2010 Lotus Exige in Dubai, advice needed on some issues

[half-9]

Hi,

I'm looking at a 2010 Lotus Exige currently for sale in Dubai.

It shows 33k km, has sports and touring packs, methanol injection, AP racing front brakes which I assume come with the sports pack.

It has the following issues which are bothering me, any advice would be appreciated.

1. Owner said that a VIN number is not retrieved when the car is hooked up to diagnostic tools. It was like this when he bought it and is why the check engine light is on. Seems odd to me, don't know why the 2 might be linked.he mentioned it had something to do with bringing the car to GCC spec.

2. Interior looks like it's had better days, e.g. the leather on the passenger seat right at the bottom is not secured. The gear knob is worn, one vent broken, the roof lining is sagging. So to me the car looks like it's seen more kms. Assuming the odometer is km, the speedo shows km but trip meter shows miles?

3. There is a lot of play on the gear lever, so although it feels very positive when you select a gear, the lever itself can be wiggled from left to right much more than I was expecting. (sorry first time actually driving one)

4. There is a distinct rattle coming from behind me at idle, doesn't seem engine related though?

5. Exterior condition is average, some chips and scratches, rear fender has a small crack just above the wheel, i.e. untidy, but reasonable.

6. The methanol kit is an unknown for me, never heard of it before, owner is spraying distilled water into the air intake to keep the air intake temp down, as it gets very hot in Dubai, and claims injecting methanol increases bhp.

Any thoughts?

Thanks

H

[half-9]

That's worrying.

How come it is so easy to manipulate the mileage?

Thanks
H

[half-9]

Thanks!

Any views on the amount of play in the gear lever, is it a common issue? So what I mean is the travel left to right even when a gear is selected seems a bit on the high side.

H