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So you want to buy a TVR? This FAQ is based on some of the replies from the email group at www.egroup.com: Contributers include: Richard Deakin, Den Lyon, James Hall, Dave Edmonston, Richard Branch, Bob Pockney - Thanks Guys! There is also a buying checklist to compliment this FAQ. Click here. Will it be expensive to insure? So the first thing to do is be clear on your budget. Insurance can be quite steep depending on where you live and age, convictions etc. TVR insurance has gone up this year (2000) so be prepared for some shopping around! Where can I get detailed information? There is plenty on this website already, but the best recommendation is to get the appropriate Steve Heath bible. As Richard said "...buy Steve Heaths TVR Bible "The TVR Griffith and Chimaera" http://www.tvrbooks.co.uk. This is £ 30 odd quid well spent for a history of the car and useful details on engine histories and mods over the years." There are three books that cover the Wedges, the S series and the Griffith/Chimaera models. Sample chapters which cover the chassis, batteries and the ignition system are on this site. FAQs on unleaded fuel, tyres and noise regulations are also available here. The factory keep records of the cars and can provide additional information providing you have the chassis number and other details. What is the situation with unleaded fuel? Generally not a problem but it depends on the car and model. Go to the Unleaded FAQ for more information. Is it worth test driving a lot of cars? Yes! Drive as many TVRs as you can before you buy. Every car is different, depending on how it's been run in / looked after etc. Cars that are low mileage and rarely used can be problematic, cars that are used every day may be higher mileage, but will normally be better run in, and will have had the major niggles sorted by their existing owners. Should I buy privately or from a dealer? If you buy from a dealer you'll pay "top dollar" but get a warranty and knowledge that you can go back and harrass them if anything goes wrong. If you decide you want to buy privately, ask to take the car to the nearest TVR dealer / specialist for an inspection. For £ 50 +VAT (approx) they'll stick it on the ramp and have a good prod around. They know what to look for and will give you a good idea of any likely faults looming. Any decent seller will be more than happy to let you do this (at your expense). In any case get an HPI check to find out if the car has been written off or is still subject to finance payments. They can be contacted on 01772 422 422. Where can I find cars for sale? Check out http://www.pistonheads.com for the For Sale section. Will give you a good idea of market values and specs. Also join the TVR Car Club (www.tvrcc.com) if you haven't already. Their magazine "Sprint" has a large marketplace section and is always full of well cared for cars. How reliable will it be? Don't expect the car to be 100% perfect. You're not buying a mass production, robot built German "sports" car. You are buying a bit of British motoring history. It's built in Blackpool out of hand crafted heavily modified Rover V8 or TVR's own AJP engines and glass fibre. Bits will fall off, trim will become loose, the roof might not fit perfectly. But the grin and performance makes you forget all about that. A lot of owners use their car on a regular basis. I have had 7 TVRs and had more problems with a Volvo 850 than I have had with any of the S series, Griff and Cerberas That I have had. See the owner's comments at the end of this FAQ for more viewpoints. How fast is it? The performance of these cars is simply staggering! Don't be fooled into thinking that the 4.0 litre car is a softer option - it is still extremely fast! The 4.0l produces 240bhp and will do 0-60 in a smidge under 5secs. Acceleration in any gear is fantastic, compared to 95% of other cars on the road. In a 4.0l you think you're king of the road - until you join a convoy of Cerberas, Griffs and 5l Chimps. You suddenly feel like you're going backwards. So see if your budget will stretch to a 4.5 or a 5.0l. If it will (and you have the experience and restraint to handle it), you won't regret it. Will I need to improve my driving skills? If you haven't driven such a powerful car before, get some training. Driving Development and HPC both run high performance driving course and show you how to control a cars whose back wheels have decided to try and over take the front. Scarey the first time it happens, but once you can control it, great fun. Again http://www.pistonheads.com have the details. What about track days These are a great way to see what you will be getting yourself into. Many offer the opportunity to get some tuition with an instructor as well. There is a trackday calendar on http://www.pistonheads.com which details nearly all the track days that are going on in the country. The TVR Car Club organise them as well. Anything else? Beware of TVR-tinted glasses - don't rush into anything. Take your time, get any vehicle checked, check service histories, get the VIN number and phone the factory - they can tell