Forgotten Classic: TVR --- Death Sled to Movie Star

British chemical engineer and car enthusiast Peter Wheeler bought a car from specialist maker TVR a few decades ago, and had some ideas about how to improve the car.  Instead of penning a letter to the design department, though, he bought the company in 1981.  Soon enough, he was implementing ideas to improve the performance and visual appeal of TVR's wedge-shaped, fiberglass-bodied roadsters and coupes.  At first, these were powered by the 2.8 liter Ford V6, but by 1983 TVR was offering a 3.5 liter version of Rover's aluminum V8. Still looking for more showroom appeal, Wheeler decided on curves and simple, undecorated contours to replace the wedge, and the Griffith, TVR's "New Beginning", caused a sensation when it appeared at the Birmingham Motor Show in September 1990.  Like the previous wedge-shaped Tasmin, the Griffith sent its power to independently-suspended rear wheels by way of a 5-speed gearbox.  Deft design touches include dropping the leading edge of the hood to form an air extractor, and recessing the door's leading edges to form a fender air exit.  Yeah, we know the Dodge Viper had this fender vent feature too, but TVR beat the Viper into production by 16 months.  That the car looks good without bumpers is fortunate, as none were offered.  Weight was just over 2,300 lb. (Series 1 Miata territory), and both 4.0 and 4.3 liter versions of Rover's V8 were offered, with 240 or 280 hp. Four disc brakes slowed it down, a good thing because the Griffith was fast.

The Griffith 500 above was introduced in 1993 and features left hand drive; not all Griffiths stayed in the Mother Country.  The 5 liter Rover was now making 340 hp, with the 0 to 60 run taking just over 4 seconds, and a top speed of around 170.  During the car's dozen years of production, nothing like traction control or anti-lock brakes was offered to go with the Griffith's civilized interior.  British fans nicknamed it the Death Sled.  While the Griffith was never offered in the US, German fans adopted it, perhaps because a fast drive down a winding road could offer even more drama than their beloved Carrera Turbos...

Because Americans never got the Griffith, most of them were unaware that Wheeler's design team had come up with a new TVR for 1999.  Except for those who subscribed to British car mags, their first exposure to the Tuscan Speed Six was likely this example, which appeared with John Travolta in the movie "Swordfish" in mid-2001.  Actually 2 examples of the slinky coupe in Reflex Green were employed in the over-the-top chase scene, their 4 liter, 24 valve inline sixes blaring loud evidence of 360 hp into the looming night...

Wait a minute, no more Rover V8?  TVR's engineering team apparently never got the memo from their accounting dept. about the financial ruin awaiting specialist car companies making their own engines.  So the new engine, in 4.0 and 4.2 liter sizes, provided up to 440 hp in various versions of the Speed Six.  Shifting was by a 5-speed manual.  As with the Griffith, there was no plan to offer anti-lock brakes or traction control, or to send the car Stateside.  Too bad, because lots of folks who saw the movie, even though they couldn't follow the plot, immediately wanted the car...

Design themes include the repeated circles in the recessed lighting fixtures (including the odd, low-mounted tail lights visible in the movie still) and the multiple small holes which serve as the air intake. As with the Griffith, sensual contours replace decoration, with the raised wave form of the hood repeated in the deck lid. The new car appeared as a coupe with removable roof panel in a series of eye-catching colors.  Again, there were no bumpers.  

While it's probably not all that hard to design a comical car (just look at today's computer-designed fright mask SUVs), it takes real talent and dedication to design one that radiates an ominous  aura of mystery.  The mystery begins with how to enter the thing (door buttons are hidden on the base of the door mirrors) and continues on the interior. The analog speedometer arcs over the digital tachometer, and a series of brass buttons caters to unannounced functions (OK, read the owner's manual), which include raising and lowering windows (hmm, those are somewhere on the transmission tunnel).  Overall, the interior scheme seemed like it might have been the result of a team of ex-Citroen engineers experimenting with psychedelic drugs. The car got lots of attention (how could it not?) at prices which, like the performance, paced Porsche's 911.  There were teething troubles with early examples of the engine, though, and warranty claims were added to the costs of a racing program and development of a Speed 12.  Peter Wheeler sold TVR in 2004 to the twenty-something son of a Russian oligarch, and died 5 years later.

The new management introduced the Tuscan Speed Six Mk. 2 in 2005. Improvements included more visible tail lights, plus revised spring rates and a detuned base engine to improve smoothness for those interested in using the car as daily transport. Sadly, more conventional covered headlights and interior controls, along with a unified air intake, replaced the science fiction theme of the originals, but weight stayed at 2,425 lb.  Not many of the 1,677 Tuscan Speed Sixes made were the Mk. 2 version, as the company went bankrupt in 2006, a reminder (like today's headlines) that oligarchs aren't always good at management.  Under different management, a revived TVR announced a new Griffith in 2018 designed by Gordon Murray (a fan of the 1990 car) and powered by a Cosworth-tuned Coyote V8, with an all-electric version to follow.  And while a prototype was shown, recent announcements indicate that only the electric version is planned for deliveries in 2024. This new TVR, like the predecessors of the Death Sled, is really another story, and we'll save both story lines for another day...

*Footnote: Cars from movies have been the focus of a bunch of posts; here are a few:

The Isotta Fraschini featured in "Sunset Boulevard":  "Forgotten Classic:  Isotta Fraschini: Sunset for a Dream" (Sept. 4, 2016).  

"Speeding Into Darkness:  The Cars of Film Noir"  (March 21, 2020).

"Stolen Cars and Stolen Kisses in Jean-Luc Godard's 'Breathless'." (Dec. 27, 2020).

"Steve McQueen's "Le Mans":  Star Vehicle Needs Roadside Assistance" (March 5, 2021).

"Epic Traffic Jam or the End of Civilization in Godard's 'Weekend'."  (Nov. 19, 2021).

"Cars and Trains and Planes:  Essential Movie Chase Scenes"  (Dec. 20, 2021)

Photo Credits:
Top:  Wikimedia

2nd:  classicdigest.com

3rd:  Wikimedia

4th & 5th:  youtube.com
6th & 7th:  Wikimedia

8th:  carandclassic.com
9th & 10th:  TVR Car Club