A few cerbera questions
Discussion
Hi Chaps,
Been reading the forum for quite a while and have a few questions about the cerbera.
I'd be buying as a daily driver for around 8K/yr. I'd be buying around the £9-12K level. I'd like a V8. (I'd also like, spiders & head lamp conversion (Smoothed) and the moon on a stick - I realis I'll have to make comprimises though to get a mechanically sound model!).
One of the big worries are some reports of cars off the road for 12 months waiting for parts....
How true is this anymore? I've heard comments about windscreens being hard to get - is this true? Murmurings of clutches and starter motors just recently.... how much of an issue is this really - are parts generally OK? In a bad case I'll get a car and have to spend some money fixing stuff, it would be a disaster though if I bought a car and couldnt use it for 12 months!
I've heard differing things on cerbies with the old style clutch bellhousing, is it true that you can use currently available clutches but just cut the bolts down a bit? Some people say you need a whole new bellhousing @ 1.5K odd.
......On that subject, some people seem to have repetative problems with the slave, dismantling the thing every year to sort clutch problems sounds tiresome, is this just a few unlucky punters, and by-the-by you'd expect a clutch to last 30K odd, or do we really need to change every 8K miles?!
When buying it would seem to make sense to do a compression test on the engine, anyone know what the expected results would be / what makes a good engine. Is there anything else you can do to check the heatlh of the AJP engine? What oil pressures cold&under load are 'normal'.
Also, these damn outriggers, how can you tell what they are like ontop? I had a look at a couple of cerberas and both of them had a lot of surface rust on the bottom sides of the outriggers - not ideal - but even if the bottom looks OK, how can you tell that demons don't lurketh above?
Thanks guys, sorry for turning to you with these questions so soon, but I've had a good read of the forums, and wanted these points clarified
Thanks,
Stu
Been reading the forum for quite a while and have a few questions about the cerbera.
I'd be buying as a daily driver for around 8K/yr. I'd be buying around the £9-12K level. I'd like a V8. (I'd also like, spiders & head lamp conversion (Smoothed) and the moon on a stick - I realis I'll have to make comprimises though to get a mechanically sound model!).
One of the big worries are some reports of cars off the road for 12 months waiting for parts....
How true is this anymore? I've heard comments about windscreens being hard to get - is this true? Murmurings of clutches and starter motors just recently.... how much of an issue is this really - are parts generally OK? In a bad case I'll get a car and have to spend some money fixing stuff, it would be a disaster though if I bought a car and couldnt use it for 12 months!
I've heard differing things on cerbies with the old style clutch bellhousing, is it true that you can use currently available clutches but just cut the bolts down a bit? Some people say you need a whole new bellhousing @ 1.5K odd.
......On that subject, some people seem to have repetative problems with the slave, dismantling the thing every year to sort clutch problems sounds tiresome, is this just a few unlucky punters, and by-the-by you'd expect a clutch to last 30K odd, or do we really need to change every 8K miles?!
When buying it would seem to make sense to do a compression test on the engine, anyone know what the expected results would be / what makes a good engine. Is there anything else you can do to check the heatlh of the AJP engine? What oil pressures cold&under load are 'normal'.
Also, these damn outriggers, how can you tell what they are like ontop? I had a look at a couple of cerberas and both of them had a lot of surface rust on the bottom sides of the outriggers - not ideal - but even if the bottom looks OK, how can you tell that demons don't lurketh above?
Thanks guys, sorry for turning to you with these questions so soon, but I've had a good read of the forums, and wanted these points clarified
Thanks,
Stu
Edited by stuthemong on Friday 15th May 15:33
Stu,
I'm not aware of parts supply issues with anything, certainly now that TVR Power are back I would guess that it's better than ever. You specifically asked about windscreens, I know that my local TVR "Dealer" has quite a few in stock.
Clutches - can be problematic, but again, it seems that with the passage of time lessons have been learnt and they are more robust than they had been in the past. I think that the key thing to remember is that it's a twin plate race clutch which will not take kindly to being abused (by which I mean sitting in traffic with your foot on the clutch for ages).
