Tunnel fun in a TVR Cerbera

Pops and bangs in a 4.5 TVR Cerbera.

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• TVR
• Cerbera
• Tunnel

[Dime2oo7]

That is the tyne tunnel lol

[davetherave1970]

@Dime2oo7

Stop making trouble :D hehe

DARTFORD!!!!!!

[grenadierguard3]

thats the tyne tunnel in the north east of england.

[davetherave1970]

@grenadierguard3

Nope. Dartford tunnel Kent to Essex.

[PijnigeR]

Maybe it's the quality of the video. But it almost sounds like a Speed Six.

[davetherave1970]

It really is a AJP 4.5

Maybe because it's in the tunnel and the video quality of course :)

[MrSkeff]

That car's got soul- that noise! Wow!

[strandvaskeren]

It's like those nature shows, every bird stops chirping, ever monkey stops creaming, everything is engulfed in this eerie silence while the panther walks by.. Everyone in that tunnel knows a predator is on the lose, everyone tries their best to be invisible, because the God of Thunder is lurking in there.. What a fabulous car!

[737speedster]

Cerberas make you best friends with the horizon in about 10 seconds

[tvrcyprus]

Lovely sound. Great engine. Yet another brilliant flat-plane crank v8-just like ferrari and maserati STILL use to this day in their high-reving v8's.

[scaryGTM]

@inca10 Solid engineering is still at the heart of the engine, and respect where it's due for that; it's just not my kind of V8, even if the characteristic yields higher revs. I was disappointed in TVR at the time. Nowadays the LS7 has the capacity for high revs and it retains a regular profile crank.... but again we're talking about contemporary vs 15 years ago.

[scaryGTM]

@inca10 Yea, I'd heard that, and any company looking to the future has to develop their own engine, even if Rover were hinting at discontinuing their Buick design. The AJP looked great on paper and you can't fault Melling's engineering or the 'AJP team' as a whole. It was designed to be a high-revving engine and that was the point to it's flat-plane crank; for me TVR just lost their soul at that point - the British 'Bulldog' sound that other British V8-developers were also known for was gone...

[inca10]

@scaryGTM Peter Wheeler needed an additional revenue stream to grow the company...paying for engines wasn't a good business plan for growth...plus rover had been looking to phase out production of their V8 even back then...so Al Melling, John Ravenscroft and Peter Wheeler designed the AJP (first initial of first names). In the main the engine is very solid...my own Cerb has done 96,000miles and no rebuild...so the unit can be a proper engine if treated correctly.

[scaryGTM]

@inca10 I guess an LS in a Cerbera is good for reliability, but I've never been a fan of swapping-out different engines. Flat-plane crank or not the AJP belongs in that car so I agree with you to a point. I guess I just wish that TVR hadn't upset the cart by departing from an element which had almost become a brand trademark to me. I even liked the wedges and their gruff V8 sound... the Griffith continued it, and then with the Cerbera the 'trademark' was gone. To me, it was like "what the hell?"

[inca10]

@scaryGTM The AJP sounds like a metal bucket of nuts and bolts being thrown down a flight of stairs until it gets warmed up properly....and many owners simply didn't bother and ruined them. Poor design or poor ownership? We'll never know the answer. But there are a handful of Cerbs with an LS engine fitted, I think there's a vid of one on here...but it just doesnt fit with my view of how it should sound. Like a bacon/egg sandwich with mayo not brown sauce....just not quite right!!

[scaryGTM]

@inca10 I'm genuinely glad you like the sound; it's all about having fun. The design of any engine isn't sacred, but the traditional V8 almost has a religious following, and we all know how defiant people can be about their religion! Have fun.

[scaryGTM]

@inca10 It's a fair point; the engines are from different times. I believe the AJP was an achievement - and you're right about power:displacement, I'm just remain passionate about the traditional sound of a V8. It may sound crazy to you but I loved the Griffith and couldn't wait for the Cerbera when they announced it.... then I heard it and felt robbed..... sorry, but that's the way I felt. I wanted Cerbera looks but Griffith sound. It remains a potent, historic achievement nonetheless.

[inca10]

@scaryGTM and that opinion is the there are enough standard V8's in the world for you to be more than happy blasting through a tunnel in....I do not agree that a Cerbera would sound better with a Yankee V8 replacing the AJP. The AJP is the soul of that car, no other engine would suit the car as well...including TVR's own Speed 6.