Which Esprit ? thinking of buying.
Discussion
Hi all,
I currently own a Porsche 911 3.2 Carrera Cabriolet. I've had it over two years now & love it but I'm itching for a change ( again )
I am a bit of a pistonhead & have had sports bikes in the past. I then bought a replica AC Cobra with 3.5V8 & then sold that to buy the 911.
If I had the money ( and space ) I would have kept them all but I need to sell one toy to move onto the next, lifes too short !
Anyway onto my question, I have been doing a bit of research & think the S4 model would be the one to go for but would appreciate your thoughts on owning & running an Esprit ?
It'll be used mainly for weekend toy with the occasional weekend away & possibly trip to europe. I'm not keen on the earlier ( square ) shape.
Depending what I can sell the 911 for I should have between 12k & maybe 15k, is this enough for a decent S4 ?
Also what's the difference between S4 & GT3 as the latter although newer seem to be cheaper ?
Any advice appreciated.
Regards, Phil.
I currently own a Porsche 911 3.2 Carrera Cabriolet. I've had it over two years now & love it but I'm itching for a change ( again )
I am a bit of a pistonhead & have had sports bikes in the past. I then bought a replica AC Cobra with 3.5V8 & then sold that to buy the 911.
If I had the money ( and space ) I would have kept them all but I need to sell one toy to move onto the next, lifes too short !
Anyway onto my question, I have been doing a bit of research & think the S4 model would be the one to go for but would appreciate your thoughts on owning & running an Esprit ?
It'll be used mainly for weekend toy with the occasional weekend away & possibly trip to europe. I'm not keen on the earlier ( square ) shape.
Depending what I can sell the 911 for I should have between 12k & maybe 15k, is this enough for a decent S4 ?
Also what's the difference between S4 & GT3 as the latter although newer seem to be cheaper ?
Any advice appreciated.
Regards, Phil.
Have a look here for the differences:
http://www.lotusespritworld.com/EModels/GT3.html
Basically 10% smaller engine in the GT3 with 10% less power.
Common opinion is that a good S4s would be the 'low maintenance' option.
http://www.lotusespritworld.com/EModels/GT3.html
Basically 10% smaller engine in the GT3 with 10% less power.
Common opinion is that a good S4s would be the 'low maintenance' option.
I've owned my S4 Esprit for 9 years now. In that period I had 1 breakdown, and that happened in my garage - Slave cylinder failed, cost $25 to repair. I drive the car pretty much every week. Give it a regular service and it just keeps going. Over the last 5 years the only serious issue was a rear wheel bearing that required replacement, again only $300 to replace by my local mechanic. All my parts I source from the UK.
Hi,
Many thanks for your replies so far, the information is appreciated.
I've been searching various sites for more info.
I'm going to see if I can get a test drive of a S4 / S to see how if I like it.
I'm keeping an eye open for suitable cars for sale but prices vary quite a lot.
No different to my Porsche though, I've seen examples like mine from as little as 10k right up to 25k !
How do you see prices of the Esprit going ? Are they level, appreciating or going down ?
I know it's not a reason to buy a particular car but it's nice if you can buy what will be an extravagant weekend toy that will also hold it's value or even go up rather than depreciate whilst sat in the garage :-)
Thanks again, Phil.
Many thanks for your replies so far, the information is appreciated.
I've been searching various sites for more info.
I'm going to see if I can get a test drive of a S4 / S to see how if I like it.
I'm keeping an eye open for suitable cars for sale but prices vary quite a lot.
No different to my Porsche though, I've seen examples like mine from as little as 10k right up to 25k !
How do you see prices of the Esprit going ? Are they level, appreciating or going down ?
I know it's not a reason to buy a particular car but it's nice if you can buy what will be an extravagant weekend toy that will also hold it's value or even go up rather than depreciate whilst sat in the garage :-)
Thanks again, Phil.
Hi Again,
Well fingers crossed I'm close to selling my 911 so will be in the market for an esprit.
Couple of questions if that's ok.
Whats it like to drive with the roof panel removed ? I have a 911 cabrio at the moment & love it with the roof down when the weathers good.
Also does the 4 pot engine normally have a cover over the cam belts ?
Thanks in advance.
Phil.
Well fingers crossed I'm close to selling my 911 so will be in the market for an esprit.
Couple of questions if that's ok.
Whats it like to drive with the roof panel removed ? I have a 911 cabrio at the moment & love it with the roof down when the weathers good.
Also does the 4 pot engine normally have a cover over the cam belts ?
Thanks in advance.
Phil.
Hi,
Thanks for the prompt reply.
I've got my eye on this one on PH at the moment http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/2922267.htm
Anyone know the car or like to comment on it ? Would suggest replies by PM please rather than on open forum.
