Should I or shouldn't I??
Discussion
Dear All,
At the moment I'm a proud owner of a limited edition Westfield; great fun and pretty nippy too!!
However I'm beginning to lean towards something with a roof/stereo/proper heater etc. Been thinking about TVR, but slightly worried about horror stories I've heard, it really needs to be British, so I thought what about an ESPRIT??
What are they like to run and own? Could do with some info to help the decision. I'll have 12k ish to spend, so we could be in 2.2turbo territory. What sort of performance could I expect?
CHEERS!!
CG.
At the moment I'm a proud owner of a limited edition Westfield; great fun and pretty nippy too!!
However I'm beginning to lean towards something with a roof/stereo/proper heater etc. Been thinking about TVR, but slightly worried about horror stories I've heard, it really needs to be British, so I thought what about an ESPRIT??
What are they like to run and own? Could do with some info to help the decision. I'll have 12k ish to spend, so we could be in 2.2turbo territory. What sort of performance could I expect?
CHEERS!!
CG.
Chris,
Utterly different prospect to owning a westie for one main reason...money. Things you bought in a rover/ford spare parts garage for around 5 quid will suddenely cost 60 - plus 2 hours to fit of coures!
Performance....2.2. turbo....
0 - 60 around the 5.2 second mark (ish) - get an SE if you can, they're better, quicker and have an injection system rather than just carbs (that said my non SE version never went wrong in 30K miles) top out around 160ish. Brakes are a bit pants...you would warp the discs on a hard track day.... If I get another esprit I'll make sure I save up enought to afford one with ABS think - piece of mind in the wet if nothing else.
the body never rots, but bits fall off. You cant drive it with quite the same sense of gay abandon as yours cos its heavier, mid-engined and more prone to biting when it all goes wrong ....
all that aside...they're wonderful, gorgeous, entertaining and delightful cars to own...and I will get another someday!
Night
Utterly different prospect to owning a westie for one main reason...money. Things you bought in a rover/ford spare parts garage for around 5 quid will suddenely cost 60 - plus 2 hours to fit of coures!
Performance....2.2. turbo....
0 - 60 around the 5.2 second mark (ish) - get an SE if you can, they're better, quicker and have an injection system rather than just carbs (that said my non SE version never went wrong in 30K miles) top out around 160ish. Brakes are a bit pants...you would warp the discs on a hard track day.... If I get another esprit I'll make sure I save up enought to afford one with ABS think - piece of mind in the wet if nothing else.
the body never rots, but bits fall off. You cant drive it with quite the same sense of gay abandon as yours cos its heavier, mid-engined and more prone to biting when it all goes wrong ....
all that aside...they're wonderful, gorgeous, entertaining and delightful cars to own...and I will get another someday!
Night
Chris
I have performance figures on my website for the 3 Esprits I've owned ( S3 N/A, Turbo and GT3 ). Have a look on www.adrianmugridge.co.uk
There are also running costs for my GT3 to give you an idea of what to expect if you have it dealer/specialist serviced.
Adrian Mugridge
>> Edited by adrianmugridge on Wednesday 29th May 21:40
I have performance figures on my website for the 3 Esprits I've owned ( S3 N/A, Turbo and GT3 ). Have a look on www.adrianmugridge.co.uk
There are also running costs for my GT3 to give you an idea of what to expect if you have it dealer/specialist serviced.
Adrian Mugridge
>> Edited by adrianmugridge on Wednesday 29th May 21:40
Had 4 Esprits, normally aspirated and Turbo.
It's the only mid-engined car you can throw around with abandon in the wet, you just control it on the throtle.
As for reliability, over 100,000 miles never a problem, but remember to use Mobil 1 and change often and check fluid levels often.
Always let her warm up before giving it some and always drive the last few miles of a journey slowly, to let her cool down.
And enjoy the fact that you are going to fall in love with the thing and Lotus cars in general.
Nothing compares with the Esprit, you can drive all day in it and then want some more.
PS Don't buy a Red one- the colour fades!
It's the only mid-engined car you can throw around with abandon in the wet, you just control it on the throtle.
As for reliability, over 100,000 miles never a problem, but remember to use Mobil 1 and change often and check fluid levels often.
Always let her warm up before giving it some and always drive the last few miles of a journey slowly, to let her cool down.
And enjoy the fact that you are going to fall in love with the thing and Lotus cars in general.
Nothing compares with the Esprit, you can drive all day in it and then want some more.
PS Don't buy a Red one- the colour fades!
Sorry to trespass into lotus land guys...
..but isn't there some joke along the lines of Lots Of Trouble Usually Serious that could be a factor here...
Cheers
Matt.
quote:
Been thinking about TVR, but slightly worried about horror stories I've heard, it really needs to be British, so I thought what about an ESPRIT??
..but isn't there some joke along the lines of Lots Of Trouble Usually Serious that could be a factor here...
Cheers
Matt.
I have my TVR serviced at a small independent garage in Kent. They also work with Lotus cars.
The mechanics say that they have considerably less trouble with the TVRs and that the Esprit is a nightmare. They put this down to owners treating them like normal cars - not letting them warm up and not running the engine for 30 seconds at the end of a drive.
When I was in for my service last month(£250) there was an Esprit in the next bay (2.2 Turbo) having an engine rebuild at the cost of £12,000. The owner had only had the car weeks!
Is this feedback from the mechanics unfair?
PS Sorry if I upset any Esprit owners but my Chimaera has been as reliable as a Mazda!
>> Edited by JohnnyS on Tuesday 4th June 08:19
The mechanics say that they have considerably less trouble with the TVRs and that the Esprit is a nightmare. They put this down to owners treating them like normal cars - not letting them warm up and not running the engine for 30 seconds at the end of a drive.
When I was in for my service last month(£250) there was an Esprit in the next bay (2.2 Turbo) having an engine rebuild at the cost of £12,000. The owner had only had the car weeks!
Is this feedback from the mechanics unfair?
PS Sorry if I upset any Esprit owners but my Chimaera has been as reliable as a Mazda!
>> Edited by JohnnyS on Tuesday 4th June 08:19
Chris,
if you are really serious about buying one of the most fabulous cars to come out of England, check out www.justtryit.co.uk it looks from here, like a real good deal, and in answer to your original question, yes of course you should! Now stop dithering and go get one! Be quick though or I may have talked her round and bought it myself!!!! Fat chance!BTW I have no affiliation to the car or it's owner, and know nothing about it other than whats on the screen.
Good luck, Simon.
if you are really serious about buying one of the most fabulous cars to come out of England, check out www.justtryit.co.uk it looks from here, like a real good deal, and in answer to your original question, yes of course you should! Now stop dithering and go get one! Be quick though or I may have talked her round and bought it myself!!!! Fat chance!BTW I have no affiliation to the car or it's owner, and know nothing about it other than whats on the screen.
Good luck, Simon.
This site should be called www.tvrpistontvrheadstvr.tvr!
Warning: constant patrols in operation, deviants will not be tolerated!
Chris,
I've owned an 89 Turbo SE for 4 years without any major problems. I've found the best and most challenging way of running mine is always seeking alternatives when faced with issues. My lambda sensor failed and in taking it out 10 years of heating and cooling ripped out the thread in the exhaust. Lotus wanted silly money for a new exhaust but a few calls and I had Blue Flame Performance (Mongoose to the Car and Car Conversions mob!) in Liverpool accept my car into their workshop for a day and I watched them build a polished stainless steel system on it for £350 and 10dB quieter than the original but with no cat and a serious loss of turbo lag - yippee!!! It's very rare you can't source parts or services from other places much cheaper and most times to a better quality. Well worth checking out www.espritfactfile.com for more details. I'm currently rebuilding the engine anyway, not because it needed it I am similarly someone who needs a challenge and a major pistonhead. Useful tips for performance are things such as the exhaust (Blue Flame now have a pattern for mine so can make you one mail order), but also the chargecooler pump, it has rubber blades which fail over 20,000 miles, by replacing it (under the inlet manifold) for about £20 in parts you'll regain 40-60bhp simply by recooling your inlet temperature. The SE will bring you A/C as well so if you want some more comfort then go the whole hog!!!!
I've owned an 89 Turbo SE for 4 years without any major problems. I've found the best and most challenging way of running mine is always seeking alternatives when faced with issues. My lambda sensor failed and in taking it out 10 years of heating and cooling ripped out the thread in the exhaust. Lotus wanted silly money for a new exhaust but a few calls and I had Blue Flame Performance (Mongoose to the Car and Car Conversions mob!) in Liverpool accept my car into their workshop for a day and I watched them build a polished stainless steel system on it for £350 and 10dB quieter than the original but with no cat and a serious loss of turbo lag - yippee!!! It's very rare you can't source parts or services from other places much cheaper and most times to a better quality. Well worth checking out www.espritfactfile.com for more details. I'm currently rebuilding the engine anyway, not because it needed it I am similarly someone who needs a challenge and a major pistonhead. Useful tips for performance are things such as the exhaust (Blue Flame now have a pattern for mine so can make you one mail order), but also the chargecooler pump, it has rubber blades which fail over 20,000 miles, by replacing it (under the inlet manifold) for about £20 in parts you'll regain 40-60bhp simply by recooling your inlet temperature. The SE will bring you A/C as well so if you want some more comfort then go the whole hog!!!!
well, I'd define 'mid-engined' as having the engine between the axles, 'front-engined' as having engine level with or ahead of the front wheels and 'rear-engined' as having the engine level with or behind the rear wheels.
So the Esprit is genuinely mid engined.
Most modern FWD cars are front engines.
TVRs, while having the engines in the front do reasonably well on balance, as the engine is actually between the axles (i.e. behind the front wheels), so effectively mid-engined but front mid-engine not rear mid-engine.
sorry. I'll get my coat....
Nick
So the Esprit is genuinely mid engined.
Most modern FWD cars are front engines.
TVRs, while having the engines in the front do reasonably well on balance, as the engine is actually between the axles (i.e. behind the front wheels), so effectively mid-engined but front mid-engine not rear mid-engine.
sorry. I'll get my coat....
Nick
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