Lot 224: 2000 TVR Cerbera Speed 12

Launched at the 1997 motor show in London, the TVR Speed 12 caused a sensation. Here was a totally outrageous car with power bordering on the obscene. Some pundits said that it was simply too powerful and it would be irresponsible to use one as a road-going car. Ironically, those words were uttered by Peter Wheeler, the then boss of TVR. The original engine design was conceived by Al Melling, the head of a small British company called MCD. Since then, John Ravenscoft, TVR's in-house engine man has developed it dramatically. Raced in the Privilege GT Championship in 1998, it achieved mixed results as TVR experimented with the set-up of the car. Top speed hasn't been made public but the race car was geared for a maximum of 185mph at which point the rev limiter cuts in. It had been intended to run the car in the Le Mans 24 hours. It's not clear why the Speed 12 didn't make it to Le Mans but a contributory factor may be that the FIA governing body required its horsepower reduced to 660bhp from the 1000+bhp being quoted. This car got its name and from a concept engine which was so looney, TVR will never try it again. They decided to mate two of their potent Speed Six engines to a common crank and modify each to full race specification. The resulting 7.7 litre, V12 was so powerful, it broke TVR's dyno. This immense power and the expensive costs to utilize it was the main reason why only very few cars were built with as little as only five engines were created. In 2003, TVR made the unusual step to sell the only road-going Speed 12 made in Top Marques. Registered W112 BHG, this car was fitted with what are called the "mild" cams and conservative ECU mapping which reduced the power to a mere 880 bhp. It was tested by EVO Magazine in 2005, "even the seating position was crazy", the test driver said somewhat nervously, "It's like getting into a normal car and sitting on the floor - in the back." There is a procedure to starting this monster however. An immersion heater warms the engine oil from the mains. Twenty minutes later, press the black button to start the ignition and fuel pumps and again to turn the engine over. Tickle the throttle and BAM. A V12 fed with scaffolding off-cuts and rocket fuel. The four side-exit exhausts banging in turn. Low down torque is flexible though with enough to move off with just the lightest of touch on the throttle. To the un-initiated, forward motion will largely be sideways but the EVO test driver was clearly made of sterner stuff. With the engine on-cam, Northamptonshire was treated to TVR Heaven with Spitfire sound effects. But this is also registered for the road. The local MoT station, used to most things, had real problems when this bowled up. Mike Tyson is not a nice man. Would I let him look after my children? Would I take this on the road? Trees fizzing past at frightening velocity when you're sucking up 2 miles per gallon. And they are remarkably unyielding. I know, I'm a bad skier. W112 BHG has been meticulously restored by the Factory and then specific parts by a dedicated TVR enthusiast. Money has not been an object as; only recently, some £35,000 has been spent on a slightly modified rear end made purely in titanium. The engine has a bespoke "bucket head" design and been hand built from top to bottom. The whole car is now perfect and ready to go. It has also seen a healthy schedule of publicity, appearing in many UK magazines, prominent motor shows and not only Gran Turismo 4 the game but also as the pivotal car for the Sony launch. It is a one off, horribly dangerous and ugly/beautiful as hell. Torque of the Devil.