Two bad stories in one!
Discussion
Hi guys, introduced myself in the Chimaera forum. Fancied a rant with like minded individuals!
Story 1: No Wonder TVR are Struggling
So the missus rings me yesterday to tell me a work colleague went to a TVR dealership on the weekend (will remain nameless) to buy a second-hand Tuscan/Griff. The salesman's pitch was to show her 15 cars and point out all the things that were wrong with them! "You can only use it as a 3rd car and even then it probably won't start after a week sat in the garage" was one quote. He didnt even start the engine for them or offer a test drive (surely the selling points!).
They came away very disappointed as did other couples from that particular dealership. Moral of the story: WTF is a guy like that working at a TVR dealership for?! Crap/unenthusiastic salesmen = low sales = slump = unemployment for many.
Story 2: The Fallout
My dream car is a Chimaera 450. I am obsessed with TVR's. Can't get enough of them. So you can understand my disdain when said friend above rants the above to my missus, who then promptly comes home and enforces an embargo on all TVR purchases FOREVER! You are not spending £20k on a car that will fall to bits taking your wallet with it....blah, ,blah....always in the garage....blah, blah....probably kill you when the clutch explodes at high speed....blah, blah....go and buy a model one!
Help!!!!! Somebody take the stigma out of it all. Its not like I can sneak one into the garage....
Story 1: No Wonder TVR are Struggling
So the missus rings me yesterday to tell me a work colleague went to a TVR dealership on the weekend (will remain nameless) to buy a second-hand Tuscan/Griff. The salesman's pitch was to show her 15 cars and point out all the things that were wrong with them! "You can only use it as a 3rd car and even then it probably won't start after a week sat in the garage" was one quote. He didnt even start the engine for them or offer a test drive (surely the selling points!).
They came away very disappointed as did other couples from that particular dealership. Moral of the story: WTF is a guy like that working at a TVR dealership for?! Crap/unenthusiastic salesmen = low sales = slump = unemployment for many.
Story 2: The Fallout
My dream car is a Chimaera 450. I am obsessed with TVR's. Can't get enough of them. So you can understand my disdain when said friend above rants the above to my missus, who then promptly comes home and enforces an embargo on all TVR purchases FOREVER! You are not spending £20k on a car that will fall to bits taking your wallet with it....blah, ,blah....always in the garage....blah, blah....probably kill you when the clutch explodes at high speed....blah, blah....go and buy a model one!
Help!!!!! Somebody take the stigma out of it all. Its not like I can sneak one into the garage....
Go to your local TVRCC or PH meets & talk to people who actually own & run these wonderful cars - you will find a totally different side to the story that will put the wifes mind at ease.
We've all been there, I was so concerned I was making the biggest mistake of my life when I bought my Griffith, its been fantastic & still makes me smile just looking at the thing
Good luck
Nick
We've all been there, I was so concerned I was making the biggest mistake of my life when I bought my Griffith, its been fantastic & still makes me smile just looking at the thing
Good luck
Nick
As Nick says 
I think its fair to say that TVR management sucked, and they seemed to promote the crappest dealers with the worst attitudes, and treat the best, who bent over backwards to help, with utter contempt! We, at the moment in the UK seem to be living in a country which promoted an inverted way of doing things!
I think its fair to say that TVR management sucked, and they seemed to promote the crappest dealers with the worst attitudes, and treat the best, who bent over backwards to help, with utter contempt! We, at the moment in the UK seem to be living in a country which promoted an inverted way of doing things!
Cheers for the support! Problem is she thinks everyone knows better than I do. "How can you explain 15 cars all with something wrong with them?" she said! She would prefer a Porker Boxter thing. Rubbish.
It's funny though because she was not like that when I took her out in the Tuscan she arranged for me to drive. She threw her bloody arms in the air and whooped. Am doing it again this summer, so maybe she will be brought around.
It's funny though because she was not like that when I took her out in the Tuscan she arranged for me to drive. She threw her bloody arms in the air and whooped. Am doing it again this summer, so maybe she will be brought around.
If you earn the money and the family aren't short of anything important (you decide what that construes), then why shouldn't you spend your money on what you want? Does she have no respect for you or your wishes?
An older Chimaera/Griffith won't be too much of a liability and is relatively easy to maintain. Cheap as a secondhand Mondeo these days too.
Start wearing the trousers!
