1988 TVR White Elephant Prototype Driven by Peter Wheeler Is Up for Grabs

Back in 2017, TVR announced plans to produce a second-generation Griffith. It's been nearly ten years since then, and TVR has yet to follow through. Moreover, the company's future is still uncertain. Well, if you've been itching to buy a TVR, a late-1980s one-off is up for grabs.

The wedge-shaped sports car you see here is known as the White Elephant. It was built in 1988 and did not become more than a prototype. But it spent a few years on the road, and it packs an engine you will not find in another TVR.

The White Elephant was developed four years after Peter Wheeler purchased the company and ditched Ford V6 engines in favor of Rover V8 power. This prototype also features a V8, but it's not a British-built Rover mill. TVR sourced a 5.0-liter V8 from HSV, Holden's high-performance arm (founded and run by Tom Walkinshaw).

The powerplant was created for the Commodore VL SS Group A SV, a limited-edition, homologation special for Group A racing. The sedan may not be well-known in Europe or the US, but it's one of Australia's iconic 1980s classics.

The White Elephant was supposed to signal TVR's new direction into the early 1990s, but the company eventually decided against the design and the HSV unit. But instead of getting scrapped or put into storage, the prototype found its way on public roads with Peter Wheeler behind the steering wheel.

The TVR boss drove it for around 27,000 miles (43,452 km) and famously fitted it with a special seat designed for his dog, as well as a storage area for his hunting equipment. Wheeler kept the car until 2004, selling it a week before he sold TVR to Nicolai Smolenski (for £15 million).

The White Elephant was in poor shape, so the next owner, Howard Bryan, spent about a decade rebuilding it with help from a large group of ex-TVR factory employees. In 2024, the prototype was acquired by the third owner, Ed Gibson of Shmoo Automotive. Ed is now selling the car.

He drove only "a handful of miles" in it and made a few improvements. The White Elephant appears to be in pristine condition inside and out and comes with a rebuilt engine and an extensive history file with hundreds of photos from the restoration.

Ed doesn't say how much he wants for the car but mentions that he will consider "very serious offers" that "would need to be north of £100,000. That's over $132,500 if you're from the United States or over €115,800 if you're from continental Europe. If it sells, it will become one of only about a dozen TVRs that changed hands for six-figure sums.

Although it may not be the prettiest TVR ever built, the White Elephant is an important part of the company's history and a one-off that should soldier on for generations.