Goodwood Takes A Look At The 9 Best TVR’s
March 11, 2021
Goodwood recently published an article about the 9 best TVRs for the road. The article opens with: “TVR is one of those unlucky British car
tvr specialists
TVR Chimaera’s Service
February 17, 2021
Our fantastic blue 1998 TVR Chimaera initially came in for a trim restoration and service however during the service, we’ve noticed some more serious issues
TVR Chimaera’s New Trim
February 11, 2021
Our trim department has been working hard to get the 1998 TVR Chimaera’s carpet, door panels and other pieces of fabric-to-metal trim stuck and bolted
TVR Grantura Photoshoot
March 17, 2020
We’re delighted to present to you our recently restored TVR Grantura! ? A stalled restoration, this Grantura was brought to us at Bridge Classic Cars
Goodwood Takes A Look At The 9 Best TVR’s
March 11, 2021
Goodwood recently published an article about the 9 best TVRs for the road. The article opens with:
“TVR is one of those unlucky British car brands that didn’t quite make it. You can trace its roots back to 1946, an engineering business set up out of a small warehouse in Blackpool by a young Trevor Wilkinson. The name changed in 1947 to TVR engineering (remove a few letters from ‘Trevor’ and you’ll see where the name came from), and over the following 60 years, the business produced some of the most exciting, fastest and loudest cars on the road. The cars weren’t always perfect – far from it, in many cases – and the company saw a number of owners before production stopped in 2006. But still, as you’ll see, TVR had a seriously good run”
Within the article, Goodwood break down their top 9 TVR’s which include the TVR Grantura – 1958, TVR Taimar Turbo – 1976, TVR 420 SEAC – 1986, TVR Griffith – 1991, TVR Chimaera – 1993, TVR Tuscan – 1999, TVR Tuscan – 1999, TVR T350T – 2002 and the TVR Sagaris – 2005.
Here at Bridge we’ve worked on a TVR Grantura and TVR Chimaera recently as well as giving away a Chimaera and have become very fond of the practicality, affordability and styling.
The article eloquently explains that “In many ways the Chimaera name, derived from the Greek name ‘Chimera’, epitomises so many TVRs. Chimera was said to be a fire-breathing monster of Greek mythology, a hybrid of creatures with, most notably, a lion’s head, a goat’s body and a snakes tail.”
Grantura’s are arguably the iconic TVR’s “The earliest TVRs are funny little creations. The very first car with a TVR badge, for example, the TVR 1 from 1949 which sadly no longer exists, was a split-screen, roofless two-seater with Morris 8 mechanicals, a Ford 100E engine and a handmade metal body. The TVR 2 from later the same year, meanwhile, was another roofless two-seater that was used as a racer and had the rev counter from a Spitfire. Not the car, the World War II fighter plane.”
We’ve worked on two Grantura’s and found them to be charming and quirky early TVR’s that lend themselves well to every day use.
You can read the full article here.
TVR Chimaera’s Service
February 17, 2021
Our fantastic blue 1998 TVR Chimaera initially came in for a trim restoration and service however during the service, we’ve noticed some more serious issues that need addressing.
Mauro began the service by checking and replacing the standard elements such as the engine oil, spark plugs, and the oil and air filters. We discovered that there’s some serious damage to the fibreglass battery box that needs attending to as well as some re-wiring issues. Although we also hope service is straight forward, we understand that the importance of a service is to highlight any more serious issues that are less obvious.
There were some substantial wiring problems which needed attending to as some of the wires were at breaking point. Mauro has re-wired the TVR and replaced some of the wires.
We’ve reinforced the bolting of the battery box with fabricated plates and nuts welded to steel plates.
TVR Chimaera’s New Trim
February 11, 2021
Our trim department has been working hard to get the 1998 TVR Chimaera’s carpet, door panels and other pieces of fabric-to-metal trim stuck and bolted down.
Brian and Kath stripped the TVR out ready for fitting. They started by fitting the carpet to the rear side section where the seat belts fit. Next, they fitted the side sill carpets, wheel arch sections, and cut out the foam to go in rear cockpit section.
Once they had glued the foam into rear cockpit section, the team carefully fitted the back carpet to the rear section of the TVR. They then cut the speaker holes out, glued the bottom carpet to rear cockpit section and glued the carpet to the side of the tunnel. After this was completed, the team could complete the rear section and tunnel section. The speakers and air vent could then be refitted.
After fitting the console back in, Kath and Brian could cut and fit some plywood for the rear compartment covers. Once cut, the pieces could be glued to the carpet. Next up was fitting the underlay to the front footwell section and securing the front and rear carpets.
One of the more challenging parts of this trim restoration was removing the old carpet from the door panel as the bolts were particularly stiff on the door cards. The team glued the new carpet to the door panel and fitted it into to door, as well as fitting the outer section of the door panel to the door. The final touch was to refit the speakers.
We’ve also fitted the seat belts.
Kath identified some rust but we discovered that its only surface rust which can be treated on the surface by filling the holes with rubber flanges and flange sealant to then be primed and painted.
All of the old foam has been replaced with new fresh foam, carpet has been laid in the passenger footwell, the centre console has been cleaned and repaired where needed and the trim has been cut and fitted for the upper footwell.
The board surrounding the battery in the footwell has been modified to fit better and the trim has been replaced with the new fabric. Velcro was then carefully attached so that the board can be easily removed.
The rear carpet has been fitted as well as the door cards and door trim. The leather around the door car was also cleaned before re-fitting.
The boot carpet needed to be re-fit, as did the foam on top of the fuel tank.
Kath has worked on re-lining the TVR’s boot too. She’s taken out the old carpet and fitted a new one in as well as replacing the carpet around the fuel tank and spare tyre section. The boot lid carpet has also been replaced with fresh lining. The next step is to bolt in the seats and service the car.
TVR Grantura Photoshoot
March 17, 2020
We’re delighted to present to you our recently restored TVR Grantura! ?
A stalled restoration, this Grantura was brought to us at Bridge Classic Cars to complete restorative works. We’re honoured to have brought this wonderful British sports car a new lease of life, what are your thoughts?
Thank you to Butley Priory for allowing us to shoot at such a wonderful location.
Check out the entire restoration diary via the following link:
https://bridgeclassiccars.co.uk/category/projects/completed/1962-tvr-grantura/
