Griff 500 Taraka upgrade
Discussion
I'm seriously considering having a TVR Power engine upgrade on my Griff 500. Has anybody else out there had either the 5.0 litre drive in - drive out upgrade or the Taraka upgrade from TVR Power @ Coventry? What is the BHP increase for either upgrade, what difference does it make to the 'feel' of the engine, is it worth the cost?
Thanks in advance for any information/advice, all are welcome.
Rgds
Thanks in advance for any information/advice, all are welcome.
Rgds
This doesn’t exactly answer your question but, I was trying to make this decision last year, the choices were get something different, get the TVR power upgrade or the Trumpets, Cam, Remap option offered by one of the others. As I understand it the Power option involves an engine out and a good going over top and bottom, which seemed a waste on an apparently sound unit. I went for the top end work over by an n other, which has been a disaster. Primarily because I picked the wrong Tuner. But also because after spending lots on the top end the bottom broke, 6 miles later.
The process started in early Feb and is effectively still going on, has cost much more than the original budget and is still not right. If I was to do it again I would either chose the Power route or, probably an engine from one of the specialist builders, that would provide a definite performance upgrade and have a warranty.
The key thing with this tuning game is really understand what it is you want and explain it clearly, in writing and in my experience expect to spend about twice your budget and not really get what you wanted.
The process started in early Feb and is effectively still going on, has cost much more than the original budget and is still not right. If I was to do it again I would either chose the Power route or, probably an engine from one of the specialist builders, that would provide a definite performance upgrade and have a warranty.
The key thing with this tuning game is really understand what it is you want and explain it clearly, in writing and in my experience expect to spend about twice your budget and not really get what you wanted.
I had the tvr power Drive - in conversion done first roughly 8mnths ago and it was abit of a disappiontment .The TP sports cam does make a difference to the engines ability to rev andmore urgency in the mid to upper range but it does not give a smooth delivery and the tick over and light throttle openings would often cause the engine to shunt.I beleive this was due to the eprom chip they use which is not specific to your cars engine . I then took the car to Austec and had them fit new trumpetts,bosh injectors , bigger throttle body ( not the twin plenum), new AFM withthe smooth bore pipe bosh coil and finnished off with a new chip and rolling road session with Mark Adams.This transformed the car in every way---the power delivery is smooth all the way up to max revs which is now slightly higher than standard and definately sounds meaner . According to the read outthe bhp is now 300 but all I would say is forget the figures and just go off the experience and that now great.YOu can go on with the up grades but I think this will suit most.Therefore speak to the people in Crawley .
Just had my Griff upgraded to the Taraka Plus with the MBE upgrade too. Still running in on a rough map but impressed by the smoothness of the power delivery compared to my Chim and Tuscan expreriences and the Griff prior to the upgrade. Only 3000rpm max as running in but the combination implies so much potential. Will find out in June/July when I have put the 2000 miles on the car to get the rolling road and re-map done. Not a cheap upgrade, however, as the engine had to come out anyway, not so much more. Can I recommend it , No as we have not got to the end of the process, at the end - I believe it will be a definite Yes.
I think I am of a Colin Chapman mould - I prefer the Griff down the local roads to the 991. Long distance (300 miles+) , I will take Piggy (991.2),
I think I will keep the Chim standard but may consider the MBE for the 4.0 GFHC engine to take away the stepper motor and improved delivery.
I think I am of a Colin Chapman mould - I prefer the Griff down the local roads to the 991. Long distance (300 miles+) , I will take Piggy (991.2),
I think I will keep the Chim standard but may consider the MBE for the 4.0 GFHC engine to take away the stepper motor and improved delivery.
Excellent thread revival 
I had an engine rebuild about 10 years ago by Powers and did a number of trackdays ragging the life out of it including my most favourite at RAF Marham with a full length run way. I stuck behind an M5 pearler then overtook at 155mph, I know that because his limiter kicked in
5 years later and 25,000 miles on had the MBE fitted.
Using the usual calculation percentages people associate with road train loss my dyno results show around 295-300 hp and just over 340 ft lb torques on that 25,000 mile engine when coupled up to the new ecu which in itself suggests the new ( Dom spec) 885 which was fitted all those 25,000 miles before was still in good nic.
It’s important to note I have a bog standard inlet side including smaller 38 mm (4.0 litre) trumpets and base other than removal of AFR out the air tract.
The torques and the way it’s mapped is really the beauty of it.
So linear and controllable.
No stepper is a massive bonus
I think and hope you’ll find it will be all you imagined it to be.
Mines been super reliable even after a year in bits during a body off complete chassis restoration. I just re connected it up and it boomed into life on the first turn of the key.
You can over tune these engines and they can break if pushed and then don’t make the best road engines.
I think Doms engines are just about right for giving good power with reliability thrown in.
As my engine was well ran in so to speak I took my car from Doms place with MBE newly fitted and rolling road mapped and headed straight for the south of France a few days after. It returned over 30 mph at regular intervals over that holiday and seemed to be so full of torque I barely used the throttle yet it whipped along.
Roof on for long distances at speeds around 80 mph proved the sweet spot for the engine and best fuel economy overall.
The 5.0 is a beast again so expect less mpg figures but I would say it will make the Chim 4.0 engine positively sing and get the best out of it.
The removal of many troublesome bits and no distributor cap pleases me no end.
If you are lucky enough to have time and resources to use your Tvr with this level of kit on it it’s always worth the investment.
It becomes a realistic option to run it and not expect basic electrical or ecu faults to cause major hassle.
It allows some faith to be put in the car.
