Thinking of getting my 1st TVR

Thinking of getting my 1st TVR

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Brithunter

Original Poster:

599 posts

87 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
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So for some odd reason the idea of getting a TVR has been working it's way into and growing inside my head for a little while now. Possibly because there is a little money coming my way in the not too distant future but the budget is still limited. The problem is that I know very little about them. My only experience with TVR's was back in 2002 when working as a recovery driver for Dorking Autos and during that time picked up a couple to take to the TVR centre at Salfords in Surrey.

Have always admired the curves found on many TVR models and as am not a fan of wedge shapes that leaves the Chimaera and Cerbera really as the Griffith will be beyond the budget constraints.

For some time have been reading what I can about these and what to look for but in all honesty a lot of what is found on the web is conflicting. In the past like with my MGF's have bought cheap project cars and done them up doing most of the work myself except body work and paint and getting a TVR will mean selling the MG and of course the time to do that is next April when people are looking for a convertable. This means it is really the wrong time to buy another convertable of course. This leads me to the quandry ............................. do we go for another convertable i.e Chimaera ( I do enjoy top down motoring) or go for the 2+2 of the Cerbera? The MGF is surprisingly useful as an everyday car and it's boot large enough to do the weekly shop with although we do run a normal 4 door saloon as well so this is not the primary concern for use.

Looking on the web and reading the forums here one thing that has struck me is the small size of the Chimarea brakes and this has me somewhat confused as the MGF as standard has small brakes (240mm all round) and they are some what lacking for spirited driving. The Trophy of course has AP Racing 4 pot calipers up front clamping onto 304mm dia 24mm thick vented discs and my MGF has these fitted with S/S Braided hoses, servo brace, and Duraflex bushed suspension. The MGF weighs about the same or maybe a triffle more than the Chimaera weighing in at around 1100-1300 kgs.

So does the Chimaera require brake upgrades? The forums seem to be rather divided from the posts that I have been reading and I note that the Cerbera has larger brakes as standard! This makes me wonder why TVR upgraded the Cerberas but not the Chimaeras?

Now fuel consumption should not be the issue as for one thing I won't be racing it and if the figures found on the web are about right the 4.0 V8 will return around the same consumption as my old Rover 2.5 V6 auto Connoisseur did. I do around 4000-7000 miles per year in the MGF.

Back to the question project or not? Now I realise that cars this old will have rust on their steel under parts and chassis so would buying a cheap car allowing money left to do a chassis and suspension rebuild then knowing that this has all been done be worth considering or not?

Would allowing say £3000-£5000 for such a rebuild be realistic if I am going to do most of the work, stripping and preparation, myself allowing professionals to do the actuall chassis repair if required?

The obvious thing to do now is to get close to some TVR's and speak to their owners/drivers and maybe even get a ride in one or two and find out for sure if in fact one is for me. There does not seem to be any TVR specialists near to here as we are located near to Boston in Lincolnshire to have a browse a round a car or two and of course ask questions.

Sorry about the lengthy first post but hope you will understand where I am coming from.

TV8

3,118 posts

174 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
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The Cerb is a different beast to the Chimaera. Don't worry about the brakes on the Chim. If working properly, they are all fine and only the very early 400 and 430s had small brakes. Later cars have bigger disks all round - not Cerb spec though.

Depends on what you want to spend, both in buying and servicing/rainy days.

TVRees

1,080 posts

111 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
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Brithunter said:
Have always admired the curves found on many TVR models and as am not a fan of wedge shapes that leaves the Chimaera and Cerbera really as the Griffith will be beyond the budget constraints.
What about a TVR-S, V6 or V8 ?



