TVR Chimaera: A 90s, V8, British Sports Car That’s Quirky But SO Much Better Than You Might Think!
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ส.ค. 2024
- The Chimaera was TVR's bestseller and arguably the best thing to ever come out of Blackpool! A stylish, V8 powered, two-seater British sports car that's quirky for sure, but so much better to own and drive than you might expect.
Now, it's not unusual for the random stranger down the pub (who has likely never owned or even driven a TVR) to tell you to steer clear of buying one, but I'm here to say to say that the Chimaera is surprisingly easy to live with, offers one of the most engaging drives of any 1990s sports car and has a truly fabulous soundtrack. Contrary to what many will tell you, it's actually well-built, with fantastic support and not a car you need to be afraid of owning and enjoying. For me, it's one of the great modern classic bargains.
Join me as I take this immaculate Chimaera 400 out for a drive and talk you through what it's like, what to look out for and what to expect to pay as well.
![[LIVE] : ONE ลุมพินี 76 | คู่เอก "ผึ้งหลวง vs สมิงดำ"](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/9SBshmGQOIM/mqdefault.jpg)
![[UNCUT] The Loyal Pin ปิ่นภักดิ์ EP.4 (4/4)](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/d3l5rxl5CVo/mqdefault.jpg)
![[TH] VALORANT Champions Seoul - Grand Final - EDG vs TH](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/WvObMc9VelI/mqdefault.jpg)
My 4.5 was genuinely the best car I’ve ever owned. Enormous smile on my face whenever I drove it. A few electrical gremlins, but mechanically sound and brilliant touring
It's a beauty for sure. The interior, too, is gorgeous.
I owned L511BPD. Bought from MoleValley TVR in Chessington in August 1992. I think it was almost the first one on the road. Racing green with a tan interior. Loved it, very easy to drive, quite quick, but not terrifying. It leaked - the passenger footwell filled up when driven in the rain, but that was it's only misgiving. I lived in London at the time but drove it all over the UK and Ireland, spent a summer with it in the South of France touring about with Eric Clapton amongst others. Hope it's still out there somewhere, being loved. I cried when I sold it! Great car always felt it took care of me. Regards P
Wonderful! Great to hear you had such a positive ownership experience, and thank you for watching.
Great video and brings back memories. I had my Chim for just under 10 years and used as daily driver for many years, clocked 130,000 when I sold her. Fantastic cars and the more they are used the better they respond
Fantastic! I always enjoy hearing about a properly used TVR!
I own a 2001 4.5 Chimaera, it makes me smile every time I turn the key, your review was a perfect balance of tech and driving experience, really enjoyed this review, have subscribed to your channel today, thank you and well done. 👌👍
Thank you very much, it's wonderful to hear you enjoyed the review. I hope you continue to enjoy your TVR for many more years and miles. Matt
Great video! I bought a Chimaera a couple of months ago. Amazingly easy to live with but still a real event every time I drive it. They have a really unfair rep. Yes, if you buy a tatty one it is going to cost you. However, the support network with the TVR community is incredible. Parts and advice are always available. Buy smart and you’ll be fine. TVR ownership is called ‘The Silly Grin Club’ for good reason 😁
Alway great to hear from TVR owners and fantastic that you're enjoying the Chimaera. Thank you for watching.
I had a really good one for 3 years,... the 4.0litre one (most reliable). Sold it ( and I cried),... but it was so good the buyer exported it to NZ to live the rest of its life. I miss it! Happy days! 😎
What a great video! I am looking to buy one from a friend of friend of mine which costs about 18000€ for a V8 4 liters , 110 000 km and British racing green color. Just waiting for the pictures prior to visit the beast. Cheers from France!
Go for it! They're fantastic cars :)
Super well rounded review here… informative, not too nerdy or full of cliches and captures a sense of what the car “feels” like which is the most important bit. Really want a chimaera now!!
Thank you, great to hear you enjoyed the video.
Thank you. This TVR is so beautiful and nice car. Especially the engine sound is so good👍
Glad you enjoyed it!
