Les Mans - A Thought! Z4M or Tuscan

  • Thread starter Thread starter Anonymous
  • Start date Start date
A

Anonymous

Guest
Hi,

Went to Les Mans with some mates in some wicked cars, and had an amazing time, (particularly going through the tunnels with my remus exhaust) in my 3.0 roadster. It really did me proud, no hastles and was the only one 1 saw the entire time there. Anyway, all that noise, the engines etc, made me think about changing my 2004 3.0i lol.

I do about 5k a year as i have a company car, so not a daily driver.

I was looking at either a TVR Tuscan (wicked car, and yes can have issues) or a Z4M, having about 18k to spend, if i sell my car and some extra cash etc.

Test drove a Z4M tonight and really liked the feel and the power as well as the quad exhausts, which demand a remus etc, just too quiet compared to a tvr and my current twin remus setup. Just wondered if anyone else has moved to a Z4M or thought about a Tuscan, switched over or come back again...

Steve
 
Have certaily looked at TVRs in the past and many years ago had a TVR Vixen (1973....). BUT its a quality issue for me and I certainly need reliability.
 
I was passing by 'le' mans at the time, shame i didn't see you.
Saw lots of nice cars flying by and it seemed I was the only one taking it easy, it did mean I actually saw the hidden camera though :D

Places like le mans stir the blood up a bit and make you crave the loudest most outlandish car you can buy. Unfortunatly thats not the real world and theres another 11 months of the year that you have to live with an irrational/impulsive decision.

Thats one way of looking at it anyway, the other is that it will be worth every penny and you wont stop carressing it before bedtime each night :D
 
I've just gone Z4 3.0 to a TVR T350.

The Z4 was a brilliant all rounder, as it was my only car, it had speed, handling, practicality, comfort all in equal doses.

I now have a company car, so needed to upset the perfect balance!

The noise, the power, the smell of leather, the handling, it's something in another league. Yes, there can be reliability issues, but so can the Z4, just buy a well-looked after TVR and you won't look back.
 
Ah, post Le Mans TVR desire - that's quite common I believe :D

I soooo wanted a T350C after hearing one rumbling through Spa (the village) when I was in Belgium last year, but personally I just don't think I could live with one. Ignoring the running costs, I'd always be worried about potential ruinous repairs. I know this is largely stereotypical of the view non-TVR owners have of the cars, but there's an element of truth in it.

Head says Z4M

Heart would ALWAYS say TVR
 
I really wanted the T350 b4 I bought the Z4....

I found out about the servicing costs tho and it put me off... for now...!

However I forgot to find out the servicing costs on the Z4 and got a bit of a surprise only after I bought it!!!

I bet main dealer prices of servicing the Z4//M isnt far off the T350! Doh!

Anyway... Z4M for now.. save up for the sagaris... What the heart wants.....
 
Andy Sixspeed came from a Tuscan to his Z4MC, have a search for his posts as hes commented on the comparison before....

Its the horror stories that steer me away, but then again im pining for Noble . If it where me, I'd take my old mans rover v8 Chimera, its minty mint and (strangly) never missed a beat. Its the speed six engine thats the problem as far as I know, but then the 'racing green' boys have some pretty tasty upgrades that are supposed to sort a lot of the reliability issues ?
 
Ill have a T350/Tamora one day... Sod the servicing costs, just make sure you have a garage and get your hands dirty. Thats the beauty with these British sports cars, being hand built means they're easy to take to bits again :D

EDIT : Or a Noble :P
 
I was in the market for a Sagaris or a Z4M - here's what I think it boils down to:

TVR wins
Presence
Interior
Sound
Start-up sequence

BMW wins
Reliability - would not be too keen to head to Europe in the TVR just in case it konks out :fuelfire:
Useability - feel a lot safer heading to the shops in the BMW and can leave it anywhere
Dealer network
Buying Cost - £10k+ cheaper
Running Costs - LOT cheaper to run, both servicing and mpg - can get up to 30mpg on the motorway

Having said that, the BMW is my only car. If you're looking for a second motor, TVR all the way! :driving:
 
Le Mans certainly brings the "what if" out in all of us... too much lovely tin, so little time and money!

SWMBO and I always had a deal that if she bought a horse, I could have a TVR Tuscan. So, she waits until I spank all my cash on my Z4MR - which I love - and then went and bought a horse. Cunning creatures these women folk.

