The TVR 420 SEAC is a 2 - door drophead from TVR, built from 1986 to 1988, in the age of turbocharging and the first electronic engine management. Under the bonnet: TVR Power Rover V8.
Where it came from
The TVR 420 SEAC is a sports car designed and built by TVR between 1986 and 1988. It is considered as the ultimate "wedge" TVR and is the top of the TVR Tasmin "wedge" family. The SEAC models can be distinguished by the large rear spoiler and the rounder nose. The 420 SEAC was developed as a race car by TVR Competition Manager, Chris Schirle. Chris used his F1 experience to develop the Tasmin for competition use, achieving pole position in its first three outings at Oulton Park, Donington and Cadwell and seeing great success in the 1986/87 season winning 21 out of 24 races.
At the end of the 1987 season, the SEAC was banned on grounds of homologation (not building the 200 cars required). The acronym SEAC stands for Special Equipment Aramid Composite, which means that more than 20% of the body was kevlar unlike the other wedges, which used full fibreglass construction. The use of kevlar made the car more than 100 kg (220 lb) lighter without compromising the body rigidity. Due to problems with the finish and stiffness of the kevlar panels only the first 8-10 cars were manufactured with full kevlar bodies, the remainder had standard GRP bodies, except for the last 4 or 5 420 SEACs which had carbon fibre & glass fibre bodies. SEAC bodies were shorter and wider than the other wedges. Other differences between the SEACs and the 350i/390SE/400SE wedge line include: a different chassis with a narrower transmission tunnel (1 or 2 were built with stainless steel chassis); the handbrake being changed to an umbrella type handle under the dash; a flat, 4 gauge dashboard; the exhaust sys
Under the skin
Power comes from TVR Power Rover V8. It weighs 1130 kg. The layout matters: a front engine drives the rear wheels, the classic proportion — long bonnet, cabin set back — that most people picture when they picture a sports saloon or a grand tourer. These are manufacturer figures carried by Wikipedia and Wikidata, not road-test measurements.
In context
Its family tree is legible: assembly was at Blackpool, England, United Kingdom. Its contemporaries in the catalogue — the Jeep Wrangler, the Ferrari F40, the BMW 5 Series — show what else the money bought that year. Nearby in the TVR catalogue sit the TVR 3000S and the TVR 350SE.
What it costs now
MotorJury scores cars on the United States complaint and recall record, and the TVR 420 SEAC has none: too old, too rare, or never sold there. Its value today is a collector's question, decided by provenance and condition rather than by a class average.