350Matt

3,733 posts

278 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
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best thing to do is take a look on the TVR car club site and go along to the next local meet

that way you get to see the cars 1st hand and talk to folks about the ownership experience

I'd say for a 1st TVR go for the Chimera as its the easier of the two to own and still very fast, the Cerb is Epic even today, but has higher running costs and is very idiosyncratic even for a TVR

gemini

11,352 posts

263 months

Brithunter

Original Poster:

599 posts

87 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
quotequote all
Thank you for the suggestions and replies. I have read that buyer guide a couple of times actually and intend to join the Car club once the Christmas break is over also have a few TVR's on my watch list on ebay but none are even remotely close but shuld give me an idea on how theya re sellign and how much for. Looking on Autotrader it would seem that there is a Red 5.0L Chimaera near Norwich but that is a good 2-3 hour drive from here and it really beyond the budget. Otherwise the nearest is Selby or down into Essex so these mean a day out really. Or across to the Midlands again not exactly a quick jaunt down the road just to get a look as one.

Perhaps a visit to one of the TVR specialist dealers might be an idea?

Should have mentioned I supposed that insurance should not really be an issue due to my not being a spring chicken anymore seeing as I am over 55 now and have a spare 13+ years NCB to use. In the MG I then to get to as many meets and events as I can although 2016 was a wash out for this due to losses in the family hopefully once we move things will settle down once more.

Brithunter

Original Poster:

599 posts

87 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
quotequote all
TVRees said:
What about a TVR-S, V6 or V8 ?
Thank you and I have looked at a few that I found listed online but again really need to view a couple to get a feel for them. Have also been listing to the various TVR's on you-tube and yes the S can sound awesome but one has to admit that the sound of a nice V8 is very hard to beat. At this point in time nothing is set in stone and have a fairly open mind as being realistic with the budget am not going to get the perfect combination of body colour and trim as after all it's not like I was specifying it like the original buyer was.

I can say that am not a fan of dark interiors and that I do love those bright Yellow cars. Sadly a lot of those would likely have black seats etc. Also prefer bright colours for the bodythumbup grey is rather boring and silver well it's a shade of grey really. Black nope not really for me. Now White can be stunning but the shade of it seems to matter and some shades work better on some body styles like Old English White suits the Rover 75 far better that Dover White IMHO. British Racing Green can be an awesome colour especially when matched to the correct interior.

Edit:- Am currently reading through thsi post which I failed to spot earlier. It may well have many of my questions already answered!

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...


Edited by Brithunter on Tuesday 27th December 21:41

cerb4.5lee

30,189 posts

179 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
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350Matt said:
I'd say for a 1st TVR go for the Chimera as its the easier of the two to own and still very fast, the Cerb is Epic even today, but has higher running costs and is very idiosyncratic even for a TVR
Really agree with this, and if I had my time again I would go for the Chimaera instead of the Cerbera for my 1st TVR for sure.

mk1fan

10,507 posts

224 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
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TVRees said:
What about a TVR-S, V6 or V8 ?
The S is well worth considering. I know of 2 S2 V6 versions available in Surrey / London. You should ask Qbee about how well the 2.9 S2 goes when he was following Mat Smith's one at Donington last year. Qbee has a 5.0 Chim BTW.

A decent usable V6 S2 / 3 should be well under £10k.

The V8 in a Cerb is great but spares are limited and new bits unavailable. A lot more expensive that an RV8 to repair. Not that an RV8 is particularly cheap. They are still plenty of parts available for the RV8 and the Cologne 2.9 V6.

I have 2 S3 and they are great. If you're on a budget then they offer more fun for your pound.

That said, A V8S is a great car too but Chims can be had cheaper.