The rest of the car is relatively simple so once this major source of niggling failure has been replaced moving on to perfecting/ repairing other bits is more joyous and feels worth it….
We are lucky to have a few Tvr experts who still offer these services and seeing the price of Ferrari water pumps or piston rings at £200 a pop we shouldn’t really complain to much about the price of this kind of excellence.
Sadly even these great Tvr that are indeed built to high standards after many years of good owners and mechanics care are not worth much more than the average version.
You have to want to enjoy using these mods to get the best value and then it seems like a small price to pay for the enjoyment it can bring.
I drive many modern supercars as part of my job and some are fantastic but none are any better when it comes to throttle feel and control since I had MBE
It feels super modern from that point of view.
Very linear
I had an engine rebuild about 10 years ago by Powers and did a number of trackdays ragging the life out of it including my most favourite at RAF Marham with a full length run way. I stuck behind an M5 pearler then overtook at 155mph, I know that because his limiter kicked in
5 years later and 25,000 miles on had the MBE fitted.
Using the usual calculation percentages people associate with road train loss my dyno results show around 295-300 hp and just over 340 ft lb torques on that 25,000 mile engine when coupled up to the new ecu which in itself suggests the new ( Dom spec) 885 which was fitted all those 25,000 miles before was still in good nic.
It’s important to note I have a bog standard inlet side including smaller 38 mm (4.0 litre) trumpets and base other than removal of AFR out the air tract.
The torques and the way it’s mapped is really the beauty of it.
So linear and controllable.
No stepper is a massive bonus
I think and hope you’ll find it will be all you imagined it to be.
Mines been super reliable even after a year in bits during a body off complete chassis restoration. I just re connected it up and it boomed into life on the first turn of the key.
You can over tune these engines and they can break if pushed and then don’t make the best road engines.
I think Doms engines are just about right for giving good power with reliability thrown in.
As my engine was well ran in so to speak I took my car from Doms place with MBE newly fitted and rolling road mapped and headed straight for the south of France a few days after. It returned over 30 mph at regular intervals over that holiday and seemed to be so full of torque I barely used the throttle yet it whipped along.
Roof on for long distances at speeds around 80 mph proved the sweet spot for the engine and best fuel economy overall.
The 5.0 is a beast again so expect less mpg figures but I would say it will make the Chim 4.0 engine positively sing and get the best out of it.
The removal of many troublesome bits and no distributor cap pleases me no end.
If you are lucky enough to have time and resources to use your Tvr with this level of kit on it it’s always worth the investment.
It becomes a realistic option to run it and not expect basic electrical or ecu faults to cause major hassle.
It allows some faith to be put in the car.
The rest of the car is relatively simple so once this major source of niggling failure has been replaced moving on to perfecting/ repairing other bits is more joyous and feels worth it….
We are lucky to have a few Tvr experts who still offer these services and seeing the price of Ferrari water pumps or piston rings at £200 a pop we shouldn’t really complain to much about the price of this kind of excellence.
Sadly even these great Tvr that are indeed built to high standards after many years of good owners and mechanics care are not worth much more than the average version.
You have to want to enjoy using these mods to get the best value and then it seems like a small price to pay for the enjoyment it can bring.
I drive many modern supercars as part of my job and some are fantastic but none are any better when it comes to throttle feel and control since I had MBE
It feels super modern from that point of view.
Very linear
Edited by Classic Chim on Thursday 16th February 11:29
Edited by Classic Chim on Thursday 16th February 11:33
If you are asking about such an upgrade then it tells me you are wanting a hike in power with a significant improvement in performance.
Question is, would you be content with a slight difference just to edge over the standard cars or are you wanting to leave them in your dust.
If its the latter then seriously consider a turbo conversion instead.
Its a real shame we sadly lost Eann Whalley a few years ago now but there are others doing similar work. I think TVR Power offer a similar package.
Question is, would you be content with a slight difference just to edge over the standard cars or are you wanting to leave them in your dust.
If its the latter then seriously consider a turbo conversion instead.
Its a real shame we sadly lost Eann Whalley a few years ago now but there are others doing similar work. I think TVR Power offer a similar package.
I’ve had the Taraka upgrade then the MBE upgrade by Dom @ TVR Power. I think the MBE gave the biggest improvement as I wanted drivable & reliability rather than more power … the end results is excellent.
My ONLY suggestion is to talk through the process in detail. For example I didn’t know the dash needed removing which resulted in an original dash not surviving very well. If I had known, I would have asked Dom to replace at the same time.
My ONLY suggestion is to talk through the process in detail. For example I didn’t know the dash needed removing which resulted in an original dash not surviving very well. If I had known, I would have asked Dom to replace at the same time.
DangerousDerek said:
If you are asking about such an upgrade then it tells me you are wanting a hike in power with a significant improvement in performance.
Question is, would you be content with a slight difference just to edge over the standard cars or are you wanting to leave them in your dust.
If its the latter then seriously consider a turbo conversion instead.
Its a real shame we sadly lost Eann Whalley a few years ago now but there are others doing similar work. I think TVR Power offer a similar package.
Dom will do anything at the right price I believe. Question is, would you be content with a slight difference just to edge over the standard cars or are you wanting to leave them in your dust.
If its the latter then seriously consider a turbo conversion instead.
Its a real shame we sadly lost Eann Whalley a few years ago now but there are others doing similar work. I think TVR Power offer a similar package.
Extra power, that’s a good question.
In most cases yes but a re freshed engine and decent ecu is often just enough to keep the average mere mortal happy and alive
There’s a kind of sweet spot that allows all the power to be accessed when road driving that’s not a death trap.
I think it’s around what my cars got but I would say that
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