RE: Lotus Carlton: PH Used Buying Guide
Discussion
civiclegend said:
Would this not be extremely good value, then?
Original LO's sold new in Switzerland (41 made) were lower powered than all the rest of the cars made as they had to meet stricter emissions."Swiss spec" cars have two extra cat's, different injectors and a different ecu program meaning they were around the 360bhp mark. This car I note though is of German origin so will not be constrained like the official swiss cars mentioned. There's also a few non standard tweaks to the inside of this car which can easily be put back to stock though if you did make the math work. - Musing over man-math*
Edited by NotNormal on Thursday 19th April 13:42
howardhughes said:
anonymous said:
[redacted]
Yes you're right, however I'll wager that 90% of those 'hatchbacks' and saloons will not have any provenance and legacy 30 years from now as does the Carlton. It was a 'Mike Tyson' car of it's time. howardhughes said:
anonymous said:
[redacted]
Yes you're right, however I'll wager that 90% of those 'hatchbacks' and saloons will not have any provenance and legacy 30 years from now as does the Carlton. It was a 'Mike Tyson' car of it's time. There seems to be a lifecycle to all cars, trick is to buy them when people are ambivalent to a certain model, not everything ascends to greatness but a lot go back up in value.
Someone probably said that these were a bodykitted Vauxhall repmobile with a big engine back in 1990, not like those wonderful cars from 1960...
I never understood why people got so upset about these cars back in '89 '90 and wanting them banned for their top speed.
Back then, they cost £50k. That was the price of a 2 - 3 bed house in many arts of the country, so the amount of people that had that sort of money for a car were very few and far between... as proven by GM/Lotus not selling the original target number of cars.
Back then, they cost £50k. That was the price of a 2 - 3 bed house in many arts of the country, so the amount of people that had that sort of money for a car were very few and far between... as proven by GM/Lotus not selling the original target number of cars.
think its time to tax it again...
anonymous said:
[redacted]
I remember the furore over the Lotus Carlton. There had been a similar sort of kerfuffle over the Sierra Cosworth some 5 years before as well. Questions were asked ..." Was it too fast for Joe Public to handle? .." ......"....even police drivers couldn't control them.... " etc etcThat was 200bhp in a 1200kg car ....the same as a modern day GT86 Toyota ( which is now thought of as slow )
I don't think it was because cars that fast weren't around - you could buy Porsche, Ferrari, Aston Martin etc with that performance long before - I believe it was more because everyday manufacturers of everyday saloons like Ford or Vauxhall were selling them. It was somehow too accessible to Mr Ordinary in the street
I would have loved one back in the day and still would love one if I could afford it. Price's are rising if you can find one. Have driven several different LC's and they don't disappoint. Autobahnstomers is a really strong members club if you are thinking about purchasing one of these beasts. Will have to stick with my E55K until I win the euromillions.
NotNormal said:
There's also a few non standard tweaks to the inside of this car..
And the outside.Edited by NotNormal on Thursday 19th April 13:42
Mine was RHD and the only exterior lotus badges were on the body kit panels behind front wheel arches. There were no lights behind the front bumper.
I paid 15,000 in 2001. When it was running, it could shift. It was vastly quicker than the completely standard sapphire cosworths I'd run before.
It was unreliable. The clutch pin snapped twice. Brake discs were on back order for months at at time. Service from the approved specialist, Monorep was polite.
I was paid 18,500 for it in 2003, when you could buy well worn examples for 10 - 12k.
I was glad to see it gone. There are much more desirable cars from the 80s and 90s.
HIAO said:
And the outside.
Mine was RHD and the only exterior lotus badges were on the body kit panels behind front wheel arches. There were no lights behind the front bumper.
I paid 15,000 in 2001. When it was running, it could shift. It was vastly quicker than the completely standard sapphire cosworths I'd run before.
It was unreliable. The clutch pin snapped twice. Brake discs were on back order for months at at time. Service from the approved specialist, Monorep was polite.
I was paid 18,500 for it in 2003, when you could buy well worn examples for 10 - 12k.
I was glad to see it gone. There are much more desirable cars from the 80s and 90s.
Never owned a Lotus Carlton but struggling to think of anything more desirable from that era ....bar an F40Mine was RHD and the only exterior lotus badges were on the body kit panels behind front wheel arches. There were no lights behind the front bumper.
I paid 15,000 in 2001. When it was running, it could shift. It was vastly quicker than the completely standard sapphire cosworths I'd run before.
It was unreliable. The clutch pin snapped twice. Brake discs were on back order for months at at time. Service from the approved specialist, Monorep was polite.
I was paid 18,500 for it in 2003, when you could buy well worn examples for 10 - 12k.
I was glad to see it gone. There are much more desirable cars from the 80s and 90s.
rubbishdriver said:
Stunning family 5 seat saloon, What ever happened to the estate car?! When I was a test driver at Millbrook there were rumours of a Lotus Astra testing - think I saw it one day, I own the perfect cherished number for the Lotus - "C 20TUS" just need a car to put it on!
There was going to be a family of Lotus cars, including the Cavalier and Astra. Here's a quote from another thread written by a Lotus engineer at the time" I was involved in '92 at looking at the Lotus 3rd model. This was essentially a Lotus Cavalier in the same mould as the Carlton.
Twin turbo, two litre V6 with 300+ horsepower and 4-wheel drive. Estimated to hit 60 in sub 5 seconds and limited to 155 mph.
We got as far as putting a bare block into a buck to start looking at turbo installation before the project was canned."
Wanted one from the moment I laid eyes on it at the NEC as a kid.Got one in 2001, number 0864.Ran it for 4 years,expensive but worth every penny thrown at it,totally intoxicating.
Norfolk to London twice a week,early hours and late returns on a traffic light M11/A11,unforgetable.Had to go when the family kept growing,have never found anything worthy to replace it,couldn't afford one now.
Norfolk to London twice a week,early hours and late returns on a traffic light M11/A11,unforgetable.Had to go when the family kept growing,have never found anything worthy to replace it,couldn't afford one now.
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