RE: Lotus Evora Stratton GT | Spotted

[Tickle]

redroadster said:

50k tops daft money for Toyota engine .

The Ford GT costs +£400k and has a ford pickup engine, what a piece of st. Not worth more than a fiesta ST.

[Arsecati]

A1VDY said:

Makes absolutely no difference being LHD, you just change gear with your right rather than left hand.
Its like saying you can't take your rhd car into France and beyond, it takes very little getting used to..

Makes a hell of a lot of difference when trying to overtake Micras and caravans on your favourite country road, but you can't see far enough ahead properly/safely to make that move.

Different kettle of fish if it was an original Integrale/Stratos/E30 M3/etc., etc., that no RHD option was ever available - but with the car above, there ARE RHD options, and while yes, physically driving the car is no different: the day-to-day practicalities are a pain in the @rse (simply 'getting use to it' isn't really a valid argument now, come on!)

[21GG]

That I know the only manual 2+2 (GT350/GTE) made by lotus was LHD. There are 2 RHD 2+2, both auto.
Im not sure about the stratton cars but most of the factory cars were sva'd so not easily registeted abroad, so limited the market as far as the LHD cars went.

[RedAndy]

I reckon It would look EVEN MORE amazing with the slatted rear lid with integrated ducktail spoiler from "elise-shop"

[LotusOmega375D]

21GG said:

That I know the only manual 2+2 (GT350/GTE) made by lotus was LHD.

Nearing completion at Lotus Motorsport ca. March 2015.

[RacerMike]

Arsecati said:

A1VDY said:

Makes absolutely no difference being LHD, you just change gear with your right rather than left hand.
Its like saying you can't take your rhd car into France and beyond, it takes very little getting used to..

Makes a hell of a lot of difference when trying to overtake Micras and caravans on your favourite country road, but you can't see far enough ahead properly/safely to make that move.

Different kettle of fish if it was an original Integrale/Stratos/E30 M3/etc., etc., that no RHD option was ever available - but with the car above, there ARE RHD options, and while yes, physically driving the car is no different: the day-to-day practicalities are a pain in the @rse (simply 'getting use to it' isn't really a valid argument now, come on!)

I drive LHD stuff in the UK regularly. It makes a marginal difference, but not much. Really..you should move out onto the other side of the road to see if it's clear before committing anyway, and if you're sat a sensible distance from the car in front, you can see far enough to know whether you can at least move out to check.

Main issue with cars like this is that the target market is people on this Forum who never have the means or real interest to buy one. It's the classic example of why sports cars are practical, auto and optioned up with SatNav and Sport Chrono......because the people who actually are prepared to put their hands in their pockets want that not a rattly, unreliable Lotus.

[hughcam]

RacerMike said:

I drive LHD stuff in the UK regularly. It makes a marginal difference, but not much. Really..you should move out onto the other side of the road to see if it's clear before committing anyway, and if you're sat a sensible distance from the car in front, you can see far enough to know whether you can at least move out to check.

Main issue with cars like this is that the target market is people on this Forum who never have the means or real interest to buy one. It's the classic example of why sports cars are practical, auto and optioned up with SatNav and Sport Chrono......because the people who actually are prepared to put their hands in their pockets want that not a rattly, unreliable Lotus.

Rattly definitely but for reliability an Evora is a league ahead of most water cooled Porsches, mainly due that the engines are made by

Toyota and not out of German chocolate. Don't get IMS, Bore Score, catalytic convertor/ issues etc in a Lotus!

And before any one says that these issues only occur on the Gen 1 987/997 Porsches it can also happen on the new ones too (Bar IMS).

I love both Lotus and Porsche BTW.

[Arsecati]

RacerMike said:

I drive LHD stuff in the UK regularly. It makes a marginal difference, but not much. Really..you should move out onto the other side of the road to see if it's clear before committing anyway, and if you're sat a sensible distance from the car in front, you can see far enough to know whether you can at least move out to check.