you if the cars history (including major repairs, accident damage). Owner's comments "There are plenty of people who use their cars on a daily basis, with only minor problems infrequently. However, you do have to be prepared for it to let you down from time to time with minor things, If you are planning to use it every day, and are only covering 8000 a year, it would suggest lots of small journeys. This is not good for the car, unless you are prepared to give it a good long run at every oportunity (beleive me you'll want to ) go for it, but go for it with eyes wide open. " Den Lyon "I was one of those people that was using a Chimaera as an everyday car for nearly 3 years, then 6 months ago I saw the light and got hold of a cheap 2nd car to run about in, since then I have been a lot happier? Why? Well I think I was unlucky to have as many problems as I did (mostly with my brand new 2nd Chimaera), but even though I appreciated that the car was hand made, the minor niggles would get very annoying very quickly when you had them with you every mile of every day. My love of the marque had all but disappeared by August last year. Running everyday means more of everything, more miles, more fuel, more insurance, more heartache?. What about those frozen winter mornings when you know that rear wheel drive and large tyres are going to be a deadly combination? Or you have to leave the car somewhere you'd rather not. The thing was, I did stop using the Tiv as much as I had used my last cars, I compromised, where I would have driven before, I hired a car or took a taxi. I even hated parking the TVR in Sainsbury's, because you just knew that no matter where you park there would be cars all around it when you got back (they'll nick his, not mine attitude). Then at work, no one seemed to care that you didn't have bump strips on your doors. The singularly most important point for me was though that I stopped appreciating it. A sunny Sunday didn't make me want to go and jump in the car for a blast, icy mornings would make be groan and having to park in the supermarket or at the station would make me cringe. Now though I have 2 cars, the 2nd car is an old old BMW, but it runs, it's cheap. Now I love my Tiv again, all though it will never be perfect, but because I don't use it everyday these imperfections don't bother me anymore and the grin factor is most definitely back to stay." Neil Vince "Can't add much advice to that already given i.e. get Steve Heath's book on the S Series. There are also a couple of other TVR books which are particularly good; TVR The Complete Story by John Tipler £19.95 and Muscles and Curves by Iain Ayre. The S changed quite a lot over it's production period, both interior and exterior changed e.g. early curved dash vs. wooden dash, electric windows etc. and air scoop vs. smooth bonnets and driving lights. Personally I prefer the later style S3c/S4 but then I guess the V8S is the ultimate S - depends how much you want to pay? Join the TVRCC for the monthly magazine, get along to a few meetings to chart to fellow owners. You will also almost certainly save money by joining the club. The TVRCC has a recommended insurer, but also there are about 5 or 6 other insurance brokers who all advertise in "Sprint" the club magazine and between those yo0u will get the best quote for your circumstances. My first TVR was an S3c and I can thoroughly recommend them (just checked and it's still pictured on the TVRCC web site gallery). I ran mine for about 3 1/2 years and in that time it had a new steering rack at 35,000 and a clutch at around 45,000 it also needed replacement steering joints - I guess they are heavy on the steering, or perhaps the Sierra stuff isn't quite up to it?" Richard Branch " It all comes down to luck, and the amount of care and attention you give to the car. A good starting point (especially for your budget) would be a 4 litre Chimaera. There are plenty around second hand, they're about as reliable as you're going to get, and they're pretty well sorted. The general rule is to buy the newest you can afford. Don't go for a car that's been stored in a garage for most of its life, they don't like it and they tend to be the ones with problems. Get a car with a reasonable number of miles on it and a full TVR service history and you shouldn't go too far wrong." James Hall " I started off by joining this list, the TVRCC and buying the Steve Heath bible on the Chimaera and Griffith. My feeling is that you need to take your time to find a good 'un and make sure a potential purchase is independently checked. Given that the cars are very high performance and hand built, I don't think you can expect years and years of trouble free motoring. However, I suspect that many problems can be anticipated and dealt with before they get critical. I've found that a query about a potential problem or other foible gets answered within a few hours on this list ! To be realistic, I don't think any car can be 100% relied on. A week or so ago, someone on the list reported failure of his Merc to start one morning." Bob Pockney | |||||||||||||||
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