Being successful in the car manufacturing industry isn’t always easy. The demand for innovation puts a lot of pressure on designers and some brands aren’t able to adapt in the end. Other manufacturers like TVR are able to persevere. 2017 has seen the British manufacturer return to form with the brand new TVR Griffith, unveiled at the Goodwood Revival on the 8th September.
The Griffith features an impressive 5.0-litre quad-cam V8 that’s usually found in a Ford Mustang. The engine has been overhauled by engineering house Cosworth, giving it a 50/50 weight distribution. The car also sports a custom lightweight flywheel and clutch. Capable of reaching 0 – 100 mph in six seconds, the Griffith is a true supercar.
The release of the Griffith coincides with TVR’s 70th anniversary, and to celebrate, we take a look back at the company’s golden years.
Early success
The company was founded by Trevor Wilkinson, who started an engineering business called Trevcar Motors in Blackpool. In 1947, local car enthusiast Jack Pickard joined the company and it was eventually renamed TVR Engineering. The company built its first chassis in 1949, using a live axle from a Morris Eight. The car was built from aluminium and had a successful test drive at Squires Gate aerodrome.
This inspired Wilkinson and Pickard to keep going and they created the TVR Sports Saloon in 1953. TVR soon established itself as a chassis manufacturer that met customer specifications and the exposure of the Sports Saloon in races led to people asking about other body styles.
1955 saw the arrival of another motor enthusiast, Bernard William, who became the director at TVR. Wilkinson was happy with the decision because he was more interested in engineering the cars. He and Pickard created the TVR Open Sports in 1956, which proved to be another success.
Collapse and Revival
In 1963, TVR started work on a prototype Griffith by swapping a Ford 289 V8 into a Grantura Mk3. During this period, Major Timothy Knott was hired as the managing director, but his military background and strict rules alienated factory workers. More problems occurred during an American dock strike in 1964 and TVR’s US importer, Jack Griffith was unable to meet his financial obligation to Ford.
These events caused TVR to shut down their Hoo Hill factory in 1964. From this point on, TVR went through a handful of management changes. In 2013, Russian entrepreneur Nikolay Smolensky sold the company to TVR Automotive Ltd. This laid the groundwork for the Griffith to be made
TVR is an example of a company that can reinvent itself in the modern day. The Griffith is a gorgeous car and we can’t wait to see what TVR come up next
