Buying A Cat D?
Discussion
Quite a few of use own them Like me have not looked back in 2 years fine as long as it is repaired correctly
We link here should answer your questions
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
We link here should answer your questions
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
I've owned a Cat D TVR. I bought it inspite of the write-off partly for these reasons reasons:
1) It's got a seperate chassis so cosmetic damage is likely to simply be cosmetic damage
2) It'd had a full laser chassis and geometry check
3) I had lots of photos of the car with the damage and during the repair to confirm the cause of the write off and the work that had been done
4) I managed to track down the guy who did the work and talk it through
5) It had two full engineer's inspections - one after the work was done and a second before the guy before me bought it
But mostly because it was by far the cleanest S3 I'd seen and drove as well as any of them. Most smart 1991 TVRs have been rebuilt by now. The fact that this was prompted by a minor shunt not the usual rusty outriggers was neither here nor there, the outcome was the same. In fact I'd probably feel happier with a Cat D TVR that has a certificate to show that everything's pointing in the right direction than a factory fresh one that left the production line on a Friday afternoon!
I wouldn't personally be brave enough to touch a Cat C (which IIRC means there was structural damage rather than purely cosmetic). I also wouldn't bother if it was something ordinary and every day - it would have to be a special car (i.e a TVR) to bother taking on the slight stigma and possible resale issues of a receovered write-off. In my case, though, it was. It was priced accordingly and by far the smartest S I'd seen out of five or six examples I seriously considered. I always assumed that selling it would be a problem, but I made its history very clear on the ad and in the end it went to the first caller who phoned up - 2 hours after the advert went live. The following morning he came round and paid me what I'd bought it for. Can't say better than that.
1) It's got a seperate chassis so cosmetic damage is likely to simply be cosmetic damage
2) It'd had a full laser chassis and geometry check
3) I had lots of photos of the car with the damage and during the repair to confirm the cause of the write off and the work that had been done
4) I managed to track down the guy who did the work and talk it through
5) It had two full engineer's inspections - one after the work was done and a second before the guy before me bought it
But mostly because it was by far the cleanest S3 I'd seen and drove as well as any of them. Most smart 1991 TVRs have been rebuilt by now. The fact that this was prompted by a minor shunt not the usual rusty outriggers was neither here nor there, the outcome was the same. In fact I'd probably feel happier with a Cat D TVR that has a certificate to show that everything's pointing in the right direction than a factory fresh one that left the production line on a Friday afternoon!
I wouldn't personally be brave enough to touch a Cat C (which IIRC means there was structural damage rather than purely cosmetic). I also wouldn't bother if it was something ordinary and every day - it would have to be a special car (i.e a TVR) to bother taking on the slight stigma and possible resale issues of a receovered write-off. In my case, though, it was. It was priced accordingly and by far the smartest S I'd seen out of five or six examples I seriously considered. I always assumed that selling it would be a problem, but I made its history very clear on the ad and in the end it went to the first caller who phoned up - 2 hours after the advert went live. The following morning he came round and paid me what I'd bought it for. Can't say better than that.
Edited by Chris71 on Tuesday 16th February 10:38
Gassing Station | General TVR Stuff & Gossip | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff