Bison1379134007 Posted September 6, 2003 Report Share Posted September 6, 2003 TVR T350c – The story so far. I’ve been a part of the TVR experience for about 2 weeks now so I thought it about time I write up how it’s been. After test driving the beast down at the TVR centre I decided there was no fricking way I could wait 3-4 months for a new one to be built for me. Also I figured that with a TVR having a used one with warranty was prolly not a bad way to go as hopefully all the niggly faults would have been ironed out. So I bought the porno blue demo one they had and managed to get list for my r32 on trade in and an extended 2 year warranty! Bonus. So my first challenge with the beast after picking it up was… reverse. Not the actual reversing but getting it into the gear! I knew you had to hit 5th before going to reverse because of the way the syncro mesh worked or didn’t as the case is… but I just couldn’t get it in (it never happens – honest). Turns out I was just being a muppet, no surprise, I know. The gate for reverse is considerably further to the right than 5th… Still I got there in the end. The first “comedy” thing to happen with the infamous build quality was a bit of a shock. So the first time I stand on the brakes hard (more on those later) I get a can of “flat tyre” on my lap and another one misses my arm and ends up in the passenger seat!! There is a little cupboard at the back of the boot which has the spare wheel alternative in it but apparently the catch isn’t strong enough to hold them back when braking hard! Oh well I got my self some Velcro and I’m sure I could make that good. The second “comedy” type event happened when I’d done my first 30 miles (ok it was more like 180), used a full tank of petrol and went to refill it. The petrol cap is actually opened with a handle in the boot. T350 tip 1: Don’t look at the cap as you open it - petrol in the eye really hurts. After I cried and screamed and made my eyes work again I start filling it up. What a fecking palaver… 2 litres per hour is the top speed you can fill it! Then when it was full it spat a good litre back out at me! No one likes a spitter! However a squirter… sorry I digress. T350 tip 2: carry a decent thick rag with you at all times. Because the T350c has a dry sump it’s important to check the oil levels when the car is at operating temperature. Being the fool I am I didn’t think the cap that has the dip on it would be red hot for some reason. Thinking about it now, its metal and the oil right below it is at 90C it kinda make sense. My finger tips have almost grown back now. Day 2 of ownership and the aircon just stops working. Had this been a new vw, audi bmw etc I’d have prolly been really pissed off. However, having signed the form saying I understand this is a hand built car and things might go wrong yada yada I actually wasn’t that bothered. TVR centre looked at it the same day and it was booked in the following week. Following week came and they got it all sorted out the same day – no worries. Ok ok enough of that stuff… on to the drive!! 3.6 litre straight 6 with 350bhp and a total weight of circa 1000kgs really does make for a GREAT drive. I came from a 3.2 golf R32 but to be honest it felt like a 2.0 mondeo compared to this beast. The 3rd red change light comes in at 7000rpm which in 1st gear means you’re doing almost 40 mph and it seriously takes a little longer than no time to arrive there. I actually thought I was going to have lots of wheel spinning problems taking it off the line quickly. Don’t get me wrong you can do it if you want however I’m starting to learn how the whole weight thing works on this beast. Take it quickly off the line and you push the weight backwards so by the time you arrive at torque joy (4k rpm) the wheels can just about put the power down with no spinning. Although if you take it slowly to about 20-25 then push the loud pedal hard it’s a different kettle of wheel spinning, back end twitching, fish. Out of the top of second you are approaching 80 and its still not taken any time to arrive here… This is where this car is fecking scary… on a short stretch of ya basic road you can have easily got to 70-80 without even trying hard which leads me onto the brakes…. The first time I stepped on the brakes I remember thinking that the r32 had sooooo much more stopping power. However, turns out this was me being green to the ways of the very lightly servo assisted brakes. You just have to keep pressing… and when you do you can get some SERIOUS stopping power going on. Couple of times I’ve been a little keen at about 50mph and locked the wheels. But once you get used to them they really do give you that little bit more confidence that you can stop fast if you really need to. The noise of the car is one of its best features… over 4K rpm it really does make an awesome sound and I’ve been told that outside the