Engine

Five different inline six engine options were offered to customers. Four of these were variants of the 4.0 L Speed Six

TVR Speed Six engine

The TVR Speed Six was the name of a normally aspirated straight-6 engine manufactured by TVR, and used in several of their cars including the TVR Tuscan, TVR Cerbera, TVR Tamora, TVR T350 and TVR Sagaris....

making different amounts of power and torque, depending on the trim level selected. The last was a 3.6 L Speed Six which produced the same amount of power as the lowest-level 4.0 L engine, although slightly less torque.

• Bore and stroke: 96 mm (3.8 in) by 92 mm (3.6 in) (4.0 L) or 96 mm (3.8 in) by 83 mm (3.3 in) (3.6 L)
• Power and torque:
• 3.6L Mk1: 350 bhp, 290 lbft
• 4.0L Mk1: 360 hp, 310 lbft
• 4.0L Mk1 Red Rose: 380 bhp, 310 lbft
• 4.0L Mk1 S (pre-2003): 390 bhp, 310 lbft
• 4.0L Mk1 S (post-2003): 400 bhp, 315 lbft
• 4.0L Mk2 (post-2005): 380 hp, 310 lbft
• 4.0L Mk2 S (post-2005): 400 bhp, 315 lbft
• 4.0L Mk2 Convertible (post-2005): 380 hp, 310 lbft
• 4.2L Mk2 Convertible (post-2005): 440 hp @7600 RPM, 475 newton metre @/6000 RPM

Chassis

Even though there have been numerous tweaks to the Tuscan's chassis and suspension, the overall size and appearance of the variants remain virtually identical apart from minor aerodynamic aids to the S model in the form of an undertray in the front and a small boot-lid spoiler on the rear.

In October 2005 the "Mk 2" version of the Tuscan was introduced, though in reality this was just a minor facelift. The modifications were restricted to cosmetic changes to the front and rear lights, the dashboard

Dashboard

A dashboard is a control panel placed in front of the driver of an automobile, housing instrumentation and controls for operation of the vehicle....

, and the spoilers on the S model plus some minor changes to the chassis to improve the handling. At the same time, a new variant a full soft top

Convertible

A convertible is a type of automobile in which the roof can retract and fold away having windows which wind-down inside the doors, converting it from an enclosed to an open-air vehicle...

 was introduced alongside the original targa

Targa top

Targa top, targa for short, is a semi-convertible car body style with a removable roof section and a full width roll bar behind the seats. The term was first used on the 1966 Porsche 911 Targa, and it remains a registered trademark of Porsche AG....

 version.

Performance

• 0-30 mph: 1.73 s
• 0-60 mph: 3.68 s
• 0-100 mph: 8.08 s
• 100-0 mph: 4.15 s

It is worth noting that these test results were achieved in a post-2003 Tuscan S without traction-control

Traction control system

A traction control system , also known as anti-slip regulation , is typically a secondary function of the anti-lock braking system on production motor vehicles, designed to prevent loss of traction of driven road wheels...

 or anti-lock brakes

Anti-lock braking system

An anti-lock braking system is a safety system that allows the wheels on a motor vehicle to continue interacting tractively with the road surface as directed by driver steering inputs while braking, preventing the wheels from locking up and therefore avoiding skidding.An ABS generally offers...

. TVR's design philosophy holds that such features do not improve either the performance or safety of their vehicles and thus they are not so equipped. TVR rejects the notion that these features, along with airbag

Airbag

An Airbag is a vehicle safety device. It is an occupant restraint consisting of a flexible envelope designed to inflate rapidly during an automobile collision, to prevent occupants from striking interior objects such as the steering wheel or a window...

s, are "safety devices" and believes that, based on testing and experience, their cars are safer without these things than with them.

External links

• Official TVR website
• Information on the Tuscan from tvrtalk.com
• An interview with Peter Wheeler, owner of TVR when the Tuscan was developed, in which he explains why his cars are safer without airbags, anti-lock brakes and traction-control systems