The story
Peter Wheeler, a chemical engineer who bought TVR in 1981, wanted the Griffith to prove that his small Blackpool company could build something beautiful, and the car shown at the 1990 British Motor Show did exactly that. Its smooth body has no door handles, no creases and headlights tucked under clear covers, a face that emerged when an engineer cut the front off a foam model. Beneath it is a tubular steel chassis from TVR's Tuscan race car and an aluminum V8 that began life as a Buick, enlarged to 5.0 liters in the Griffith 500 for a claimed 340 hp and 4.1 seconds to 60 mph.
There is no ABS, no traction control and no stability system, so every reaction comes straight from the driver's inputs, unfiltered and uncaught. Turn-in is eager to the point of nervousness, lifting off mid-corner unsettles the rear, and wet roads call for respect. The cabin is low and snug, fitted with bespoke aluminum switches and TVR's own dials. About 2,600 were built by 2002, and their success set up the TVR boom that followed. None was ever sold new in America, so each one there arrived as a private import.