An older Chimaera/Griffith won't be too much of a liability and is relatively easy to maintain. Cheap as a secondhand Mondeo these days too.
Start wearing the trousers!
You only live once, and as Targ has said before, there may come a time when these beautiful beasts are completely banned from our roads, enjoy while you can, the chances are that you will not regret it.
(Griff or Chim would be perfect for a first time TVR owner, especially as the sun is starting to shine!)
(Griff or Chim would be perfect for a first time TVR owner, especially as the sun is starting to shine!)
I could understand that dealer, and to be honest I would probably be like him if I sold TVR's.
Don't want to be too dismal here but I think one of TVR's problems is that they try to sell a niche market car to a mass market.
Hopefully I, as a car salesman wouldn't want to sell them a car they want, I'd want to sell them a car they'd end up being happy with. I hope that doesn't sound too patronising.
Hopefully, if I was a good salesman, I could spot someone who'd never be happy with a TVR in about the first sixty seconds.
I as a salesman know how many times the buyer would be back in the first month asking for daft stuff like bits of carpet to be stuck back on or rattles to found or knobs to be glued back on.
I think this upsets the dealer about as fast as it takes the shine off having a new car. Neither party would be happy. And I reckon the dealer should be downbeat if he thinks he's selling the car the to wrong person. This doesn't stop the person from buying the car does it?
If I sold my Cerb now I would tell the buyer how much work I've done on it, how much time they'll spend on the floor fixing it, and that my best ever purchase to go with the car was a two post ramp for my garage, and how much they can expect to pay in repairs to run it by using a dealer.
Now if I say that to a potential buyer because I think its the honest thing to do, why should I get upset at a dealer doing it? I recently sold a BMW850, I was very downbeat with two enthusiatic young guys who came to look at the car because after ten seconds I could tell they didn't have a clue and were getting into a world of pain because they were blinded by the look and drive of the car. I rekon I'd have had them back at my doorstep within a week. I raised the price for them and dropped it for the eventual owner because I knew I would never see the car again.
I'd be far more upset if the dealer just had a big smile on his face when I asked which engine it comes with and sold me a car reassuring me it had the staying power of a BMW.
When I first bought my car I put it up on my new ramp and the first thing both I, my father and two other mechanics I had with me said was 'It looks just like a poorly put together kit car', and they were right.
Know this and be prepared for the obvious, and they're about the most fun you can have without getting on a motorcycle
Don't want to be too dismal here but I think one of TVR's problems is that they try to sell a niche market car to a mass market.
Hopefully I, as a car salesman wouldn't want to sell them a car they want, I'd want to sell them a car they'd end up being happy with. I hope that doesn't sound too patronising.
Hopefully, if I was a good salesman, I could spot someone who'd never be happy with a TVR in about the first sixty seconds.
I as a salesman know how many times the buyer would be back in the first month asking for daft stuff like bits of carpet to be stuck back on or rattles to found or knobs to be glued back on.
I think this upsets the dealer about as fast as it takes the shine off having a new car. Neither party would be happy. And I reckon the dealer should be downbeat if he thinks he's selling the car the to wrong person. This doesn't stop the person from buying the car does it?
If I sold my Cerb now I would tell the buyer how much work I've done on it, how much time they'll spend on the floor fixing it, and that my best ever purchase to go with the car was a two post ramp for my garage, and how much they can expect to pay in repairs to run it by using a dealer.
Now if I say that to a potential buyer because I think its the honest thing to do, why should I get upset at a dealer doing it? I recently sold a BMW850, I was very downbeat with two enthusiatic young guys who came to look at the car because after ten seconds I could tell they didn't have a clue and were getting into a world of pain because they were blinded by the look and drive of the car. I rekon I'd have had them back at my doorstep within a week. I raised the price for them and dropped it for the eventual owner because I knew I would never see the car again.
I'd be far more upset if the dealer just had a big smile on his face when I asked which engine it comes with and sold me a car reassuring me it had the staying power of a BMW.
When I first bought my car I put it up on my new ramp and the first thing both I, my father and two other mechanics I had with me said was 'It looks just like a poorly put together kit car', and they were right.
Know this and be prepared for the obvious, and they're about the most fun you can have without getting on a motorcycle
Julian - agreed I guess. The colleague previously owned a Jag XK8 so probably knows something about hig performance cars, but the fact that they were so disappointed with the finish of the Tivs leads me to assume they had not researched much before hand!
