1961 TVR Grantura
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Time for our final ‘Vehicle of the Month’ story this year! We have found a true gem to share with you this December - a 1961 TVR Grantura Mk2a! A brilliantly told restoration journey by the vehicle’s owner, Peter - humorous and packed with images of car parts that you would have thought are never going to get sorted! … well, that was until Peter devoted himself into bringing his TVR Grantura back to life!
We have actually been lucky enough to see this TVR in all of its glory at the Classic Motor Show this November past. Peter’s a member of the TVR Car Club - one of our partnering car clubs. They had a wonderful display of motors - it was certainly one of the most noisiest and most impressive stands at the show this year!
Here's a short summary of Peter's car story...
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TVR Grantura 240WTD was first registered at the Lancashire records office on 23rd September 1961. It is believed to be the 61st Mk2a. The vehicle was bought from a previous owner comprehensively stripped and left for over 12 years, abandoned due to lack of funds. Even the engine was in pieces and completely dismantled. All parts were randomly stored in 20 boxes.
The renovation of the Grantura has been completed as a DIY Hobby build during retirement, completed using only a standard garage attached to the house. It took 5.5 years to complete assembly and restoration. In 2023 the Grantura was generously awarded The Trevor Wilkinson Trophy by the TVR club for most comprehensive renovation of a TVR in the previous 12 months. Subsequently the restoration and rebirth of 240WTD has also been featured in the August 2023 edition of Practical Classics magazine.
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Now, let's dive into the full restoration saga!...
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A classic car restorer business had stripped the Grantura in preparation for refurbishment and then left it abandoned for over 12 years as the owner could not afford the repayments. To them it was a vehicle that was uneconomic to repair and they were seeking to offload it.
Here are a few images of the vehicle as found…
Mixed Parts in 20 odd boxes. First job when I eventually got the parts home was to sort parts into groups. Brakes ,suspension, engine etc. No detailed workshop manuals but lots of help from fellow enthusiasts on the internet.
Sample of one of the parts box.
Major components
Interior parts
Son-in-law helped out in delivering Grantura jigsaw puzzle home. Don't think the wife was impressed…
As I only have a normal 7 foot 6 garage the body and chassis refurbishment was done on the front lawn on a pallets. Don't tell the wife about the Dyson !!
Chassis in remarkable condition with only surface rust. Preparation was first wire brush in a drill followed by kurust Rust , Por15 anti rust paint and then 2 coats of smooth Hammerite .
Neighbours thought I was starting a scrap yard!!
Floors had to be scraped to remove years of rubbish and remnants of old felt underlay.
Dirty business but it had to be done.
Bonnet cleaning and fiberglass repairs on the rear lawn.
Interior cleaned and painted with etch primer.
Underside cleaned and painted.
Body of to paint.
Finally the paint goes on.
While the body was off at the painters, other components were cleaned refurbished and painted.
Piston's assembled on the kitchen table, you can get away with murder while the soaps are on the telly.
The engine had only covered 32,000 miles but still needed a bit of machining. A local engine machine shop dressed the crank and carried out a 20 tho rebore. The cylinder head was also converted to run on unleaded petrol.
Really enjoyed putting the engine together, spent hours looking at parts catalogues to find which parts were missing from my box of bits.
Complete engine.
Seized Carburettors were stripped and vapor blasted. Time consuming job putting them back together with new gaskets , needles and jets.
Front suspension build.
Rear suspension build.
Brake fuel and clutch pipes installed.
Build coming together tight fit in the garage.
Dash and instrument build.
Dog helping with interior trimming.
Headlining and door card trim on wife's sowing machine.
Headlining fitment also made on the wife's sowing machine.
Seat refurbishment - original had carpet gripper to locate material. Stripped cleaned and painted then passed to trimmer.
Seats trimmed by professional trimmer in leather hyde supplied by me.
Heater ducts and inner bulkhead build.
Carpet trimmed to shape and then passed to trimmer to add beading edging.
Door build including new door cards.
Bumper and headlamp fit.
Spare wheel fitted along with cover - no boot access so if spare wheel has to be used it has to be extracted over the front seats.
Fitting out - electrical harness, brake and clutch pipes etc.
Rolling shell was transported to a local exhaust fabricator.
Exhaust fabricated in stainless steel with a cherry bomb to add a nice classic vehicle exhaust note.
Eventually interior all came together.
Finished vehicle ready for shake down.
International classic car show at the NEC Birmingham UK - TVR club stand November 2023.
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There's even a copy of the Motor Magazine road test on TVR Mk2a with MGA engine...
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And to finish it all off a couple of the original TVR Grantura Advertisements for a final dose of nostalgia...
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