Pos. buyer of a 84'T. Some questions?

[StormBringer]

First post to the forum, will be here for a long time if I buy a car.

I have just gotten back from looking at a US spec 84 turbo, red on cream interior. Car has 39K miles on it. Went through a basic walkthrough of the car and saw a new turbo, new brakes, clean interior, pretty much a 7 out of 10 car in my book. Not a California car but it runs rather clean.

Previous owner took care of it, new owner has had it maybe 200 miles. I know him pretty well and he is a bigger guy, I don;' think he feels comfortable getting in and out of the car and thats why he is selling it.

Solid driver nothing special. Car is dirty as I have ever seen one through, can't get a good gauge on the condition of the paint.

So some questions. I have the VIN but I have not been able to find a vin decoder in my search online. Vin is as follows.

SCFC20A7EHF60467

Does this denote any special features, or is it just your standard turbo.

Also how does the clear coat on the lotus stand up over the years. I can buff a car till it glows but if the fiberglass clear goes bad no mater how hard a rub it's never going to get really clean. I washed a small part of the car off and it looks like there are no swirl marks persay and the black's still look black so I am going to assume that it has been garaged ffor most of its life.

I know people have asked how much for general upkeep and I will as well. I am pretty handy in the garage. I can change a timing belt, I can pull a motor, I can replace a clutch labor is not so much a issue. But parts, how much I cringe to ask. Worst case this car will need a clutch and a flywheel sanding. (Have not driven the car but baseing this on the mileage.)

So how much for a clutch parts only.
how much for a rebuilt head.
How much for a tranny overhaul.
How is getting general maintiance parts in the US, its will be my 4th car so being down for some time will not be a problem.

Going to do a proper drive on it this weekend, will be able to tell a lot more about the car then, but figure that it runs as well as the previous owner has stated whats a 7 out of 10 lotus going for these days in the US.

[Esprit2]

SCC Manufacturer Identifier Code (Lotus)
F Turbo Esprit
C Series 3 (ie, the Esprit model evolution)
2 Option, Air Conditioning
0 Engine Type, 910 (2.2 Turbo)
A Restraint, Actiave Belts
7 Check Digit, Official use only
E Model Year (1984)
H Plant (Hethel, England)
F Market (Chassis) 50 States (USA)
6 Market (Engine) 50 States (USA)
0467 Sequential Serial Number

> So how much for a clutch parts only.
Not bad... ~$300 for the pressure plate (cover), ~$150 for the disk. Plus or minus.

> how much for a rebuilt head.
To rebuild an existing head, plan on $1500+ if you farm it out. If you need to buy a new head, take a deep breath... or shop for something used. The good news is that the head isn't a common replacement item.

> How much for a tranny overhaul.
Some parts are getting hard to find... like the crown wheel & pinion. If you can find a new set, they're going for around US$2200. Harry Martens in The Netherlands and set you up with a very good used Citroen set for US$600. A tranny rebuild can absorb a lot of hours (it's a putzy box to work on). At shop rates you can easily run up a $3000 bill doing a general rebuild... more if you damage some expensive bits. LCU used to have a rebuild program for something like $4000-5000 (?). More if it required a CWP. Take care of the gearbox.

> How is getting general maintiance parts in the US
Some parts are getting a little scare; but in general, parts availability is still very good. There are a number of independent Lotus parts suppliers in the US who can take care of most needs off the shelf. Lotus-only parts are expensive. But lots of the consumables are from other cars and not to expensive.

Dellorto parts are getting a more difficult to find in the US, but Eurocarb Ltd in England can provide anything you will need... and at a fair price.

Check the exhaust manifold. They tend to crack, usually from the bottom up between 2 & 3. They're expensive and a PIA to install.

Things like the timing belt are cheap to buy, but expensive if you must pay someone to install it. Engine bay access is poor and even relatively simple jobs can absorb an unreasonable number of hours. Learn to work on your own car.

The timing belt is critical since the engine is not a clearance design (if the belt breaks, the pistons will hit the valves). Know the belts history, when it was last tensioned and when it's due for replacement.

Setting the valve clearances is another job that can be expensive. An owner who is handy with a wrench can do the job, but it's another one that will absorb a lot of hours if you have a mechanic on the clock.

If the timing belt and/or valve clearances are due soon, make them a bargaining chip in the price negotiations.

How are the tires. Performance tire choices in appropriate sizes are becoming very limited. Some owners are resorting to larger size wheels in order to move into a size range with more options. You can still get tires, but choices are limited. Don't plan on being picky.

When the car is running well, the drive makes up for any aggravation.

Where is the car? Ask here and on the Turboesprit list on YahooGroups and you may just find an Esprit owner in the area who will offer an informed opinion on the car.

Good luck with your purchase. I hope the car measures up to your expectations.

