Saying goodbye to my TVR after 30 years

[JonathanG]

I bought my TVR Griffith back in 1996, sold her a year later because I was buying a house and needed the money and bought her back in 1998 jointly with my then girlfriend, now wife and swore I would never part with her again.

However, I feel that it’s finally probably sensible to let her go to someone who will love her and cherish her as much as we have done for the following reasons:

1. I don’t use her enough partly because I have to move bicycles, other cars and other stuff out of the way to get her out of the garage.
2. Daughter is at Uni and so we’re renting her a place and helping her with living costs which is frankly a significant financial drain
3. I bought a lovely MX5 to replace her last summer and it’s fantastic - cheap to run, dependable/commutable, is easier to drive and benefits from niceties like aircon. If you want aircon in my TVR you take the roof off!
4. Retirement is coming, maybe in 2-3 years and I’m not sure I will be able to afford to keep her in the stunning condition she is in on a pension. The MX5 gives 75% of the thrills but at significantly lower cost.

We’ve come away on holiday in Herefordshire with a view to dropping her in for sale with a dealer at the end of the week and I don’t mind admitting that despite all the sensible rational reasoning above I’m really struggling emotionally to let go of a car that represents so much. I don’t mind admitting we’ve had some tough financial and career storms down the years and I have hung on to her at times against the odds. Then there’s the fact she was such a huge part of our relationship and we spent many happy times driving down random country lanes exploring the countryside in her right from the very first few weeks we met - so there are many great memories.

I spent a lot of money from a redundancy a few years back getting her totally mechanically spot on as well as doing a full respray and retrim, so in truth right now she is the best she has ever been. When she was up in Blackpool being retrimmed Peter Wheeler’s chief race mechanic worked on her doing some unique modifications and remarked “This is a very special TVR indeed, in fact it’s the best pre-cat Griffith I have ever driven”

We sat on our campsite last night looking at her beside the tent and thinking how insanely beautiful she is, what she means to us both and wondering how the hell we can bear to part with her…

Anybody else struggled with a decision like this? Anybody else struggled to move on? My plan if she does sell is to invest the money for a couple of years until I retire and then splurge a bit on perhaps some ATC SCM50’s or even 100’s when I know where we are moving to and how big the listening room will be. My rationale is that putting the money into speakers I will enjoy every day is more sensible than having £20k tied up in a car I barely drive.

I’ve attached the front cover and back page of an article I wrote for the TVR car club magazine and I still think that last page sums up my emotions and feelings about the car quite well. In fact I still think to this day it’s one of the best pages I have written.

Thoughts?

JonathanG

[bruss]

I feel your ambivalence. I have had Lotus since age 18 (now aged 71). I have always struggled to let go of one, but would reassure myself I was moving on to another better one. My last, an Evora, was a special build by Lotus motorsport and my own input. Lotus Motorsport are no more and I couldn’t afford to have them build another even if they were still around. I let it go recently. However I just couldn’t let Lotus go completely, so I have ‘had’ to buy a project car to fill a gap.

[soccermad]

Wow an emotional but really well written piece, I do hope you come to terms with whatever your final decision is

[whatu1tme2b]

What a lovely looking car and what a British heritage. I can imagine this is a very tough decision.

[Guinnless]

I have owned my Sierra RS Cosworth since 1995 so I understand how difficult it would be to part with your Griffith.

[Skeptikal]

You have kept it the best you can for as long as you can.
You would do well to pass it on to new enthusiasm and know it will rekindle a new marriage later.
You would feel far worse watching it deteriorate.

[Farthings-cat]

Exactly that place with Tilly the Triumph tr6!

I can’t have done more than 1000 miles in the last 3 years but just can’t part with her.

I retired in April and have used her a bit more this summer but not enough to justify keeping her….

Every year I say “I’ll sell her next spring” and never do!”

Ultimately we are just custodians of stuff like cars so I do think it’s time for someone else to enjoy her if I’m not really using her…

In your case, like mine you have to weigh up cost verses value and make a pragmatic decision but for some reason I have attachment to this inanimate object!

[paulbysea]

Whilst I am not really a car person, I get that it can be a wrench to sell a loved car. My mum felt the same about her beloved MGB GT. For me, selling a car and getting SCM50s or 100s seems like a great plan.

