Are any of you Tuscaners ex Griff owners ?
Discussion
I can’t decide between a late Griff 500 or an early Tuscan. I like the immense low down torque of the V8 rather than the Speed Six which it seems you need to wind up a bit more before it really wakes up. I imagine after a while you become used to the different power delivery and the darty steering. I wonder if any of you Tuscaners are ex Griff owners and can offer me a simplistic comparison of the two cars to help me decide.
I went from a Chimaera to a Tuscan. Yes there is a difference between the power delivery of the speed 6 compared to a Rover V8.
I have found that you do have to rev it higher before you get all that power coming on, however it revs much more freely than the V8, so that in reality the power comes on just as quick. However there is MUCH more of it!
I have found that you do have to rev it higher before you get all that power coming on, however it revs much more freely than the V8, so that in reality the power comes on just as quick. However there is MUCH more of it!
I swapped a Griff 500 for a 4.2 Cerbie (slightly different I know). I must admit, I really do miss the low down torque of the Rover v8. The noise is also something else. I'd personally still prefer a Tuscan (but only if it had a 2003 spec engine). Basically Tuscans feel so much newer:
- They handle much better
- I personally much prefer the interior
- They're about 70hp up on a 500 Griff
- They look better, newer.
- The lights work!
But:
- Griff's are no slouch
- You could spend the extra cash on an engine upgrade (see Tvr Power's ads - and there's even talk of a supercharger!)
- They are getting classic status so do not depreciate too much
- You can get light conversion if you drive in the dark!
edited to add: They sound absolutely fantastic!
DJ
>> Edited by _DJ_ on Saturday 24th January 13:40
- They handle much better
- I personally much prefer the interior
- They're about 70hp up on a 500 Griff
- They look better, newer.
- The lights work!
But:
- Griff's are no slouch
- You could spend the extra cash on an engine upgrade (see Tvr Power's ads - and there's even talk of a supercharger!)
- They are getting classic status so do not depreciate too much
- You can get light conversion if you drive in the dark!
edited to add: They sound absolutely fantastic!
DJ
>> Edited by _DJ_ on Saturday 24th January 13:40
A tough one this. Both great cars but the Tuscan is obviously the more modern of the 2 and it shows. Driving them is very different, both brilliant but almost opposites in the way they deliver their power. The Tuscan gets my vote on looks, better interior and the ability to rev beyond 7000rpm. Griff is still a wonderful car though.
I too changed from a 5Ltr Griff (in which I travelled 30k miles and loved to bits) to a new 4Ltr Tuscan in 2001. Despite the 'obligatory' engine woes in those days, I still consider my decision to be one of my best!
Yes the Griff is a fantastic car, but the Tuscan is IMHO soooo much better in all respects. I now have a 2003 Tuscan S, which is soooo much better again!
The Griff and Tuscan are completely different - I though I'd miss the V8 'grunt' and noise, not at all, the power delivery of the S6 is awesome, and with a decent set of cans, the noise is superb
Yes the Griff is a fantastic car, but the Tuscan is IMHO soooo much better in all respects. I now have a 2003 Tuscan S, which is soooo much better again!
The Griff and Tuscan are completely different - I though I'd miss the V8 'grunt' and noise, not at all, the power delivery of the S6 is awesome, and with a decent set of cans, the noise is superb
I changed from a Griff 500 to the Tuscan, with more than a little trepidation, even though the Tuscan is an early model "Sept 2000" it's an absolutley fabulous car, I hope to upgrade to a new S later in the year. If I had the cash, I would have both the Griff & Tuscan in my driveway, each one is awesome but the pleasure in owning and touring in a Tuscan is somethig else. Mines has just had it's yearly check up and seems to get better by the day.
IMO Both the Griffith and the Tuscan are fantastic performance cars -
BUT IMO if you source one of the last 100 Griffiths now instead of a 2000/2001 Tuscan - similar money - you will have less depreciation and probably less mechanical troubles in future -
AND just as much enjoyment. You say you prefer the Griffith low down grunt too so go and drive a few of each to see if any difference in performance/handling offsets the probable disadvantages of the Tuscan against the Griffith 100.
>> Edited by jigs on Monday 26th January 09:26
BUT IMO if you source one of the last 100 Griffiths now instead of a 2000/2001 Tuscan - similar money - you will have less depreciation and probably less mechanical troubles in future -
AND just as much enjoyment. You say you prefer the Griffith low down grunt too so go and drive a few of each to see if any difference in performance/handling offsets the probable disadvantages of the Tuscan against the Griffith 100.
>> Edited by jigs on Monday 26th January 09:26
Have had a '92 Griff 4.3
A '95 Griff 500 and a 2000 Griff 500.
Now have a late '02 Tuscan S.
The Griffs were fantastic (apart from each having at least 1 engine rebuild).
The Tuscan S I think is in a different league in most areas, (Power, brakes, reliability etc). AND, IMHO, it sounds fantastic. Every bit as good, if not better than the Griffs I've had.
A '95 Griff 500 and a 2000 Griff 500.
Now have a late '02 Tuscan S.
The Griffs were fantastic (apart from each having at least 1 engine rebuild).
The Tuscan S I think is in a different league in most areas, (Power, brakes, reliability etc). AND, IMHO, it sounds fantastic. Every bit as good, if not better than the Griffs I've had.
