JOHN LUCAS

John built his first TR7 V8 coupé in 1988; since then he’s converted a drophead too. He says: ‘When the timing chain snapped on the original engine I decided to fit a Range Rover 4.6-litre V8 with stage three heads and 4.0-litre pistons to raise the compression ratio. To rein things in the front brakes are SD1-based; I’ve also converted to discs at the rear while the uprated master cylinder is taken from a Sherpa van and it bolts straight on. The 2.84:1 diff is from an SD1 Vanden Plas EFi while the suspension features GAZ and AVO coilovers, lowered springs and poly bushes. Fitting a roll bar and front strut brace massively stiffens the bodyshell up.’