Discussion
I’ve not looked at Tamoras for a while but a quick look at the classifieds here and a few other places shows a spread of prices that’s quite wide.I know they’re generally one of the least desirable TVR models but I do have a soft spot for them.
Realistically what is a straight, tidy 03/04 car actually worth ?
Realistically what is a straight, tidy 03/04 car actually worth ?
T5GRF said:
I’ve not looked at Tamoras for a while but a quick look at the classifieds here and a few other places shows a spread of prices that’s quite wide.I know they’re generally one of the least desirable TVR models but I do have a soft spot for them.
Realistically what is a straight, tidy 03/04 car actually worth ?
It seems the Tamoras are very desirable now and they are quite rare.Realistically what is a straight, tidy 03/04 car actually worth ?
The asking price very much reflects condition and milage and if offered with or without warranty.
And with Speed6 cars generally, if it has already had proper engine work done.
If still not, or very long ago, it is to be expected that engine work is needed earlier or later and so will set you back at least 10k pounds.
Cans of worms open now.
I had my eye on Tamoras for a long time before finding mine. They only made about 270 of them and I would guess at least 10% of those have been written off. Then subtract those requiring a lot of work and those which have done high enough mileages to put some people off and you don’t have many to choose from.
IMHO the Tamora is probably the most colour sensitive of all the TVRs. I’m not going to say what colours I think look best because it’s a personal choice, but some colours sell very quickly and others hang around a long time.
I had a Griff before my Tamora and you do notice the generational difference. Apart from the looks and the noise the thing I love most about the Tamora is the relative lack of intimidation when driving it. You feel like you can see right down the bonnet whereas the Tuscan and Cerbera feel much longer.
I’m not sure the engine rebuild issue is so much of an issue any more. Yes, you have to consider it when buying a car, but all ICE sports care are going to run into this issue sooner or later. Rebuilding a Porsche flat 6 will cost as much if not more. Same goes for all the complicated stuff the other German manufacturers feel is necessary. And with almost zero depreciation does it really matter?
Ultimately no one will ever build anything like these cars ever again. That’s an easy thing to say but when you really stop and think about it it’s actually massive. Yes, electric is faster, but do you really need faster and if you do does it feel faster and can you use the performance? And then you have to ask yourself “do I care?” I genuinely believe that once the novelty of electric cars wears off there is going to be a stampede for ICE cars. Especially those without all the nannying electronics the EU now says are necessary. Buy one while you can because it won’t be long before they might get out of reach.
IMHO the Tamora is probably the most colour sensitive of all the TVRs. I’m not going to say what colours I think look best because it’s a personal choice, but some colours sell very quickly and others hang around a long time.
I had a Griff before my Tamora and you do notice the generational difference. Apart from the looks and the noise the thing I love most about the Tamora is the relative lack of intimidation when driving it. You feel like you can see right down the bonnet whereas the Tuscan and Cerbera feel much longer.
I’m not sure the engine rebuild issue is so much of an issue any more. Yes, you have to consider it when buying a car, but all ICE sports care are going to run into this issue sooner or later. Rebuilding a Porsche flat 6 will cost as much if not more. Same goes for all the complicated stuff the other German manufacturers feel is necessary. And with almost zero depreciation does it really matter?
Ultimately no one will ever build anything like these cars ever again. That’s an easy thing to say but when you really stop and think about it it’s actually massive. Yes, electric is faster, but do you really need faster and if you do does it feel faster and can you use the performance? And then you have to ask yourself “do I care?” I genuinely believe that once the novelty of electric cars wears off there is going to be a stampede for ICE cars. Especially those without all the nannying electronics the EU now says are necessary. Buy one while you can because it won’t be long before they might get out of reach.
Thanks for the replies. I’ve owned many TVR’s preciously including a Tamora. The Tamora certainly was the nicest of the bunch dynamically and I liked it’s quirky looks too.
Value wise I’ve seen cars around £14-16k that obviously need a little work and others priced at circa £30k that have had work done. It’s rare that an owner recovers much of what’s spent maintaining these cars so I guess I’m wondering what the real value and selling price of a car with a reasonably recent engine rebuild for an example would be ?
Value wise I’ve seen cars around £14-16k that obviously need a little work and others priced at circa £30k that have had work done. It’s rare that an owner recovers much of what’s spent maintaining these cars so I guess I’m wondering what the real value and selling price of a car with a reasonably recent engine rebuild for an example would be ?
I reckon a rebuild probably adds half the cost of the rebuild to the value. It does however make it easier to sell. For a car with no ‘faults’ I reckon you’re looking at between £25k and £35k. The top end of that range will probably have had some kind of rebuild, expensive paint, full leather, aircon, upgraded suspension etc.