Good review. And I am thinking mine has become a 'garage queen', you are so right about bits and bobs playing up after lack of use. All my recent faults (after last few years) are related to said items. But then I just have not used it enough, next year I will I promise! Never regretted buying one 24 years ago.
Great to hear you enjoyed the video. Thank you for watching and hopefully you get to enjoy your TVR more in 2024.
I have had mine over 5 years and its been fantastic, i've racked up 10k miles since i've owned it and its been good as gold with no major issues. key is to drive them regularly.
Always great to hear from long-term TVR owners. Glad to hear you're still enjoying yours and thank you for watching.
Fabulous cars.
What a brilliant video! I hope to be in the market for one this year.
Thank you! Glad to hear you enjoyed it and best of luck with your TVR search. They're brilliant fun!
This is the first video I've found from your channel and already subscribed. Your review style is excellent and you're clearly knowledgeable and a true car guy. Keep going consistantly with these videos, and you'll just grow and grow. Keep it up!
Thank you, that's very kind of you to say and I hope you enjoyed the video. Matt
Got mine just over a year ago. I told myself I would only drive it on nice days. Driven it basically every day since... I cant help myself! It stalls on a cold start if I dont feed it a bit of throttle (in fairness not TVRs fault - aftermarket ecu map probably just needs tweaking). Wiper motor seized and was blowing fuses, which apparently also feeds high beams, at least on my car. Power steering hoses were leaking nicely, but thats just a bit of rust proofing. Odometer got stuck ticking over to the next 10,000 miles for a while. It fixed itself, so thats just 'free mileage'. The horn now triggers the wipers. TVR ownership. We're british, we like to complain, so its a perfect fit. 11/10, still love it, would buy again (no really, I wish I bought one when I eas considering one years ago!)
Fantastic to hear you're enjoying it!
Great video.
I have owned a 4.5 since 2009 and have done 50000 miles in it. It has only had to be recovered once - a minor issue which meant the car wasn't driveable but was easily fixed. I have it serviced and maintained by experts. I've spent a huge amount on refurbishment (chassis rebuild, respray, hood and seat retrim, partial engine refurbishment) and upgrades (Emerald ECU with 3 maps, hi lift cam, ported heads, sports brakes and an incredible Core sports suspension). It has 326 bhp, rides beautifully, handles like a go kart and goes like stink. It starts and drives beautifully and is extremely comfortable.
Downside? It isn't great on petrol, but it's not bad.
Is it good? So good, I've just bought another.
Fantastic to hear that you've purchased another. One thing I forgot to mention in the video was that TVR ownership is addictive! Once you've had one, you're very likely to have another.
@@fuelupclassic The new one is yellow. As a Liberal Democrat politician, I always felt uneasy about driving a blue car (which my other one is - Jaguar Caesium Blue, to be precise, possibly unique but it is resprayed). So I had to put that right and get a yellow one. Now I just got to get the yellow one reassembled from the hundreds of bits it arrived in.🤞
@@kingcurry6594 Best of luck with the new project.
Had mine five years, my third TVR, love it to bits. And no it doesn’t leak
Great to hear you're enjoying TVR ownership and thank you for watching. Matt
I bought one 6 months ago. I bought one of the cheapest cars on the market, 70k miles, feels a bit tired, needs lots of new bits, and I am loving it. I agree it’s one of the best value modern classic sports cars you can buy, and I actively bought a cheap one to educate myself on the mechanics of a classic car. I’m excited to rip it apart through winter and rebuild it into the restomod quasi kit car that it is. Think of it as 8/10s of an AC Cobra at 1/10 the price and you can’t go wrong.
Great to hear you're enjoying TVR ownership and thank you for watching. Matt
Very good review as already mentioned, you have done a proper educational work regarding the common issues and reliability.
I have one, same color, since 10.years now and this is always a pleasure to drive it. I've never kept a car so long (and no, this is not because nobody wants to buy it 😉).
But you're right about excentricity, my other classic is a 73 Scimitar GTE, and I'm not the only TVR owner having a Reliant too.