Interesting topic. I have a 99 4.0 Chim and have been very pleased with it since I changed from a Boxster a year ago. It's a real "male menopause" special (I'm late 50s)and is a 3rd car, so only around 3K miles per year.
Found myself in my local TVR dealer today and spent a lot of time considering a possible change to a Tuscan. They have a 51 reg Jan 01 Tuscan, one owner, 26K miles, A/C, Ferrari dark blue at £36K and an X reg 2000 Tuscan, 2 owners, A/C, Olympic blue, 7K miles only at £30K.
Any thoughts out there??
Found myself in my local TVR dealer today and spent a lot of time considering a possible change to a Tuscan. They have a 51 reg Jan 01 Tuscan, one owner, 26K miles, A/C, Ferrari dark blue at £36K and an X reg 2000 Tuscan, 2 owners, A/C, Olympic blue, 7K miles only at £30K.
Any thoughts out there??
brentstevens said:
Interesting topic. I have a 99 4.0 Chim and have been very pleased with it since I changed from a Boxster a year ago. It's a real "male menopause" special (I'm late 50s)and is a 3rd car, so only around 3K miles per year.
Found myself in my local TVR dealer today and spent a lot of time considering a possible change to a Tuscan. They have a 51 reg Jan 01 Tuscan, one owner, 26K miles, A/C, Ferrari dark blue at £36K and an X reg 2000 Tuscan, 2 owners, A/C, Olympic blue, 7K miles only at £30K.
Any thoughts out there??
Seems like a lot of money to me. I have just bought a March 2001 A/C, 20,000 miles 1 owner for more than £10,000 less than that.
brentstevens said:
Chim 450. If the beautiful machine on your profile is the car you refer to - wow 
Didn't realise there was so much of a difference between private and main dealer prices. Realise they have to make a living but
Paid £23,500 (after a bit of negotiation
) for it, at a non TVR dealer. I think the garage didn't really know what they had (looks like it has had the Red Rose conversion as well!!). They fitted a new clutch as well (bought from TVR). Absolute bargain.
I went from a Griff to a Tuscan. I had two Tuscans and went to a Cerbera 450.
The Tuscan is a very different machine, it's quicker, handles better and still sounds nice especially if you sleeve the cans or replace them with Carbon Can Company ones. Down side, my first Tuscan had an incurable misfire which even the factory couldn't fix and the other one's engine let go whilst on holiday in Italy. So I have a 100% unreliability rate as opposed to never being let down by my Griffs.
A job change made an easy decsion about getting something slightly more practical (in TVR terms), but I was going to get out of Speed 6 ownership anyhow.
That said there's many folks here who haven't had a problem, and if mine had been reliable I would still be driving a Tuscan, they're fantastic...
Hope this gives some perspective without p1$$ing folks off by raising reliability for the billionth time. There's plenty of info on here about this if you do a search...
All the best
DC
The Tuscan is a very different machine, it's quicker, handles better and still sounds nice especially if you sleeve the cans or replace them with Carbon Can Company ones. Down side, my first Tuscan had an incurable misfire which even the factory couldn't fix and the other one's engine let go whilst on holiday in Italy. So I have a 100% unreliability rate as opposed to never being let down by my Griffs.
A job change made an easy decsion about getting something slightly more practical (in TVR terms), but I was going to get out of Speed 6 ownership anyhow.
That said there's many folks here who haven't had a problem, and if mine had been reliable I would still be driving a Tuscan, they're fantastic...
Hope this gives some perspective without p1$$ing folks off by raising reliability for the billionth time. There's plenty of info on here about this if you do a search...
All the best
DC
brentstevens said:
Interesting topic. I have a 99 4.0 Chim and have been very pleased with it since I changed from a Boxster a year ago. It's a real "male menopause" special (I'm late 50s)and is a 3rd car, so only around 3K miles per year.
Found myself in my local TVR dealer today and spent a lot of time considering a possible change to a Tuscan. They have a 51 reg Jan 01 Tuscan, one owner, 26K miles, A/C, Ferrari dark blue at £36K and an X reg 2000 Tuscan, 2 owners, A/C, Olympic blue, 7K miles only at £30K.
Any thoughts out there??
1st thought is that they want a lot of money for the X reg. My old one which went up for sale through a dealer immediately after its rebuild (which the Olympic Blue one will either most likely have had or may need in the future - it's of that age)was £25k... It was Grigio Titanio over full Portland hide, A/C uprated stereo, 18 inch alloys, in short the full monty...
Of the two I'd probably go for the latest one I could afford, or if you see my post earlier a Cerbera 450
Thanks for the useful info re changing from a Chim to a Tuscan.
Have taken the coward's way out and decided to keep the Chim for another year and see how the Tuscan world shakes down.
Reckon I'll eventually go for a 2003 model in a year or so as prices then should be nearer to my budget (as a 3rd car).
All 2003 Tuscan owners out there - watch this space in 12 months time as reckon I'll be back.
Have taken the coward's way out and decided to keep the Chim for another year and see how the Tuscan world shakes down.
Reckon I'll eventually go for a 2003 model in a year or so as prices then should be nearer to my budget (as a 3rd car).
All 2003 Tuscan owners out there - watch this space in 12 months time as reckon I'll be back.
Gassing Station | Tuscan | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff