TVR Chimaera 4.0-litre

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Founded by Trevor Wilkinson in Blackpool way back in 1947, TVR made its first cars in 1949 powered by 4-cylinder engines from Coventry Climax, BMC or Ford.

In the 1960s and ‘70s a switch was made to V6 engines but the real glory days came in the 1980s and ‘90s when, under the stewardship of Peter Wheeler, TVR adopted tuned Rover V8 engines slotted into beautifully sculpted fibreglass bodyshells. Lightweight and powerful, these were fantastically exciting sportscars which eschewed modern technology like traction control and ABS brakes in favour of old school driving thrills.

Launched in 1992, the Chimaera was typical of the breed with a 240bhp 4-litre V8 that could hurl it to 60 in 4.5 seconds on its way to a top speed of 152mph. Intended to be the long distance tourer of the range, it used the same backbone chassis as the more hardcore Griffith but with slightly softer suspension and a much larger boot that could comfortably swallow the luggage of two people.

Powerful disc brakes at each corner kept everything under control while suspension was independent all round with unequal-length double wishbones and coil-over gas dampers assisted by anti-roll bars. Icing the cake was the spine-tingling exhaust note which rose to a brutal howl at high revs and is guaranteed to induce a manic (and addictive) grin on the face of anyone privileged to hear it.

Purchased new in 2000 through Christopher Neil Sportscars, this immaculate example has covered less than 25,000 miles from new with 7 seven service stamps to date. The first four were through Christopher Neil themselves, the mileage increasing to 13,115 miles by 2004. David Hardy TVR serviced it in 2005, followed by Fernchurch Motor Company in 2006, the odometer reading 17,369 miles at this stage. Its final service stamp is dated 2007 and took place at 22,223 miles. 

The car was then purchased by the vendor in 2008, having been involved a minor shunt which had placed it on the Insurance Register as a Category D Insurance Loss (‘vehicle damaged but repairable’). The damage was restricted to a front wing and rear quarter, the vendor commissioning the straightforward repair which was done to a high standard. Back on the road in 2010, its last four MOTs show that under 1,000 miles have been added since, the total distance covered from new still remaining under 25,000 miles.

Due to have a fresh MOT by the time of sale, this stunning example retains its original handbook and service book, the car looking much as it did when it left the factory. Supplied with a nice V8 number plate, it is only reluctantly being sold due to lack of use, the vendor having become involved in offshore powerboating, a pastime which seems to be taking all of his time these days.