[kitfit1]

This is one of life’s very difficult decisions @JonathanG

Although not a car, in 2010 i bought my life’s dream of a motorbike. A Ducati 1098s. I still have a Ducati 1098s although not the same bike because that was stolen. The one i have now is a much better bike, fully sorted, mapped on a dyno, full Termi race exhaust. The thing is though over the years i have got shorter, in other words i can’t touch the floor anymore. This is a big issue on a motorbike, and i fell off twice in Spain a few years ago and again at a petrol station 2 miles from my house and haven’t ridden it since. It’s still in my garage but i just can’t bring myself to part with it, even though i know i will never ride it again. I still go and just sit on it every now and again, just to try and get that feeling of freedom and speed back and those memories do come flooding back. Good luck with to saying goodbye………………..i can’t do that yet.

[Count.d]

I’ve never heard an old person reflect on life and say ‘I’m glad I got rid of that car I loved’.

You made quite a few interesting points and of course they’re very personal, but not what I would choose.

As you asked for thoughts, just random points jotted down;

If you’re thinking about selling and investing for 2 years, you obviously don’t need the money now and what if the investment goes down? Wait 2 years.

How about getting the garage sorted so the car can come out at the drop of a hat.

Hifi pieces do nothing emotionally for me and upgrading for the price of losing your beloved car doesn’t appeal to me either.

I don’t want practicality, aircon, etc, I want the car to be a hobby, club events, meeting people discussing TVRs to death, a reason to travel in and I want hot dusty air blasting in my face.

If you’ve spent time and money on it and it’s at it’s peak, enjoy it.

And finally, don’t sacrifice things too much for your daughter, she’ll be fine

[CalamityJack]

It’s a challenge for sure and I have added some thoughts below.

I sold my own very special car about 18 months ago and it was a logical decision based on lack of use and the fact that an unused vehicle deteriorates. I’m also bound to say that it was a coupe not a convertible and getting in and out was not as easy as it used to be.

An impending retirement was in my thoughts because I realised that despite more time available I was no more likely to use it. Financially there was no dark cloud on the horizon but you never know!

Emotionally it was and remains a challenge. It’s been getting easier but opening the garage door to an empty bay was hard at first but it’s getting easier.

I only managed this because the car was away for service and I asked them for a figure and we agreed a deal. I’d been toying with this for years and failing to execute. It still felt like abandoning a family member but it remains the correct decision.

I don’t think that in the current market these great cars are achieving the values we all hope for as owners and that might impact your thinking because you’ve clearly invested in this thing and should get some form of payback one way or another. The right buyer will cherish this car, maybe that means the TVR owners’ club is a route to look at.

Does your wife have a view? That helps. Mine was surprised I sold but could respect the logic.

In my view the MX5 is a fun car but not a TVR. My best friend has one that I can only get in with the roof down!

This isn’t going to be easy but sooner or later you will have to sell and having to sell rather than choosing to will feel worse in my view.

[Bubble]

She looks absolutely beautiful. You have clearly cherished and looked after her. It’s a difficult decision but this might help:

Two years ago I received an unwelcome medical diagnosis and my wife and I decided to make some big family decisions then and there, rather than leaving them until I had become seriously ill, or worse. We were exceptionally fortunate to have had a second home and a beloved sailing yacht; both were sold. Both are missed but the maintenance, running costs and travelling is not. We now have more time, and money, now so enjoy more holidays and cruises together. We cherish memories from the life we had but are glad thar we made the most of that life while we could. We have a different life now, with its own new joys to savour.

I too have an MX5 (an RF) and it gives a lot of pleasure. I have to drive several times a month to a hospital which is 50 miles away and actually look forward to going, because I enjoy the burn-up in the MX5!

[Canaryfan]

We had, for Truro, a huge (360 vehicle) vintage/classic car show the first Sunday this August. The entire city centre was closed off & it was attended by thousands.

Most vehicles had their history displayed. I counted at least a dozen vehicles where either owners or the owners family had sold the car, regretted it & then spent considerable time locating the car & buying it back.

One owner of a 1962 Ford Anglia told me he sold it for £500 & missed it so much that he re-purchased it 8 years later from his buyer……..for £8,000!

[Guinnless]

@Canaryfan

owners or the owners family had sold the car, regretted it & then spent considerable time locating the car & buying it back.

There was loads on the Ford forum I use who did that that many years ago only to have to pay a significant premium to get their car back.

Some even broke the car so they would never see anybody else driving it!

