2009 Lotus Evora N/A

[jamesbilluk]

Hi all, I've been looking at changing the i8 for something more involving recently, so meet my new Persian Blue Lotus Evora N/A, It has the Ivory Leather. its a 2009, with 68,000 miles (what could go wrong...) (it will be a daily driver, so not worried about that) The general condition is very good, with a good service history, its recently (2019) had over 3k spent on various things, including a new AC compressor. I had a checklist I took with me. The only thing that isn't working is the passenger window drop and rise, as you open and close the door. The window mechanism works fine though. The gear change is lovely, rifle bolt like, no problems going in to 2nd!

Considering the miles, and being white the interior is in great condition. A nice bonus is, that it does have the Lotus sports exhaust, which sounds fantastic, and even managed to return 35mpg on the motorway. The one thing that has amazed me, is how well the car rides, better than my other halfs Astra, not one rattle from the dashboard, or from the suspension, in fact, the i8 had more rattles from the dash!

Looking forward to many more (hopefully trouble free ) miles, and will just have to sort out the window..

Here are some pics, some when I purchased, and then after the trip.. I love the colour each time I see it, even on a dull day!

Edited by jamesbilluk on Friday 18th December 20:36

[TheJimi]

I like these. They really do sound like the perfect sportscar for our roads.

Interesting comments about the suspension - it's pretty much regarded as some kinda witchcraft on these things

[ParanoidAndroid]

Congratulations, looks awesome and a rare colour as well! I own an Evora S Sports Racer and absolutely love it. Touch wood, no issues at all in the 2 years I’ve owned it and always makes me smile whenever I get a chance to take it out.

[jwwbowe]

Very nice, looks great in such a striking colour. Really like these and the S3 Exige, with a Toyota engine I’d imagine they are fairly reasonable to look after to. Think Lotus’s work well in Blue / Green “Nightfall Blue” is my fav. Any interior shots, does it have Recaro seats? I know some have Sparco seats but was that for the S?

[jamesbilluk]

TheJimi said:

I like these. They really do sound like the perfect sportscar for our roads.

Interesting comments about the suspension - it's pretty much regarded as some kinda witchcraft on these things

Really is astonishing how well it rides over the roads around here, and maintaining the steering feel it does.

[jamesbilluk]

ParanoidAndroid said:

Congratulations, looks awesome and a rare colour as well! I own an Evora S Sports Racer and absolutely love it. Touch wood, no issues at all in the 2 years I’ve owned it and always makes me smile whenever I get a chance to take it out.

Thank you Would be interested to find out how many are in it, I may get my self one of Lotus certificates. Love yours! Looks fantastic in that colour.
They do seem like a special car.

[jamesbilluk]

jwwbowe said:

Very nice, looks great in such a striking colour. Really like these and the S3 Exige, with a Toyota engine I’d imagine they are fairly reasonable to look after to. Think Lotus’s work well in Blue / Green “Nightfall Blue” is my fav. Any interior shots, does it have Recaro seats? I know some have Sparco seats but was that for the S?

Thank you

The S3 Exige is a great looking car! Very true, the engines do seem very reliable form what I've read.

Nightfall Blue does look lovely, must be vary rare too.

This has the Recaro seats, this is the dash


This pic isn't of mine, but is the exact seat colour.

[MattyB_]

I recognise the driveway because I've seen a fair few or your RC threads - you've owned and compared a few cars I've owned or planned too over the years, specifically the 4C/Evora/ExigeIPS you owned in quick succession.

I recall you selling the Evora S rather quickly though - how come you're back in an N/A ?

[jamesbilluk]

MattyB_ said:

I recognise the driveway because I've seen a fair few or your RC threads - you've owned and compared a few cars I've owned or planned too over the years, specifically the 4C/Evora/ExigeIPS you owned in quick succession.

I recall you selling the Evora S rather quickly though - how come you're back in an N/A ?

The Evora S was a lovely bit of kit, I only changed to the Exige, as I fancied a convertible, but as good as the Exige was, I regretted selling the Evora S.

I went for the N/A, as for me, and the kind of driving I do/roads around here, its fast enough, it does sound better than the S did as well, with the exhaust system it has. It also seems relatively frugal as well when it needs to be, with the standard gearbox. Another reason was budget.