car it’s even sweeter. It definitely turns heads at a couple of hundred feet when been hooned about in town. Taking it above 100mph is an interesting experience. Where as my s3 and r32 felt solid as a rock at this speed on the track the T350c lets you feel every little thing that’s going on with it. At first it actually made you feel like the car wasn’t that stable but again this was just me being green to the ways of the TVR. In fact at 120 it can change position as quick and effortlessly as the r32 did at 70. Trevs don’t really do body roll! Cornering ability is like nothing I have ever driven before. The R32 was great but anyone could take it to its limit pretty easily and when you arrived there the worst you’d get was a bit of under steer which was easily fixed with some gas off action. The T350 actually requires some skill to make it corner at the upper end of its ability something which I’m no where near mastering… yet! Very easy to have the back end trying to get round the corner first if you are too keen on the gas or even if you take it off the gas at the wrong time. Its makes you appreciate that you didn’t really know how to drive that well at all. But rest assured it all adds to the joy factor. I think I could talk about the T350 for ever but I can see you’re either already bored or on your way down to your local TVR garage so I’ll try to wrap it up here… If you need a car that is practical – don’t buy a t350. If you want a car that is safe – don’t buy a t350. If you don’t want to own a car that needs an 800 quid service every 6000 miles – don’t buy a t350. However if you want a car that makes you smile like a kid every time you drive it – Trevor is your man! Nick B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danksy Posted September 6, 2003 Report Share Posted September 6, 2003 Cracking review Nick , how long before you flog this car? Will it last longer than the R32? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sms720 Posted September 6, 2003 Report Share Posted September 6, 2003 Fantastic review Bison You have just confirmed that my bank balance and my heart are far too weak to take on the might of a trev.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riz Posted September 7, 2003 Report Share Posted September 7, 2003 nice review...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerbera Posted September 7, 2003 Report Share Posted September 7, 2003 Top review mate..... Still looking forward to my '2.0 litre mondeo' next week though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bison1379134007 Posted September 8, 2003 Author Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 [ QUOTE ] Cracking review Nick , how long before you flog this car? Will it last longer than the R32? [/ QUOTE ] Yeah i think this one will! Its not like im gonna get anything faster or more fun for my money. The depreciation is a bit scary though... so we shall see Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bison1379134007 Posted September 8, 2003 Author Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 [ QUOTE ] Top review mate..... Still looking forward to my '2.0 litre mondeo' next week though [/ QUOTE ] Yeah sorry about that! i wasn't dissing the r32... i fecking loved it. Infact you can see that from my review of that one HERE! Just trying to put into words how the difference feels Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dodge Posted September 8, 2003 Report Share Posted September 8, 2003 [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] Cracking review Nick , how long before you flog this car? Will it last longer than the R32? [/ QUOTE ] Yeah i think this one will! Its not like im gonna get anything faster or more fun for my money. The depreciation is a bit scary though... so we shall see [/ QUOTE ] Nice review Dude.. about time you prised yourself out of the Pilot seat for a minute... I've got the best plan for depreciation, keep it for 30 Years!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snez22 Posted September 9, 2003 Report Share Posted September 9, 2003 cool review man! you gotta have one once i suppose. lucky git. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pincher Posted September 10, 2003 Report Share Posted September 10, 2003 I'm v.jealous Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew Posted September 11, 2003 Report Share Posted September 11, 2003 Great review - the bit about the oil stick made me laugh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gambba Posted September 25, 2003 Report Share Posted September 25, 2003 Nice review Bison.....and I'm just a smidgen jealous See only a bit... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjb2k Posted September 29, 2003 Report Share Posted September 29, 2003 Bison you are an absolute nut. Next you'll be telling us that you've spun out round Marble Arch or something!