Never advertise. Don't give their cars to the motoring press for testing, or virtually never do. Don't allow any visitors to their factory, even motoring journalists and other motoring industry people. They are however, very outspoken about the capabilities of their cars though, they are more than happy to claim a 270 ( ) mph top speed for their new Fighter T for example. (Very optimistic, bearing in mind how much extra power a car needs to take it from being a 200 mph one to a 250 mph one.)
So are they an irrelevant, money-mad car company, making a handful of ridiculoulsy overpriced cars for those with millions of pounds to burn---or a worthwhile addition to the UK motoring industry?
I know that if i was paying over £300,000 ( ) for their 'latest and greatest', i would expect more than the old version of a very old fashioned engine under the bonnet, for a start! I mean, they don't even fit the 8.3 version of the V10 Viper, it's the old 8.0 version. For me, a lighter and more modern supercharged V8 with 600 bhp and priced at £150,000 would make far more sense. Even the base 525 bhp Fighter is over £200,000.
For me, Bristol is an anachronism in the motoring industry and if i had the money they wouldnt be on my shopping list. However, i can understand why some people might want them particularly if they are a bit rich and excentric. Point is - does it really matter that it isnt the most up to the minute technology? at this point in the market i would have though exclusivity and difference where the selling points.
bristol is one of my all time favourite manufacturers...not so keen on the modern offerings, but the older chrysler v8 engined stuff and prior to that, the aerodynamic straight six saloons and coupes are on my must have list...ljks personal favourite manufacturer......the guy in charge is/was anthony crook, an amazing character, and, if you took the plunge and bought one, you were buying a car from a.crook.....
Hang about bggbn; Westfields, 2CVs, M3 CSL, green public transport, retro motorcycles, 1970s straight four bikes, big boobs---we mustn't keep agreeing like this!
It is a bit unjust to call Bristol 'moneymad'. They are doing a good job on what is fundamentally an extreme cottage industry to have anybody buying their products when they can buy more technologically advanced efforts from much bigger manufacturers. i doubt they are 'mone mad' - nobody makes money in this kind of business. Reminds me of the old joke.
How do you make a small fortune in small scale super car manufacture?
Start with a large fortune.
After the demise of TVR - who suffered from their natural constituency buying Porsches, BMW's, Lamborghinis, Audis, Ferraris etc. Then I don't see a future for Bristol - which is sad. I say let originality and quirkiness thrive - the world will be a very dull place if we only had the automotive offerings of the big manufacturers.
Thats all very well, but queenjane put it to me this way when i popped in to visit him. 'People buy a Bristol instead of a yacht or plane, as much as any other car'.
Lets ban all odd car makers and concentrate on the boring euro box......... nah! lets have some fun and colour in our lives, even if we cannot afford it.
yup...i hope bristol remains what it is indefinitely....an eccentric maker of superb quality english cars....and i say that as a jock...some cars are just english...jags, bentley(before ze shermans got em...) and bristol.....bristol owners might actually use terms like old bean, old man and spiffing in conversation rather than on motoring forums.....haha
if u hav to ask how much....! the kind of people who can afford a Bristol can afford one or two other cars as well, so they can have the Ferrari, Aston Martin, Rolls etc and then have the Bristol too! And, being British, you just WOULD! how many other quintessentially British cars are there left around in this modern world? Not many that would make you feel the way I'm sure owning a Bristol would.
Bristols .... Bl**dy marvellous. (organic or mechanical, matters not)
_________________________ "Forward", he cried, from the rear, and the front rank died. And the General sat, and the lines on the map moved from side to side.
) mph top speed for their new Fighter T for example. (Very optimistic, bearing in mind how much extra power a car needs to take it from being a 200 mph one to a 250 mph one.)
) for their 'latest and greatest', i would expect more than the old version of a very old fashioned engine under the bonnet, for a start! I mean, they don't even fit the 8.3 version of the V10 Viper, it's the old 8.0 version.