Main issue with cars like this is that the target market is people on this Forum who never have the means or real interest to buy one. It's the classic example of why sports cars are practical, auto and optioned up with SatNav and Sport Chrono......because the people who actually are prepared to put their hands in their pockets want that not a rattly, unreliable Lotus.

Then you must drive on VERY wide and very long roads to be able to get a decent view, and be driving a sufficiently powered LHD car that will enable you to overtake in such a safe manner from much further back. I used to drive an old 1985 LHD 911 years ago (it was the cheapest 911 I could afford at the time and was before they became worth something), and that simply did not have enough power to make overtakes from that far back. It didn't make much more than 200bhp, and on the narrow and twisty roads I used to drive on (a joy when there was no traffic!), trying to overtake anything faster than a tractor was a nightmare, when I would never have had an issue in my daily drivers of the time (believe it or not - a Citroen XM, before I finally went all German and got a 2.5TDi A6 - but even that still had less than 140bhp!!). As I said, I guess if you have something with enough ponies under it that can overtake slower traffic from further back - I'm sure it's not too much of a hindrance for you - especially if your roads are good enough to give you such visibility. But from my experience - when it came to actually trying to enjoy driving the car - far too many times I had to let a perfectly good overtaking opportunity pass, as I just couldn't take the risk.

[RacerMike]

hughcam said:

RacerMike said:

I drive LHD stuff in the UK regularly. It makes a marginal difference, but not much. Really..you should move out onto the other side of the road to see if it's clear before committing anyway, and if you're sat a sensible distance from the car in front, you can see far enough to know whether you can at least move out to check.

Main issue with cars like this is that the target market is people on this Forum who never have the means or real interest to buy one. It's the classic example of why sports cars are practical, auto and optioned up with SatNav and Sport Chrono......because the people who actually are prepared to put their hands in their pockets want that not a rattly, unreliable Lotus.

Rattly definitely but for reliability an Evora is a league ahead of most water cooled Porsches, mainly due that the engines are made by

Toyota and not out of German chocolate. Don't get IMS, Bore Score, catalytic convertor/ issues etc in a Lotus!

And before any one says that these issues only occur on the Gen 1 987/997 Porsches it can also happen on the new ones too (Bar IMS).

I love both Lotus and Porsche BTW.

You're referencing early 2000's Porches though.....you could equally level it with all the K-Series engine issues on the earlier Elises, but we're talking current 2010's here where pretty much the only significant engine issue on a Porsche has been the Gen 1 GT3 3.8s.

Unreliability is perhaps a bit unfair from me. I suppose I mean usability. There are people who use Evora's regularly, and it can be done, but they don't last as well. A modern Porsche can realistically be used like a Golf....they don't rot, drain their battery or fail to start. They just drive like any modern German car.

[RacerMike]

Arsecati said:

Then you must drive on VERY wide and very long roads to be able to get a decent view, and be driving a sufficiently powered LHD car that will enable you to overtake in such a safe manner from much further back. I used to drive an old 1985 LHD 911 years ago (it was the cheapest 911 I could afford at the time and was before they became worth something), and that simply did not have enough power to make overtakes from that far back. It didn't make much more than 200bhp, and on the narrow and twisty roads I used to drive on (a joy when there was no traffic!), trying to overtake anything faster than a tractor was a nightmare, when I would never have had an issue in my daily drivers of the time (believe it or not - a Citroen XM, before I finally went all German and got a 2.5TDi A6 - but even that still had less than 140bhp!!). As I said, I guess if you have something with enough ponies under it that can overtake slower traffic from further back - I'm sure it's not too much of a hindrance for you - especially if your roads are good enough to give you such visibility. But from my experience - when it came to actually trying to enjoy driving the car - far too many times I had to let a perfectly good overtaking opportunity pass, as I just couldn't take the risk.

This Evora has 440hp....more than enough to overtake from half a mile away probably!

[Shnozz]

RacerMike said:

hughcam said:

RacerMike said:

I drive LHD stuff in the UK regularly. It makes a marginal difference, but not much. Really..you should move out onto the other side of the road to see if it's clear before committing anyway, and if you're sat a sensible distance from the car in front, you can see far enough to know whether you can at least move out to check.

