Anyone see 5th gear today
Discussion
Quite interesting. They took a Lotus Esprit V8tt and their goal on a "budget" was to crack 200mph. Well... the gearbox died twice, the engine twice, the clutch once and they only managed 174mph. Interesting part where they wind tested it and found it more aerodynamic with the rear wing and mirrors removed and a few other areas taped up. IIRC they said it took 33% more power to get 10 more mph. Someone correct that if I'm wrong. A Sierra Sapphire with 850hp managed 206mph.
This is well, well documented on this site, and SELOC (the show's quite old)... in the end, they did the wrong things and ended up butchering a good car 
The Esprit engine is detuned somewhat to not break the glass gearbox.clutch assembly.... there are several Esprits out there running 200mph+, most of which have had aftermarket gearboxes and clutches so that the engine can be allowed to safely live up to its potential.
The Esprit engine is detuned somewhat to not break the glass gearbox.clutch assembly.... there are several Esprits out there running 200mph+, most of which have had aftermarket gearboxes and clutches so that the engine can be allowed to safely live up to its potential.
Yeah I never watch much Tele on Sunday arvo, but glad I did today waiting for the clear coat on airbrushed helmet to flash off before next coat.
George has it in one there.....It was pretty sad what they did to this car. I was gutted. There was f*ck all of this model manufactured and to tart the engine and knock it around with out too much thought, ruined a nice car. An untuned 350bhp motor on the Renault box gives it top speeds of 170-175mph. Any more and major work is needed on the box, most people just replace them with beefier ones. And yeah I too know of Esprits world wide who have have joined the 200mph club. Its not something I would want to attempt in this car and certainly dosent put me off buying one.
George has it in one there.....It was pretty sad what they did to this car. I was gutted. There was f*ck all of this model manufactured and to tart the engine and knock it around with out too much thought, ruined a nice car. An untuned 350bhp motor on the Renault box gives it top speeds of 170-175mph. Any more and major work is needed on the box, most people just replace them with beefier ones. And yeah I too know of Esprits world wide who have have joined the 200mph club. Its not something I would want to attempt in this car and certainly dosent put me off buying one.
They did make comment to needing a race gearbox etc. I couldn't beleive it when they said they probably should have played more attention to AFR's ahhh YES! And whats with putting a 100hp shot of NOS through it when they had one more run til the clutch let go... HELLOOO. The Aero part was interesting though 
I must say it looked a beast just not so hot getting loaded on the flatbed after every run...
I must say it looked a beast just not so hot getting loaded on the flatbed after every run...Kiwi Carguy said:
They did make comment to needing a race gearbox etc. I couldn't beleive it when they said they probably should have played more attention to AFR's ahhh YES! And whats with putting a 100hp shot of NOS through it when they had one more run til the clutch let go... HELLOOO. The Aero part was interesting though I must say it looked a beast just not so hot getting loaded on the flatbed after every run...
The boot spoilers etc is purely for looks and yeah do create drag according to a gernal concensus on Esprit forums. The earlier V8 GTs and some early stevens cars like mine didnt come with a rear spoiler, they arent needed for the speeds they were built for. The esprit is already a well planted car at high speeds. The Sport 350 has a proper racing wing which is meant to be quite good at top end speeds where it does count. I must say it looked a beast just not so hot getting loaded on the flatbed after every run...I think the standard wing does do SOME good, but is far from optimal. The bi-plane 350 wing is directly derived from that of the GT1 racecar and produces a chunk more downforce than the standard item for about the same drag penalty.
Whoever they had tuning the engine was a muppet. With the Turbo/Intercooler mod they did, if the car had been sensibly tuned with proper attention turned to the A/F ratios, you could have a driveable 550bhp that'll last for 50,000 miles or more! Those Esprit V8 engines are rock-solid when done PROPERLY, but people seemt o want to just turn the wick up on the boost and go nuts, which doesn't work in ANY turbo car for long, from a humble Jap 2L turbo through to an exotic engine like the Veyron.
Whoever they had tuning the engine was a muppet. With the Turbo/Intercooler mod they did, if the car had been sensibly tuned with proper attention turned to the A/F ratios, you could have a driveable 550bhp that'll last for 50,000 miles or more! Those Esprit V8 engines are rock-solid when done PROPERLY, but people seemt o want to just turn the wick up on the boost and go nuts, which doesn't work in ANY turbo car for long, from a humble Jap 2L turbo through to an exotic engine like the Veyron.
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