Wednesday 23rd May 2018

The £100k Sagaris: Spotted

Well if you have a lot to spend on a TVR but don't fancy a new Griffith...

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2018 looks like being The Year for TVR. The new Griffith will go into production, the LMP1 collaboration will race at Le Mans and - dare we say it - the media may get to drive the new V8 TVR. What a sentence to be able to write. Let's hope and pray that it can deliver.

As the new TVR draws nearer, naturally interest will increase in the old models. After all, these are the cars that the new Griffith must emulate in a stricter, less forgiving, more restrictive automotive world. They were the wildest, silliest, rawest things on four wheels, the old TVRs, and that was a huge part of the charm - can a TVR in 2018 match that with electric steering, traction control and ABS?

There can be little doubt that the Sagaris was as outrageous as TVRs got (if we discount the Cerbera Speed 12 of course). With the slats, the stance, those incredible exhausts and a typically wacky TVR cabin, the Sagaris was - and still is, in fact - like nothing else on the road. It's worth remembering, too, that the Sagaris was the best TVR dynamically, making it all the more upsetting that its life was cut short. Taking lessons from the T350, Tamora and various Tuscan updates, the Sagaris was, at last, a properly sorted TVR to drive. Of course it was ludicrously rapid, but this was a TVR that could finally keep a handle on it.

As the last - and probably best - TVR model produced, values have been rising for a while. However, we've now reached a new peak for the Sagaris, as you've probably guessed: this one is for sale at £100,000.

Yep, the £100k Sagaris. Which is actually more than the new Griffith costs. Predictably, it's an absolute stunner, having covered just 5,000 miles in 13 years and with a flawless service record. It looks absolutely fab as well, completely unblemished, even if the spec might seem a little subdued for some tastes.

Would you buy one for twice what it cost new? Certainly it's hard to imagine a better one ever coming up for sale, if there is a Sagaris-sized slot in your collection. But then, exhilarating thought it is just to look at, wouldn't it be a shame to see the best driving TVR never really move again?

That being said, such is the desirability of Sagarises at present that you'll need more than £60k to buy even the most affordable cars. Crumbs. What to do then, if a late TVR is what you want, but the budget won't quite stretch to these prices? Well, it should be noted that the T350 - from which the Sagaris was derived, don't forget - is still available at a little over £30k for a car with 40,000 miles. It's not quite the hero car, granted, but that is a considerable saving.

Is there anything you might consider instead? You could have a brand new Morgan Aero 8, for example, or a more traditional Plus 8, for this money. And don't forget the Lotuses, either: £100,000 buys an Evora Sport 410 or Exige Cup 430. And where better than PistonHeads to seek some well informed Brit sports car opinions? The floor is yours, and please do let us know if you do take the plunge on that Sagaris...

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SPECIFICATION - TVR SAGARIS

Engine: 3,996cc, straight-six
Transmission: 6-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 412@7,000rpm
Torque (lb ft): 349@5,000rpm
MPG: Next...
CO2: 406g/km
First registered: 2005
Recorded mileage: 5,737
Price new: £49,995
Yours for: £100,000

See the original advert here.

 

[sidesauce]

£100k for a Sagaris? Wow, that's nuts! As the article said though, there's not really anything nowadays quite like it.

Edited by sidesauce on Wednesday 23 May 06:27

[cib24]

God, I love this car but that kind of money is really pushing it. I thought they were a bit much when c.£60k, but it's like most cars today.

[peteA]

Wow, that’s a lot! Had 4 TVR’s over the years but not a Sag but I have driven one and they are very special things but £100k! If that the car I think it is I’ve seen that one and it’s an amazing time warp car with a (at the time I saw it) a very meticulous owner - I very much doubt there is a better one?

Unique car? Stunning? There will never be anything else like it again? Maybe it is worth it after all?

[SimonTheSailor]

'Flawless service record' ? - it's had 4 services in 13 years ?

[DeejRC]

Very special car...I really really really want to say yes, but............

Sigh. Bottom line, truth is - I really regretted selling my Griff for the Sag. The Griff was/IS special, the Sagaris, despite it being a better vehicle in almost every way, just never felt as special as the Griff.

