Bazza 907

I promised to put up a picture of the car if I did buy it so here it is. Apologies if it doesn't come out too well as I'm not used to attaching photos. In the end I went for what I would describe as the more original with much lower mileage (20,500) - the one that hasn't been restored. It was a tough decision and until top Esprit man Gerald Turner has been through it I won't know how painful a financial decision it was. Bazza

Chris, There is only one Esprit that really suits having white lettering on the tyres... It's being delieverd to Gerald's on Thurdsay morning for a complete checkover. My bank manager is already sitting down in anticipation of a phone call. Baz

Thanks - I've just ordered some. I can't wait to see what they will look like on my new Esprit - I think it'll set the whole car off perfectly ! Bazza

Wayne Are the marker paint pens ok for use on rubber ? They don't say rubber and I want to make sure before I start applying !! Bazza

I'll will be keeping mine for life. I've had it 17 years now and I've been through so much with it it's has become a part of my life. Just love that look. I did seriously think about buying a Sport 350 a year or so ago but am currently in the process of buying an original older G car instead. Given that the roads have become so congested I think it would be pretty rare for me to really use all the extra power of the later cars. In terms of investment potential, although I'm sure that the older cars will start appreciate over a 10 year view, they do need regular mainatenance and I be very wary of speculative buying of any Esprit just for investment potential. Bazza

South West Lotus were selling them including new S3 steering wheels at Donnington a couple of weeks ago -

Sorry to throw a potential spanner in about the excellent pub/Inn that me old mate Chris is on about BUT it's not the White Hart in Castle Coombe, rather it's the White Hart in Ford - about 2 miles down the road from Castle Coombe. For those with massive wallets The Manor Hotel in Castle Coombe is the muts nuts of a 5* Hotel - My Mrs is trying to get me to give up our room at the White Hard (at Ford) in favour of the The Manor. I have tried to explain to her that by the time I've paid for the new Esprit (yes hopefully concluding the deal in the next few days) I'll be skint and as tight as....Chris Cole when it comes to getting the beers in ! Bazza

Gulp Well I guess at least I can take solace from the fact that they will fit..

I know we have a thread on tyres but I've just bought a load of good but (very) part used Goodyear NCT 235 60 ZR 15 tyres to replace my same size but VR rated rear tyres for when they need replacing. Although I understand that a higher speed rating is not normally a problem the tyres look very slightly different. The side wall doesn't look quite so fat as the VR rated tyres and the tread pattern has 4 rather than 5 blocks accross the top of each tyre. I understand that they did come from Esprit's although I have heard that old Jags (XJS ?) may have used the same tyre. My question is.. will they be ok to use and will they look OK on the car ? Thanks Bazza

No I didn't get that far as having had a good 10 min look at it I knew it wasn't for me. Bazza

I promise I'll post some pictures when I've dealt on one of them next week. I'm leaning towards the low mileage original one with the thought of keeping my fingers crossed that mechanically it doesn't cost a small fortune.

I went to look at it a few weeks ago. It may not make you feel any better but IMO there are better HC's out there for the money. It is going to need money spent on it in the near future.. Bazza

Thanks chaps. I'll go and have a look at the low milegae one tomorrow and try and decide between the two. Bazza

Mike I will be keeping the NA S3. I would intend to keep the S3 Turbo for a long time and don't mind spending money on it (within reason) but just wonder if in years to come, if Esprit's ever finally become real collectors cars, will the one with original paint and interior be more desirable (worth more) than one that's been restored. The restoration on the higher mileage one has been done properly and it's very good mechanically. Bazza

I'm in the market to buy another Esprit as I'm a real glutten for punishment. I've come accross two early G Turbo's that are priced about the same. One is totally original with low mileage, the other is quite high mileage but has had alot of money spent on it (mostly underneath). The question I'd like your thoughts on is which is the better one to have ? What do you reckon? Bazza

Mike Sorry to hear the things that have been going on. For what its worth I think you'd have a strong case for legal action against your employer. You should get it checked out - most insurance companies give free leagl advice helplines - check your home contents or building insurer to see if they offer free (24/7) legal advice. So do some car policies - and these legal queries are not restricted to cars or houses but all legal queries. Importantly should also keep a log of everything that's happened and been said to you - it could come in very useful. An employment lawyer would confirm this but as I understand it, a couple of years ago new "whistleblower" legislation came into force that protects employees in precisely the situation that you now find yourself in. Above all don't let them get you down, you're doing the right thing. Bazza

Mate The one for our

Should be able to pull a few birdies in that

Today I had to travel by train from London (Euston) to Preston which is just north of Manchester. I guess its a round trip of 500 miles. I had decided to travel first class as I had to do some prep work ahead of the business meeting and the train was full of school kids as it's half term. The cost of the train ticket was a STAGGERING

I'm with Aon funnily enough but that was simply because I know that the insurer is Royal & SunAlliance which, when I started working the the industry, was the Rolls Royce of insurers. I think their customer service is now no better than anybody else but the Esprit is 20 years old there is no limited mileage restriction. Gordon, to be honest I can't be bothered to spend hours days on the phone in order to save

I doubt that the prices will change as FJ are only the insurance broker (ie the middleman) not the insurance company who actually underwrites the policy, pays the claims etc. Most classic car schemes are very profitable for insurance companies - much more so than ordinary car insurance. For my sins I analyse the profitability (or unprofitability as is usually the case) of insurance companies in the UK - Rock 'n Roll eh? Bazza

Nah, it's worse than that - its been at the garage for sale for over two years and that was 3 months ago! I think that the garage who are trying to sell it on behalf of the owner were getting hacked off with it just sitting there at an unrealistic price but they said that they do alot of business with the owner (on other cars) hence the timescale.

David I think I mentioned on another thread but in short in was described as being recently "restored" but Poor quality respray Car been off road since 1999... brakes non existent smell of fuel in cabin (tanks?) many of the electrics not working no MOT, bald tyres, no history etc etc To cap it all the garage was selling on behalf of the owner (a rich F1 racer/collector) who would be " flexible on the price"...but of course wasn't. Bazza

Yes, that Essex Esprit in a garage in Bradford about 3 months ago - 400 mile round trip over 2 days. Completely over described condition... Chris - you say you wanted a "minter," how come you ended up with yours? Bazza

I've owned mine for 17 years now and will never sell her/it. Before that I had two lotus Europa's, one that I wrote off as I couldn't afford fully comp insurance at the time and the other I restored using bits from the crashed car. Funny I looked at all the bills over the years for the Esprit and they really are not that much. The car has never broken down or been refurbished. The costliest thing ever to go was the exhaust manifold (x2). Ok it's not my main car but so long as its regularly serviced (I'm lucky enough to have Gerald Turner service the Esprit), it looks the muts nuts just drives as it should - perfect. I hope to pass teh Esprit down the family tree but one daughter is called Elise so the wife's Elise is obviously going her way so I'm hoping that the other daughter will like wedge shaped lotuses.. Bazza