[Harrison Bergeron]

Geez I didn’t know they’d been making them this long. Still a fantastic looking car.

[keo]

Looks great would love to try one.

[Spunagain]

For the window issue, have you tried resetting the electric windows? I forget the exact process but something like ignition on and engine off, roll down window and hold switch in down position for 20s, roll up and hold switch in up position for 20s.

[MattyB_]

jamesbilluk said:

The Evora S was a lovely bit of kit, I only changed to the Exige, as I fancied a convertible, but as good as the Exige was, I regretted selling the Evora S.

I went for the N/A, as for me, and the kind of driving I do/roads around here, its fast enough, it does sound better than the S did as well, with the exhaust system it has. It also seems relatively frugal as well when it needs to be, with the standard gearbox. Another reason was budget.

Interesting - always fancied the Exige at some point, but I did love my Evora. Was it just the practicality/usability aspect?

Agreed about the performance though - I felt 285 was enough and it was cheaper to tax and insure to boot.

[p4cks]

Great cars and a lovely daily, incredibly reliable and cheap to run.

The window issue is likely to be the regulator. £300 or so and they're on back order from Lotus with an unknown date for delivery... ask me how I know.

[jamesbilluk]

Spunagain said:

For the window issue, have you tried resetting the electric windows? I forget the exact process but something like ignition on and engine off, roll down window and hold switch in down position for 20s, roll up and hold switch in up position for 20s.

Did give that a try, but still doesn't seem to be dropping,

I took it for a drive This morning, popped the drivers window down to enjoy the noise, now that's stuck down!!

[jamesbilluk]

MattyB_ said:

Interesting - always fancied the Exige at some point, but I did love my Evora. Was it just the practicality/usability aspect?

Agreed about the performance though - I felt 285 was enough and it was cheaper to tax and insure to boot.

Exige was an amazing bit of kit, and would highly recommend one, and the IPS was fantastic as well, That was the main reason really, with a little one in tow, its nice for her to be able to come along in the back.

Agreed there, it feels the right amount of power, I find I'm just enjoying the sound at the moment, the sports exhaust sounds fantastic. I was quite shocked how well it was doing on fuel on the motorway with it.

[jamesbilluk]

p4cks said:

Great cars and a lovely daily, incredibly reliable and cheap to run.

The window issue is likely to be the regulator. £300 or so and they're on back order from Lotus with an unknown date for delivery... ask me how I know.

Ah yes, I've been enjoying reading your readers car thread on it

It does seem that way, annoyingly I think it will need 2, as the drivers window is now stuck half way down (very odd, as it was working fine yesterday) so it has a glamorous bin bag over the window opening now..

Hmm, worrying to hear! Sounds like its quite a common fault.

im going to pop to my local garage, or Paul Matty, who is local to me, on Monday, to see if they can somehow get the door card off, and lift the window back up.

[jamesbilluk]

Bit of an update with the Evora. The drivers side window is still playing up, It stuck its self completely down, but for some reason, that evening, wound its self back up again. So for now, I've taken the fuse out for that side, stopping it dropping down on its own accord.
The cars booked into Williams Automobiles on the 11th of this month for both windows to be looked at (and a general check over) (purchasing garage said they would cover it) Ill also get them to do a 4 wheel alignment on the car whilst its in.

I went for my first proper drive today, The various issues no longer seemed to matter to me. It really is impressive how well it rides, and handles well at the same time, and is a pleasure to use, compared to my last car, which was far too unsettled over bumps.

Its not as quick as the i8, but the engine sound and feedback make up for that! That's the one thing that I missed from the i8 is proper steering feedback, it was far too light.

Recaro Youngsport Hero has all been installed, the little one has already fallen asleep in it.

I have it a good clean today, exterior and interior, for the mileage I'm impressed how its looking, the inside is a very special place to sit, helped a lot by the colour (I was even thrilled to see, it hadn't leaked during the storm we had the previous night!

Here are some pictures after the wash, I like the colour more every time I see it.

Edited by jamesbilluk on Monday 28th December 00:19

[p4cks]

Gorgeous colour combo!

[LaurasOtherHalf]

Lovely colour combo, they drive so nicely too. AU on the reg so Lotus car originally?