TVR T400 R: the complete story - EPISODE 1

Following the success of the Tuscan Challenge and encouraged from teams and pilots, TVR decided to jump to the high tops of international motorism with a car that would have been ready and competitive for a long and very difficult race such as the Le Mans 24 Hours: the TVR T400R.
In the period between 2001 and 2004 seven units were built with the British GT Championship as the launch pad for the project and the Le Mans 24 Hours as a prime objective.

Season 2001
Race Sports Salisbury (De Walt sponsored) headed by Richard Stanton was the first team which joyned the car to the debut in races taking a class win at Castle Combe (Stanton and Steve Hyde). Rollcentre Racing team purchased the second Tuscan R replacing the much loved and admired Cerbera Speed 6, which had marked Martin Short’s team’s debut in GT racing.


Season 2001: the results
British GT Championship
- Barclays DeWalt – 1 win, 2 second places, 2 third places and 1 pole position
- Rollcentre Racing – 2 wins, 1 second place, 3 pole positions


Season 2002
At the beginning of 2002 Blackpool factory delivered directly on the track the third car in public at the British GT Championship Media Day: a TVR T400R for Eclipse Motor sport. But at that very same event in Silverstone it had just lost a significant sponsor. The solution was obvious – a new Orange Car and a new Orange website. It was a match made in heaven and the car raced for almost the entire season with all-over dailysportscar branding.


It won at Knockhill but was disqualified for a technical infringement. The best of the (then) trio though was still the Rollcentre Racing car: four wins and three second places were to take the Short / Pullan pair to the brink of the title at the last round at Donington Park, before mechanical woes brought an emotional end to a quite stunning season.


In the same period the Rollcentre Racing car took in the T400R’s first ever international race start with a popular (with Japanese fans) and successful run in the Suzuka 1000kms, producing a class podium. Meanwhile, John Hartshorne and Piers Johnson became the owners of the first chassis (of Race Sports Salisbury) and raced it with Peninsula TVR banners. They took a couple of early fourth places in class (image below).



Season 2002: the results
British GT Championship
- Rollcentre Racing: 4 wins, 3 second places, 1 third place, 2 pole positions
- Eclipse Motor Sport: 1 win (but dsq), 1 third place
- Race Sports Salisabury: 3 third places

Suzuka 1000kms
- Rollcentre Racing: second in class

To be continued to EPISODE 2

TVR Project 7/12, TVR Cerbera Speed 12, TVR Speed 12 - EPISODE 4

In EPISODE 3 we reported the TVR Cerbera Speed 12, a new project which was created from the pristine TVR Speed12. In the same time the race version of the car was developed (supposedly two cars were built) TVR created only one car strictly road legal.

According to sources, the car came to life with grey paint and W312 BFV plate.





Some time after the W312 BFV TVR Cerbera Speed 12 road version received a new plate: W312 BHG. The body was repainted red.




Nowadays the TVR Cerbera Speed12 has been updated again with a new plate: W112 BHG. The paint remained the same. In the back an enormous wing was added. TVR Unofficial Blog already reviewed the car HERE. This very special TVR, the only one in existance is currently on display at the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu and stands between at Ferrari F40 and Ford GT40.

TVR Project 7/12, TVR Cerbera Speed 12, TVR Speed 12 - EPISODE 3

In EPISODE 2 the TVR Speed 12 with GT1 standards made its first apperances with white paint (maybe the same unit painted violet).
GT regulations caused the TVR Speed 12 to be scrapped. However, a new GT2 racer was concocted using the same engine, but few other parts. The basic design was of a Cerbera, only lower, wider, and with more aggressive styling. It was known as the TVR Cerbera Speed 12.


From now, according to sources, the were two paths: the road version and the race version.

TVR Cerbera Speed12: the race version
Unfortunately, it's impossible to say if the car pictured above became a race car or if it was used for the road legal version. Pictures below show probably the first car built and still without stickers:



Another image shows a Cerbera Speed 12 maybe without paint: looking at the bodyshell it seems it's nude carbon fiber. We don't know if this is the blue car pictured above or it's a second car which was built in the meanwhile.


