A long time ago, in the 1940s in the UK, a boy named Trevor Wilkinson dropped out of school and took up an engineering apprenticeship at a local service center to fulfill his childhood dream. He tinkered with various cars and trucks and began doing engineering work under the name Trevcar Motors.

Trevcar Motors was eventually renamed TVR Engineering. Together with a group of friends, Wilkinson assembled one-off roadsters and sports cars made with whatever he could find nearby, resulting in some pretty successful race cars, which, like these cars, eventually trickled down into road cars. Even though the beginnings were mostly humble, TVR Engineering evolved into one of the coolest sports car manufacturers of all time.

11 Grantura

TVR Grantura
wikipedia.org

Built upon the chassis that underpinned the TVR One, Two, and Three that preceded it, the Grantura was TVR's first proper sports car, even though not many people remember it. It was available with a variety of powertrains from Ford and Rover, and it was as tiny as a Japanese kei car.

The rear of the Grantura
carzy.net

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It wasn't especially fast, with the most powerful Grantura 1800 S producing a modest 96 hp. But, due to how lightweight and small it was, it was pretty chuckable and fun to drive, which earned it a handful of racing accolades. It was also filled with idiosyncratic problems, especially to do with ingress and egress; open the elfin front door, and you're greeted by a 17" steering wheel. That combination wasn't exactly kind to the driver's legs.

10 Griffith 200 & 400

The front of a blue, race-tuned Griffith 200
mecum

In 1964, American mechanic Jack Griffith got the idea for this car. Believe it or not, the idea came about while Griffith was having dinner with a certain Carroll Shelby, with Griffith proclaiming that he could build a car that outperformed the Shelby Cobra.

The rear of a blue, race-tuned Griffith 200
mecum

With the rights to market it as the TVR Griffith in North America in one hand and a bunch of Mk3 Grantura shells in the other, Griffith toiled away with making Ford's 289 V8, an engine that found its way in another British sports car, fit under the hood. Sometimes he resorted to quite literally hammering away parts of the chassis until it slotted in, Jeremy Clarkson style. Jack named the resulting car after himself, and this is where a certain TVR theme's foundations were laid; insanity. While the brakes and suspension from the Grantura remained, the 270 hp Griffith took 3.9 seconds to get to 60 mph. In 1964.

9 The M Series, Taimar & Vixen

A red 3000M on the move
wikipedia.org

Unfortunately, after the Griffith, a big downhill slope started for the TVR brand. Jack Griffith's financial difficulties with Ford and the dock strike meant Griffith production had to stop, combined with a whole host of reliability complaints from customers, TVR went into liquidation in November 1964. But that wasn't the end of it.

A few months later, in 1965, Arthur Lilley purchased TVR's remaining assets, setting up a brand new TVR Engineering, Ltd. in the process. They then started work on some new TVR sports cars, including the Grantura-based Vixen, and the surprisingly good-looking 3000M and Taimar. They were all basically the same, but things were looking up for TVR, opening a new factory and expanding into Europe as well.

8 The Wedge Series

The front of a blue Tasmin
wikipedia.org

During the 1970s, TVR decided it was high time to move away from the Granturas, Griffiths, and Vixens, and introduce a brand new, totally different sports car. They also made sure that it would be easier and cheaper to produce, and it would comply with emissions regulations.

The rear of a blue Tasmin convertible
via wikipedia.org

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Their failure to make the M Series comply with regulations lead them to a loss of around $138,000, or about half a million in today's money, but they still pushed on. The fruit of this labor was the Tasmin, the first car in what would eventually become known as the Wedge Series. Although the Tasmin did receive a handful of good reviews, it was very expensive and coupled with the UK recession at the time, TVR waved the white flag again. The keys to the company were handed to Peter Wheeler.

7 The S Series

The V8 S fishtailing
autocar.co.uk

After TVR was sold to Peter Wheeler, a businessman and loyal TVR customer, big changes started to come afoot. The first thing Wheeler did was to introduce TVR's sports cars to one of the most legendary engines of all time; the Rover V8.

A red V8 S, lights on
favcars.com

The Rover V8 found its first home in the S series, specifically in the model rather aptly dubbed the V8 S. Reception was overwhelmingly positive; the car made such a huge splash in 1986, it had to be put into production within a year or so. As soon as the S Series launched, the future for TVR finally started to look brighter.

