24-615: The TVR Speed Eight is a naturally-aspirated V8 car engine designed by Alwyn Melling of the design consultancy MCD, and manufactured for road legal cars production (TVR introduced the Cerbera at the 1993 London Motor Show), from 1996 to 2003. The engine was intended to power the TVR Griffith and the TVR Chimaera , but delays in its production meant that it powered only the TVR Cerbera and, from
48-500: A 50:50 weight distribution achieved through the Griffith's architecture of aluminium and carbon fibre components, which improves handling. Design elements, such as large front air intakes, front splitter, active spoiler and rear integrated diffuser help in increasing aero dynamics. The car's interior follows the driving focused theme as well. Air conditioning, leather interior trim, and multimedia system come as standard as well. The Griffith
72-516: A further option of big-valve cylinder heads. In 1993, with a TVR-developed 5.0 L 340 hp (254 kW; 345 PS) version of the Rover V8 became available. All versions of the Griffith use the Lucas Industries 14CUX engine management system. All models use a five-speed manual transmission from Rover and TREMEC . Although the Griffith was almost mechanically identical to its sister car,
96-645: A high specific output for a normally aspirated engine at the time, with 83.3 bhp/L for the 4.2L, 93.3 bhp/L for the 4.5L, and 97.7 bhp/L for the Red Rose-specification 4.5L engine. Another notable aspect is the weight of the engine, which is 121 kg (267 lb) dry. TVR Griffith The TVR Griffith , later models being referred to as the Griffith 500 , is a sports car designed and built by TVR , starting production in 1990, and ending production in 2002. The Griffith name appeared again on
120-520: A numbered plaque in the glove box including the build number and a Special Edition Badge on its boot. All cars also had a unique signature in the boot under the carpet. The SEs were built between 2000 and 2002, with the last registered in 2003. Every year, to celebrate the TVR Griffith, their owners have a meet called "The Griff Growl." In 2008, Al Melling Sports Cars unveiled the Melling Wildcat ,
144-1145: A roadster heavily based on the Griffith but powered by a variant of TVR's later AJP8 engine. Engine Name: Rover alloy V8 Valvetrain setup: 2 valves per cylinder, Overhead Valve Transmission Transmission: 5-speed manual (Rover LT77 or Tremec T5 ) Suspension Front: Independent , double wishbones, coil-over gas dampers, sway bars Rear: Independent, double wishbones, coil-over gas dampers, sway bars Brakes Front: 260 mm (10.2 in) ventilated disc brakes Rear: 260 mm (10.2 in) ventilated disc brakes Wheels Front: 15 in aluminium alloy Rear: 16 in aluminium alloy Chassis/body Body Panels: Glass fibre Fuel Capacity: 57 Litres (12.5 Imp. gallons , 15.0 U.S. gal ) Weight: 1,060 kg (2,336 lb) (dry) Length: 3,891 mm (153.2 in) Height: 1,204 mm (47.4 in) Width: 1,720 mm (67.7 in) Wheelbase: 2,286 mm (90.0 in) Front track: 1,461 mm (57.5 in) Rear track: 1,471 mm (57.9 in) Ground clearance: 145 mm (5.7 in) On 8 September 2017, to coincide with
168-566: A sports car introduced under a revived TVR brand in 2017. The TVR Griffith 200 was produced from 1963 to 1964 and the TVR Griffith 400 from 1964 to 1967. Like its forerunner namesakes, the Griffith 200 and Griffith 400 , the modern Griffith was a lightweight (1,060 kg (2,337 lb)) fiberglass -bodied, 2-door, 2-seat sports car with a V8 engine . Originally, it used a 4.0 L 240 hp (179 kW; 243 PS) Rover V8 engine, but that could be optionally increased to 4.3 L 280 hp (209 kW; 284 PS) in 1992 with
192-452: A top speed in excess of 322 km/h (200 mph). The new Griffith retains the manual transmission as used in the previous TVR models, to keep the driving experience, but includes ABS , power steering , and traction control as standard, in order to handle the high power output and keep the car stable at high speeds. The extensive use of carbon fibre helps save weight, and as a result, it weighs less than 1,250 kg (2,756 lb), with
216-557: The Blackpool B340 . This car was featured in Gran Turismo , Gran Turismo 2 (in the former as the Griffith 4.0 in the NTSC and PAL versions) and Driving Emotion Type-S . The car was similar to a normal Griffith 500 with some bespoke options available. The Japanese market also got a B275 4.0 engined car with aluminium basketweave dashboard. In 2000, TVR announced that the Griffith production
240-509: The Chimaera , it had a different body design and was produced in much smaller numbers. The Griffith was a lightweight, high-power, and well-balanced car. A low-cost speed six Griffith proposal never became a production reality; by the time it was launched alongside the Griffith in 1999, it had morphed into the Tuscan Speed Six . A special edition Japanese market Griffith 500 was made dubbed
264-401: The dashboard , and the spoilers on the S model plus some minor changes to the chassis to improve the handling. At the same time, a new variant a full soft top was introduced alongside the original targa version. These test results were achieved in a post-2003 Tuscan S without traction-control or anti-lock brakes . TVR's design philosophy holds that such features do not improve either
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#1732876193038288-457: The naturally aspirated 4.0 L Speed Six fuel fed by multipoint fuel injection making different amounts of power and torque, depending on the trim level selected. The last was a 3.6 L Speed Six which produced the same amount of power as the lowest-level 4.0 L engine, although slightly less torque. Even though there have been numerous tweaks to the Tuscan's chassis and suspension,