Probably a short time after these images, the car with blue paint received its race numbers ans stickers:


Image below show something more: at least two units of the TVR Cerbera Speed 12 were built. There is a white car and the car with number 27 but painted black.

Following images show n.27 with violet paint. It raced in British GT Championship in 2002:





To be continued on EPISODE 4 for the TVR Cerbera Speed 12 Road Version.

TVR Project 7/12, TVR Cerbera Speed 12, TVR Speed 12 - EPISODE 2

In EPISODE 1 TVR started the TVR Project 7/12 with (according to experts) two mock-ups. The first violet car had many parts made with woods. The second violet mok-up received a further development with many mechanical parts but still without engine (see the last image of TVR Project 7/12, TVR Cerbera Speed 12, TVR Speed 12 - EPISODE 1).

The first working car: the TVR Cerbera Speed 12 or TVR Cerbera Racer
The violet car with airscoop on the roof became this:


This is the first TVR Cerbera Speed12 (or TVR Cerbera Racer), a race car which was ready for GT1 regulations. The car appeared also on Top Gear with Jeremy Clarkson:


An unlucky destiny
Problems during its development, changing GT1 class regulations and the eventual decision that it was simply incapable of being used as a road car ended the idea, forcing TVR executives to abandon its development.
The original installation of the V12 engine caused some engineering challenges. The exhausts were routed down the middle of the car along the transmission tunnel, again as seen with the road cars. This, coupled with the transmission tunnel being a load-bearing part of the structure created two problems. Firstly it forced the driver's seat closer to the side of the car due to the size of the tunnel. This isn't desirable in a race car when side impacts are likely. Secondly the immense amount of heat generated by the exhausts made the cabin unbearably hot in race conditions.
The vehicle's engine was a 7.7 Litre 48-valve V12 with dry sump lubrication and constructed of steel not aluminium or cast-iron that poduced 800-HP and 650 LB·FT @ 5750 rpm and that yeilded a top speed of 245 miles per hour. The car weighed in at 2,205 LBS and the transmission was a 6-speed Hollinger manual gearbox. The car's body was carbon fibre over a tubular steel chassis.


To be continued to EPISODE 3

TVR Project 7/12, TVR Cerbera Speed 12, TVR Speed 12 - EPISODE 1

TVR Project 7/12... TVR Speed12... TVR Cerbera speed12. The subject is quite complicated. TVR developed its project for a big race TVR with several modifications which actually generated some different "vehicles": mock-ups, race versions, street versions. Here is a brief portrait of all cars that were created.

TVR Project 7/12: the concept and the first mock-up
During '90s TVR decided to build the fastest road car in the world and to start a race-program for English GT Championship. The first result of these studies was a mok up which was introduced in 1995 and progressively it was updated until 2000.
The car should have competed with the likes of the Porsche 911 GT1, McLaren F1 GTR, Lister Storm and lots of other competitors. TVR used modified Rover engines for quite a long time but at that time Peter Wheeler decided to design or comission engines for themselves.
Engine: The heart of the 7/12 would have been a 660 bhp V12-engine, an incredible 830 Nm maximum torque. Al Melling was charged with the project of this mighty unit. Its main features were aluminium alloy block and heads, and a single overhead cam per bankwith two valves per cylinder. The entire engine weighed only 160 kg.
Chassis: the 7/12 is based on an all-new spaceframe backbone chassis, which hintsat the Cerbera GT race car. It would include a full FIA roll cage, whichwill stiffen the body. The look was dictated by the GT racing rules. It also had to be road-legal, which meant that all the rigorous tests (like crash) had to be passed and a few road-homolagated examples would have been built. But just as with the Porsche 911GT1 racing was the key.

Following images: early mock-up with wood internal parts.



Following images: the mock-up pictured above was completed for first official shows.


