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.
Been a while since I updated this. Few things have changed since then.
Had a new exhaust manifold made up and ceramic coated by Zircotec. 1 week to make the manifold, 6 weeks to coat it...
It then went in for a new mid-pipe as that was leaking at the turbo join:
This was pre-mid pipe.
It sounds a WHOLE lot better now but don't have a vid yet.
This weekend I did what's know as the "ram air mod". Basically, the air intake is made of two runs of hose with a resonator in between. I took the long hose, cut it down and attached it directly to the airbox. The result is a lot more noise :-)
There's no dump valve. That's just turbo chatter.
Unfortunately there's still a leak, possibly at the number 4 port. The good new is that all the exhaust work is under lifetime warranty and the people who did it have epic service.
Once it's all sorted for good, I'll get a proper inside/outside vid.
It's still got the crap GM Rochester injectors. I'm planning to replace them and figured it's pretty much the same money to go bigger for future proofing, but that means a bespoke mapping. This is my preference anyway as every change will make some difference to the fuelling and timing requirements that a chip just can't cater for. Matt at DIYautotune.com is looking at the electrical diagram to see if he can create a pin-out for me. If so, I'll be going with an MS3X and will make up an adapter so that the harness won't require any cutting.
Photos by SheriffAds
Had a new exhaust manifold made up and ceramic coated by Zircotec. 1 week to make the manifold, 6 weeks to coat it...
It then went in for a new mid-pipe as that was leaking at the turbo join:
This was pre-mid pipe.
It sounds a WHOLE lot better now but don't have a vid yet.
This weekend I did what's know as the "ram air mod". Basically, the air intake is made of two runs of hose with a resonator in between. I took the long hose, cut it down and attached it directly to the airbox. The result is a lot more noise :-)
There's no dump valve. That's just turbo chatter.
Unfortunately there's still a leak, possibly at the number 4 port. The good new is that all the exhaust work is under lifetime warranty and the people who did it have epic service.
Once it's all sorted for good, I'll get a proper inside/outside vid.
It's still got the crap GM Rochester injectors. I'm planning to replace them and figured it's pretty much the same money to go bigger for future proofing, but that means a bespoke mapping. This is my preference anyway as every change will make some difference to the fuelling and timing requirements that a chip just can't cater for. Matt at DIYautotune.com is looking at the electrical diagram to see if he can create a pin-out for me. If so, I'll be going with an MS3X and will make up an adapter so that the harness won't require any cutting.
Photos by SheriffAds
Got a K&N panel on the way for this as well as the bits to disconnect the crankcase re-circ from the airbox. I'm going with the panel as the airbox in this is very well designed with a high pressure cold air feed. I'm pretty sure I could only make things worse by trying to fit a pod.
Hooked up the laptop and monitored what it was doing. Looking at the IAT, I think my charge cooler pump is knackered. The impellor is plastic and they are a 7k mile service item. I've got an electric pump kit on the way with the air filter. So there could be 10-20hp to claw back and no more pump replacements in future. While fitting, I might take the charge cooler out and clean it out. The crankcase re-circ dumps quite a lot of vapour into the intake and I can't imagine that helps the efficiency of the charge cooler.
Exhaust leak appears to be fixed now. They had to drill out some of the threads and tap to M10 with new studs. Included under the warranty for the manifold. Definitely cannot recommend Fast Road Conversions in Kent enough!
All in all, this thing is getting faster and louder... which is nice.
Hooked up the laptop and monitored what it was doing. Looking at the IAT, I think my charge cooler pump is knackered. The impellor is plastic and they are a 7k mile service item. I've got an electric pump kit on the way with the air filter. So there could be 10-20hp to claw back and no more pump replacements in future. While fitting, I might take the charge cooler out and clean it out. The crankcase re-circ dumps quite a lot of vapour into the intake and I can't imagine that helps the efficiency of the charge cooler.
Exhaust leak appears to be fixed now. They had to drill out some of the threads and tap to M10 with new studs. Included under the warranty for the manifold. Definitely cannot recommend Fast Road Conversions in Kent enough!
All in all, this thing is getting faster and louder... which is nice.
Benters, where do you live mate? You need a program called freescan and a USB to Serial adapter that can fit the OBD port. I have an adapter that just has two wires soldered to it. You put them into the correct sockets on the OBD port (cost £4.50 to make whereas they are £50 plus to buy). If you are anywhere near Southend you can come and use mine.
I'm not sure how they compare to an Elise as I've never driven one. They are about 350KG heavier but much more powerful. They are more of an entry level super car (for the time) than the track focused sports car that the Elise is designed to be. The Esprit still feels light but it's designed with a different purpose in mind I guess.
I'm not sure how they compare to an Elise as I've never driven one. They are about 350KG heavier but much more powerful. They are more of an entry level super car (for the time) than the track focused sports car that the Elise is designed to be. The Esprit still feels light but it's designed with a different purpose in mind I guess.
Was seeing temps in Freescan that led me to believe my chargecooler pump impeller had disintegrated (they are a 7K mile service item); so I ordered an electric pump kit.