There's a few others I'm hoping to go & look at next weekend as well as I'm undecided whether to go for an S4 / S4S or a V8.
The SE seems good value but the interior looks a bit dated ( IMO )
Would like the torque of the V8 but I'm a little put off by possible engine problems & costs if things go wrong.
Whats the fuel consumption compare like between the two, it's not a major issue as I'll only be doing about 3000 miles a year but may be a consideration. Insurance company quoted same price for both ?
Any other advise would be greatly appreciated.
Regards, Phil.
Thanks for the prompt reply.
I've got my eye on this one on PH at the moment http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/2922267.htm
Anyone know the car or like to comment on it ? Would suggest replies by PM please rather than on open forum.
There's a few others I'm hoping to go & look at next weekend as well as I'm undecided whether to go for an S4 / S4S or a V8.
The SE seems good value but the interior looks a bit dated ( IMO )
Would like the torque of the V8 but I'm a little put off by possible engine problems & costs if things go wrong.
Whats the fuel consumption compare like between the two, it's not a major issue as I'll only be doing about 3000 miles a year but may be a consideration. Insurance company quoted same price for both ?
Any other advise would be greatly appreciated.
Regards, Phil.
Firstly, please buy that and remove one of the spoilers, that looks awful!
Secondly, the 4 pots and V8's might as well be different cars they're so unique to each other in terms of driving, servicing etc so drive both if you're unsure which one you'd prefer. If you want a monster supercar that tugs you down the street at huge speeds, get a V8. If you want a nimble, light, precise supercar that handles like a dream and is still pretty quick (but needs to be driven to be driven (if you get me!)) then get an S4s (or S4, but the S4s is much better!).
They're all pretty reliable if they're regularly driven.
Secondly, the 4 pots and V8's might as well be different cars they're so unique to each other in terms of driving, servicing etc so drive both if you're unsure which one you'd prefer. If you want a monster supercar that tugs you down the street at huge speeds, get a V8. If you want a nimble, light, precise supercar that handles like a dream and is still pretty quick (but needs to be driven to be driven (if you get me!)) then get an S4s (or S4, but the S4s is much better!).
They're all pretty reliable if they're regularly driven.
Bibs_LEF said:
Firstly, please buy that and remove one of the spoilers, that looks awful!
What he said!If those mods are giving 300 hp then it will be quick enough. As Bibs said, you just have a work a little harder which makes it a more involving drive. The V8s are quite different animals in terms of power delivery and all that torque can make you lazy about gear changes but a well prepared 4 pot will not be far behind.
Hi there,
I've owned an 87 HC Turbo, 90 Carb Turbo, 96 S4s and now a 99 V8 GT. My V8 is as nimble as my previous S4s and in some cases with low down torque at low speeds feels more nimble as I can dart between traffic and have short bursts of power. I wouldn't go back to a 4 pot as you have to drive it hard and keep the revs high to get the enjoyment out of it.
It's fairly correct to say that if your V8 suffers from engine problems then it will cost more than a 4 pot. If you buy a good one at it only requires servicing then it's roughly similar costs apart from cambelt change. Oil is same and has similar capacities, it's the same oil filter. Air filters there's obviously twice as more on a V8 but quite a lot of owners have fitted K&N or Green Cotton filters so no cost there if you buy one with these fitted. If not it's a one off purchase. Plugs there's twice as many but they are roughly half the cost of a changecooled 4 pot plug, so roughly the same. Service times are similar. As for cambelt it's roughly 1.5 times the cost of a 4 pot.
A word of warning though, buy a rough V8 and it will empty your pockets quickly. A rough 4 pot will also empty your pockets but it will take a little longer. My advise is to drive as many as you can and then get it inspected buy a Lotus specialist, preferrably an Esprit specialist.
I didn't take this advise and bought the first car I drove only because I was SO desperate to own one. I was lucky as there wasn't much wrong with it and I spoke to the Lotus specialist where the PO had it serviced. He told me all the things that needed doing so I knew before I bought it.
If you do decide on a 4 pot then my advise is an S4 or a GT3. S4s have too much a premium on them to justify it. Just chip the S4 and decat it and you'll soon have 300BHP if that's what you are looking for.
Regards,
David Walters
I've owned an 87 HC Turbo, 90 Carb Turbo, 96 S4s and now a 99 V8 GT. My V8 is as nimble as my previous S4s and in some cases with low down torque at low speeds feels more nimble as I can dart between traffic and have short bursts of power. I wouldn't go back to a 4 pot as you have to drive it hard and keep the revs high to get the enjoyment out of it.