Don't worry guys, (she is still a girlfriend) I will not forget the words she said to me a month ago: "put a ring on my left hand and you can have your TVR" - its almost worth it!!!!
I am not currently financially able to buy one at the moment but have nearly qualified as an Accountant (bore) so should be pulling the dough in enough soon. Plus, don't have a garage and insurance would hurt as only 23.
Don't worry guys, (she is still a girlfriend) I will not forget the words she said to me a month ago: "put a ring on my left hand and you can have your TVR" - its almost worth it!!!!
I am not currently financially able to buy one at the moment but have nearly qualified as an Accountant (bore) so should be pulling the dough in enough soon. Plus, don't have a garage and insurance would hurt as only 23.
Legend83 said:
Julian - agreed I guess. The colleague previously owned a Jag XK8 so probably knows something about hig performance cars, but the fact that they were so disappointed with the finish of the Tivs leads me to assume they had not researched much before hand!
Don't worry guys, (she is still a girlfriend) I will not forget the words she said to me a month ago: "put a ring on my left hand and you can have your TVR" - its almost worth it!!!!
I am not currently financially able to buy one at the moment but have nearly qualified as an Accountant (bore) so should be pulling the dough in enough soon. Plus, don't have a garage and insurance would hurt as only 23.
Well, while you are in agreeing mode, can I give you one more piece of advice regarding your girlfriend
RUN LIKE THE WIND, RUN, RUN AND NEVER LOOK BACK.
She doesn't sound like a TVR wife.
Legend83 said:
Cheers for the support! Problem is she thinks everyone knows better than I do. "How can you explain 15 cars all with something wrong with them?" she said! She would prefer a Porker Boxter thing. Rubbish.
It's funny though because she was not like that when I took her out in the Tuscan she arranged for me to drive. She threw her bloody arms in the air and whooped. Am doing it again this summer, so maybe she will be brought around.
Mate.. I've got a Chim 450. Have had her for over a year now. Runs like a dream. No breakdowns. No drama's.
Not too sure what neck of the woods you live but if you need me to add some weight to the argument with your missus let me know.
cheers,
Nick
She was a TVR wife until her bloody mate moaned so much! She is the kind that would turn to me as I pull onto the hard shoulder with smoke billowing out the engine, and say "I told you so". As I said though, I reckon she will come round again when I get to take her out in this chap's Tuscan. Top man who let me drive his Tuscan - his worked perfectly, windows worked, engine was beautiful. He does not molly-coddle it either. Told me he had a £10k engine rebuild recently though!! No thanks!
Interesting, I was at a dealer near me the other weekend that will remain anonymous, I was listneing in to one of the salesmen talking to a guy who was looking at a cerb. I could not believe the c*ap coming out of this guys mouth, no wonder the guy took off sharpish, he didn't even start it cos it had a flat battery. On top of that all of the cars on display there were in what can only be described as poor condition and filty dirty. I was really annoyed that people who should be flying the TVR flag were carying on in this manner...
>> Edited by everitj on Wednesday 26th April 15:53
>> Edited by everitj on Wednesday 26th April 15:54
Probably! Sounds like TVR dealers could do with separating the Gold from the Chaff in terms of salesmen. Though it is obvious that some improvements need to be made to the cars, the pitch role of the salesman must be important to its future. I am not for once suggesting TVR need more dodgier salesmen who would lie through their back teeth for a sale, but people who are enthuiastic about the quirks and issues - people who would point out the reasons TO buy one rather than NOT TO buy one.
P.S. Guys, thanks for all the offers to come and "sort" my missus out! I will deliver that proposition and see what she says!
Where in Hertfordshire are their PH meets? I know there is a TVRCC meet in Harpenden for Beds/Herts owners.
P.S. Guys, thanks for all the offers to come and "sort" my missus out! I will deliver that proposition and see what she says!
Where in Hertfordshire are their PH meets? I know there is a TVRCC meet in Harpenden for Beds/Herts owners.
Ads that's great, sounds like you picked a goodun. I want one, but the thought of owning one still scares me when I see the number of threads asking for help! I have little to know knowledge of the workings of cars (apart from oil and water changing).
Do you use yours as an everydayer? People laugh at me when I claim I would keep my 1.1l fiesta as my main car!
Do you use yours as an everydayer? People laugh at me when I claim I would keep my 1.1l fiesta as my main car!
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