Since I've disconnected the crankcase re-circ, I though It would be a good idea to clean out the chargecooler. I used descaling solution on the water side and put some white spirit in the air side and shook it around (after removing the MAT sensor). Judging by what came out of both sides, it needed it. Thinking I'll need to the same with the radiator now. Also wondering if I need to work out a way to clean out the compressor on the turbo.
Old pump.
Blanking plug for the oil pump (it piggybacks off the oil pump)
She refused to help at all!
There were limited options for mounting the electric pump and being able to use the original hoses. This location worked pretty well. It doesn't foul anything and is very accessible. Ones I get some new lengths of hose I might try and attach it to a chassis member under the boot.
By the time I'd finished, it was too late to get pics of it all back together.
Power is spliced into the feed for the fuel pump and injectors, so it only runs when they do (only when the motor is running).
The result. MAT readings of around 21 degrees with an ambient temp of around 10. The cooler itself is always cool to touch now where it never was before. I think there's still a fair bit of air in there, so could be further improvement after further bleeding.
Since I've disconnected the crankcase re-circ, I though It would be a good idea to clean out the chargecooler. I used descaling solution on the water side and put some white spirit in the air side and shook it around (after removing the MAT sensor). Judging by what came out of both sides, it needed it. Thinking I'll need to the same with the radiator now. Also wondering if I need to work out a way to clean out the compressor on the turbo.
Old pump.
Blanking plug for the oil pump (it piggybacks off the oil pump)
She refused to help at all!
There were limited options for mounting the electric pump and being able to use the original hoses. This location worked pretty well. It doesn't foul anything and is very accessible. Ones I get some new lengths of hose I might try and attach it to a chassis member under the boot.
By the time I'd finished, it was too late to get pics of it all back together.
Power is spliced into the feed for the fuel pump and injectors, so it only runs when they do (only when the motor is running).
The result. MAT readings of around 21 degrees with an ambient temp of around 10. The cooler itself is always cool to touch now where it never was before. I think there's still a fair bit of air in there, so could be further improvement after further bleeding.
Getting some pretty epic compressor surge, which while it sounds good, isn't exactly good for longevity. Have ordered one of these:
http://www.hks-power.co.jp/en/product/blow_off/sqv...
Seemed to be one of the better units out there and doesn't require any faffing with springs etc. Should also do a better job at part throttle than other units which allows for a bigger turbo in future.
Ordered a silicone T piece to fit it. Hopefully I'll be able to fit it pre-chargecooler but if not, plenty of people have these between the cooler and the plenum.
http://www.hks-power.co.jp/en/product/blow_off/sqv...
Seemed to be one of the better units out there and doesn't require any faffing with springs etc. Should also do a better job at part throttle than other units which allows for a bigger turbo in future.
Ordered a silicone T piece to fit it. Hopefully I'll be able to fit it pre-chargecooler but if not, plenty of people have these between the cooler and the plenum.
Well, I've got an MS3/X on the way for this thing (plus the stim kits to test both boards) and a Spartan II wideband to go with it.
A kind gentleman on the Lotus forum has a dead ECU he's sending for me to extract the sockets from, will connect the MS harnesses to these to create an adapter.
Not as cheap as I was hoping all up but apparently if I wanted to keep the standard 4+2 staged injector setup this was what I needed (MS3 + Extra. I want to keep it as "drop in" as possible to minimise opportunity for me to mess things up). Also allows for a tonne of other goodies in the future though (Flat shifting which will also have an anti-lag effect).
Will prob get a Bluetooth adapter so I can monitor in real time from phone/tablet.
http://www.msextra.com/product-range/traditional-m...
Plan is to just get it driving and test that everything is working okay, then I'm looking at a turbo rebuild with billet 60 trim compressor wheel and new housing, injectors and possibly a bigger chargecooler if a group buy goes ahead. I'll also be ditching the A/C and connecting the chargecooler radiator to the A/C rad as per the Sport 300 Esprit.
Apparently the billet 60 trim good for 360BHP so hoping 340-350 isn't unrealistic with a proper dyno tune.
A kind gentleman on the Lotus forum has a dead ECU he's sending for me to extract the sockets from, will connect the MS harnesses to these to create an adapter.
Not as cheap as I was hoping all up but apparently if I wanted to keep the standard 4+2 staged injector setup this was what I needed (MS3 + Extra. I want to keep it as "drop in" as possible to minimise opportunity for me to mess things up). Also allows for a tonne of other goodies in the future though (Flat shifting which will also have an anti-lag effect).
Will prob get a Bluetooth adapter so I can monitor in real time from phone/tablet.
http://www.msextra.com/product-range/traditional-m...
Plan is to just get it driving and test that everything is working okay, then I'm looking at a turbo rebuild with billet 60 trim compressor wheel and new housing, injectors and possibly a bigger chargecooler if a group buy goes ahead. I'll also be ditching the A/C and connecting the chargecooler radiator to the A/C rad as per the Sport 300 Esprit.
Apparently the billet 60 trim good for 360BHP so hoping 340-350 isn't unrealistic with a proper dyno tune.
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