Engines - I'm afraid I don't know what compression should be. However, all that will really tell you is whether the valves and piston rings are sealing well - neither of which are particular problems on the AJP but may be an indication as to the general health of the engine. I'd be more interested in whether it uses much oil, rattles under load or blows cr@p out of the back!
Outriggers - really you can't tell what they're like on top without taking the body off! However, the general condition of the chassis should give you a good indication.
I've had mine for about six months and use it regularly but not daily. I've had minor issues which have been irritating but nothing has gone fundamentally wrong with the car. I would say though, that at the budget you've got, you might do well to incorporate £500 for a banger to leave parked on the side of the road for when your Cerbera is having a hissy fit
Good luck!
I'm not aware of parts supply issues with anything, certainly now that TVR Power are back I would guess that it's better than ever. You specifically asked about windscreens, I know that my local TVR "Dealer" has quite a few in stock.
Clutches - can be problematic, but again, it seems that with the passage of time lessons have been learnt and they are more robust than they had been in the past. I think that the key thing to remember is that it's a twin plate race clutch which will not take kindly to being abused (by which I mean sitting in traffic with your foot on the clutch for ages).
Engines - I'm afraid I don't know what compression should be. However, all that will really tell you is whether the valves and piston rings are sealing well - neither of which are particular problems on the AJP but may be an indication as to the general health of the engine. I'd be more interested in whether it uses much oil, rattles under load or blows cr@p out of the back!
Outriggers - really you can't tell what they're like on top without taking the body off! However, the general condition of the chassis should give you a good indication.
I've had mine for about six months and use it regularly but not daily. I've had minor issues which have been irritating but nothing has gone fundamentally wrong with the car. I would say though, that at the budget you've got, you might do well to incorporate £500 for a banger to leave parked on the side of the road for when your Cerbera is having a hissy fit
Good luck!
I use Andy at APM Automotive and have had everything on your list replaced in the last 12 months (and more) - never had a problem with getting parts and do enough miles per annum to count as a daily driver.
Longest it's been off the road is 5 consecutive days as Andy was (as always) fully booked up so had to leave it with him.
Buy a good'un and fix ANY niggles as soon as they appear and you'll be a happy chap.
Enjoy!
Longest it's been off the road is 5 consecutive days as Andy was (as always) fully booked up so had to leave it with him.
Buy a good'un and fix ANY niggles as soon as they appear and you'll be a happy chap.
Enjoy!
Just picked mine up from having service done, runs loads better, idles properly, hand brake works! and the geo and 4 wheel alignment is a revelation, doesn't change direction randomly now 
Cost (oil supplied by me) was £931, but that included tappet adjustment and oil temperature gauge fitting.
By the way, oil temp according to gauge didn't go above 70 degrees all the way home (30 miles) bit worrying?
Cost (oil supplied by me) was £931, but that included tappet adjustment and oil temperature gauge fitting.
By the way, oil temp according to gauge didn't go above 70 degrees all the way home (30 miles) bit worrying?
dirty boy said:
Just picked mine up from having service done, runs loads better, idles properly, hand brake works! and the geo and 4 wheel alignment is a revelation, doesn't change direction randomly now
Cost (oil supplied by me) was £931, but that included tappet adjustment and oil temperature gauge fitting.
By the way, oil temp according to gauge didn't go above 70 degrees all the way home (30 miles) bit worrying?
Good value, where was that?Cost (oil supplied by me) was £931, but that included tappet adjustment and oil temperature gauge fitting.
By the way, oil temp according to gauge didn't go above 70 degrees all the way home (30 miles) bit worrying?
Fear not about the oil. We'll have "stats" soon!
ridds said:
dirty boy said:
Just picked mine up from having service done, runs loads better, idles properly, hand brake works! and the geo and 4 wheel alignment is a revelation, doesn't change direction randomly now
Cost (oil supplied by me) was £931, but that included tappet adjustment and oil temperature gauge fitting.
