Discussion
Quick answer: Depends.
Any 30 year old British built car will have foibles that prevent it from achieving Honda-like reliabilty.
A shed will be troublesome, but can be made good given a big enough wallet.
Having said that, there's more than one intrepid S2 owner on LEF that regularly use their cars for European trips without incident.
It's a fairly simple car mechanically, but some parts can expensive to repair/replace and these are sometimes scrimped on by previous owners which can lead to frustrations. Even with a debugged car, you'll have to put aside 'tinkering' time to keep it in top-notch condition, but that's half the fun of owning a classic.
Any 30 year old British built car will have foibles that prevent it from achieving Honda-like reliabilty.
A shed will be troublesome, but can be made good given a big enough wallet.
Having said that, there's more than one intrepid S2 owner on LEF that regularly use their cars for European trips without incident.
It's a fairly simple car mechanically, but some parts can expensive to repair/replace and these are sometimes scrimped on by previous owners which can lead to frustrations. Even with a debugged car, you'll have to put aside 'tinkering' time to keep it in top-notch condition, but that's half the fun of owning a classic.
No, not heinously. Their measure of reliability depends upon your point of view. If you're car experience is full of Toyota and Honda miles, then the Esprit is not very reliable. If you're familiar with British sports cars of the period, then the Esprit fits the norm. They're not modern cars to be judged by modern yardsticks (meter sticks).
The Esprit requires (requires!, not optional if you feel like it) regular maintenance as most cars of the day did. If you're lazy about changing the oil once a year "whether it needs it or not", then you may find the Esprit difficult to live with. If you stay ahead of routine maintenance, then the Esprit is pretty reliable.
Rear U-joints and wheel bearings are subject to failures. If you accept that and plan ahead, changing them on your schedule and not theirs, then it's not a problem.
Engine mounts don't last long, especially on the left side near the exhaust manifold's heat. An easy fix is to upgrade to the Turbo Esprit style mounts. Kits are available.
The electrics are not the most robust; however, most problems occur in the garage queens that don't get driven regularly. Cars that sit idle a lot develop corrosion in the electrical connections and ground points, then things stop working. Esprits that are driven regularly and are well maintained are quite reliable. Keep the ground points clean and lightly smeared with Anti-Seize.
In the UK, Lotus cars seem to get driven more like daily drivers and year around/ all weather. That may lead to more chassis corrosion issues. The chassis is made of thin gauge steel so it doesn't take much rust to be significant. Later chassis were zinc coated, but early ones like the S2 are not as corrosion resistant.
I've got a 1980 Federal S2 and in the past I've been pretty casual about hopping in and taking off cross country without a concern about making it back. Cross-country being 1400-2000 mile trips. My Esprit has never left me stranded along side of a road, but I have broken it during motorsports and had to haul it home... my fault, not the car's.
Regards,
Tim Engel
The Esprit requires (requires!, not optional if you feel like it) regular maintenance as most cars of the day did. If you're lazy about changing the oil once a year "whether it needs it or not", then you may find the Esprit difficult to live with. If you stay ahead of routine maintenance, then the Esprit is pretty reliable.
Rear U-joints and wheel bearings are subject to failures. If you accept that and plan ahead, changing them on your schedule and not theirs, then it's not a problem.
Engine mounts don't last long, especially on the left side near the exhaust manifold's heat. An easy fix is to upgrade to the Turbo Esprit style mounts. Kits are available.
The electrics are not the most robust; however, most problems occur in the garage queens that don't get driven regularly. Cars that sit idle a lot develop corrosion in the electrical connections and ground points, then things stop working. Esprits that are driven regularly and are well maintained are quite reliable. Keep the ground points clean and lightly smeared with Anti-Seize.
In the UK, Lotus cars seem to get driven more like daily drivers and year around/ all weather. That may lead to more chassis corrosion issues. The chassis is made of thin gauge steel so it doesn't take much rust to be significant. Later chassis were zinc coated, but early ones like the S2 are not as corrosion resistant.
I've got a 1980 Federal S2 and in the past I've been pretty casual about hopping in and taking off cross country without a concern about making it back. Cross-country being 1400-2000 mile trips. My Esprit has never left me stranded along side of a road, but I have broken it during motorsports and had to haul it home... my fault, not the car's.
Regards,
Tim Engel
CraigW said:
thanks Tim, all v useful, I'm utterly in lust with the gold one in the classifieds. need garage though I think.
Yep, that gold S2 looks pretty doesn't it.If you know how to use a spanner and have a daily snotter to take the strain, then there is no reason why you shouldn't take the plunge.
I have a S3 HC Turbo, which I like so much that I have owned it twice.
They are pretty straightforward mechanically, but are time consuming to work on because of the accessibility problems.
Changing the steering rack, for instance, is a fiddly job, as is replacing the radiator.
But they are cheap in terms of the cost of parts, so if you can do your own spannering, you can save a fortune.
The other thing to bear in mind is the modest performance of the N/A Esprits, which was considered disappointing in the 1970s, so they are comprehensively outclassed these days.
But for all its faults and limitations, I love my old Esprit. I sold it and moved on to TVR and then Ferrari, before eventually buying the Esprit back again.
It is an awkward, claustrophobic, infuriating and compromised old dog, but it really does feel marvelously special, even compared to the sublime Ferrari 328.
Key thing with this car is it DEFINETLY takes tinkering time to keep it on the road.
The build standard under the glorius facard is appauling and typically involves the use of poor components such as brackets , supports and cable routing.
The electrical system though basic is unreliable , primarily due to poor harness routing , cable support and wowfully inadeqaute electrical connectors- exacerbated by low use. - There is nothing like a little vibration to keep those contacts clean and hence pass a current.
I have had my esprit for twenty years. If a Toyota has a reliability score of 10 ( out of 10) , then
a thirty year old lotus scores minus 673.7! BUT it doesn't matter - The driving and ownership pleasure represents an aspect of life that only a lotus or Ferrari owner could appreciate. I love it !
Parts other than Engine and gearbox are cheap and labour is free if you do it yourself!
The build standard under the glorius facard is appauling and typically involves the use of poor components such as brackets , supports and cable routing.
The electrical system though basic is unreliable , primarily due to poor harness routing , cable support and wowfully inadeqaute electrical connectors- exacerbated by low use. - There is nothing like a little vibration to keep those contacts clean and hence pass a current.
I have had my esprit for twenty years. If a Toyota has a reliability score of 10 ( out of 10) , then
a thirty year old lotus scores minus 673.7! BUT it doesn't matter - The driving and ownership pleasure represents an aspect of life that only a lotus or Ferrari owner could appreciate. I love it !
Parts other than Engine and gearbox are cheap and labour is free if you do it yourself!
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