Options.. options.. options...

[andycohen]

I am about to give the specs on my Tuscan order but I am really struggling with what to choose. When I first made the decision to buy the car I decided that aircon was a must due to all the stories I''d heard about the heat-soak from the engine leaving the cockpit uncomfortable when travelling at low speeds in the summer heat. But now I have heard people saying that the air-con on the Tuscan is a waste of time and doesn''t provide sufficient cooling to make it worthwhile? Is this true? I''m pretty certain I want to go for the full-leather interior... and I definately want the 18" wheels. But then comes... ...the question of the Red Rose package! I don''t want to spend more than about 5k on optional extras, so I can either have aircon and leather OR the RR pack. Question is - is it worth it? I don''t really know what the specifics are. Another 20bhp, bigger brakes and stiffer suspension. Is that it? Is it that noticeable from a standard Speed Six and worth 4000quid? Has anyone driven both and noticed the differences (i''ve driven a standard SS but only been a passenger in an RR and I didn''t really notice any difference). Can anyone help me make my option decisions! -andy-

[fish]

I've driven the RR and standard Tuscans both with 16" and 18". I now own a std with 16" and no aircon. The aircon is probebly worth while as the heat soak is quite bad. I drive it as an everyday car and survive though. You now can't get the 'RR' package as I understand. But the standard car now has improved suspension and bigger brakes in line with an RR package. A purposely did not have 18" wheels even though to me it was a no cost option. I found the tramlining on country roads too overbearing and the 16" are better on poorly maintained everyday road use. Having now done a few thousand on the 16" r=they definately feel better and gives more confidence. Anyhow, loads of other things to say. If you want to e-mail me your phone number I'll happily give you a bell and talk through all my experiances if it will help.

[deanb]

I think the Tuscan now comes in "normal" and "S" guises, where the S is essentially an updated RR with all the options ticked. The normal (I believe) is now a 3.6 rather than a 4.0 Anyway, for what it's worth, I own an RR (Sep 2000) and have also driven a non-RR one with 18-inch wheels quite extensively (dealer demo I borrowed for a couple of weekends while mine was back at the factory for a while) Handling differences were difficult to tell as my RR was in need of some tweaking at the next service. Brakes on the RR are noticeably better, even on the road (i.e. not just track days) The RR is also considerably punchier at the top-end (felt like more than 20bhp difference) although the non-RR seemed to have a little better low-end torque On the other hand, the differences between individual TVRs are usually great enough to account for these differences. I drove 7 (very different) used Griffs back-to-back a few years ago before buying one. The variation was astonishing.

[andycohen]

For the record, I managed to get my order in at just the last minute to secure a 4.0 at the "old" base cost. So I will get the 360bhp 4.0l and still have the option of an RR package etc. What about the aircon. I'm sure it would be worthwhile because of the heat-soak, but I'm sure I remember some posts somewhere about it not being up to the job. If its not going to make much of a difference, I'll save me money and spend it on petrol instead Anyone else able to supply specifics on the RR package? What I'm most after is whether its worth the money. I don't have an endless budget, and if it doesn't really add £4000 worth of performance, then I won't bother. I get the feeling that I'm probably better of saving my money, right? -andy-

[johnwilk]

Andy, I have just taken delivery of my Tuscan 4.0. I recommend the aircon (it does work) as the cabin can get too hot otherwise. Gear stick heat problem does seem to have been cured - mine is perfectly cool. The new car is fitted with revised suspension pick up points as standard to cope with the 18" wheels (as for red rose). It runs very well - no noticable tramlining and is very comfortable when compared with my previous Chimaera. I didn't bother with the red rose pack as it didn't seem to be very good value for just the engine upgrade.

[sixspeed]

Wonderful. This is what I hoped, since I hate to have a car that "could be better". If the standard car is now able to deal with the bigger wheels better, and in all honesty, I found the standard brakes fine when I test drove one, then I'm happy to keep that 4k in my pocket thanks! Sooo.. Full leather... worth it? -andy-

[bertie]

I've just been through the same process and I decided on air con, 18" wheels, CD and gas discharge headlamps, lamonta trim but not full leather. When you look at the full leather next to a standard one, not easy as there aren't many full leathers around, the differance is minimal IMHO. The dealer also pointed out that it would make no differance on resale and advised I saved my money.

[andyvdg]

I think the only reason you would want full leather, is if you wanted a special interior colour that the half-hide does not come in (you can't dye the non-leather bits).

[Horse]

Its worth paying a few extra quid to get the dash top and transmission tunnel cover done in leather. It has a much better quality look and feel. Smooth to the touch and very stylish.

[MrFiddler]

I know it's a very subjective thing but I got full leather on my Tuscan and on my previous Chimaera. I don't want to spend 45-50K on a car and be surrounded by PVC. It beats me why anyone buys a TVR without full hide but I seem to be in the minority there. Aircon I find to be fine in the Tuscan - the airvents pointing straight at your face provide sufficient cooling to make it comfortable in all heats. Edited by MrFiddler on Friday 7th September 07:20