It's fairly correct to say that if your V8 suffers from engine problems then it will cost more than a 4 pot. If you buy a good one at it only requires servicing then it's roughly similar costs apart from cambelt change. Oil is same and has similar capacities, it's the same oil filter. Air filters there's obviously twice as more on a V8 but quite a lot of owners have fitted K&N or Green Cotton filters so no cost there if you buy one with these fitted. If not it's a one off purchase. Plugs there's twice as many but they are roughly half the cost of a changecooled 4 pot plug, so roughly the same. Service times are similar. As for cambelt it's roughly 1.5 times the cost of a 4 pot.
A word of warning though, buy a rough V8 and it will empty your pockets quickly. A rough 4 pot will also empty your pockets but it will take a little longer. My advise is to drive as many as you can and then get it inspected buy a Lotus specialist, preferrably an Esprit specialist.
I didn't take this advise and bought the first car I drove only because I was SO desperate to own one. I was lucky as there wasn't much wrong with it and I spoke to the Lotus specialist where the PO had it serviced. He told me all the things that needed doing so I knew before I bought it.
If you do decide on a 4 pot then my advise is an S4 or a GT3. S4s have too much a premium on them to justify it. Just chip the S4 and decat it and you'll soon have 300BHP if that's what you are looking for.
Regards,
David Walters
Hi again,
Well my 911 has gone off the her new home.
I can now start looking into buying an Esprit.
I have taken on board all of the comments & the more I think about it the more I think I may prefer a V8 with it's extra torque, given the purchase prices are similar as well.
I have spotted a couple for sale -
http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/2988657.htm
Love the colour of this one but is a new engine & gearbox at 36k miles a good or bad thing ?
I presume this is the model before the GT/SE, if so will the new engine be the later type, i.e more reliable ?
Also -
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Lotus-Esprit-3-5-1999MY-V8-S...
This seems like a good price but not sure about the location of the garage, it looks like a builders yard ?
I'll get in touch with the sellers but would appreciate your thoughts.
Many thanks, Phil.
Well my 911 has gone off the her new home.
I can now start looking into buying an Esprit.
I have taken on board all of the comments & the more I think about it the more I think I may prefer a V8 with it's extra torque, given the purchase prices are similar as well.
I have spotted a couple for sale -
http://www.pistonheads.co.uk/sales/2988657.htm
Love the colour of this one but is a new engine & gearbox at 36k miles a good or bad thing ?
I presume this is the model before the GT/SE, if so will the new engine be the later type, i.e more reliable ?
Also -
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Lotus-Esprit-3-5-1999MY-V8-S...
This seems like a good price but not sure about the location of the garage, it looks like a builders yard ?
I'll get in touch with the sellers but would appreciate your thoughts.
Many thanks, Phil.
Good choice going for the V8, I much prefer the later smaller instrument binnacle looks much more modern. If you are used to traction control you need to be a bit careful with the V8 it has a brutal power delivery which also goes hand in hand with an enormous grin factor. I would also suggest if you have not done so yet have a good browse through the Lotus Esprit World website its a mine of very useful information where you can check out items like if the car you look at has a blowing exhaust manifold, rattling heat shields and what it may cost if the car has that sort of problem.
Hi there,
Some of the first advert doesn't quite add up. It says new engine from Lotus that's only covered 18K? To me that's a used engine not new?
It also says that it has straight through pipes which means it hasn't got any cats. If so ask the owner for the original cats. He must have them as it's just had an MOT. If he hsan't then I would look into the MOT more.
The only things in the advert worth reading is new clutch, gearboxes and tyres along with FSH which you need to check out it's date related and not mileage. Also check out who's been servicing it.
David
Some of the first advert doesn't quite add up. It says new engine from Lotus that's only covered 18K? To me that's a used engine not new?
It also says that it has straight through pipes which means it hasn't got any cats. If so ask the owner for the original cats. He must have them as it's just had an MOT. If he hsan't then I would look into the MOT more.
The only things in the advert worth reading is new clutch, gearboxes and tyres along with FSH which you need to check out it's date related and not mileage. Also check out who's been servicing it.
David
The second one I would get checked out. for a garage like this to offer a 12 month parts and labout guarantee is questionable. I wonder what they would actually pay out for?
Wheels have been painted rather badly and look dull. It also has odd decals on along with black pinstripes all round. I would look for any accident damage and again where it had it's belts changed. I would want to see an Lotus specialist having done this work not the garage in the background. There may be areason why it's the cheapest in the country. There's no such thing as a cheap Esprit.
BTW, a 99my didn't have the rear licence plate and rear lower valance colour coded so check rear end for paintwork and accident damage too.
David
Wheels have been painted rather badly and look dull. It also has odd decals on along with black pinstripes all round. I would look for any accident damage and again where it had it's belts changed. I would want to see an Lotus specialist having done this work not the garage in the background. There may be areason why it's the cheapest in the country. There's no such thing as a cheap Esprit.
BTW, a 99my didn't have the rear licence plate and rear lower valance colour coded so check rear end for paintwork and accident damage too.
David
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