Main issue with cars like this is that the target market is people on this Forum who never have the means or real interest to buy one. It's the classic example of why sports cars are practical, auto and optioned up with SatNav and Sport Chrono......because the people who actually are prepared to put their hands in their pockets want that not a rattly, unreliable Lotus.

Rattly definitely but for reliability an Evora is a league ahead of most water cooled Porsches, mainly due that the engines are made by

Toyota and not out of German chocolate. Don't get IMS, Bore Score, catalytic convertor/ issues etc in a Lotus!

And before any one says that these issues only occur on the Gen 1 987/997 Porsches it can also happen on the new ones too (Bar IMS).

I love both Lotus and Porsche BTW.

You're referencing early 2000's Porches though.....you could equally level it with all the K-Series engine issues on the earlier Elises, but we're talking current 2010's here where pretty much the only significant engine issue on a Porsche has been the Gen 1 GT3 3.8s.

Unreliability is perhaps a bit unfair from me. I suppose I mean usability. There are people who use Evora's regularly, and it can be done, but they don't last as well. A modern Porsche can realistically be used like a Golf....they don't rot, drain their battery or fail to start. They just drive like any modern German car.

The way I see it is that the Porsche is the far better finished car (as one might expect with their R&D spend by comparison) but the concern with the Porsche engine issues, as few as there might be percentage wise, is that they are often catastrophic when they do occur. On one hand, the Lotus loses points in having a Toyota lump, and many argue it cannot justify its price tag with that engine, which I can understand. However, it does mean both a reliable, proven engine and also, if the worst happens, a cheap and issue fix. If you are unlucky in the Porsche equivalent, it can easily mean 5 figures to repair.

As a former TVR fan, I am glad Lotus never went down the route of building their own engines. For me, at the right price point, importing a proven reliable engine and tweaking it made sense. I understand why Aston fans were less approving but then the sales price was far higher and they had engine building heritage. The issue with Lotuses/Loti, is that the price crept up to enter the bracket where one might expect more than a supercharged Camry engine.

As for the trim, panel fitment, rattles and all the other bits non-engine related but important for a daily, the Porsche is like any other German car and a step above. And to that end, I agree that usability is far better and why you see so many of them on the roads. I had an Evora as a (sort of) daily and accepted its foibles but I was in the minority and back years ago when I ran a Boxster S as a daily the only foibles were a lack of excitement/character that was perhaps partly driven by the fact that you knew everything would work just fine, every time.

[Arsecati]

RacerMike said:

This Evora has 440hp....more than enough to overtake from half a mile away probably!

Haha! Well, you've definitely made a very valid point, in fact, you'd pretty much have convinced me but for one very small problem.......

Where the hell do I get £84k!!!!

[drgoatboy]

It's a lovely thing and rarity counts but it's hard to ignore an Evora 410 for £20k less (and rhd too)
If the lack of power bothers you then komotec will add another 50bhp for less than £5k.

[Wooda80]

Love all the "I would have one those, but... " comments.

If only it was RHD
If only it was manual
If only it was the 2+2

"Great news, we've just discovered they built one and it's available to buy"
"Oh, er, ok. Erm ....... what colour is it? I only want a red one. No, not THAT red, sorry"

[Nickp82]

Just trying to work out whether I like the Swiss Beats one or not, definitely change the wheels but I think I like the rest of it.

[Cold]

There's a slightly used but well known real one for sale in PH classifieds.

https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/...

[Water Fairy]

Surely you're only going to get to really enjoy one of these on track where lhd/rhd make p155 all difference?

[FaNtheMaN26]

As usual, I am confused. If these were left over parts that strattons took off lotus hands, what were the LHD cars the dealer had in stock to make into GTEs?

[Cold]

FaNtheMaN26 said:

As usual, I am confused. If these were left over parts that strattons took off lotus hands, what were the LHD cars the dealer had in stock to make into GTEs?

These aren't a kit of bits bolted to existing cars. They're brand new tubs (chassis) with all the goodies included during construction.

[ZX10R NIN]

I have to say that this looks special.