I bought mine 5 years ago and in that time I’ve seen one other in the same colour for sale. And I do look. And if I recall correctly that car didn’t have aircon.
You might get lucky and find the right car with the right seller at a very competitive price, but I can honestly say I’ve only seen one car in five years I would have bought and that was the resprayed light metallic blue one owned by someone on this forum. Basically a total renovation done very well. If you see one you like just buy it. You’ll spend potentially years looking for the holy grail and may never find it.
I bought mine 5 years ago and in that time I’ve seen one other in the same colour for sale. And I do look. And if I recall correctly that car didn’t have aircon.
You might get lucky and find the right car with the right seller at a very competitive price, but I can honestly say I’ve only seen one car in five years I would have bought and that was the resprayed light metallic blue one owned by someone on this forum. Basically a total renovation done very well. If you see one you like just buy it. You’ll spend potentially years looking for the holy grail and may never find it.
I sold my modified Tam just over 2 years ago - re-trimmed, re-sprayed, headlight mod, CF airbox, but to name a few of the items, I "lost" about £15k over the nine years, but it was worth it, cracking little car.
Since then I have continuously browsed the ads and have seen maybe 2 or 3 that caught my eye, always disappointed to see the state of the engine bays in the adverts, but that's probably just me, and yes colour definitely makes a difference, both inside and out
Since then I have continuously browsed the ads and have seen maybe 2 or 3 that caught my eye, always disappointed to see the state of the engine bays in the adverts, but that's probably just me, and yes colour definitely makes a difference, both inside and out
T5GRF said:
Cheers for the replies, as I said I’ve owned several TVR’s and personally I have a preference for bright bold colours- yellow especially. Yellow was seemingly a v marmite colour when I last sold a TVR several years ago.
Also check chassis now as cars around 20 years old?Yellow is a marmite colour most cars. People do like yellow, but then the potential 'resale' issue crops up, so 'safer' colours chosen. This can work in a buyers favour though.
T5GRF said:
I’ve not looked at Tamoras for a while but a quick look at the classifieds here and a few other places shows a spread of prices that’s quite wide.I know they’re generally one of the least desirable TVR models but I do have a soft spot for them.
Realistically what is a straight, tidy 03/04 car actually worth ?
I am not too sure why they are seen as the least desirable - that's probably the view of people that have not had one. This is my 3rd TVR and the best I have owned. S3 and a modified Chimaera 500 before that. It is my first speed six based TVR and I love the engine and handling. By all accounts by the time TVR got to the Tamora they had resolved many of the handling issues the early Tuscans had and got things right on the Tamora. It drives like a pussycat when you want to pootle along, but get that engine revving and the noise and power is intoxicating.Realistically what is a straight, tidy 03/04 car actually worth ?
If it helps, I paid just shy of £29k for mine 18 months ago. It's a 3.6 53 plate in Atlantis Halcyon Peal with 39000 miles at that point of purchase. Engine rebuild at Powers at approx 30000 miles, and it had a pretty extensive refresh from James Agger when I got it with new suspension arms, shock, springs, brakes, bushes, clutch, radiator, and a gearbox and diff rebuild, steering rack rebuild, wheels refurbished, sports exhaust, 12K service and lots of other smaller bits including the dash ECU being repaired.
I have had a full geo setup at Centre Gravity, a new roof and partial interior retrim at DC and a front-end respray at Lawfields (previously Surface and Design), new tyres all around and service at Powers.
I did put it up for sale last autumn at just over £30k, which was aligned with others for sale at the time and lower than the insurance valuation as there was a chance to buy another car on my bucket list, but I did not get a single enquiry so took the add down after 4 weeks when I had missed out on the next car. Perhaps the wrong time of year to sell as none of the others seemed to sell at that time either.
As ever they are worth whatever the market dictates at the point you sell. No point trying too hard to speculate what a car might be worth. Sellers always seem to go too high, and buyers too low.
T5GRF said:
I’ve not looked at Tamoras for a while but a quick look at the classifieds here and a few other places shows a spread of prices that’s quite wide.I know they’re generally one of the least desirable TVR models but I do have a soft spot for them.
Realistically what is a straight, tidy 03/04 car actually worth ?
Hi Mark,Realistically what is a straight, tidy 03/04 car actually worth ?
Just seen this thread on the 13th Jan as i bought your old yellow Tamora on the 15th Jan.
VetTVR said:
Hi i am based in Newcastle ....its been up and down the country between the NE and SE....its in fine fettle...i have receipts for 26k since you owned it 
Yes I’ve seen it up for sale a few times. I sold it to a young guy called Joe in 2009/10 iirc. I think Castle sold it a short while ago locally to me.A lovely car, now on its second engine rebuild it would seem. I’m quite glad to have dodged the £26k in maintenance however…
Any plans for it other than enjoying it?
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