Clonk from the front suspension.
A few electrical gremlins.
What a car! Sounds like nothing else on earth (blip the throttle anywhere and at least forty heads turn), and the performance is just plain ridiculous. Will happily light up the back tyres in the dry in first and second (and third on one famous, nappy filling occasion), and tries its hardest to kill you every time it rains! But there isn't another driving experience like it.
Fuel consumption isn't too bad - I average low 20's which is outstanding for a massive prehistoric V8, and for a 4 second-ish 0-60 time. You can hit single figures on track days though! :(
Reliability too is okay, although dealer work costs a small fortune! One of the things that packed up was the stereo, and I didn't notice for two weeks - that's how good the car sounds!
In these days of automotive anonymity, boring tin boxes and EC drive-by noise regulations, it's good to see at least one manufacturer having the balls and the soul to build something like this. It's crude, loud, evil and often downright scary. More importantly though it's stupidly fast, gorgeous to look at, sounds like a million dollars, and of course, it's 100% British (yes, I know the engine was originally from Buick, but it's barely recognisable these days!)
The Griff' is a car you buy totally with your heart. It's a total animal and I love it to bits!
I agree with you entirely...It's a car to be bought with your heart not your brain. I've had my Griff a week now and I still get out of the car with my hands shacking and wearing a stupid 'Goofy' grin (you know the one.. somewhere between delirious and ecstatic).
My only criticism is the cockpit cooling system... it has only two settings, hot or very hot... thank god the roof comes off.
I agree totally with all the points mentioned, I've had my 500 hc just over a year and it's been the most exciting car I have ever driven or been driven in. You get massive respect from general on lookers, which Porsche or Ferrari drivers don't. I will keep hold of my Griff as it is a timeless beast that will always make you smile, and sometimes nearly soil yourself! Proud to be British, what a CAR!
Note: A Comments RSS Feed is available. New comments appear in the Members Area before the main site