AN ultra-rare British sports car has gone up for sale at less than the price of a beaten-up Ford Focus.
The stunning classic has just 48,000 miles on the clock – an average of 1,371 per year since it rolled off the production line.
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The TVR Tasmin was an icon of the small-batch UK automotive scene.
The Tasmin name was passed down along the generations of the manufacturer’s “Wedge” series – a range of sports cars renowned for their sharp lines and ’70s styling.
It began in 1980 with the original Tasmin, which was designed by TVR’s engineers but used the steering and suspension from a Ford Cortina.
This was followed by the 280i version in the mid-’80s but TVR owner Peter Wheeler felt its V6 didn’t have quite the power output he wanted.
That led to the creation of the model on sale – the Tasmin 350i.
Using a 3.5-litre V8 borrowed from Rover it put out 197 horsepower and a top speed of 135mph, which was pretty impressive for 1983.
Only 949 were ever produced in a six-year run ending in 1989.
And they’re even rare now, with HowRareIsMyCar estimating that just 162 remain on UK.
Among those, the majority are in red, white or blue, making this ‘Moonraker Black’ example among the rarest in existence.
Featuring an ‘Ox blood hide’ interior, it has undergone some significant refurbishment.
That includes a full radiator, new brake discs and a new stainless steel exhaust system.
Despite all that, it is on sale on Car & Classic for just £6,750.
That’s over 2,000 less than it would cost you to buy a high-mileage Ford Focus from 2004, according to listings on AutoTrader.
It comes after a huge car brand scrapped two of its flagship models in a move towards an “era of electrification”.