[PW42]

I sold my XK8 a while ago and in many ways still miss it but not the maintenance costs. I now have a Fiat 124 Spider (basically an MX5 in Italian clothing) and I love it.

However my BMW1200 GSA is going nowhere even if it is getting a bit big - road cambers need more planning for than in the past. I’ve never had a bike for 14 years before! It just suits me down to the ground (if only I could reach the ground that is ).

So the moral is either just sell it and enjoy what you have in the present or hang onto it like grim death. I realise that’s not much help.

[northpole]

Hi JonathanG

I think this is a remarkably simple decision for you and your other half. Count.d has very well summed up my thoughts but I’ll try to put my own spin on it.

You and your better half clearly cherish the TVR, having completely restored it to prime condition. Assuming it is not likely to be a money pit and that you won’t be mounting up huge mileage, its got to be a keeper!

The MX5 is a great car but the thing with it is that Mazda made it in bulk and it sold particularly well in UK ie it is remarkably easy to replace. The TVR simply is not.

My recommendations: clear the space around the TVR to make exit from the garage quick and simple. With easy access, you may be amazed how much more you are tempted to pop out for an errand…! Particularly when you dispose of the MX5 - you don’t need two convertibles now, do you? The MX5 is fab but the TVR represents so much more to you than any MX5 ever could.

If an unplanned financial challenge ever presents itself to you (and it sounds from your notes that this would not be the first such challenge!) I’m sure you could easily dispose of the TVR. But really, that may never happen and in the meantime you still have a car, an extended family member by all accounts, which you and your wife can and should continue to enjoy. So much more than you ever could in an MX5. Worth testing yourself on this issue, but go on, you know the answer; and it isn’t a pair of speakers!

Peter

[JonathanG]

Gosh, I am really touched by so many of the replies on here! I half expected people to say “it’s just a car” or “first world problem” and I suppose all of that is true, but it’s interesting that so many of you have wrestled with similar angst contemplating parting with a much loved car. Your TR6 is gorgeous @Farthings-Cat so I can well imagine how you’re facing a similar dilemma!

We were out yesterday touring around Hay on Wye and the edge of the Brecon’s and I think it is helping me make peace with the decision to let her go. Last summer I replaced my Toyota GT86 daily driver with a nice MX5 with a view to selling the Griff, however events conspired against that. Yesterday as we toured the fringes of Wales I thought to myself how different would this feel if we were in the MX5? The answer surprised me: more relaxed and more comfortable!

Frankly with the sun beating down and that big V8 thundering away in front of us the heat was actually quite oppressive even with the roof down all day. The MX5 has aircon so we would have stayed far cooler. In small villages and the odd bit of queing traffic or parking/manoeouvering in tight spaces the TVR is very hard work - heavy clutch, heavy steering - no power assistance here, where the MX5 is light and nimble. Where the TVR excels is on A roads and smooth B roads and there’s no getting away from the fact that the power and soundtrack are both enormously intoxicating. The seats in the TVR are much more comfortable too and the rear parcel shelf is really handy to chuck a camera bag on. If however it rains intermittently (which it might today) there’s no denying that the TVR’s roof arrangement of a hard panel in a bag in the boot (which means you need to remove everything from the boot to retrieve or stow it) is a royal pain, where in the MX5 you just reach behind you and pull the roof up or down in 2 seconds. On a bumpy B road the MX5 is far more composed and capable, where the TVR is unsettled and will occasionally bottom out and clip its rear anti roll bars on tarmac. In handling terms the MX5 is simply light years ahead when the road gets bumpy.

As others have noted this isn’t really driven by pressing financial need, so I think I really need to think about how it feels to be in the TVR v the MX5 on a driving day. The truth is when I bought the MX5 I didn’t expect it to be as good as it is, in fact it’s not just good - it’s outstanding. The GT86 (and I had two over the years) was a better commuting car, but it simply didn’t have the raw performance/feel/cosyness/character of the MX5. None of them have the sheer visceral, punch/thrill/drama of the TVR, but the MX5 gets far, far closer. The cabin is wonderfully retro and modern at the same time, it’s very snug and is actually respectably quick (0-60 in 5.7 secs is early Lotus Esprit turbo territory and only a second slower than my Griff).

