Cheapest way into a TVR?

[Rossco2010]

Has anyone got any good suggestions as to where to pick up a really cheap project?

A good pal of mine is after something he can fix up to use as a fun / track car - he's very handy with a spanner so would consider anything whether a runner or not. Bodywork, hood and interor condition is irrelevant.

We've tried ebay and the classifieds on here, but just wondered if anyone knew of any cars going or maybe any scrap dealers who get write offs that could be brought back?

He'd consider any model.

Any suggestions very welcome.

Cheers

[Chris71]

How cheap are you looking and how prepared is he to do things like chassis welding?

Even with the cheap end of the market you're still likely to find the relative values of the different models is similar. The cheapest way into TVR entry - at least in terms of purchase price - is probably a V6-powered Wedge like a 280i. The next cheapest would be a V6 S-Series (particularly early ones like the S1), closely followed by the V8 wedges. Then comes the V8S, the Chimaera etc. etc.

Be aware that they're all pretty noisy so track day use can be a bit restrictive. There's a race series for 280is and Tasmins, so you might be able to pick one up with a blown engine or something that's already been caged etc.

My personal choice would probably be the latest S-Series you can find for the money. Pretty nimble as TVRs go, very progressive on the limit and quicker than you might expect with the 2.9 Cologne engine. You'd need relatively fresh suspension, brakes etc. to avoid any of them feeling a bit wayward on track, though.

[richtvr]

Nick one!

[Welshbeef]

Surely you need to look at a nice cheap cerbera that's the one you really want.


Then fit a 427 cubic inch under it's hood and blown so it's pushing 750prime horses

[tonys]

My initial thought when i read the thread header was ' as a passenger' .

But when I read the actual post, I would have thought a V6 S was probably a good bet

[Rossco2010]

Chris71 said:

How cheap are you looking and how prepared is he to do things like chassis welding?

Even with the cheap end of the market you're still likely to find the relative values of the different models is similar. The cheapest way into TVR entry - at least in terms of purchase price - is probably a V6-powered Wedge like a 280i. The next cheapest would be a V6 S-Series (particularly early ones like the S1), closely followed by the V8 wedges. Then comes the V8S, the Chimaera etc. etc.

Be aware that they're all pretty noisy so track day use can be a bit restrictive. There's a race series for 280is and Tasmins, so you might be able to pick one up with a blown engine or something that's already been caged etc.

My personal choice would probably be the latest S-Series you can find for the money. Pretty nimble as TVRs go, very progressive on the limit and quicker than you might expect with the 2.9 Cologne engine. You'd need relatively fresh suspension, brakes etc. to avoid any of them feeling a bit wayward on track, though.

Thanks for this sensible suggestion - any ideas where the blown raced cars can be found, I'm assuming this is a good place to start?

As for the other suggestions, nothing that hasn't already been considered!!

Cheers gents.

[Welshbeef]

Rossco2010 said:

Thanks for this sensible suggestion - any ideas where the blown raced cars can be found, I'm assuming this is a good place to start?

As for the other suggestions, nothing that hasn't already been considered!!

Cheers gents.

You want to buy a tar with blown engine?
Surely if that's the case why not just go to eBay and pick up the cheapest tvr of the model you want. Then fix the engine yourself.
I'm guessing your after a wreck to riches sort of project. Should be fun

[joncon]

might be worth contacting one of the dealers like james agger, as they sometimes are offered older cars , race cars or cars that need more work than they are willing to take on.
i think james agger had a wedge in a couple of monhs ago that was under 3k , a 350 v8.
only an idea

[Chris71]

joncon said:

might be worth contacting one of the dealers like james agger, as they sometimes are offered older cars , race cars or cars that need more work than they are willing to take on.

Good call.

If you're interested in an ex-racer there are also several website specifically catering for competition cars. Might be worth trying the cheaper end of sites like:

http://www.racecarsdirect.com/categories/34.html
http://www.motorsportads.com/race-cars/gt-sports-c...

Also try a search for 'TVR Tasmin racecars' or something similar.