v8 se talk to me
Discussion
having always hankered after one of these have seen a late model that i would like to look at. have to confess i know very little about these so would need an inspection and recommendations for servicing in the south east would be much appreciated. i understand barry ely does inspections? having always been into tvr,s what do you think they compare like?
A detailed inspection is a must have, especially if you know little about these cars. Theres a lot of information to be found on LotusEspritWorld and you should find enough explanation about most important details of this model.
The expensive jobs that need to be considered are:
- clutch
- cambelts and tensioners
- turbo oil and coolant feed lines
- AP front discs
You are looking at a late 90s supercar and its always going to have service prices to match. Not quite Ferrari level but you get the picture.
As for comparing with TVRs, I still have one of each. The Esprit V8 is more an 'extreme GT' and the TVR is more 'over powered kart'. Drive a few and you'll see what I mean.
You will probably find a lot more info and possible help with inspections etc over at The Lotus Forums, so come and say hi.
The expensive jobs that need to be considered are:
- clutch
- cambelts and tensioners
- turbo oil and coolant feed lines
- AP front discs
You are looking at a late 90s supercar and its always going to have service prices to match. Not quite Ferrari level but you get the picture.
As for comparing with TVRs, I still have one of each. The Esprit V8 is more an 'extreme GT' and the TVR is more 'over powered kart'. Drive a few and you'll see what I mean.
You will probably find a lot more info and possible help with inspections etc over at The Lotus Forums, so come and say hi.
In general the TVR has been much cheaper, mostly down to the fact that I've done it all myself for the last 15 years. However, recent work for chassis, trailing arms, fuel tank cradle, clutch etc has been around 2,500 euro. There's still about 1k of work to finish.
For the Lotus I have listed all service costs already:
http://www.lotusespritworld.com/EOwners/PeteHizzey...
Last years annual was nearly 1k (alternator died and battery dead too).
This years annual will be substantially more as they have had to change the oil and coolant lines to the turbos with all the usual problems of seized manifold and turbo bolts. I dont estimate much change from 2k..
For the Lotus I have listed all service costs already:
http://www.lotusespritworld.com/EOwners/PeteHizzey...
Last years annual was nearly 1k (alternator died and battery dead too).
This years annual will be substantially more as they have had to change the oil and coolant lines to the turbos with all the usual problems of seized manifold and turbo bolts. I dont estimate much change from 2k..
Just seen this thread and thought I may be able to give a bit of useful input as 2 close friends and myself have run over the past 6+ years a 1999 V8 SE Esprit, 1998 Griff 500 and a 1989 328 GTS.
The Griff has been the cheapest to maintain, ballpark £2k pa for 8-10k miles pa and the Esprit V8 and 328 have worked out around £3k pa fro 4-5k miles pa. The Esprit is generally a bit cheaper to mainitain than the 328 but does seem to have the occassional massive bill, my friend's cooling system has needed replacing twice in 5 years at a substantial cost. I would say the Griff has been the most unreliable due to fialure of small parts, but it does do double the mileage of the other two.
Having been in all 3 cars for some serious drives in Europe, I would say the Esprit is a lot faster car point to point and about the same in a straight line compared to the Griff and the 328 is slower in a straight line than the Griff, but keeps up in the twisty bits, which is probably what you would have assumed would be the case.
For the money, I think the Esprit V8s are real bargains, just don't expect Elise levels of mainitenance costs, they were effectively hand built by Lotus and require a fair bit of work to keep them in tip top condition.
The Griff has been the cheapest to maintain, ballpark £2k pa for 8-10k miles pa and the Esprit V8 and 328 have worked out around £3k pa fro 4-5k miles pa. The Esprit is generally a bit cheaper to mainitain than the 328 but does seem to have the occassional massive bill, my friend's cooling system has needed replacing twice in 5 years at a substantial cost. I would say the Griff has been the most unreliable due to fialure of small parts, but it does do double the mileage of the other two.
Having been in all 3 cars for some serious drives in Europe, I would say the Esprit is a lot faster car point to point and about the same in a straight line compared to the Griff and the 328 is slower in a straight line than the Griff, but keeps up in the twisty bits, which is probably what you would have assumed would be the case.
For the money, I think the Esprit V8s are real bargains, just don't expect Elise levels of mainitenance costs, they were effectively hand built by Lotus and require a fair bit of work to keep them in tip top condition.
wezo said:
For the money, I think the Esprit V8s are real bargains, just don't expect Elise levels of mainitenance costs, they were effectively hand built by Lotus and require a fair bit of work to keep them in tip top condition.
What you need to remember is that it's still a £60k car - with bills associated with a £60k car. What people often do is think "£17k car - £17k car bills" ! I have just about completed my first year of Esprit ownership (V8 GT).
It has cost me nothing other than petrol so far, and I have done about 4,000 miles.
When I first got it, it had not been used much for a while and needed a few things sorting out - ABS sensor, dodgy indicator switch, battery, coolant was low (coolant had just been changed, there was no leak, probably just not quite bled properly, has been fine since). These were all covered by the selling dealer.
There are now some jobs that do need doing though and they won't be cheap - some of the suspension bushes are a bit worn (not MOT fail yet), the exhaust heatshields are rattling which is annoying, some perished fuel lines need replacing, and cambelt/tensioner replacement is now looming. Clutch is also getting a bit juddery. And the engine has developed a small oil leak.
I am trying to decide whether to bite the bullet, pull the engine out and get all jobs done - if I do, and pay a garage, I don't expect much change out of £4K. I may however DIY it..... brave or foolish, I'm not sure!!
But touch wood, so far, it has been 100% reliable and great fun. Fuel costs are getting very high now at 18-20mpg. My biggest complaint is the GT seats, which are not great... my Elise probax seats were much better.
HTH
Cheers
Jerry
It has cost me nothing other than petrol so far, and I have done about 4,000 miles.
When I first got it, it had not been used much for a while and needed a few things sorting out - ABS sensor, dodgy indicator switch, battery, coolant was low (coolant had just been changed, there was no leak, probably just not quite bled properly, has been fine since). These were all covered by the selling dealer.
There are now some jobs that do need doing though and they won't be cheap - some of the suspension bushes are a bit worn (not MOT fail yet), the exhaust heatshields are rattling which is annoying, some perished fuel lines need replacing, and cambelt/tensioner replacement is now looming. Clutch is also getting a bit juddery. And the engine has developed a small oil leak.
I am trying to decide whether to bite the bullet, pull the engine out and get all jobs done - if I do, and pay a garage, I don't expect much change out of £4K. I may however DIY it..... brave or foolish, I'm not sure!!
But touch wood, so far, it has been 100% reliable and great fun. Fuel costs are getting very high now at 18-20mpg. My biggest complaint is the GT seats, which are not great... my Elise probax seats were much better.
HTH
Cheers
Jerry
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