Thank you for watching. It's always great to hear from long-term TVR owners and have them share their ownership experiences. I'm hoping to feature a Scimitar on the channel very soon too. Matt
@@fuelupclassic I would have been happy to let you review my Scimitar however I'm living in France, a bit far 😉
As previous owner of a couple of TVRs, I really enjoyed your review. Please forgive my pedantry, but it is spelt Chimaera.
Ah! Thank you for bringing it to my attention, I really should have noticed that mistake before uploading the video. I've corrected it now. Thank you for watching and i'm glad to hear you enjoyed it :)
12:55 how interesting !! Especially as thats my car during its body off refurb haha :)
Ah that's great :). I can't remember where I found it now, but it was by far the best photo to show everything underneath. How did the refurb go in the end?
Hehe no problem at all. Really well thanks, been finished for a while and back on the road, pretty much like a new car mechanically.@@fuelupclassic
The Chimaera and Griffith are effectively the same car, and while the Griffith came out first, it is not a 'predecessor', they were aimed at slightly different buyers. The Griff is more the sports car, the Chimaera is the GT. The Chimaera has the bigger boot. However underneath, the engine and chassis etc are all the same between the Griff and Chimp.
Excellent point! I should have mentioned that although mechanically and structurally very similar, and the fact the Griffith arrived first, they were sold alongside each other and offered a different experience for any potential buyers. I think the best thing to do is to get a Griffith on the channel and see how it performs. Thank you for watching.
Great video for a great car. I have an excellent Griffithif you would like to review it. 😎
Thank you! Great to hear you enjoyed it. The Griffith is one of my all-time favourites, so I just might have to take you up on your very generous offer.
Please feel free to reach out at any time. Again a great video with great content.
Pub gossip got one never let me down . Driven it all over UK no problems , Ihe V8 is just idling most of the time . Climbed Fell sin my native Cumbria in 5th gear no problem . Suspension soft nearly lost my eshaust when booting ot up Corny Fell. Think I lost a bracket when it came to the next service at Hexham Horseless Carriages (now shut unfortunately ).
Always wanted a TVR, I keep looking but I simply cant afford them. A shame really as they aren't insanely expensive but just out of reach.
I know exactly what you mean! They're an absolute bargain for what they offer, but it's still a decent amount of money to part with for a really good one.
Hate to criticise what is an excellent video, but the HC was not High Compression, it was High lift Cam.
Every day is a school day. Thank you for watching and glad to hear you enjoyed the video. Matt
good video , what i dont get is that between the 4l and 5l 0-60 is on 4.1 and 4.8 yet the 5.0 is twice the price , im buying the 4l i dont see the value in the 5litre unless your racing it , wonderful car a real british beauty , im looking for a british racing green
Best of luck with your search. The 5.0 litre is a relatively rare beast compared with 4.0 and usually commands a significantly higher price because of it. Also the additional grunt from the 5.0 is very noticeable, not necessarily in a 0-60mph time but it's got significantly more grunt when you're on the move. Having said that the 4.0 is lovely, and you could always consider the slightly more powerful 4.0 HC or the 4.5. Try them all and see what you like.
Go for a 4.5. The 4.0 isn't very quick by today's standards. The 4.5 is the strongest engine as it has cross-bolted main bearings. The 5.0 can suffer from crankshaft breakage (not massively common but it can happen). You'll only get close to the advertised figures if you get a perfect launch, no wheelspin and well-timed gear changes; it's more about the driver than the car. A 4.5 is plenty fast enough.
Do they leak?
Mine doesn't.
An owner for 24 years and never leaked, you have to ensure you look after the hood mind.
If you look after them, no. If you neglect them, yes. It's the same with any convertible.
Mine doesn't but improving it by a hard top targe conversion by Steve Edwards shortly . Matching paint and will look like a mini Cerbera. Can't wait !!.
@@colingregson8653 Intrigued by your post so I have watched Steve's channel and looked at his website. I'm very local to him and had no idea what he was doing. Good luck with the conversion, does look amazing.