[DonkeyApple]

sidesauce said:

£100k for a Sagaris? Wow, that's nuts! As the article said though, there's not really anything nowadays quite like it.

Edited by sidesauce on Wednesday 23 May 06:27

It’s long over due. TVRs have been crazy cheap (in contrast to the market) for a very long time. What it shows is that firstly, nothing like it is being built any more and there are only a few of these cars and secondly that excess money is pretty worthless.

[Jonny TVR]

It won't drive anywhere near as well as new TVR at the same money. However I could say that about my E-type versus one of the new Jags, but its not a classic is it. Its at about the same money as my 2008 Ferrari 599 .. would I swap them? no bloody way!

[Don1]

My Sagaris (and a few others) are insured at over the £100k area. Under 200 made, somewhere around 160 left we think? £100k (IMHO) puts it into a very rare atmosphere. Is it worth it? Let's just say I'm glad I brought it when I did.

The last TVR 'poster' car, one of the best they ever made (with all due respect to the Tuscan 2s and the Typhon). Pic for the hell of it.

[Jonny TVR]

Don1 said:

My Sagaris (and a few others) are insured at over the £100k area. Under 200 made, somewhere around 160 left we think? £100k (IMHO) puts it into a very rare atmosphere. Is it worth it? Let's just say I'm glad I brought it when I did.

The last TVR 'poster' car, one of the best they ever made (with all due respect to the Tuscan 2s and the Typhon). Pic for the hell of it.

It does look mighty fine.

[pSyCoSiS]

IMO, one of the most outlandish cars ever made, and my all-time favourite TVR.

That is a lot of cash, but as others have posted, it's a rare car and nothing quite like it on the road.

A guy at work up in Newcastle has a bright red one - it looks evil and sounds like the devil clearing his throat after a heavy night out.

Deffo one for the lottery win!

[swisstoni]

If this drags up other TVR prices then great but there is nothing intrinsically special about these things versus some other TVRs to warrant the price differential IMHO.

[Jonny TVR]

swisstoni said:

If this drags up other TVR prices then great but there is nothing intrinsically special about these things versus some other TVRs to warrant the price differential IMHO.

They are all flawed in the handling department due to the chassis. No amount of money spent on suspension will change that. However I love everything about them even the smell!

[andrewparker]

Love it, but that is a terribly boring spec! TVRs need wild paint IMO.

[lockhart flawse]

.....actually I think lairy paint was one of the reasons for TVR's demise. Engine unreliabaility was the main problem and the lack of a convertible until later on but the visual wackiness did not appeal to a lot of people that bought the cars in the 90s IMO. They became a bit naff.

[DonkeyApple]

lockhart flawse said:

.....actually I think lairy paint was one of the reasons for TVR's demise. Engine unreliabaility was the main problem and the lack of a convertible until later on but the visual wackiness did not appeal to a lot of people that bought the cars in the 90s IMO. They became a bit naff.

Or ahead of their time!!!

[Krikkit]

Jonny TVR said:

They are all flawed in the handling department due to the chassis. No amount of money spent on suspension will change that. However I love everything about them even the smell!

Do you think that includes the Sag? (And to a lesser extent the T350)

It was very well reviewed against its peers at the time.

[DanielSan]

This or an old Sierra? And people actually try and argue that old Fords are worth the stupid prices being asked... There’s only one choice here.

[Electra]

were there any LHD Sagaris made? (or TVR for that matter)

[Don1]

Electra said:

were there any LHD Sagaris made? (or TVR for that matter)

Yes, a very limited number, they didn't have the single bubble roof.

There are some oddities in the LHD TVR world, including small-capacity V8's for the Italian market...

[Gecko1978]

Love the look of this an years ago used to see a bright metallic green one in canary wharf alot. But for me its always the uncertainy re the performance. How quick are they truly whats the top end and will they break if you drive to the ring an back. Like the cerbera 4.5 I could never find accurate performance data so if I wanted a car like this and had 100k otd going to end up in a 911 or top spec lotus used ferrari etc something I am certain about.

still lovely looking thing and sounded amazing.