If you want to get to a good meet with lots of different models then I can recommend the TVRCC Berks meet. They have a Facebook page with details. They meet over in Bracknell.

ginkent

152 posts

93 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
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If you fancy a spin out in a cerb and east Kent is within reach, let me know

Speed 3

4,486 posts

118 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
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Your location works against you (always amazed how the E of England seems so goddam far from anywhere when on a map its not that disconnected) but to be honest for any standard of TVR you need to travel to get what you want. Best for now is try to track down local-ish owners from TVRCC or PH to let you see their cars. The rest can be researched online when you have one or two options open to you. In terms of practicality the Chimaera knocks the MGF into a cocked hat, the boot is huge. Back in the day, we did a trip to Brittany in ours with my sister in her new MGF and we ended up taking half of their stuff. Forget the Cerbera at this end of the purchase scale, a completely different animal despite the common body origin. Probably worth a trip into the Midlands to view a few when you have a free long day, Tony Gilbert has the largest current stock, probably the only remotely volume reseller of Chims into the country together with Fernhurst in the South but none of them will be big projects.

Prices have definitely firmed considerably in the last 12 months but project cars do occasionally pop up on the Bay. What is your budget ?

gemini

11,352 posts

263 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
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As for the one in Selby if you want it looking over for you?

Mazinbrum

929 posts

177 months

Tuesday 27th December 2016
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Nothing wrong with Chimaera brakes, better than my last 2 brand new cars (daily runners) over the last six years that both had ABS.

Brithunter

Original Poster:

599 posts

87 months

Wednesday 28th December 2016
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Prices have definitely firmed considerably in the last 12 months but project cars do occasionally pop up on the Bay. What is your budget ?:-

If things work out around £10,000-£14,000 and of course this has come as prices has started to climb ............................ typical my being late "on the wagon" so to speak!

As for where we live ahhh yes everything is a drive the weekly shopping means a 25 mile round trip we are about 2 miles from the village shop and PO, 7 miles from the doctors, 13 miles from the hospital and 7 miles from the nearest petrol station. Kent is about a 3 hour drive depending on traffic on the A14/M11 or A1M For example Gatwick is about a 4 hour drive and often longer now at one time this could be done in 3-3 1/2 hours but speed restrictions, road works, and the volume of traffic had made it a lot longer. Used to live next door to Gatwick. Been up here since 2003.

Edited by Brithunter on Friday 6th January 17:27

Brithunter

Original Poster:

599 posts

87 months

Wednesday 28th December 2016
quotequote all
gemini said:
As for the one in Selby if you want it looking over for you?
Thank you for the offer but am only browsing at the moment as we do not know when the funds will become available just yet. It could be weeks it may be a couple of months.

For now I need to get a close look over a few myself and hopefully get a ride in a couple to get the feel of them. Searching the web have come across "James Agger Auto Sport" and "TVR Mads" that seem to have some nice Chimaeras in stock so might be worth a call and see if it wuld be possible to view and ask questions. Both dealers are a fair drive away though. Am surprised that I could not find any offered for sale around the Peterborough area as there are tons of dealers around there.

Anyway it's late now so am off to bed.

fullpull

260 posts

166 months

Wednesday 28th December 2016
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You may find this meta search engine helpful:
http://bob-cars.com/search.jsp?language=en&mil...

My recommendation would be the Chimaera with a Nitron/Eibach suspension and Chimaera Mk3 = Cerbera Mk1 seats).
Both upgrades can be fitted at a later stage when funds allow it.
My 450 is a pretty fast thing (some on here will disagree wavey) and I find the brakes acceptable.
Again, upgrades are available and are rather affordable.

Happy hunting and congrats on your decision to buy a TVR. You are going to love it.
It is never too late for a happy childhood! wobble

Edited by fullpull on Wednesday 28th December 04:47


Edited by fullpull on Wednesday 28th December 04:48

QBee

20,904 posts

143 months

Wednesday 28th December 2016
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Either I am being thick, or you don't say where you live. Knowing (roughly) that would help.
There are plenty of regular meets and drives, but the first big TVR car show of the season is Burghley (A1, Stamford, north of Peterborough) in early April, so just over 3 months away. You will find 600+ cars there, of every version ever made.

The S or Chimaera are in your budget, I doubt you would find a decent Cerbera for that money, and they can be expensive to run. The brakes are fine for normal road work. If you want more bite and cheaply, consider upgrading the front disks to grooved, and the pads to something with more bite, like Mintex 1144. But keep the same size (260mm front, 273mm rear).