By the way, oil temp according to gauge didn't go above 70 degrees all the way home (30 miles) bit worrying?
Good value, where was that?Cost (oil supplied by me) was £931, but that included tappet adjustment and oil temperature gauge fitting.
By the way, oil temp according to gauge didn't go above 70 degrees all the way home (30 miles) bit worrying?
Fear not about the oil. We'll have "stats" soon!
Thoroughly recommend them, talked me through all the bits to keep and eye on etc, they had a selection of Cerberas there when I picked mine up, including a nice red 4.5 with red dials
Am worried about the oil, do the gauges under read do you think?
Thanks for the responses, chaps.
I've been getting the "lie of the land" in early second hand V8 prices (or at least have been trying to).
-Obviously the AJP8's don't suffer as much as early speed 6's - with the exception of the early 4.2's (crank) it seems to me that a non-warrantied rebuild, although nice, shouldn't appreciably increase the sale price of a v8 cerbera (unlike the s6 TVR's where it is priced in) - is this correct? My reasoning is that unlike the s6's, these AJP's seem a lot more reliable and there are no known issues with them.
-A few 4.2's are rebuilt to 4.5's. I understand the rear diff is different, along with a few small things like the speedo and front brakes being slightly larger on the 4.5's. How do you price a rebuilt 4.2 ->4.5? As a 4.5, or as a 4.2? That said, the price between a 4.2 and 4.5 doesnt seem much different anyway. I assume there is nothing to worry about on these upgraded cars?
- Waxoyl. Why do we use it? Seems to me it's dirty horrid stuff that is nasty and covers things up rather than really protecting, why don't we use stuff like POR15 on the riggers? Is waxoyl just easier to apply and cheaper?
-Owners. I'm assuming a fair churn of owners is expected on cerbies, and that for a 10+ yr old car up to 10 owners would be fine?
-Spiders. I've tried to look on this subject and have found mixed results a) with fitmet and b) longevity. I think they look awesome though, so slightly forgetting a)
.... If I bought a car without spiders, and wanted to fit them, do I have to get 2 sets of 'fronts' or will something like these go on: ( http://tinyurl.com/tvrspiders ) . Tyres, it seems something like Falkens are recommended, so for aroundabouts £1.1K I could have new wheels+tyres, which is an attractive proposition to me I think, unless I have this all wrong Talk of rubbing/fouling arches is a pain, unless the fix is easier than it sounds?
-ECU/Engine stats. Is there any way of plugging into the ECU and discovering engine usage stats / max revs / throttle usage etc. as in my lotus? If I see a car has been buzzzed to 9.5KRPM I'd probably give it a miss! (also, is it easy for an unscrupulous owner to overwrite this?)
-Storing outside. Some recommend to garage these things, I can't. Is there anything you can do to improve their hardiness .vs. rain? Extra plastic covers/ positioning of wiring to help? Eg.. in the elise you just put some sealant on the cam cover and it stops water ruinng the coils... any tricks like this on a cerby, or is it not that bigger deal to worry about?
-Any opinion on the Offords TVR garage (feel free to direct email)? - they are vv local to me and the obvious choice ( I could push it there if it breaks).
-A couple of cerbs I've looked at have 'wind deflectors' stuck on the a-pillar. Are all like this? They do look a little bit of an afterthought, and also seem to chip - how the hell do these get chipped? I don't understand it!
-I really like the look of this one ( http://pistonheads.co.uk/sales/974367.htm ) - I don't know why, but I do Anyone know any history on it? Would it be very hard to resell in that colour (is that why it's not shifted?) - a pink car wasn't really on my list of must haves, but the interior is stunning and I kinda-like the crazyness outside to be honest... do I need help? I guess the main downside on this is potential crank snappage..... hmm.
I Think that's all for now, sorry for the onslaught of more questions
Cheers,
Stu
I've been getting the "lie of the land" in early second hand V8 prices (or at least have been trying to).