Regards,
Tim Engel
Lotus Owners Oftha North, MN, USA

[lotusguy]

StormBringer said:

First post to the forum, will be here for a long time if I buy a car. I have just gotten back from looking at a US spec 84 turbo, red on cream interior. Car has 39K miles on it. Went through a basic walkthrough of the car and saw a new turbo, new brakes, clean interior, pretty much a 7 out of 10 car in my book. Not a California car but it runs rather clean. Previous owner took care of it, new owner has had it maybe 200 miles. I know him pretty well and he is a bigger guy, I don;' think he feels comfortable getting in and out of the car and thats why he is selling it. Solid driver nothing special. Car is dirty as I have ever seen one through, can't get a good gauge on the condition of the paint. So some questions. I have the VIN but I have not been able to find a vin decoder in my search online. Vin is as follows. SCFC20A7EHF60467 Does this denote any special features, or is it just your standard turbo. Also how does the clear coat on the lotus stand up over the years. I can buff a car till it glows but if the fiberglass clear goes bad no mater how hard a rub it's never going to get really clean. I washed a small part of the car off and it looks like there are no swirl marks persay and the black's still look black so I am going to assume that it has been garaged ffor most of its life. I know people have asked how much for general upkeep and I will as well. I am pretty handy in the garage. I can change a timing belt, I can pull a motor, I can replace a clutch labor is not so much a issue. But parts, how much I cringe to ask. Worst case this car will need a clutch and a flywheel sanding. (Have not driven the car but baseing this on the mileage.) So how much for a clutch parts only. how much for a rebuilt head. How much for a tranny overhaul. How is getting general maintiance parts in the US, its will be my 4th car so being down for some time will not be a problem. Going to do a proper drive on it this weekend, will be able to tell a lot more about the car then, but figure that it runs as well as the previous owner has stated whats a 7 out of 10 lotus going for these days in the US.

Hi,

First post, but I think you've made up for lost time here . The '84 Turbo is the last of it's model. The '85 car, the last of the US carb'd Esprits, received some minor to medium changes, but a very close sibling.

39K miles is on the lower side, I bought my '85 in '96 w/ 16K mi. If maintained and driven properly, and be sure to get a service history to gauge this, it should be in overall good shape. Do a wet and a dry compression test. Look for 145PSI minimum/cyl. with a variation of no more than 5PSI between them.

I pulled my original clutch at 45K mi. and it was still in good shape, many miles left on it. But, I rebuilt it anyway for under $400 in parts and this included clutch, pressure plate, throwout bearing, spigot bearing, refaced and balanced the flywheel. This was 3 years ago, so pricing may have changed some.

You should not need a head job, but perhaps valve timing. This involves installing new shims to meet spec. These shims live on top of the valve collets under inverted bucket tappets. Not all shims will nered replacing as you may be able to shuffle some around, depending on what the mic and feeler gauges tell you.

At 39 K, you may be coming up on a waterpump rebuild, and maybe front/rear seals, carb rebuild. One of the weak spots of these early turbos were the cast pistons. These tend to crown from heat cycling between 35K-45K mi. My #4 piston melted at 40K mi. The fix is a switch to forged pistons. JE Pistons makes a set for $800. You will notice increasingly lower compression readings indicating that this is occuring.

The early cars had 3 primer coats, five color coats and 5 clearcoats, so unless the car has been color-sanded annually, you have plenty of material to work with.

As to the rest, it really depends on what level of restoration you want. How much money and work you're willing to do. At this age/mileage, springs, shocks, bushings, catalytic converter, radiator, belts, hoses, wheel bearings, steering rack, various sensors and relays, headlamp motors, window motors, switchgear, etc. will all need to be assessed.

Tranny is fairly reliable, but you may want to start saving for some new synchros, especially 1 & 2 - $250@. A full tranny rebuild can go $4K if you need CWP attention, and that's basically parts.

So far as purchase price, it's really too hard to gauge long-distance, but figure a low of $8K (minor project car) to maybe a high of $15K for a one owner pristine example. Of course, it's always a metter of what an individual is willing to pay, how badly they want it coupled with what the seller wants or will accept. Hope this helps.
Happy Motoring! ...Jim'85TE

[StormBringer]

Thanks guys you are the best, I am sure that I can do just about everything on this car except the transmission rebuild. (Don't know if thats even needed at this point but its something that I will need to keep a eye on).

I have build a few mid engine cars and will have a lift in the next few weeks installed so I think access will be less of a problem. Also I have used webers on everything from vw beetles to small block chevys so I have a decent handle on the tuning aspect.

Now on to update's. Having read a bit more about the car and some of the little lets just call them lotus traits s there anything that should be done to one as soon as you get it.

I intend to at this point,

get a better boost gauge.

Install a air/fuel ratio gauge.

Accuslump for cold startup

Can you install a turbo timer because I hear the oil does not recirculate to the turbo when you shut off the car?

Timing belt tension. It's about 1 year old and the car has been sitting.

Carb rebuild. (I always do this, I have had seals split on me, normally the acceleration pump diafram)


I like the thick paint, that means that I can use a agressive cleaning compound. For a while I thought the paint was just a gel coat which is impossible to get clean again.

Also how do you all fit into your cars, it seems that I was build just for this thing, 5,11 165 pounds. I just sink into those seats.