Lotus Evora: PH Carpool
Our month with an Evora proved its everyday credentials, confirmed by this week's featured PH owner
Car: 2010 Lotus Evora NA
Owned since: June 2014
Previously owned: "Cinquecento Sporting, dismal Punto, Mk2 MX-5, Sheddy Laguna, 300C (not everyone's cup of tea I'll grant you), rubbish Primera (needed to compromise to pay for wedding!), FN2 Civic Type R.....with a VX220 as a weekend car for the past nine years."
Martin has been racking up the miles
"In the past I've always run two cars as my commute used to be 400 miles a week. However, I changed jobs and that opened up more possibilities. I sold the VX in January and desperately wanted something exotic in my life again. Looked at XKRs, M3s and the like but to be honest my heart was always with an Evora and one test drive later I was hooked. On paper it looked like the perfect car for me, VX like handling with a bigger boot, more space and supercar looks. Gave the CTR to my wife in case we needed five seats and we had the perfect two-car garage. The only unknown would be if it would stand up to being a daily driver."
What I wish I'd known:
"I did a stupid amount of research! There are quite a few owners on Scottish Elises and The Lotus Forums that I tapped up for advice and as such I was prepared about what I was getting into. I used Murray Lotus in Edinburgh for servicing the VX and they were very honest about the pros and cons of the car. Prices are quite spec sensitive so if I was doing it again I maybe wouldn't have been so insistent on Tech Pack and I definitely use sport button less than I thought I would. Cars without Sport Pack are rare and very cheap. If you're less fussy you could pick up a bargain, although probably a harder resell. I have the standard / long 'box and it's a lot better than t'interweb would have you believe."
Rude not to if you live round here though
"The way it combines 95 per cent of the VX's ability with normal car damping and refinement. On a long journey it just morphs into a comfy saloon but can then attack a B-road at will. My wife loves being a passenger in it and no longer moans when I suggest we take my car. It looks stunning. In the pics you can find the odd awkward angle but in the 'glass it looks amazing and attracts far more attention than my VX ever did. All universally positive.
"Even opening the garage door makes me grin. It's not let me down and it's been a lot less 'low volume' than I expected. I've somehow managed to do 8K miles since the end of June..."
Rear 'seats' handy extra carrying capacity
"I don't hate anything about it really. I was prepared for some quirks but I've had less than I expected. The undertray rattled loose, the reversing camera doesn't like the rain and the heater isn't the best in the world. It feels a million miles away from the VX in terms of build quality. It's not a Porsche but it's a lot better than you'd expect. I wanted a +2 car but I've never actually had anyone in the back, they say it's suitable for kids but there it's a lot smaller than a 911. Good for luggage though. The chav in me misses the fact that my (standard) car no longer sets off car alarms. White maybe wasn't the best choice for the winter."
Costs:
"I use Murray Lotus in Edinburgh for servicing (and to source the car) and they've been superb. The couple of issue I have had were sorted quickly and the 37K mile service came in at under £400. I cracked a door mirror surround on the garage door (oops) and managed to source an X-Type one from eBay for £25 which was about £300 less than Lotus wanted. Tyres have lasted well (over 5K on rears so far) and insurance wasn't too bad from ESure. Other than that it's just been fuel, which at 28mpg calculated is only 2mpg down on the CTR for the same journey. Tax is only £280 too."
Badge of respect indicating a proper workout
"We moved house the day before I got the car (!) and I've not been away on as many early morning blasts as I'd like, although we did fit in a 600-mile trip round Skye and the west coast of Scotland. Other than that it's been used as my everyday car and it's done so well that we've swapped the CTR for a 500 Twinair as it was only being used by my wife for her four-mile commute. Booked a trackday at Knockhill in March so we'll see how it gets on there."
What next?
"First child is due in May and faced with the prospect of having two stupidly impractical cars I'm going to do the only sensible thing and buy another car, probably a Focus. Basically I need this car in my life and can't think of anything that would replace it. They will be prising the keys from my cold dead hands..."
Want to share your car with PHers on Carpool? Email us at carpool@pistonheads.com!
[Sources: SELOC]
In answer to the questions, no i'm pretty sure group 0 rear facing won't fit in the back, but i know group 1 will. Can confirm around 25th May !
We don't "need" an additional car so i've just "splashed out" the £4k i got from selling the motorbike (don't start) on an astra which will be used for mountain bike / ikea / weekend trips with family. It probably means there will be less sick to be cleaned off the 500 interior
Cheers!
Dan
I do about 20k miles pa in mine and have a calculated average MPG of 33 but have seen up to 41mpg on long motorway runs. My car has the long gear box as the car in the article and I agree its fine.
Read about Evora and you will hear tha t the interior is poor and that the gear change is crap. These are both hge exagerations, my car has trhe "premium" trim level which means full leather. Whilst its not quite up to modern Porsche standards its pretty good, and its a nice place to site.
It was only the pre 2012 cars that had issues with gear cables, every car I have driven has had these replaced and the gear chanage is very good with 2012 cables.
I have used the rear seats for 12-13 year olds on teh school run, its a squahs in the back for people over 5ft but for smaller kids its fine. My 6ft 4in son fits in the front with no problem.
All that is nice, but the rear joy of the car is the driving, steering feedback is better than anything (excpet full on race cars) that I have driven, it really does feel telepathic. Grip levels are high making corning fast and assured, on a decent but windy French country road my Porsche owning mates strugled to keep up. To coin a phrase the Evora has "a very good front end"
I have had my car for 12 months and am looking to replace it - what with? - Another Evora. I cant think of any car that can compete without spending heaps more cash on a Porsche 991 (mind you, I am not convinced about the steering). They new Cayman is the nearest but lacks that bit of flexibility the rear seats give.
Great cars - only seen three others on the road in the 2+ years I have had mine.
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