monday 16th November 22:05

[DKL]

LLantrisant said:

y4s...its the wiltshire one

Well done. I was tempted to have a nose at that as it's quite close but time got the better of me.
Are you planning to keep the rear number plate panel the same or try and convert to a UK shape?

[LLantrisant]

all will remain original (bodywise), just to answer your question in terms of the no.plate.


the car is, by the way, not located in UK anymore

therefore its quite usefull to have the no-plate illuminated the classic way (from the side) , as backlit plates arent allowed here.
the km/h speedo is also very helpfull

luckily the brake hoses are already braided-type.

but it looks like the car has already suffered from the usual "overload" on the wiring for the lights. therefore 2 of the TVR´s famous electric boxes have been bypassed..red/yellow and blue/brown wires are bridged..pressume this has been done in Japan....interestingwise everything works on the car as it should.....also the headlights are very bright.

Edited by LLantrisant on Tuesday 17th November 17:02

[Mr Cerbera]

LLantrisant said:

[.also the headlights are very bright.

In that case it would be very interesting to know what has been fitted

[LLantrisant]

H4 Bulbs, from a quality brand, blue "night-braker" ones, 12V 60/55W

so nothing power comsuming, as several peopple think to "improve" the lights by fitting 100/90W...not knowing that they will put more stress in the already weak factory wiring, burning the wires or connectors

[PhilF329]

a TVR with bright lights! Lights on my Cerbera are shockingly bad even with decent bulbs. I was going to try led bulbs to address the problem so it would be handy if there is an easy fix

[LLantrisant]

i didnt tell that the headlamps do illuminate the road well i just can tell that the emitted light is very bright (at least in my garage)

far brighter than with my former chimaera....which had poorer lights than my Tasmin

Edited by LLantrisant on Tuesday 17th November 21:28

[Byker28i]

PhilF329 said:

a TVR with bright lights! Lights on my Cerbera are shockingly bad even with decent bulbs. I was going to try led bulbs to address the problem so it would be handy if there is an easy fix

I've got the Phillips 50% brighter bulbs in mine, don't have a problem with the large lenses of the early cars, and generally I don't go fast in the dark.
The rear brake/stop lights and fog light I converted to Led because they were twice as bright, which makes them look like normal and gets over the smoked rear lenses. I did that after a few of us were on a trip and I couldn't see the Cerberas lights in front of me in poor weather

[Mr Cerbera]

LLantrisant said:

H4 Bulbs, from a quality brand, blue "night-braker" ones, 12V 60/55W

so nothing power comsuming, as several peopple think to "improve" the lights by fitting 100/90W...not knowing that they will put more stress in the already weak factory wiring, burning the wires or connectors

Thank you, Sir

Byker28i said:

I've got the Phillips 50% brighter bulbs in mine, don't have a problem with the large lenses of the early cars, and generally I don't go fast in the dark.
The rear brake/stop lights and fog light I converted to Led because they were twice as bright, which makes them look like normal and gets over the smoked rear lenses. I did that after a few of us were on a trip and I couldn't see the Cerberas lights in front of me in poor weather

Have you got any details of specs and sources for those, Dave ?

Ta !

[Byker28i]

Cerbera headlight bulbs have been in there for 14 years now. They were the phillips 50% brighter from memory 60/55W

Now days, I've put these into one of my other cars with good results
https://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/h4-osram-night-b...


I can't find where I got the stop tail led bulbs from but they are decent ones. I've also put LED bulbs into the interior lights and the boot light. The number plate remains dark
They could be from these people
https://www.classiccarleds.co.uk/collections/brake...

[geordiepingu]

Mr Cerbera said:

In that case it would be very interesting to know what has been fitted

If anything like my JDM import Chim Clubman, a very 90s HID kit! Might've swapped mine for *cough* LEDs *cough* - beam pattern didn't seem any worse and it went through 2 different UK MOT testers without an advisory.

Osram Nightbreakers are a decent H4 upgrade, not quite as good as a decent LED or HID kit with a passable beam pattern though. Had them on my old MX-5.

Look on the lower left of your steering column, do you have an exhaust overtemp warning indicator? JDM Chims have those, curious about the Cerbs. Rumour was it got around having a speed restrictor from what I read on some old threads on various forums - would love somebody to clarify.

Edited by geordiepingu on Wednesday 18th November 21:22