RIDE-CT – Classic Cars Celebrating Classic Cars in Connecticut
BRISTOL, CT – Muscle cars were the powerful, high-profile, lusted-after models of the 1960s and coveted by teenagers of the era. Matt Strus of Bristol bought a 1968 Plymouth Road Runner as his first car when he was 16 years old, but he didn’t keep it long. He replaced it with a 1969 Triumph Spitfire sports car.
“In less than a year, I went through six tires, one clutch, I blew an oil line racing, and it kinda got to where ‘I can’t afford to keep this car,’” he recalled recently of the Road Runner, “so I sold that and bought a brand new Triumph Spitfire.”
That purchase cemented his affection for two-seat British convertibles. “Went in the Marine Corps and it cost me more in tolls to drive that car to the base in North Carolina than it did in gas,” he said.
Over the years, Strus has owned two Triumph TR6 models and an Austin-Healey Sprite, along with the Spitfire. His current British model is a 1986 TVR 280i that he got in March 2023 via an online classic car auction. It was being sold by a Lotus dealer in Canada.
“What I really wanted was a wedge. It was between a TR7, TR8 and then when I saw this come up, it’s a wedge. It’s reasonably priced. I just didn’t really realize how difficult it was going to be to get parts for it,” Strus said.
The TVR name comes from the first name of company co-founder Trevor Wilkinson. The company launched in 1946 and began building cars in 1949. A story this week on another TVR 280i that appears on the car website Jalopnik describes TVR as a “plucky car maker” that specialized in sports cars.
“Unless you’re really into British cars, most people don’t know what a TVR is; never heard of it.,” Strus said.
“TVR built all their own cars. It’s not a kit car. They built their own vehicles. They welded their own frames, laid their own fiberglass bodies. Then they went out and bought components from other shops, wherever they could get a deal on that’s what they used for that particular year.”
See the 1986 TVR 280i in action in this YouTube video…
—
The outsourcing of components and the lack of year-to-year consistency with parts does present TVR owners with a challenge when shopping for needed items. “A steering rack in the ’86 is not necessarily the same steering rack if you needed parts for an ’82, which makes it difficult,” Strus said. “I’ve run into one problem and I had that piece made.”
The TVR 280i, originally called the Tasmin, was introduced in 1980 and production lasted into 1987. Fewer than 1,200 were reportedly built; more than 800 of them were convertible versions. “Of that about half were imported to the U.S.,” he said.
Strus’s TVR is powered by a Ford Cologne V6 engine. It has a transmission and rear axle from Jaguar, while the steering rack comes from a Ford Cortina model. “Somebody told me one of the pieces in this car came out of a Bentley,” Strus added.
With pop-up headlights and wedge shape, the TVR 280i stands out among other sports cars. “This thing handles well. It’s got enough power. I can cruise all day at 70 miles an hour and the engine’s not working hard as opposed to some of the other old cars I’ve had. It’s a fun drive,” he said.
It’s also a bit more dependable than some of his other British models. “I had a bug-eye Sprite. I was afraid to bring it to British by the Sea (car show) down the shoreline there ’cause it’s too long a drive for the car. I was afraid it would overheat. A little four-cylinder. That car was a lot of fun to drive and a lot of fun to own, but now with the V6, it’s good, it’s fine.”
The 280i does have some shortcomings. For instance, there’s the interior. “It’s much easier to get in and out of than my previous cars but the seats are not as wide as you would think. Being a one-piece fiberglass body, the tunnel down the middle is unusually wide. Not that I’ve got a big butt, but when you close the door, you’re backed in there,” he said.
Unlike other classic car owners who vow to never part with their cherished possessions, Strus isn’t as committed to the TVR. “If I could buy a TR8, if I could get one right, I would sell this and take the loss, but the TR8s are getting to be pretty stupid money now. They’re really expensive.”
So, perhaps, he will keep it as a long-term driver. “The only thing that I would sell this for is a TR8. Otherwise, I’m happy with it. I’ll just keep on driving it and maybe someday it’ll be in my son’s garage.”