6 Chimaera & Griffith

When the 1990s rolled around, TVR, still under the ownership of Peter Wheeler, started putting together some brand-new models, and slowly re-introducing the groundbreaking elements that made their older models so great.

An original Griffith in yellow
wirewheel.com

The Griffith and the larger Chimaera were both introduced in the early 90s, and they were the second generation of TVR models to use the Rover V8. In both of them, the engine started at 4.0 liters and went all the way up to 5.0. Like all other TVRs, they were also featherweights, and they were amazing fun to drive. They're surprisingly cheap on the used market too, and they're old enough to be imported to the United States.

5 Cerbera

The front of the Cerbera
gasoline.life

In 1996, TVR came out with a totally different model, unlike anything we had seen before. The Cerbera was the first TVR with a 2+2 seating layout, and the first to (finally) use TVR's own in-house engines, most notably the AJP V8.

The rear of the Cerbera
netcarshow.com

Due to its lightweight body in conjunction with the massively powerful engines, the Cerbera had some borderline terrifying performance stats, even by today's standards. The Cerbera also formed the basis for what is possibly the most bonkers race car ever conceived by any automotive company; the ill-fated Speed 12.

4 Tamora & 350 Family

The front of the Tamora
shmooautomotive.co.uk

In 2002, TVR introduced two brand-new models, designed as entry points for the brand. Trouble is, they were both basically the same. The Tamora, which can be found for good prices used, was a full-on convertible, billed as a TVR you can daily, though it still had no driver aids or safety equipment. Reliability issues meant that it was a flop, with only 350 being made across five model years.

The T350T on the move
autoexpress.co.uk

The T350 twins, meanwhile, were billed as more serious versions. The C was a coupe, and the T was a targa-top convertible. They both used the same 3.6-liter version of TVR's Speed Six engine, and they were surprisingly good to drive. Sadly, they were flops too, with only 460 produced across the same five model year run as the Tamora.

3 Typhon & Tuscan

The front of the only customer-delivered Typhon
wikipedia.org

In 2004, a young Russian business magnate named Nikolay Smolensky bought the TVR brand from Peter Wheeler, though he promised to retain the TVR ethos for years to come. TVR's next project involved turning the race version of the Tuscan into a road car, resulting in the T440R, later called the Typhon.

The rear of the TVR Tuscan on the move
autocar.co.uk

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Unfortunately, TVR way underestimated the production costs for the Typhon, resulting in a total Typhon production run of three units. The Tuscan, meanwhile, is possibly the most successful and most recognizable TVR of all time. It was very fast and very head-turning, but it was also a total reliability, handling, and ergonomics disaster.

2 Sagaris & Smolensky Ownership

A TVR Sagaris in a chameleon color
imgur.com

Arriving in 2005, the Sagaris was the first TVR to be built under Smolensky's leadership, which was evident in its name. It's arguably the most overstyled TVR in the brand's history, and we love it for that. It was built for only two model years, and only 211 were produced.

The rear of a gray Sagaris
shmooautomotive.co.uk

The Sagaris also used the Speed Six 4.0-liter I6 as most of its stablemates at the time, but amazingly enough, it was praised for its surprisingly good handling. It was still pretty scary to drive, and there were still no safety systems of any kind, but it was a blast to drive on the track.

1 The New Griffith & Beyond

The front of the new Griffith
carscoops.com

After the Sagaris went out of production, TVR's story was just a bit bizarre. Smolensky separated the brand into various different companies, stepped down but then reinstated himself as CEO in 2007, and eventually sold off all the assets.

The rear of the new Griffith
carmagazine.co.uk

But things are looking up. The assets were sold to what is now known as TVR Automotive, Ltd. in the UK. They first started with an official spare parts line, but then proceeded to drop a bombshell in 2018 with the reveal of the first brand new TVR in over a decade; the new Griffith. Not only does it look fantastic, but it should also be great to drive, and thanks to the Coyote 5.0 liter V8 from the Mustang, it should be significantly more reliable than old TVR models.

NEXT: The Weirdest British Sports Cars You've Never Heard Of