Good luck. And yes, a good S in the hands of a very good driver is amazingly quick. Mat won the Dunlop TVR championship this year in a Chimaera he developed himself, and being a TVR specialist, he completely stripped and refurbished all the mechanicals on his S. So the car itself is spot on. But I agree, the V8 rumble is something special.

TR4man

5,207 posts

173 months

Wednesday 28th December 2016
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Good luck with your search.

I'm also the other side of 55 and bought my first TVR in October, although I have always had some sort of "toy" in the garage. As others have suggested, a Chimaera might be the ideal first TVR. I went for one of the final Mk3 Chimaeras bought from a specialist near Redditch after viewing only three others. One I viewed was in Chester, another near Northampton and another in North London - you have to accept that you will have to travel to view and eventually buy.

I wouldn't be too disheartened that there appears to be so few for sale in your part of the country as winter does tend to be the quieter time of year to sell or buy a car such as a TVR. Use this time to do your homework. Also you should be prepared for cars that have been fiddled about with - TVRs seem to attract owners who like to tinker!

Once you have got your TVR, you won't regret it. In the first couple of weeks that I owned mine, I did more mileage in it than it had covered in the previous three years!

Edited by TR4man on Wednesday 28th December 07:46

Milky400

1,960 posts

177 months

Wednesday 28th December 2016
quotequote all
QBee said:
Either I am being thick, or you don't say where you live. Knowing (roughly) that would help.
There are plenty of regular meets and drives, but the first big TVR car show of the season is Burghley (A1, Stamford, north of Peterborough) in early April, so just over 3 months away. You will find 600+ cars there, of every version ever made.

The S or Chimaera are in your budget, I doubt you would find a decent Cerbera for that money, and they can be expensive to run. The brakes are fine for normal road work. If you want more bite and cheaply, consider upgrading the front disks to grooved, and the pads to something with more bite, like Mintex 1144. But keep the same size (260mm front, 273mm rear).

Good luck. And yes, a good S in the hands of a very good driver is amazingly quick. Mat won the Dunlop TVR championship this year in a Chimaera he developed himself, and being a TVR specialist, he completely stripped and refurbished all the mechanicals on his S. So the car itself is spot on. But I agree, the V8 rumble is something special.
Boston, Lincolnshire

As for Mat Smith, cannot recommend him highly enough for hen you finally purchase a car. I loved my chimaera and do miss it, although the Tuscan is something else.

Brithunter

Original Poster:

599 posts

87 months

Wednesday 28th December 2016
quotequote all
QBee said:
Either I am being thick, or you don't say where you live. Knowing (roughly) that would help.
There are plenty of regular meets and drives, but the first big TVR car show of the season is Burghley (A1, Stamford, north of Peterborough) in early April, so just over 3 months away. You will find 600+ cars there, of every version ever made.

The S or Chimaera are in your budget, I doubt you would find a decent Cerbera for that money, and they can be expensive to run. The brakes are fine for normal road work. If you want more bite and cheaply, consider upgrading the front disks to grooved, and the pads to something with more bite, like Mintex 1144. But keep the same size (260mm front, 273mm rear).

Good luck. And yes, a good S in the hands of a very good driver is amazingly quick. Mat won the Dunlop TVR championship this year in a Chimaera he developed himself, and being a TVR specialist, he completely stripped and refurbished all the mechanicals on his S. So the car itself is spot on. But I agree, the V8 rumble is something special.
Have been to several MG and Rover meets at Burleigh over the last few years. On the way back from one in the 97 VVC a return hose split near Boston so almost home. Nephew brought some water out and nursed her home, near the Parrot Zoo, and got a new hose fitted. As my MGF's are all now 17+years old the hoses are tired and have been working on replacing them.

Thanks for the advice on the brakes! Of course it may be that I acquire a Chimaera that has already got some upgrades biggrin only time will tell.