TVR is back on the road

By the end of the 1970s, inflation and exchange rates were pushing TVRs further upmarket, and Sagerman ended his association with TVR. Oliver Winterbottom, a former Lotus engineer, was brought in to work on what became the Tasmin, a wedge-shaped two-seat coupe and convertible.

The development of the Tasmin, which later became the 280i, dragged on, and by the time TVR introduced the car, the wedge styling fad was just about over and inflation had pushed the 280i into competition with cars that it could not match in either quality or performance. Consequently, the wedge cars, as the 280i series became known, were hard to sell at anywhere near their sticker price of about US$25,000.

Marshall Moore, president of the TVR Car Club of North America, remembered a Toyota-TVR dealership in Washington that had many unsold TVRs.

In 1987, TVR pulled out of the American market. Peter Wheeler, a chemical engineer who bought the company in 1981, vowed never to return.

Although the 280i was a pleasant sports car with great handling, prices have hardly appreciated. Hayes Harris, a classic car dealer and TVR expert in Vero Beach, Florida, said good examples were available for US$10,000 to US$12,000.

At a meeting in Florida in March, the new owners met with prospective American dealers. Marian Posdamer, a company spokeswoman, said that Santacreu told the dealers that the company planned to assemble a network among established exotic-car dealers in major markets. The new owners brought to the meeting a Sagaris, the last model introduced in the Smolenski era and the flagship of the revived company, wrapped in an American flag to underscore their intentions.

The Sagaris will never be mistaken for a cuddly Miata. It has a demonic face with hornlike curved headlights. It looks just right for a US$100,000 sports car that the company says is capable of 0-100kph acceleration in 3.6 seconds.

If the chat rooms and the blogosphere are any indication, some sports car buffs are eager to buy a TVR that performs like a new Viper or Corvette but looks even meaner.