The TVR Project 7/12 was shown for the first time at the British Motor Show in October 1996 (picture below). The factory hoped to enter it in the 24 hours at LeMans 1997:


After the show the car went back to Blackpool for further developments. The first mockup of the TVR Project 7/12 was then laied aside in poor conditions in order to built the working cars:





TVR Project 7/12: a second mock-up
A second mock-up was completed with its own mechanical parts but still without engine.

Following image: on the left there is a later violet mockup (maybe the car pictured above, the "second" mockup) but on the right there is a third car: it has an airscoop on the roof and by its stickers and race numbers we can assume it were being prepared to join the racetrack.


To be continued to EPISODE 2

Swordfish's TVR Tuscan MK1 will join Pistonheads show

Next NEC in Birmigham will host the PistonHeads Show. A major part of this event is the display of readers' cars. among them there will be a very famous TVR Tuscan Mk1: it's the John Travolta's TVR Tuscan he used in Swordfish.

The Chameleon Blue Tuscan started life as one of six cars used in the movie – a couple were crashed, one had holes blown out of it and this one ended up in the hands of Pascal – who is understandably pleased with his decision to buy. Now the car is owned by Belgian enthusiast Pascal Buyens. He was asked to sell the car to a US based charity but he refused! Good Job!

FFF Speed6
Mr Buyens joyned his car but he soon had to face the common problems which affected a Speed 6 engine: The crankshaft bearings on the original Straight Six went after owning it for a few months. They went into the sump, and then got thrown into the engine, resulting in a total wreck". He took the car to Racing Green TVR but he did not opt for a rebuild. He choosed the ‘Finger Follower Free’ (FFF) engine they developed. It's surely a great solution if you need a very realiable TVR. In addition he added a supercharger: "I wanted the car to be even more bonkers in terms of horsepower, while retaining the ‘soul’ of the original Speed Six as much as possible".

source: Pisthonheads

Pic of the day: TVR Tuscan Mk1, the scratch

We don't know exactely the correct translation from Italian into English. In Italy we call it the "scratch method". The effect is superb: an incredible sense of dynamism. This TVR Tuscan Mk1 is giving all its sense of power and motion.

Performance Car Magazine: they talk about TVR T350

Issue n.21, November 2009 of Performance Car English magazine makes a very interesting comparison. Supermini or Supercar? Three of 2009s hottest of hatches (Seat Ibiza Cupra, Abarth Grande Punto and Mini Cooper S) go face-to-face with some of the finest sports cars of modern times: Maserati Spider, Porsche 993 and the TVR T350. Question is, how brave are you feeling?

We, of course, don't have any doubt!

This weekend we'll be in Padova for Automotodepoca 2009, in pavillion n.4 (AUTODIGEST magazine - TUTTOPORSCHE magazine, next to a blu Porsche 997 GT3 Cup. We didn't succeed in finding a TVR, pity). Automotodepoca is the best Italian show for Italian motoring enthusiasts (new cars, classic cars, clubs, registers, memorabilia, spare parts...). If you like, make us a visit, we'll try to take some time for us TVR enthusiasts.

Diecast Magazine on Automodello's TVR Griffith Series 200

GRIFFITH CAR FANS!
If you aren't receiving your monthly issue of The Diecast Magazine then you have to get down to you local Barnes & Noble bookstore or equivalent book retailer and get the latest issue of the mag. It has a GREAT story on the Automodello issue of the Griffith Series 200. The front page (copy of front page attached) shows the "EXCLUSIVE" unveiling of the car. This is one of the most researched issues of any 1:43 model and with the help of an interview with no one else but Jack Griffith himself, will bring you to the day when this little British-American Ford-powered hybrid was the fastest car on the streets of the USA.

Even if you aren't a scale model collector you will want to take a look at this very special model. Jack Griffith brought it to life, Mike Mooney brought the history of the car to life and Raffi Minasian, Jim Cowen and the entire Diecasm and Automodello team takes the next quantum leap to give you a chance to own the first issue of this historic car.

Make sure to reserve your copy of this fantastic model. If you log onto http://www.automodello.com/ and look around their virtual showroom for your particular car you will be ready to place your order. This is a first for the Griffith community and will give you a leg up on the scale model collecting community.