But here’s the real kicker. What the GT86 and MX5 demonstrate is just how much more rewarding it is to drive a slower car where all the power is usable on the public road safely. You really can exit a corner in those cars and floor them without being an antisocial hazard on the road. If you do that in something like a TVR you absolutely are going to lose the back end, you are going to be doing warp speeds in mere seconds and you are going to be a danger to other road users.

So perversely I think having a week off where I am free to use the TVR every day on great driving roads is actually making me think that the answer really is MX5, and that’s before you even consider the 21mpg v 46mpg, the £600-£800 typical service cost v £250-£350 and the fact that in the MX5 I can set off and tour Scotland or the Alps knowing it will not break down and if it does there will always be a garage that knows how to fix it. In the TVR you always worry that a regular garage is going to struggle to fix certain things simply because they have likely never worked on one before.

I have a friend who has a much loved Sunbeam Tiger and after going in my MX5 he wants to sell the Tiger for an MX5. His Tiger is far less reliable/sorted than my TVR and so he is reduced to local runs to the pub etc where I am happy to tour in the Griff. The MX5 would open up a world of touring opportunities for him with far less hassle/risk/cost.

I think the MX5 is actually unique. It’s the only car in the world that is affordable, cheap to run, offers Japanese reliability with open top thrills and is a truly rewarding driving experience. If you’re running an old classic then my advice is to go and drive one and prepare to be as shocked/surprised as I was.

I don’t think I could have made this decision if I had left the TVR languishing in the garage. I needed to get out and drive it, to feel it and experience it again. On the right road it is and always will be momentous, to look at it is achingly gorgeous, but as an all round usable drivers car to live with it simply can’t beat the Mazda.

The automotive channel Savage Geese did a whole series of videos on the MX5 (Miata in USA) covering its entire history and what makes it so very special. This video though I think sums it all up rather well:

JonathanG

[northpole]

@JonathanG

It’s the only car in the world that is affordable, cheap to run, offers Japanese reliability with open top thrills and is a truly rewarding driving experience.

I looked at this earlier in the year and came to a slightly different conclusion - I opted for a 2008 Honda S2000 which has turned out to be fantastic fun and I just about fit in it comfortably - not the case with the MX5. I suspect the MX5 is a bit easier going but I’ve been surprised just how good the Honda has worked out.

Sounds like decision made on the TVR - may be better to hold on to it now until spring/ early summer as I suspect demand may fall away unless you can find an enthusiast on the hunt. Good luck!

Peter

Peter

[Jimmyblues1959]

I’ve always loved the original TVR from the 1960s and have in general enjoyed British motor cars from my teenage years onward. My Dad bought an MGB from an employee of his in 1982 and still had it at the time of his passing in 2022. His youngest grandson now has the car and plans to upgrade the suspension and replace its aging fuel lines. When the generation of TVR that you own came out I was quite astounded at just how beautiful it was. Its lines are downright sensuous!

So I can certainly understand your reluctance to part with the car. I recently donated my late parents’ (RIP Mom and Dad ) 1989 Mercedes 300SE to Habitat For Humanity, which had been in our Family since late 1988. It was painful seeing Max Benz (my Mom’s nickname for the car) flatbedded from their home in late 2025.

Like it or not, time marches on. On the positive side, the Mazda is a wonderful sports car with none of the reliability issues of traditional British sports cars. And one heck of a lot cheaper to maintain. So if you do decide to sell your TVR you’ll still always maintain the fond memories of having driven it for years, knowing that someone else can now enjoy driving it; while you still own a modern sports car. Wishing you the best regardless of what you decide to do!

[BruceW]

I sold my 1972 Stag when it was on the cusp of needing some bodywork and other things dealt with beyond my skill set. I had many years of fantastic use from it; mechanically it was magnificent and never let me down. It roared and burbled including several fairly high speed trips down the A1 from Yorkshire to Essex at back without a hitch (but plenty of fuel stops). Fun at all speeds, summer and winter. Softop or hardtop.

The crunch was needing to commit to the work-not from the cost point of view but was I going to keep using it afterwrds? I’d had my fun but was driving it less due to other life changes. I’d also got some work to do on the garage and would have to store it for this to be done.

Head and eventually heart said sell it and one big reason is that cars of this age really need to be used. It was stored in a CarCoon bubble etc but if I wasn’t going to do fairly regular miles I think then it was time to move on. I hope someone has enjoyed it after me.

Not sure this waffle helps any, but it allows me to post a pic or two!

Bruce

PS That’s a gorgeous Griff