TVR Cerbera
20 July 2006, 10:07 AM
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TVR Cerbera
I have just sold a TVR Cerbera 4.5. after owning it for one month.
what a piece of **** !!! goes like stink and looks great but falls to bits and is really uncomfortable to drive. Handles like a flymo too !!!
Am I glad to see the back of that !
One question is ... how does such a pile disgusting british engineering hold it's value so well ?
what a piece of **** !!! goes like stink and looks great but falls to bits and is really uncomfortable to drive. Handles like a flymo too !!!
Am I glad to see the back of that !
One question is ... how does such a pile disgusting british engineering hold it's value so well ?
20 July 2006, 11:54 AM
#6
Glad to know that! I heard the where unreliable, but are they really that bad, Was going to buy a 98-99 Cerbera a few years ago, but was put off as I might have to have used the car on a regular basis, and the TVR not being all that realiable I decided to get something else!
20 July 2006, 12:15 PM
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I think as with any low volume car it depends what you are expecting.
If you pay £12-£14K for one (not sure what they go for now) you have payed no more than for a caterham / westy / another summer fun car. You wouldn't expect to drive the caterfield everyday without issue so why expect the same from the TVR?
If you stretch yourself to by a £50K supercar for £12K hoping to drive it every day you are looking for trouble. If you want a 8 second to 100mph car which is capable of 180mph and are going to use it on high days and holidays then TVR's are worth a look IMHO
I loved my TVR, had it nearly 7 years and around 20K miles. Had no bigger issues than a radiator, exhaust and a couple of other quirky problems.
The thing is people tend to buy these cars, stretching themselves to the limit and it ends in tears when the first big bill comes in.
Go in with your eyes wide open I say ......
Gary
If you pay £12-£14K for one (not sure what they go for now) you have payed no more than for a caterham / westy / another summer fun car. You wouldn't expect to drive the caterfield everyday without issue so why expect the same from the TVR?
If you stretch yourself to by a £50K supercar for £12K hoping to drive it every day you are looking for trouble. If you want a 8 second to 100mph car which is capable of 180mph and are going to use it on high days and holidays then TVR's are worth a look IMHO
I loved my TVR, had it nearly 7 years and around 20K miles. Had no bigger issues than a radiator, exhaust and a couple of other quirky problems.
The thing is people tend to buy these cars, stretching themselves to the limit and it ends in tears when the first big bill comes in.
Go in with your eyes wide open I say ......
Gary
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20 July 2006, 12:18 PM
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A mate of mine always wanted a cerbera so he finally bought one. He paid a tvr specialist to check it out and give him a full report on it and valuation. A couple of issues to deal with but otherwise ok and he got the price to reflect this so he bought it. T reg with 18000 miles on the clock. Had it serviced straight away and the minor bits sorted.
Within a couple of weeks it had to be looked at and needed new throttle potentiometers. Not long after that something else, then he had problems with the clutch fluid disappearring, then it needed a new clutch, window got stuck open, boot wouldn't lock, the list goes on. He had to wait weeks for the clutch because TVR were out of stock of clutches !! It spent more time in the garage than on the road, luckily he kept his old car. He spent thousands on the car and only done a couple of thousand miles in it and one track day. Sold it at a 4k loss. The guy who bought it got it checked out by the same specialist, and then he spotted it for sale a couple of months later. I think it was made on a wet Friday afternoon in Blackpool and called Christine !!
He is still a fan of TVRs but won't have another cerbera, apparently some of the other models don't seem to be as problematic. His old car is japanese, done a million miles and won't die.
Within a couple of weeks it had to be looked at and needed new throttle potentiometers. Not long after that something else, then he had problems with the clutch fluid disappearring, then it needed a new clutch, window got stuck open, boot wouldn't lock, the list goes on. He had to wait weeks for the clutch because TVR were out of stock of clutches !! It spent more time in the garage than on the road, luckily he kept his old car. He spent thousands on the car and only done a couple of thousand miles in it and one track day. Sold it at a 4k loss. The guy who bought it got it checked out by the same specialist, and then he spotted it for sale a couple of months later. I think it was made on a wet Friday afternoon in Blackpool and called Christine !!
He is still a fan of TVRs but won't have another cerbera, apparently some of the other models don't seem to be as problematic. His old car is japanese, done a million miles and won't die.
20 July 2006, 12:25 PM
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The thing is its a genuine supercar for very very little money. What other car of that ilk can do 100mph in 8 seconds and be had for £12K? It can mean disaster when people buy them that cheap and expect the earth for no money.......
I'd like to see a derestricted M3 that was that quick
I'd like to see a derestricted M3 that was that quick
20 July 2006, 12:28 PM
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Originally Posted by Gutmann pug
The thing is its a genuine supercar for very very little money. What other car of that ilk can do 100mph in 8 seconds and be had for £12K? It can mean disaster when people buy them that cheap and expect the earth for no money.......
I'd like to see a derestricted M3 that was that quick
I'd like to see a derestricted M3 that was that quick
its about 60k new so it's not that cheap
20 July 2006, 12:31 PM
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Originally Posted by Drboobfondler
its about 60k new so it's not that cheap
20 July 2006, 01:06 PM
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Cerbera is an extremenly fast car. I've driven one and can confirm it'll blow most stuff away in a 0-100 dash. For the money nothing will beat it for out and out accelaration (as stock 
)
But, it was a shed. Engine sounded like a can of nuts and bolts being shook, pants exhaust note (bring back a dual plane crank v8
). And generally was falling to bits. The owner kept for about 12months. His previous car was a Chimera which although was a shed too, was a bit cheaper and easier to live with the mechanical failures.
