WOLF IN WOLF'S CLOTHING

Make no mistake, the TVR Chimaera isn't a soft option, says Alex Wolstenholme

- Alex Wolstenholme

Sometimes seemingly more like a gentleman's Jaguar than a hand-built Blackpudlian cut-throat, the Chimaera has occasionally been accused of being the 'soft' option of TVR ownership. But don't let a boot big enough to take two golf bags and a theatrical leather interior fool you: this is still a machine that packs both bark and bite.

While the Griffith, and especially the 500 version, may have ended up as TVR's most famous creation (thanks in no small part to stardom in PlayStation's Gran Turismo series), it was actually the Chimaera that was its most successful, selling more than twice as many units as the Griffith. Indeed, it introduced to the marque customers who would never have previously considered a TVR.

What's more, the Chimaera shouldn't be avoided because of TVR's reputation for unreliability. True, this is no Honda Jazz, but a well-cared-for example really can be a dependable proposition. In fact, of the 5000 TVRs left on our roads, almost 2000 of them are Chimaeras.

Interestingly, an old story goes that ex-TVR boss Peter Wheeler's German Pointer, Ned, is often credited for assisting with the design of the Chimaera. As Wheeler was quoted at the time: "Yes, he was charging about as usual and took a bite out of the polystyrene model we had on the table." Allegedly, this creative input was subsequently incorporated into the design of the indicator recesses.

All Chimaeras used some form of the aluminium Rover V8 (which was agreed to be much more reliable than TVR's in-house designs) in various states of tune. The entry-level 4.0-litre was available right through the 13-year production run (1991 to 2003). Initially, a 280bhp 4.3-litre was the option, before being replaced in 1994 by a 275bhp 4.0-litre high-compression version.