A Tuscan R pulled away in front of me up to a license losing speed after a toll booth on the peage, on the way back from Le Mans. As he did so, his reversing lights came on and then went out as he dipped the clutch going up through the gears, only to come on again as the clutch was let back out. He disappeared in to the distance with said reversing lights flickering intermittently. And sounding utterly fantastic.

Now, the rub is, in pretty much any other car I would suggest we would all be up in arms and saying how unacceptabel this would be. But for some reason, in a TVR this is just part of the ownership experience - which you either buy in to or don't.

I still lust after a Tuscan. Hugely.
 
AlanJ said:
many years ago had a TVR Vixen (1973....).
Click to expand...

Nice Alan... I have recently inherited a 1971 1600M! About 90% restored but its going to be an interesting project to finish.... going to have to look on wikipedia to find out what a carburettor does!!
 
ali_b said:
Andy Sixspeed came from a Tuscan to his Z4MC, have a search for his posts as hes commented on the comparison before....

Its the horror stories that steer me away, but then again im pining for Noble . If it where me, I'd take my old mans rover v8 Chimera, its minty mint and (strangly) never missed a beat. Its the speed six engine thats the problem as far as I know, but then the 'racing green' boys have some pretty tasty upgrades that are supposed to sort a lot of the reliability issues ?
Click to expand...

My choice was M12 GTO-3R or T350.

The Noble has just as many scare stories as the TVR!

Get a 2004 onwards Speed Six and the problems have largely been ironed out - it was the very early Tuscans that had the problems.

If you do get a good one, I don't think service/repairs will be too far off a Z4M. Tax is a lot cheaper though, £205 - PLG ;)
 
Ali_Z4C said:
AlanJ said:
many years ago had a TVR Vixen (1973....).
Click to expand...

Nice Alan... I have recently inherited a 1971 1600M! About 90% restored but its going to be an interesting project to finish.... going to have to look on wikipedia to find out what a carburettor does!!
Click to expand...

Mine had Ford running gear (4cyl Cortina GT engine) including the nice circular Ford Cortina segmented rear lights. Crazing was a problem on the fibreglass bodywork. A good drive and good fun. Pics when your done please.
 
A friend got a Tuscan this year for well under £10k because the seller thought it needed a full engine rebuild. It doesn't. Getting one that cheap allows for a large contingency fund, but then he works on it himself anyway. He's had a few issues, mostly electrical.

Going to Le Mans put me off a TVR more than anything. I think we passed two or three that were on the hard shoulder. Love the looks and the noise though - T350 or Tamora for me.
 
Z4M for me, its not as brutal or shouty but I am a fan of creature comforts and gadgets :)

- Its quick enough! :thumbsup:
 
I had a Chimeara and then a T350T. The T car was much more up to date than the Chim and a great car to drive. The servicing costs were high, approx 6k over the 3 years but on the plus side near zero depreciation. Taking the car out was more like an event/ occasion and the car club is very active. I changed to the E89 because I really liked the look of the car but havn't been dissapointed by its abilities.
My T was a 2005 and so was about as up to date as it could be but even without any problems in 5 years of TVR ownership I kept a too eager eye on all the dials on each trip out. The speed 6 warming up period, approx 10 minutes, meant it didn't get used just to pop out to te shops but even with the BMW I wait for the temp gauge to get up to normal before pushng the revs too high. Handling wise I did upgrade the T suspension to Nitrons which made it much better than standard but it could still be a bit twitching around the bends.
For me, I still love TVR's and if they had made a new one I would probably of had one, but the latest of the cars is 5 years old now and I am 5 years older and comfort, reliabilty, gadgets mixed in with a capable safe car was my choice this time, but if the rumours are correct and a V8 appears who knows.

Paul
 
I had a TVR S2 for nearly nine years, loved it, no real problems. I'd have one again if circumstances allowed. Later ones with own engines quite a bit different though.

So, if you're really thinking about it, and can put up with the absence of any safety features (none at all, that is) build quality below BMW standards, not being able to overtake in the wet, but being scared, excited and aurally blown away every time you take it out, then just do it.

And when you get fed up with it, get the Z4M.

Speed Six engine would be worth doing some research on.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom