Time for a change.

[davyv]

After having the  97 Rex for 7 years and over that time changing everything on it im thinking i might want a change. What do you all think of the TVR Tuscin,  450 Cerbera or the VXR Momaro 500. How would my 410@.9 bar bhp atf compair to those two.

[Grant Monkhouse]

After having the  97 Rex for 7 years and over that time changing everything on it im thinking i might want a change. What do you all think of the TVR Tuscin,  450 Cerbera or the VXR Momaro 500. How would my 410@.9 bar bhp atf compair to those two.

I should imagine they will all be as quick as the RX, but they will be different in the power delivery, from what I can think all of them are v8s so will have loads of torque. I would personally go for the cerbera, really good looking, I was looking at a tuscan yesterday, only 15 grand. Which I thought wasn\'t that bad.

[captainbizzaro]

I think if you want a car with a unique personality like a 7 then I agree with the TVR, my uncle had one was such a character of a car then he changed to an M-Sport Z4 and didn\'t like it because it was too clinical even though it was hell of a bit of kit. Cerbera\'s also sound like the world is ending which is always a good start.

[Brighton-Rex]

TVR Tuscan is beautiful, but unfortunately never driven one so can only comment on looks. Have seen Tuscan for as little as 10k before.

[davyv]

Price guide £15-£20.000.
Never driven any of them myself but i must say the VRX Monaro seems to be the reliable one out of the three but prob the least fun to drive and i really want a sports car.
What about the Jag XKR or Merc 500SL.

[Looksamc]

Well...will you still get those envious looks driving a Jag XKR or Merc 500SL., i mean lets face it we don\'t drive are cars hard and fast because we like the way it handles do we! what you should do is keep the rex, sell a kidney and buy a Tuscan S then you could have your cake and eat it too!

[FDDreamer]

The Tuscan\'s reliability is an issue, although the later S2 variant is supposed to be better.  A friend bought a Tuscan new (out of this world back then!) but had nothing but problems with it.  It would be quicker for me to tell you what didn\'t go wrong than to list the problems.  The car was eventually returned.  Also, to be honest, the car never felt good for the claimed power figures.  The 911 GT3 he replaced it with felt quicker in any given situation.  In fairness this might have been down to the problems, but even when it was apparently healthy it didn\'t feel as rapid as you\'d expect.  Finally, don\'t forget that it sports a straight 6, so you don\'t get that traditional TVR sound either.  

The Cerbera would be a better bet IMHO.  I\'ve been taken out in a Griffith 500 that had a fair bit of work done (circa 360bhp) and that was extremely quick.  Power delivery is a bit different to a rotary, more about the torque than the peak power at the high end of the rev range.  I think the 4.5 pushes out a claimed 420bhp and weighs about the same as the Griffith...so by that logic it must really shift!  I don\'t think it\'ll handle quite as nicely as an FD, and remember that you\'re on your own as far as electronic intervention goes!  But if you\'re looking for a rush I can\'t think of much to touch it for the money.  

Have a look on some TVR forums to get an honest appraisal of the cars from people who own them.  I imagine they are incredibly exciting and rewarding but also demanding.

The Monaro would be okay, more practical and reliable than either TVR but ultimately not a true sports car.  It\'s heavy and the handling would likely disappoint after an FD.  I consider it a compromise - the kind of car you buy because you need a car that can take the kids around in relative comfort, do the Tesco shopping as well as scare you on the way home from dropping the kids off at school.  But compared to the TVRs and an FD I think it\'ll fall short in terms of driver involvement and enjoyment.

Merc SL500 is luxurious but not that fast when compared to the other cars on your list.  If you can stretch to an SL55 AMG then that\'s a different picture entirely - they ARE very quick as well as being comfortable, reliable and rather classy.  A great all-rounder and you could drive all over Europe in one without feeling fatigued or fed up.  Which you probably couldn\'t say about the other cars (bar the VXR).  It\'s only shortcoming is it isn\'t as nimble (weighs somewhere in the region of 2 tonnes!) as the pure sports cars and you can\'t drive it as you would, say, an FD on twisty roads.

Some other sports cars to consider that fall roughly within your price range:  Lotus Exige, 911 (996) Carrera 2 S, Radical SR3 (!).

[BlitzBoy]

I would with a Porsche 911. I blew numerous TVRs into the weeds, seems their engines are more tempermental then a rotary, lovely shape though, I think some people put LS engines in them to get rid of most of the problems

[PGiljevic]

The Australian made rebadged HOLDEN is a certified piece of sh7t. It\'s mexican made V8 is a nugget, very un reliable (bearing troubles), the gearbox is a hideous (gear rumble) the car is like Opra (VERY OVER WEIGHT) you need 630bhp supercharged version to equal (its actually slower!) what acceleration you have now with your RX7.

Just like Opra its an obese pig slut loud mouth heap of turd, all about show and little to do with substance.

Keep the RX7.

[philiwily]

I\'m thinking you don\'t like Oprah.

[ChrisS]

My mate has a 4.5 cerb, driven it a few times. They are quick but unless its been remapped they will only put out around 350ish as standard. They are all set up ridiculously rich from the factory, my mates was running around 10.7 afr\'s before he got it sorted. Had it remapped and it made the 420bhp they\'re supposed to out of the factory. Expect some electrical gremlins, his can randomly decide to lock you in, normally when the window hasnt quite gone back up properly when closing the door. The noise is immense from them. Perfomance wise it was pretty much identical to my old pulsar gti-r (running around 420bhp & high 11 1/4 miles) from 30 to 140+. My rx7 with 360bhp fly is slower than the pulsar was, id expect yours to be more or less the same as the cerb.

Handling wise i\'d say the rx7 is better, more predicatable and balanced.

[raceralexuk]

I\'ve spent plenty of time instructing my clients in a variety of TVR\'s on various circuits.
 
The old story that they\'re \'kit car in reverse\' seems to hold some truth ie. they came out of the factory fully built but dismantle themselves over time. :Laugh
 
From the driving seat I think the Sagaris is the nicest available, but I\'ve experienced quite a difference even within the same model. Some of them are great, quiet, nice gearbox, smooth drive. Wheras a majority rattle, bang and shake all of the time. Not a pleasant experience.

In terms of speed, a stock Sagaris and a stock RX-7 feel fairly similar, but the TVR won\'t feel as solid as the RX.
 
Like second hand Lotus cars, avoid the cheap ones which seem like a bargain. They\'re always priced cheaply because they have plenty of problems and will make for false economy by the time you\'ve paid to fix them all.

[tinker-27]

I have converted two cerberas to Ls power and makes a good car even though there is still lots of stuff to sort out !! A rx is better than a cerbera . The ajp engine is a horrible piece of sh!t , I looked after one for a Tuscan challenge car , it is the worst engine to fix ( parts are a fortune), the monaro is a big car and needs work to make any good ie retune, clutch , suspension , gear shifter,exhaust , all these bits need doing to make them ok to drive well. They are a bigger car and will always drive like a big car. The best tvr for the money is probably a t350 , with a engine rebuild and warranty !! . I am just finishing a sagaris car that is going to run in this years GT CUP , it\'s way a better car than a cebera but lots more money but  a t350 is cheaper . As for jags I\'ve got a S TYPE R and it\'s very very good better than the E61 530 I had before . Or keep the rx snd put a monaro engine in it ( sorry could not help it)

[davyv]

Tinker i wish i had done the V8 option five years and three engines ago.

[tinker-27]

If you do go the tvr route I have had quite alot to do with them and if you want to have a chat about what to look out for give me a ring ,