Anyone had a Griff 500..?

[john-e89]

Got an itch again for one of these as a purely sunny day hoon and going to shows etc, car. Any experiences good, bad, ugly most appreciated. The one I’m looking at has 17k miles and been looked after by Kerridge’s so I’m not expecting any issues. The regular maintenance needed is not a problem, i have a ramp at work, in fact it’s welcome, I miss a tinkering car, so any owners past, present have any thoughts..?

I thank you if there is anyone .

[griffnut]

I've owned a few, so I have a little experience in owning them. Could ans. via pm.

Bill.

[griffnut]

Check out Harrys Garage (ex EVO Magazine) on YouTube - his experience of a 99T Griff 500

[john-e89]

I've owned a few, so I have a little experience in owning them. Could ans. via pm.

Bill.

That would be great if you get chance please Bill..

I’ve seen the vid from Harry’s garage, he’s too tall for it….

[Boyo]

I had a Griff 500 for 3 years from 2006 to 2009. I absolutely loved it and it certainly got lots of attention. I ran it as a second car and probably did about 2,000 miles p.a. Reliability was fine and outside of annual servicing I think the only thing I replaced were leaking rocker cover gaskets. Heat soak into the cabin can be an issue in hot weather when you are sitting in traffic. The only reason I changed it was I wanted a speed six car so I bought a Tamora which I had for 5 years and it was great.

[john-e89]

I had a Griff 500 for 3 years from 2006 to 2009. I absolutely loved it and it certainly got lots of attention. I ran it as a second car and probably did about 2,000 miles p.a. Reliability was fine and outside of annual servicing I think the only thing I replaced were leaking rocker cover gaskets. Heat soak into the cabin can be an issue in hot weather when you are sitting in traffic. The only reason I changed it was I wanted a speed six car so I bought a Tamora which I had for 5 years and it was great.

Cheers Boyo…glad to hear of a positive experience. The more I read the more I think the reliability issues are mostly down to lack of maintenance, something that won’t happen if I pull the trigger.

Oh….I took a Cayman GTS 4.0 out for a day a few weeks ago…..kinda wish I hadn’t…. That is one fine car you have there..!!

[Boyo]

I had a Griff 500 for 3 years from 2006 to 2009. I absolutely loved it and it certainly got lots of attention. I ran it as a second car and probably did about 2,000 miles p.a. Reliability was fine and outside of annual servicing I think the only thing I replaced were leaking rocker cover gaskets. Heat soak into the cabin can be an issue in hot weather when you are sitting in traffic. The only reason I changed it was I wanted a speed six car so I bought a Tamora which I had for 5 years and it was great.

Cheers Boyo…glad to hear of a positive experience. The more I read the more I think the reliability issues are mostly down to lack of maintenance, something that won’t happen if I pull the trigger.

Oh….I took a Cayman GTS 4.0 out for a day a few weeks ago…..kinda wish I hadn’t…. That is one fine car you have there..!!

Yep the GTS 4.0 is a real sweet spot. I am recently back from a 1,000 mile trip around the Lake District. The car was a dream. With regard to TVR's, I have used James Agger in Melton Mowbray. Top guy and of course he now does full on maintenance as well as retailing fantastic cars. He has a Rolex Blue Griff advertised at the moment which looks like an absolute belter

[griffnut]

I've owned a few, so I have a little experience in owning them. Could ans. via pm.

Bill.

That would be great if you get chance please Bill..

I’ve seen the vid from Harry’s garage, he’s too tall for it….

Pm'd

[stevespg]

I’ve had a few griffs, and other tvr

You have to accept it’s built by a bloke in a shed, not a Bavarian factory, so quality and fit/finish is at best variable, however they’re great fun, easy to repair and maintain, and offor some great driving experiences. I’ve toured alps, Pyrenees etc many times in griffs, Z4 etc and the tvr whilst not as accomplished round the twisties was always fun and reliable.

Wiring and chassis tend to be weakest points, but a good ramp inspection should allay any chassis worries. There are some specialist tvr inspection companies you might try for peace of mind

Happy to chat on pm if
It’d help.

[Wildfire]

Had my Griffith since 2003, still got it. Mine’s a Pre-cat but I’ve been around TVR’s since 2001 when I had an S3.


Done 50k in mine and 90% of the work myself.


Happy to reply via PM.

Basically make sure the chassis is good, outrigger especially.

Everything else is pretty simple, maybe not cheap to fix, but my Griff has been the most reliable car.

[john-e89]

I’ve had a few griffs, and other tvr

You have to accept it’s built by a bloke in a shed, not a Bavarian factory, so quality and fit/finish is at best variable, however they’re great fun, easy to repair and maintain, and offor some great driving experiences. I’ve toured alps, Pyrenees etc many times in griffs, Z4 etc and the tvr whilst not as accomplished round the twisties was always fun and reliable.

Wiring and chassis tend to be weakest points, but a good ramp inspection should allay any chassis worries. There are some specialist tvr inspection companies you might try for peace of mind

Happy to chat on pm if
It’d help.

Thanks very much Steve, yep any experiences most welcome…

Superb pm from Griffnut…very useful.

[john-e89]

Had my Griffith since 2003, still got it. Mine’s a Pre-cat but I’ve been around TVR’s since 2001 when I had an S3.


Done 50k in mine and 90% of the work myself.


Happy to reply via PM.

Basically make sure the chassis is good, outrigger especially.

Everything else is pretty simple, maybe not cheap to fix, but my Griff has been the most reliable car.

As above any experiences most welcome Wildfire…as yourself I’d do as much work myself so tips etc, very welcome thanks…

[john-e89]

This looks a cracker…1999 car with power steering, lots of invoices etc, guys had it 15yrs.

Thoughts chaps…

[Boyo]

This looks a cracker…1999 car with power steering, lots of invoices etc, guys had it 15yrs.

Thoughts chaps…

Imperial blue with magnolia and a long term owner and excellent upgrades - what's not to like. I have seen it occasionally around Cardiff and have always admired it.

[stevespg]

Always take a really good look at chassis behind front wheels. That’s where rot sets in. If the chassis needs new outriggers, they’re 2.5k done, or 1k if you can weld them in yourself .

The rot sets in above the CHassis rail between the body, so hard to detect, some folk use endoscopes.



Waxoyl is a good protector, but also can hide a poor chassis.

Hot start issue is fairly common, tvr relays in the immobiliser are at fault, modwise kitnhelps but may mask a weak relay set in the immobiliser ( easily bypassed whilst maintaining an effective immobiliser).

The car looks a cracker.