Tractor

Anyone ever driven one, owned one, been in one?

Are they as unreliable as all TVRs? Are they a nightmare to drive and own?

Vry interested in your opinions as I really want that V8 noise!!

Mike

ScoobySnack

Hi Mike,

Owned 3 in the past finishing with a Chimaera 4.0. Drove 48K miles in that one and was totally reliable.

Saying that maintanance is what hurts. The offical garage charges are huge, 6K service was £500 and 42K services was £1400. Cheaper if you use an independant. All parts wear very quickly if the car is used to anywhere near its potential.

The car was easy to drive in the dry , anything with 300 lb/ft torque would be. Suspension was ok, but brakes needed upgrading. In the wet rear wheel driver and no ABS mean some fun times.

Slow in , fast out





J

Tractor

Thanks SS. So you owned two V8Ss did you? How did they compare to the Chimaera?

Thanks Mike

ScoobySnack

Mike,

Your right I didn't make my email very clear...... I thought you meant V8 engined TVRs not the V8s. My mistake.

However I owned an S3 then V8s then Chimaera 4.0. The V8s was a lovely car, however did suffer from the old S3 problems of scuttle shake, bad brakes, leaks etc....... Handling was also to be put kindly traditional.

I am not having a go at the V8s, I just feel that the more modern Chimaera was more suited to my needs and that its build quality was better. I also beleive that the differnece between V8's and Chimera pricing has closed in the last few years.

V8s does have a great sound, unstrangled (uncatted) roar power, the best sounding one I've had.

I have to agree though, a V8 engine is the way to go

Have you tried

http://www.pistonheads.com/tvr/s/def...p?storyId=4341


J

Tractor

Thanks again J. Yup, been checking out Pistonheads. Always happens this time of year when I fancy a drop top....

Squizz

If you want that V8, soft-top thrill on the cheap, you could always get a decent TR7V8 conversion.

For less than £5K you could end up with a tuned 4 litre car, that'd go/handle/stop just as well as a more expensive TVR.

I had a fixed head that out-handled and out-powered TVR's on the Goodwood circuit.




Squizz.