Lotus Esprit GT3
Discussion
Hi Guys
I just collected my Lotus yesterday. It was owned by a Dr for the last 10 years who was a proper enthusiast and big on paperwork. It's got stacks of records for servicing/work. A lot of the common faults have been rectified but there are a couple of things still to do (which was factored into the price). It has an exhaust leak (likely to be a cracked manifold), a warped rotor/s and on the way home the speedo died on me. Other than that, it seems to be in very good condition and drives very well.
As it's a GT3 it's the later 2L Turbo (charge cooled) motor and the car weighs ~ 1200kg. It certainly feels light on it's feet.
A friend of mine bodged up an adapter to allow the OBD port to be connected to a laptop via USB. Will have a look at what's going on and take a look at the charge temp. Doesn't feel like it's missing much power but apparently the impeller for the charge cooler is a bit crap and degrades over time. The ECU deals with it so you don't notice/aren't at risk of damage but over time power drops as is degrades.
Considering the Seat is supposed to be a super mini ;D
Overall I'm pretty pleased. Just got to go about getting the bits and pieces that need doing sorted. Then for some proper driving.
I just collected my Lotus yesterday. It was owned by a Dr for the last 10 years who was a proper enthusiast and big on paperwork. It's got stacks of records for servicing/work. A lot of the common faults have been rectified but there are a couple of things still to do (which was factored into the price). It has an exhaust leak (likely to be a cracked manifold), a warped rotor/s and on the way home the speedo died on me. Other than that, it seems to be in very good condition and drives very well.
As it's a GT3 it's the later 2L Turbo (charge cooled) motor and the car weighs ~ 1200kg. It certainly feels light on it's feet.
A friend of mine bodged up an adapter to allow the OBD port to be connected to a laptop via USB. Will have a look at what's going on and take a look at the charge temp. Doesn't feel like it's missing much power but apparently the impeller for the charge cooler is a bit crap and degrades over time. The ECU deals with it so you don't notice/aren't at risk of damage but over time power drops as is degrades.
Considering the Seat is supposed to be a super mini ;D
Overall I'm pretty pleased. Just got to go about getting the bits and pieces that need doing sorted. Then for some proper driving.
Thanks guys.
At this point I'm going to leave it as is cosmetically (although Tony has bought be a PH sticker). (Hopefully) it won't be much of a project. The to do list so far:
Exhaust - Establish whether leak is a gasket or crack in the manifold. If it's a crack, I can either get the Alunox stainless manifold and do all the work myself, or fast road conversions said they could do a mild steel tubular header with a lifetime warranty (fitted) for less. If going down that route I'd use part of the difference to get it ceramic coated.
Brakes - See if I can borrow a dial gauge or convince a mechanic to check the run out on my rotors for a tenner. Identify which ones are warped and replace that pair (or all 4 if necessary). I believe it has yellow stuff pads in it, so if they are in reasonable shape I'll give them a light sanding and re-use.
Speedo - Hopefully just a connection, it had a new speedo a few thousand miles ago as the originals can be quite erratic apparently.
BOV - There's a bit of lag when shifting, would like to install a BOV to try and reduce that. Just have to see whether it would spray oil vapour all over my engine bay.
Chip - Might get a chip from PUK. We'll see.
The first three are necessary, the second two are nice to haves when I have a bit more money. Buying the car and fixing the necessaries will pretty much clean me out for a while.
At this point I'm going to leave it as is cosmetically (although Tony has bought be a PH sticker). (Hopefully) it won't be much of a project. The to do list so far:
Exhaust - Establish whether leak is a gasket or crack in the manifold. If it's a crack, I can either get the Alunox stainless manifold and do all the work myself, or fast road conversions said they could do a mild steel tubular header with a lifetime warranty (fitted) for less. If going down that route I'd use part of the difference to get it ceramic coated.
Brakes - See if I can borrow a dial gauge or convince a mechanic to check the run out on my rotors for a tenner. Identify which ones are warped and replace that pair (or all 4 if necessary). I believe it has yellow stuff pads in it, so if they are in reasonable shape I'll give them a light sanding and re-use.
Speedo - Hopefully just a connection, it had a new speedo a few thousand miles ago as the originals can be quite erratic apparently.
BOV - There's a bit of lag when shifting, would like to install a BOV to try and reduce that. Just have to see whether it would spray oil vapour all over my engine bay.
Chip - Might get a chip from PUK. We'll see.
The first three are necessary, the second two are nice to haves when I have a bit more money. Buying the car and fixing the necessaries will pretty much clean me out for a while.
Spantney said:
Indeed! When he bought it over most of the blokes in my cul-de-sac came out to have a mooch around it! 
Dan you should come down to the Essex meet on Thursday. Myself and Cam will be there
Ant
Thanks for the invite, but my mr2 is in the garage at the moment, with the turbo not quite connected to the engine Dan you should come down to the Essex meet on Thursday. Myself and Cam will be there
Ant
If it's done before then i'll probably head over. Is it still in South Woodham Ferrers?
That is fantastic! Can't remember the last time I saw one on the road. When I was a kid there was a need for speed game that was one of the first to have in car views with working dashboards (even the speedo worked...sorry), I spent hours in the Lotus, don't know why but that interior just looked right!
Enjoy...
Enjoy...
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