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mollox Posted September 29, 2003 Report Share Posted September 29, 2003 Nick have you been cloned?? ] I thought they only did that [censored] on sheep?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjb2k Posted September 30, 2003 Report Share Posted September 30, 2003 I don't think they would be cruel, or stupid enough to even attempt cloning Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bison1379134007 Posted October 1, 2003 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2003 ahahah THE SAGE! not a clone but one of the original batch spin out on marble arch? who'd be that stoopid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snez22 Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 Beauty and love have no place in Britain. Which is why we are responsible for the most brutal and savage car of all: the TVR. An Alfa Romeo will try to woo you with poetry. A TVR will bend you over the Aga, rip off its kilt and give you one right there and then. A Volkswagen will make you a lovely shepherd’s pie and light a fire to make your evening warm and cosy. Whereas a TVR will come home and bend you over the Aga again. A TVR would nick the lifeboat charity box on the bar, empty it then shove it up your jacksie. A TVR would fight for its life, its honour, its family and, most of all, its pint. Put a TVR on Desert Island Discs and it would take a flamethrower and a selection of hits from Wayne County and the Electric Chairs. Then it would bend Sue Lawley over the mixing desk and make animal love until it broke wind. You don’t get paint on a TVR; it’s woad. And instead of being made from steel or aluminium it’s wattle and daub. It’s an Iron Age fort with a Bronze Age engine. It’s Boudica, only with less femininity and more rage in its heart. And look at the names TVRs have had over the years: Griffith, Chimaera, Cerbera — all terrifying mythological creatures with goat heads and seven sets of teeth. That’s why I’m unnerved by the latest version, the T350C. What kind of a name is that? It makes it sound like an electric toothbrush. And while a toothbrush has a revolving head and bristles, it’s not as scary as, say, a hammerhead shark. Could this mean, then, that the new car has lost some of its bite? Two things back this up. First of all, it’s a coupé with a boot and a hatchback, and I’m sorry but I just don’t equate the concept of TVR motoring with all this stuff. It’s like trying to imagine a Saxon despot in a cardigan. Then there’s the handling. Push any of the other TVRs into a corner too fast and in an instant, with no warning, you’re in a world of smoke and hate. Getting your entry speed wrong in a TVR is as dangerous as spilling a Glaswegian’s pint. But the toothbrush just understeers, like a Golf or a Focus. There’s other stuff too. For all the racing heritage and volume of a straight-six engine, it simply doesn’t sound as terrifying as a V8. And this is the first TVR I’ve driven in ages with a substandard interior. In recent years we’ve become used to all sorts of swoops and oddities, but in this one it just doesn’t work. It feels daft for no reason. And yet, by some considerable margin, this is the best TVR I’ve ever driven. With its integral roll cage it feels stiffer and more together, like all four corners are working in harmony, rather than in discord. And the brakes are just astonishing. So’s the power. You may only get 3.6 litres and no forced induction, but you end up with a better power-to-weight ratio than you get from a Lamborghini Murciélago. That means it is seriously, properly, eye-poppingly fast. And because it doesn’t try to bite your head off every time you make a mistake, you can use more of the power for more of the time. Finally, there’s the question of money. To get this kind of performance you have to be looking at a Porsche GT3 for £72,000, or a Murciélago for £163,000. Even the Noble I wrote about last week is over £52,000. But the TVR is just £38,500. Plus another two if you want lift-out roof panels. So what we have here is a TVR with all the savagery of the olde worlde coupled with the practicality of a useable boot and a soft ride. It’s an ancient Briton with Roman overtones and as a result Alan Rickman wouldn’t be able to play it properly in a film. He’d be too mad. Think more in terms of Alan Titchmarsh — a little bit raunchy but actually a little bit not. from clarksons review in the sunday times this weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veracocha Posted October 7, 2003 Report Share Posted October 7, 2003 [censored] me he could just say its a good car! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Posted October 24, 2003 Report Share Posted October 24, 2003 can't be a clone, this one can spell Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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