312-467: The 1990 year, as strong performance and reliability testing development up to production, the TVR Tuscan Challenge race car in 4.5 litres version. It was first engine offered by TVR that was both designed and built in-house. The reason behind the engine's development and production was that Rover , after previous announcements, was bought by BMW in 1994, and Peter Wheeler , the owner of TVR at
336-635: The Cerbera Road car: one, displacing 4.2L and producing 360 bhp (270 kW; 360 PS), and the other displacing 4.5L and producing 420 bhp (310 kW; 430 PS). A Red Rose conversion was made available that increased output to 440 bhp (330 kW; 450 PS) when using fuel with a minimum octane rating of 97 RON. The Red Rose upgrade included reshaped intake and exhaust ports, higher compression, and an ECU that can be switched between two sets of fueling and ignition maps (for 95 RON and 97 RON fuel, respectively). The Speed Eight engine had
360-456: The car easier to drive on public roads. The base models were detuned to 350 hp (355 PS) and 393 N⋅m (290 lb⋅ft) while still retaining the basic weight figure of 1,100 kg (2,425 lb). The interior was also refreshed and featured a more conventional and ergonomic layout. Production lasted until the closure of TVR in 2006. Five different inline-six engine options were offered to customers. Four of these were variants of
384-553: The marque's 70th anniversary year at the Goodwood Revival , a new Griffith was revealed under the now resurrected TVR marque, featuring design work by Gordon Murray . It features a Cosworth modified Ford Coyote 5.0-litre V8 engine producing 500 bhp (507 PS; 373 kW), double wishbone suspension with adjustable coilover dampers, a carbon fibre ground effect chassis. It can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph (97 km/h) in approximately 4 seconds, and can achieve
408-409: The overall size and appearance of the variants remain virtually identical apart from minor aerodynamic aids to the S model in the form of an undertray in the front and a small boot-lid spoiler on the rear. In October 2005 the "Mk 2" version of the Tuscan was introduced, though in reality this was just a minor facelift. The modifications were restricted to cosmetic changes to the front and rear lights,
432-516: The time, feared that BMW would drop the Rover V8 engine used in TVRs since the early 80's. Wheeler contracted Al Melling to design a brand-new V8 engine to power the TVR Cerbera that TVR could also sell to other car manufacturers. TVR ceased manufacturing the design when the Cerbera was discontinued in 2003. The engine was developed by Melling, John Ravenscroft and Peter Wheeler. Its production code-name
456-419: The vehicle to stall. A new partnership between TVR and Ensorcia Automotive, has provided additional funds for development of the new Griffith. TVR Tuscan Speed Six The TVR Tuscan Speed Six is a sports car which was manufactured by British company TVR from 1999 to 2006. The name pays homage to the original Tuscan which was introduced in 1967. The Tuscan Speed Six was introduced in 1999 and
480-524: Was "AJP8" (A=Al, J=John, P=Peter); this naming convention was subsequently used for the Speed Six engine's "AJP6" code-name. The Speed Eight featured many aspects found in a racing engine, such as a flat plane crankshaft, a 75-degree angle between the cylinder banks, a SOHC arrangement operating two valves per cylinder, and sequential fuel injection. Two versions of the Speed Eight engine were offered by TVR on
504-668: Was available for media demonstration in 2000. The reason being then owner Peter Wheeler imposing a ban on press reviews of the car. Initially, the Tuscan Speed Six was fitted with the 4.0 litre version of the TVR Speed Six engine rated at 360 hp (365 PS) at 7,000 rpm and 420 N⋅m (310 lb⋅ft) of torque at 5,250 rpm. Later, a Red Rose pack option raised the power output to 380 hp (385 PS), bringing with it track-focused chassis upgrades as well as an AP Racing braking system. The high performance Tuscan S
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#1732876193038528-462: Was expected to start production in 2019, with an initial run of 500 Launch Edition (LE) cars and a price tag of £89,995. In November of 2021, EVO magazine reported that the new Griffith was yet to enter production and deliveries of completed vehicles were not expected until at least the end of 2023. EVO cited the COVID 19 pandemic, funding problems and damage to production facilities had caused development of
552-544: Was going to end. A limited edition run of 100 Special Edition (SE) cars were to be built to mark the end of production. Although still very similar to the previous Griffith 500 model, the SE had a hybrid interior using the Chimaera dashboard and Cerbera seats. Noticeably, the rear lights were different along with different door mirrors, higher powered headlights and clear indicator lenses. Some also came with 16-inch wheels. Each car came with
576-484: Was the top-of-the-line model rated at 390 hp (395 PS) and had aerodynamic improvements over the base models, most notably a rear lip spoiler to improve downforce. The Tuscan Speed Six underwent a facelift in 2005 and was now called the Tuscan 2. Exterior changes featured a redesigned front grille and headlamps along with more conventional taillamps. Mechanical changes involved revised spring rates, improved steering response and different suspension geometry to make
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