NEW TVR: BLUEPRINT FOR THE FUTURE OF THE FIRM AND THE SPORTS COUPE

IT WOULD BE easy to view the new TVR, the reveal of which we bring you exclusively this week (p10), as a throwback, a simple reinvention of an old-fashioned concept: front-engined, a big V8, rear-wheel drive and lots of noise.

While recognisable as a TVR, and carrying over many of those traits, it is actually as modern and progressive as sports cars come and perhaps the optimised blueprint for a front/mid-engined sports coupé.

For proof, take a look at our comparison of its dimensions (p12) with a Mclaren 570S, a mid-engined supercar: the TVR is shorter, it’s only a little taller and it shows every sign of being space efficient. It’s also much lighter, matching the 570S’s power-to-weight ratio and built using Gordon Murray’s revolutionary istream construction process.

The new TVR exhibits progress in so many ways and should be seen as the start of a new era, not the rebooting of an old one.

Next week, the Frankfurt motor show kicks off. It’s Germany’s biggest car show and we’re there bringing you the action. Make sure you keep abreast of it on autocar.co.uk throughout the week. We’ll also feature all the show stars in next week’s magazine.