Photo: The Market by Bonhams
Remember TVR? The British automaker from Whiteley presented a new sports car in 2017, but to this day, not a single example of the Cosworth V8-powered Griffith has been delivered due to a chronic money problem.
Previously based in Blackpool, the iconic marque named the Griffith this way after the man who came very close to beating Carroll Shelby at his own game. Jack Griffith, born in 1926, returned to Long Island after serving in World War II. Initially a car salesman at a Kaiser-Frazer dealer, he eventually opened a dealership of his own in Hicksville, Nassau County.
To make a long story short, he and TVR U.S. importer Dick Monnich came up with the idea of shoehorning a Ford engine in the Grantura. A different account of the genesis story involves a Shelby Cobra engine dropped into Monnich’s Grantura as a prank masterminded by Griffith’s dealer techs.
Regardless of how it happened, the conversion from an MG-sourced four to a Ford-developed V8 attracted the attention of the suits in Dearborn. With an engine agreement in hand, Griffith negotiated a different agreement with TVR to create the Griffith Series 200 in the early 1960s. Most examples fitted with the 4.7-liter 289, yet chassis number 002 had the 4.2-liter 260.
In other words, the Griffith 200 made anything between 196 and 271 horsepower. Extremely light, very hard to control due to the short wheelbase, and thoroughly rare because only 192 units were assembled in Syosset, the Griffith 200 was replaced by the even rarer Griffith 400. An even more extreme Griffith 600 followed, of which ten-ish were made.
Fast forward to the 1980s, and that’s when TVR began the development of a brand-new car that would be named Griffith. Confused? Well, that’s how boutique automakers like to roll. The second coming was offered between 1991 and 1992 in limited numbers, and as opposed to the original, all came with Rover V8 lumps and Lucas Industries 14CUX engine management.
Chassis number SDLDGC5P4RM011143 is a 1994 model in tip-top condition. It also boasts an interesting history considering that the current owner landed a job with McLaren when Gordon Murray was designing the F1.
Pictured on seven-spoke alloys mounted with Toyo Proxes rubber boots, the green-painted thriller is rocking upside-down Vauxhall Cavalier taillights. Further gifted with a tan-and-green interior and a Personal steering wheel, the Griffith 500 offered on The Market by Bonhams is fitted with a 5.0-liter V8 that makes approximately 340 ponies and 475 Nm (350 pound-feet).
Capable of hitting 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour) in 4.1 seconds, the lightweight bruiser is currently going for £11,500 or $14,200 at current exchange rates. The reserve hasn’t been met, with Bonhams estimating a hammer price of between £22,000 and £32,000 ($27,150 and $39,500).
To make a long story short, he and TVR U.S. importer Dick Monnich came up with the idea of shoehorning a Ford engine in the Grantura. A different account of the genesis story involves a Shelby Cobra engine dropped into Monnich’s Grantura as a prank masterminded by Griffith’s dealer techs.
Regardless of how it happened, the conversion from an MG-sourced four to a Ford-developed V8 attracted the attention of the suits in Dearborn. With an engine agreement in hand, Griffith negotiated a different agreement with TVR to create the Griffith Series 200 in the early 1960s. Most examples fitted with the 4.7-liter 289, yet chassis number 002 had the 4.2-liter 260.
In other words, the Griffith 200 made anything between 196 and 271 horsepower. Extremely light, very hard to control due to the short wheelbase, and thoroughly rare because only 192 units were assembled in Syosset, the Griffith 200 was replaced by the even rarer Griffith 400. An even more extreme Griffith 600 followed, of which ten-ish were made.
Fast forward to the 1980s, and that’s when TVR began the development of a brand-new car that would be named Griffith. Confused? Well, that’s how boutique automakers like to roll. The second coming was offered between 1991 and 1992 in limited numbers, and as opposed to the original, all came with Rover V8 lumps and Lucas Industries 14CUX engine management.
Chassis number SDLDGC5P4RM011143 is a 1994 model in tip-top condition. It also boasts an interesting history considering that the current owner landed a job with McLaren when Gordon Murray was designing the F1.
Pictured on seven-spoke alloys mounted with Toyo Proxes rubber boots, the green-painted thriller is rocking upside-down Vauxhall Cavalier taillights. Further gifted with a tan-and-green interior and a Personal steering wheel, the Griffith 500 offered on The Market by Bonhams is fitted with a 5.0-liter V8 that makes approximately 340 ponies and 475 Nm (350 pound-feet).
Capable of hitting 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour) in 4.1 seconds, the lightweight bruiser is currently going for £11,500 or $14,200 at current exchange rates. The reserve hasn’t been met, with Bonhams estimating a hammer price of between £22,000 and £32,000 ($27,150 and $39,500).
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