Full body-off restoration of a 450 SEAC - PART 1

By: Duncan Simey

The 450 SEAC is so amazingly over-the-top and special that it can be forgiven many things. When I bought this car I knew it would need lots of loving care and attention - but I didn't really mind.

The engine is a monster. Lumpy-as-hell idle and no torque under 3000rpm. The power band is so vicious that the back end has broken a couple of times in the wet on straight roads, half throttle and third gear - this while I was trying to be careful !. However - in the dry it's addictive. The previous owner told me that he took it to a TVR track day and it was clocked at 3.9 seconds 0..60 - I can't confirm this (though I intend to try ASAP).

	Duncan's SEAC

The initial inspection came up with a fairly big list of things to do, these included a hole in the exhaust from bottoming out on the road. Rear brakes were ineffective. Springs had gone soft. Shocks were shocking. The chassis wasn't as bad as I feared and could have been wax-oiled, though it would have still needed a body-off job in the next few years. The engine was OK.

The moment of truth - (Peninsula)		The ultimate go-cart! - (Peninsula)

When the top came off, the chassis was slightly worse than expected. Oil leaks from the engine had kept the spine relatively rust free, but subsequent shot blasting made swiss cheese of the outriggers. Most alarming discovery was a puncture hole in the outrigger, right next to the fuel pipe !

The chassis had to be zinc plated and powder-coated and every nut and bolt replaced. It now looks lovely in Fire Engine Red. If you look hard, you can see the new adjustable shocks hanging from the chassis (see pic below).

The front brake calipers posed a bit of a problem as they had non-standard connectors. Peninsula would have to machine adapters in order to fit standard piping. Replacement of the front calipers was considered a better option.

Additionaly, I wasn't happy with the braking performace. I managed to cook the SEAC brakes last Summer. To me, it seems daft if a TVR is a bit fragile on the brakes. I'm not sure of the cause of the problem, though my driving style inevitably has something to do with it. Other likely explanations include include unknown pads inherited from the previous owner (I've had a similar problem with patent pads on a previous car).

The new red chassis		Uprated brake calipers

The uprated brake calipers and dics were quite a surprise. They look awesome (see pic above). The new front discs in comparison with a Griffith shows double the airgap between the surfaces and the disc radius is way bigger. The spiral pattern cross-drilling also looks really good.

The only downside that I can see is that when I stick the refurbished 5-spoke OZ's back on it will hide all the technical pornography underneath. Maybe I should get a set of 'modern' alloys a'la Tuscan and keep the OZ's for special occasions.

Refurbished OZ		Drivetrain back in place

The differential was split open, checked and given a clean bill of health (not an easy job once the body is back on). The refurbished rear brake calipers look like new. In fact just about everything that been replaced back onto the car looks new.

As I write this, this engine is back in the car. The refurbished steering rack is in place. New stainless steel manifolds are awaiting a set of shiny bolts to hold them in place. The replacement veneer has arrived. Roll bar is away being chromed. So everything is moving pretty well. The body should be going back on in th early part of next week.

Watch this space for further installments....

Thanks to Duncan Simey for submitting this article. Duncan's home page can be found on the Bristol TVRCC site.