Welcoming a new era in its history, TVR has unveiled its all new sports car, the TVR Griffith, at the 2017 Goodwood Revival. Revealed to media and visitors, the Griffith is the first new TVR to be launched since the company was resurrected in British hands.
The new Griffith stays true to the brand’s rich heritage, while employing cutting-edge engineering. The exterior has been designed to be as striking as it is aerodynamically efficient. The timeless sports car silhouette is accented with deep air intakes, generating high levels of downforce and cooling.
Embodying TVR’s long-standing ethos of the Sprit of Driving – the principle of delivering an involving driving interface where the driver will always be fully in control – the new Griffith uses intelligent engineering over electronic driver aids. Only the second front-engined production car to feature a flat floor, the new TVR Griffith boasts a full ground-effect aerodynamic package to ensure that the car remains stable at high speeds and delivers exceptional handling abilities.
Employing Gordon Murray Design’s innovative iStream architecture with carbon composite structure and body panels, the new TVR Griffith weighs just 1250kg, offers exceptional torsional rigidity and a perfect 50:50 weight distribution.
Powering the new TVR Griffith is a naturally aspirated 5.0-litre Cosworth-enhanced V8, which enables 400bhp/tonne and is mated to a six-speed manual gearbox. The new TVR Griffith achieves a top speed of more than 200mph, and accelerates from 0-60mph in less than four seconds.
Boasting timeless sports car proportions and radical styling, the new Griffith is unmistakably a TVR, while its LED headlamps and full ground effect aerodynamics truly bring the brand into the present day.
Designed to be as striking as it is aerodynamically efficient, the new TVR Griffith’s front end is dominated by a large, angular front grille set just centimetres above the car’s front splitter. Deep air intakes integrated into front valance not only provide optimum brake cooling, but generate additional downforce for front end stability. Meanwhile, the front light clusters are reminiscent of previous TVR Griffiths.
Front wings that are sculpted to match the contours of the front wheel lead the eye down the svelte waistline of the car, accented by a geometric air vent and double side exit exhausts.
The low, swooping roofline contributes to aerodynamic efficiency and channels air towards the car’s sculpted rear, which is finished with a concave LED light assembly and integrated rear diffuser.
The new TVR Griffith employs a full ground effect aerodynamics package to deliver outstanding stability and handling capabilities, and is only the second front-engined production car to feature an entirely flat floor.
Ground effect is the aerodynamic principle of using airflow along the underside of the vehicle to pull it closer to the ground, by creating downforce. In employing ground effect in the new sports car’s design, TVR has ensured the car remains stable at high speed, while also contributing to delivering exceptional handling and cornering capabilities.
Reversing the trend towards increasing vehicle dimensions, the new TVR Griffith is the most compact car in its class, measuring just 4314mm long, 1850mm wide and 1239mm tall. Similarly, due to its advanced lightweight construction and carbon composite body panels, the TVR Griffith weighs under 1250kg.
Despite its compact dimensions, the new TVR Griffith’s interior packaging offers levels of comfort and practicality that makes it suitable for everyday use and long-distance driving. While strictly a two-seat sports car, it offers ample head room and cabin space, as well as more than adequate luggage and storage space.
The interior is undoubtedly driver-orientated, with an instrument pod housing a bespoke instrument cluster, which brings all main controls within easy reach. The car’s infotainment system, specially designed for TVR, is centrally located in a portrait format. Interior surfaces are beautifully trimmed in leather, and remain uncluttered by only featuring controls that enhance the ‘Spirit of Driving’.
The new TVR Griffith is the first production vehicle to employ Gordon Murray Design’s revolutionary iStream® architecture. The innovative manufacturing process not only ensures the Griffith remains lightweight, it also delivers exceptional torsional rigidity.
iStream® combines lightweight Formula 1 technology with outstanding safety standards. Unnecessary weight is stripped out, not only improving performance and dynamics, but also improving component durability.
The iStream® structure of the new TVR Griffith is constructed using carbon composite bonded to steel and aluminium, clad in carbon composite bodywork. In the event of an impact, force is directed through front and rear crash structures, ensuring the chassis remains intact and minimising damage to the bodywork.
The development of the new TVR Griffith has been centred around the company’s long-standing ethos; the Sprit of Driving. This means that the new TVR Griffith’s well-engineered chassis and advanced aerodynamics put the driver fully in control.
To achieve this, the Griffith’s chassis is lightweight, exceptionally torsionally rigid, and perfectly balanced. With a weight of less than 1250kg, and the engine mounted well behind the front axle line, a precise 50:50 weight distribution has been achieved.
The car boasts a double wishbone suspension set-up with adjustable coil-over dampers and concentric springs at both the front and back axles. It has electric power assisted steering, which has been specifically developed for the new TVR Griffith, ensuring easy manouevrability at low speeds, without compromising feel or stability.
Braking power is provided by six-piston aluminum calipers and two-piece 370mm ventilated floating discs at the front, with four-piston aluminium calipers and two-piece 350mm ventilated discs at the rear.
To further improve traction while preserving excellent steering feel and feedback, the new TVR Griffith has larger, wider wheels and tyres at the rear (20 inch wheels with 275/30 tyres) than at the front (19 inch wheels with 235/35 tyres).
Complying with European Type Approval standards, the new car is fitted with an anti-lock braking system (ABS), and a configurable traction control system.
The joy of driving a TVR has always centred around a deep connection between man and machine. The new TVR Griffith continues this tradition, and the powertrain set-up is a vital part of this.
In the development of the new car, it was crucial that the vehicle’s power unit stay true to the brand’s rich heritage, while being utterly reliable and dependable, with sensible servicing intervals and adhering to today’s strict emissions control standards.
The Griffith is equipped with a 5.0-litre naturally aspirated Cosworth-enhanced V8, to further increase performance, without compromising the base engine’s renowned reliability.
Most notably, the V8 unit’s engine control unit has been substantially enhanced. This not only increases power, but delivers a broader range of torque and power.
A bespoke lighter flywheel and clutch, together with a dry sump system, mean that the engine can be mounted lower and further back in the chassis, reducing the car’s centre of gravity and helping to achieve the perfect 50:50 fore/aft weight distribution.
With the Cosworth enhancements, the engine enables the TVR Griffith to achieve a power-to-weight ratio of 400bhp/tonne. It is mated to a six-speed manual Tremec gearbox. The Magnum XL gearbox is capable of 700lb-ft torque and up to 7500 rpm.