)But, it was a shed. Engine sounded like a can of nuts and bolts being shook, pants exhaust note (bring back a dual plane crank v8
). And generally was falling to bits. The owner kept for about 12months. His previous car was a Chimera which although was a shed too, was a bit cheaper and easier to live with the mechanical failures.
20 July 2006, 01:10 PM
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Originally Posted by chrispurvis100
I de-restricted m3 could cover those bases and be reliable.
martin
20 July 2006, 01:25 PM
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as said you have to look along way to get that kind of supercar performance for £12K. Its probably also the reason so many of them are dogs now. People buy them on a 'just about afford it budget' and then dont maintain them properly.
20 July 2006, 01:32 PM
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there are defo some very good/bad cars out there... research is defo the way forward.. my tuscan was one of the bad cars.. BUT have just seen a VERY good one... 2001 car with an 06 engine recently fitted... 
tempted to say the least....
tempted to say the least....
20 July 2006, 01:50 PM
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Originally Posted by Gutmann pug
The thing is its a genuine supercar for very very little money. What other car of that ilk can do 100mph in 8 seconds and be had for £12K? It can mean disaster when people buy them that cheap and expect the earth for no money.......
I'd like to see a derestricted M3 that was that quick
I'd like to see a derestricted M3 that was that quick
20 July 2006, 02:08 PM
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Originally Posted by Gutmann pug
as said you have to look along way to get that kind of supercar performance for £12K. Its probably also the reason so many of them are dogs now. People buy them on a 'just about afford it budget' and then dont maintain them properly.
It's on the tip of my tongue!
Ns04
20 July 2006, 03:17 PM
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An ex client of mine has a TVR Tuscan S, its his fifth TVR and he swears by them. Had some miner issues but nothing serious, he often drives to and from France regularly without any problems at all, his daily drive is a Civic Type R which he says is more fun than the TVR.
TVR's look the bollocks and sound fantastic and I've always wanted one but I've always been put off by their reputation for reliability, its a nothing short of a joke and they depreciate like a car off a cliff. However that may change now that they are offering 3 years warranty.
TVR's look the bollocks and sound fantastic and I've always wanted one but I've always been put off by their reputation for reliability, its a nothing short of a joke and they depreciate like a car off a cliff. However that may change now that they are offering 3 years warranty.
20 July 2006, 06:40 PM
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I had the pleasure of a spin in a mates 4.2 Cerbera a while ago and the accleration was pretty brutal. We encountered a scoob wagon and had a quick blat and flew past it like a big bike would - the difference between a 'quick' car and a FAST one! The Cerb also had a race exhaust which crackled, popped and spat like a goodun.
The car had coverd approx 40K miles IIRC and had no major problems. It was only sold a couple of weeks ago (for a tidy profit) as my mate was too scared to bend it on a track day.
The car had coverd approx 40K miles IIRC and had no major problems. It was only sold a couple of weeks ago (for a tidy profit) as my mate was too scared to bend it on a track day.
20 July 2006, 08:07 PM
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TVR owners should be eccentric english well off 'gentleman' - who else would put up this sort of wedge for this sort of build quality ...
- ive only sat in one and could tell it was going to fall apart - before i got out of it possibly :eeeK:
anybody else with 50k cash is going to plump for a porsche for only 30k more.!!
- ive only sat in one and could tell it was going to fall apart - before i got out of it possibly :eeeK:anybody else with 50k cash is going to plump for a porsche for only 30k more.!!
20 July 2006, 10:23 PM
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Well I haven't had any *major* problems with mine, which I've been running since November 2003. I keep thinking of getting rid of it, but I can't think what to get that's got similar performance and is still sensible money. Porsche 996 turbo would be OK, as would a Gallardo, but they're all a bit more than the £19.5k I paid.
I think servicing and maintenance is on a par with any seriously fast car. The actual servicing costs are far cheaper than for a Ferrari or Porsche, but when you get to the annual service invariably some bit has broken or worn out which pushes the cost up. OTOH, Porsches cost a fair bit to service even if nothing needs replacing.
I think mine's currently costing around £250/month, excluding depreciation but including fuel and upgrades. Of course if the engine goes bang or the chassis goes rusty then you're looking at big money, but that's the risk you take with any sort of exotica.
There are some on Pistonheads with over 100k miles on the clock on the original engine, so don't believe all the horror stories.
I think servicing and maintenance is on a par with any seriously fast car. The actual servicing costs are far cheaper than for a Ferrari or Porsche, but when you get to the annual service invariably some bit has broken or worn out which pushes the cost up. OTOH, Porsches cost a fair bit to service even if nothing needs replacing.
I think mine's currently costing around £250/month, excluding depreciation but including fuel and upgrades. Of course if the engine goes bang or the chassis goes rusty then you're looking at big money, but that's the risk you take with any sort of exotica.
There are some on Pistonheads with over 100k miles on the clock on the original engine, so don't believe all the horror stories.
20 July 2006, 10:40 PM
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Ive been in a Cerbera 4.5 and not only was it the fastest car Ive ever been in, but sounded fantastic - cant believe someone mentioned that they sounded rubbish?!!
Reliability is never going to be Audi-like from a low-volume manufacturer running quite highly tunned engines (Cerbera/Tuscan engines) but they arent as bad as some people make out.
I know of 3 people who have owned 4.5litre Chimaera's for years, and none have had any major issues. They look great, sound great and go great - and feel a lot more 'special' than a mass produced sports car like a Porsche.
Reliability is never going to be Audi-like from a low-volume manufacturer running quite highly tunned engines (Cerbera/Tuscan engines) but they arent as bad as some people make out.
I know of 3 people who have owned 4.5litre Chimaera's for years, and none have had any major issues. They look great, sound great and go great - and feel a lot more 'special' than a mass produced sports car like a Porsche.
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