TVR Cerbera

TVR Cerbera (1996-2003)

The TVR Cerbera is a sports car, the TVR in Blackpool ( England) from 1996 to 2003 produced. The name is derived from Cerberus, the three-headed monster in Greek mythology, from which guarded the entrance to Hades.

The Cerbera was the third car, the TVR produced under the leadership of Peter Wheeler, and stands for three innovations in the company:

The first hardtop coupe - Griffith and Chimaera were convertibles.
The first 2 2 sports car - former TVR products were strictly two-seater
The first sports car with a TVR engine - former TVR products had engines from MG, Rover, Triumph or Ford

The prototype was unveiled at the Birmingham Motor Show in 1994.

The motors

Before edition of Cerbera TVR had purchased V8 engines from Rover and then tuned for their own purposes. When Rover was bought by BMW, Peter Wheeler wanted to risk any problems in the event that the Germans would stop the production of this engine. Therefore, he instructed race engineer Al Melling with the construction of a V8 engine that TVR was made ourselves and possibly other automakers could even offer to purchase. In an interview on the BBC program Top Gear Wheeler said: " We originally designed the engine as a racing engine. At that time it was my idea that we, when we were looking to expand, needed something that we could sell to other people. So we finally arrived at a 75 ° V8 engine with a flat crankshaft ( "flat plane" ). The base engine is exactly what one sees today in a Formula 1 engine. "

Wheeler is quoted statement from the time of presentation of this car, that the combination of low weight and high engine power was too much for a road vehicle, an assessment that secured him a lot of free publicity in the press. Enthusiasts are still arguing about whether this to save a typical example of Wheeler's legendary freedom of movement or just a typical example of the idea of PR Chairman Ben Samuelson advertising costs by he launched a story.

The result was Speed Eight ( official name: AJP8, by Al Melling, John Ravenscroft and Peter Wheeler ), called a 4.2 -liter V8 (265 kW) delivered 360 bhp. There was later a larger version of this engine with 4.5 liter displacement and an output of 420 bhp (309 kW). This larger version was also provided with a crankshaft of steel, which turned more stable and reliable. The smaller engine helped the Cerbera is still a top speed of 296 km / h

The AJP8 has one of the largest liters performance of a V8 naturally aspirated engine in the entire automotive world, 83.3 bhp / liter than 4.2 liter V8 and 93.3 bhp / liter 4.5 liter V8. Later models of the 4.5 -liter engine was available in Red Rose specification, the 440 bhp (324 kW ) increased the power, corresponding to a specific power output of 97.7 bhp / liter. Requirement was to supply the engine with unleaded premium gasoline and the operation of a non-designated button on the dashboard by the driver, who stopped the engine characteristics accordingly.

In some cases, V8 engines rendered (especially 4.5 l) is less than actually provided by TVR. Some of them have been modified in some way (ECU, intake, exhaust system ) to approximate the actual power output of the specified factory again.

A special attraction exercised the V8 Cerberas property to many buyers out to produce loud misfire, usually, if you took away the gas, and in some cases even at low speeds. This property was a point of discussion in the works between the management and the engine developers. The engineers wanted to set the motors so that the misfires were avoided in order to reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions, while the management insisted that the misfires were exactly what the customers wanted. At the end, they agreed on a compromise, in which only the 4.5 liter engine retained its aggressive stance.

The engine also is very compact for a V8. According to the TVR turnkey engine weighs only 121 kg.

After Peter Wheeler had seen the success of the Speed Eight engine, he also construct a Speed Six engine as a supplement. This engine also was first used in Cerbera. Unlike the Speed Eight of the Speed Six is a six-cylinder with 4.0 liter displacement. It differs from the V8 also by its four valves per cylinder.

The car

The car was designed from the outset as a four-seater. The rear seat is smaller than the front seat, which is usually referred to as 2 2. However, the interior of which is designed so that the passenger seat can be pushed further forward than the driver's seat. This gives the rear seat passenger, who sits behind the passenger more leg room than the one who sits behind the driver. TVR calls it 3 1 design.

TVR maintained the tradition of building cars that were not only very strong but also very light. Their size and their performance The weight of the Cerbera is specified from the factory with 1100 kg, but the customers feel that the actual weight is between 1060 kg and 1200 kg.

The dashboard was designed specially for the Cerbera and has, unlike the other equipped with a three-spoke steering wheel sister models, a two-spoke steering wheel. The reason for this is that the smaller instruments are installed in a small bracket under the steering wheel, and a third spoke would make it difficult to read.

Like all TVR of Peter Wheeler era also has the Cerbera a long pedal travel of the accelerator pedal to compensate for the lack of an electronic traction control, and a very direct steering. The cars with V8 engines have two full turns of the wheel from left turn to right impact, the Speed Six cars, 2.4 turns. This makes it easy for experienced drivers often easier to maintain or regain control of the vehicle when it has broken out, but some less experienced handlebar complain that this makes the car more nervous because it more responsive to steering movements, as you ask for the otherwise would.

2000 TVR slightly changed the design of the cars by the headlights where the Tuscan similarly designed. This facelift was available for all three engines. In addition, equipped with 4.5 liter engine cars were offered at the request of a weight reduction program, which made a total of 40 kg lighter. This was achieved by lighter body panels and a slightly revised interior.

The reliability has always been a problem with the Cerbera, as well as with some other modern TVR. The mechanical components were, as we hear from owners, less of a problem than the electric, but that was not the less annoying. Nevertheless, the immense performance of the car usually dominated newspaper headlines. After an enthusiastic review in the BBC program ' Top Gear '' and a few newspaper articles that described the vehicle as a "Porsche killer" increased his popularity ( and notoriety ).

The last Cerbera

In August 2006, TVR auctioned on the Internet, what has been called " the last Cerbera " announced. According to a specially created website, the new TVR owner Nikolay Smolensky was at one single car in the series already set as a tribute build " the beautiful, yet brutal, last British sports car ". The "last Cerbera " was RHD 4.5 liter Lightweight copy in pepper white with Prussian blue interior. The auction did not reach the reserve price, but TVR decided yet for sale to those who had the highest bid. The highest bid was £ 45,000 - what still 5 % buyers premium and VAT of 17.5% were calculated.

Data

4.2 l model

Engine Type: SOHC V8
Power: 265 kW (360 hp )
Torque: 434 Nm at 4500 min-1
Red Speed range: from 7000 min-1
Acceleration 0-100 km / h: 4.2 s
Quarter mile: 12.4 s
Maximum speed: 296 km / h

4.5 -liter model

Engine Type: SOHC V8
Power: 309 kW (420 hp)
Torque: 515 Nm at 4500 min-1
Red Speed range: from 7000 min-1
Acceleration 0-100 km / h: 3.9 s
Quarter mile: 12.4 s
Maximum speed: 312 km / h

787393