-Obviously the AJP8's don't suffer as much as early speed 6's - with the exception of the early 4.2's (crank) it seems to me that a non-warrantied rebuild, although nice, shouldn't appreciably increase the sale price of a v8 cerbera (unlike the s6 TVR's where it is priced in) - is this correct? My reasoning is that unlike the s6's, these AJP's seem a lot more reliable and there are no known issues with them.
-A few 4.2's are rebuilt to 4.5's. I understand the rear diff is different, along with a few small things like the speedo and front brakes being slightly larger on the 4.5's. How do you price a rebuilt 4.2 ->4.5? As a 4.5, or as a 4.2? That said, the price between a 4.2 and 4.5 doesnt seem much different anyway. I assume there is nothing to worry about on these upgraded cars?
- Waxoyl. Why do we use it? Seems to me it's dirty horrid stuff that is nasty and covers things up rather than really protecting, why don't we use stuff like POR15 on the riggers? Is waxoyl just easier to apply and cheaper?
-Owners. I'm assuming a fair churn of owners is expected on cerbies, and that for a 10+ yr old car up to 10 owners would be fine?
-Spiders. I've tried to look on this subject and have found mixed results a) with fitmet and b) longevity. I think they look awesome though, so slightly forgetting a)
.... If I bought a car without spiders, and wanted to fit them, do I have to get 2 sets of 'fronts' or will something like these go on: ( http://tinyurl.com/tvrspiders ) . Tyres, it seems something like Falkens are recommended, so for aroundabouts £1.1K I could have new wheels+tyres, which is an attractive proposition to me I think, unless I have this all wrong Talk of rubbing/fouling arches is a pain, unless the fix is easier than it sounds?-ECU/Engine stats. Is there any way of plugging into the ECU and discovering engine usage stats / max revs / throttle usage etc. as in my lotus? If I see a car has been buzzzed to 9.5KRPM I'd probably give it a miss! (also, is it easy for an unscrupulous owner to overwrite this?)
-Storing outside. Some recommend to garage these things, I can't. Is there anything you can do to improve their hardiness .vs. rain? Extra plastic covers/ positioning of wiring to help? Eg.. in the elise you just put some sealant on the cam cover and it stops water ruinng the coils... any tricks like this on a cerby, or is it not that bigger deal to worry about?
-Any opinion on the Offords TVR garage (feel free to direct email)? - they are vv local to me and the obvious choice ( I could push it there if it breaks
). -A couple of cerbs I've looked at have 'wind deflectors' stuck on the a-pillar. Are all like this? They do look a little bit of an afterthought, and also seem to chip - how the hell do these get chipped? I don't understand it!
-I really like the look of this one ( http://pistonheads.co.uk/sales/974367.htm ) - I don't know why, but I do
Anyone know any history on it? Would it be very hard to resell in that colour (is that why it's not shifted?) - a pink car wasn't really on my list of must haves, but the interior is stunning and I kinda-like the crazyness outside to be honest... do I need help? I guess the main downside on this is potential crank snappage..... hmm.I Think that's all for now, sorry for the onslaught of more questions
Cheers,
Stu
The car you link to is indeed very good looking (apart from the rear lights) my only concern would be that it looks like there has been money spent on the exterior of it but no mention of a rebuild.
I can only speak from my own experience (I bought a 96 4.2 that snapped it's crank after 3 months)I would be more inclined to buy an early one that has had the crank changed as opposed to buying one with external mods.
I can only speak from my own experience (I bought a 96 4.2 that snapped it's crank after 3 months)I would be more inclined to buy an early one that has had the crank changed as opposed to buying one with external mods.
Stu,
the only difference with the diffs is that the early 4.2s had a plate type LSD as standard and a hydratrack (viscous) diff as an option, whereas the later cars all used the hydratrack. The ratios are the same.
Most people will confirm that the standard plate diff is the better option.
Regards the ECU, there is nothing in there to show max revs etc, however, you can obviously read the fault codes stored. (Which could also be cancelled by an unscrupulous owner.)
the only difference with the diffs is that the early 4.2s had a plate type LSD as standard and a hydratrack (viscous) diff as an option, whereas the later cars all used the hydratrack. The ratios are the same.
Most people will confirm that the standard plate diff is the better option.
Regards the ECU, there is nothing in there to show max revs etc, however, you can obviously read the fault codes stored. (Which could also be cancelled by an unscrupulous owner.)
stuthemong said:
-I really like the look of this one ( http://pistonheads.co.uk/sales/974367.htm ) - I don't know why, but I do Anyone know any history on it? Would it be very hard to resell in that colour - a pink car wasn't really on my list of must haves, but the interior is stunning and I kinda-like the crazyness outside to be honest...
Hi Stu, it's not pink I tell you... it's raspberry - and it's the best colour for a Cerb; I know.... Anyone know any history on it? Would it be very hard to resell in that colour - a pink car wasn't really on my list of must haves, but the interior is stunning and I kinda-like the crazyness outside to be honest... 
Marian,
That is certainly a concern on the earlier 4.2's. I did sort-of think the same when I saw that ad, as it looks like good value for a clean dealer car - I guess it's just that lack of rebuild putting people off.
As it happens I went to look at a drop-dead "gawjous" cerbera local to me last night. On paper they look similar in terms of age/mileage/engine. This crank snappage/lack of rebuild does make me nervous about these two cars. The owner thought that crank snapping was a slightly overplayed fault (bit like BMW vanos I guess) and said to talk to someone who knows. Dom@TVR power (thanks Dom!) did confirm words to that effect to me this morning, whereby 4.2 crank snapping is perhaps not as common an occurance as is implied here - obviously some will get unlucky, but you can get unlucky with a 4.5 too I guess......
Despite what people say, it does seem to me as a potential buyer in the fold that 4.5's will be easier to shift than 4.2's - similar performance or not. I have to factor in resaleability (I just made that word up) when buying, to have that priced in.
Cheers,
Stu
DonnyMAC,
Have you got any more shots of it out-and-about? I guess it's quite a marmite colour, but it's a TVR ffs, if anything can pull it off, a cerby can!
That is certainly a concern on the earlier 4.2's. I did sort-of think the same when I saw that ad, as it looks like good value for a clean dealer car - I guess it's just that lack of rebuild putting people off.
As it happens I went to look at a drop-dead "gawjous" cerbera local to me last night. On paper they look similar in terms of age/mileage/engine. This crank snappage/lack of rebuild does make me nervous about these two cars. The owner thought that crank snapping was a slightly overplayed fault (bit like BMW vanos I guess) and said to talk to someone who knows. Dom@TVR power (thanks Dom!) did confirm words to that effect to me this morning, whereby 4.2 crank snapping is perhaps not as common an occurance as is implied here - obviously some will get unlucky, but you can get unlucky with a 4.5 too I guess......
Despite what people say, it does seem to me as a potential buyer in the fold that 4.5's will be easier to shift than 4.2's - similar performance or not. I have to factor in resaleability (I just made that word up) when buying, to have that priced in.
Cheers,
Stu
DonnyMAC,
Have you got any more shots of it out-and-about? I guess it's quite a marmite colour, but it's a TVR ffs, if anything can pull it off, a cerby can!
stuthemong said:
DonnyMAC,
Have you got any more shots of it out-and-about? I guess it's quite a marmite colour, but it's a TVR ffs, if anything can pull it off, a cerby can!
Yep, I bought mine on condition and the colour wasn't at the top of my list either, but when polished it looks great and I now far prefer it to 'standard' colours.Have you got any more shots of it out-and-about? I guess it's quite a marmite colour, but it's a TVR ffs, if anything can pull it off, a cerby can!
Often get shouted at in the street "great colour" etc., which I don't think you'd get with a Blue/Silver/Yellow one?
PM'd you links to more pics/video
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