PaulCP

Great idea, I'd happily subscribe. I'm also s bit old fashioned and prefer to have a magazine in my hand rather than viewing digital versions. It's always a refreshing change these days not to have to look at a computer or tablet screen

Evora 400 too expensive? Depends, I guess, on what it is being compares with I made the decision some time ago that I would sell my VX220 this year and buy a "more usable" car, but it had to be one that still retained the thrill factor. The alternatives were clear, F Type, Cayman or Evora (I've already commented on my test drives of all three so won't go into that again). In the end the Evora was the choice and I was looking ahead to April 2016 & obviously thinking about the 400. However, I couldn't ignore the number of adverts during June/July this year offering SR cars at decent discounts. I'd already worked out that a 400 would be north of £75k, and compared to the list price of the SR S it didn't appear to be an unreasonable hike but, compared to the price being asked for the last few SRs it did start to sound expensive. Hence my decision not to wait and buy the car I did. Time will tell whether the depreciation factor of an "old" model will negate the initial purchase price difference but I gambled on the limited numbers keeping prices decent. One thing does however get my goat, the constant comments by so called journalists justifying their love affair with the P word by repeating that the Cayman GT4 is significantly cheaper. NO IT IS NOT!!! Firstly you can't buy one for the £64k price advertised and secondly, when you spec the GT4 to really compare like for like with the 400 the price differential is minimal. So, to answer the original question, IMO perhaps it is priced circa £3k above where it should be. It only seems expensive against the Evora SR due to the discounts offered on the latter over the past few months. I have seen adverts earlier this year pricing the Essex Blue car that I settled on at north of £70k, the fact that a reasonably specced 400 was going to cost me <>£20k more than I paid for mine made the decision not to wait for the 400, IMO, a no brainer

Good to meet you today Phil Was a shame that more couldn't make it but now you've got one meet off the ground hopefully more will turn up the next time. The venue was spot on, big car park, nice pub and reasonably priced Sunday lunch

Could be an error on the advert, it's still at £41,500 on their website But hey, don't knock it, as owners you would want to see prices firming up

It will be the first time you will be wanting a holiday to be over quickly

Congratulations Stuart, it's been a long time coming but looks as though the wait was worth it. Love the inside with red & black which contrasts well with the White. When the dealer tried to explain the colour combination over the phone of the car I eventually bought I thought it sounded quite naff but once I saw it I thought it looked great, the combination works really well. A bit more red than yours but it is indeed a very nice place to be & makes the car feel very light & bright inside

Items 6-12 here https://www.deroure.com/diagrams.asp?TBL=5550&MAK=1&MDL=20&SMA=0&SMO=0&ST=&SC=0

Stuart, it's an open offer so just let me know

Stuart, I'm not too far away from you (Woodbridge) if you want to take a good look on the "normal" areas to be covered & how visible the lines are

I think that over the years with the VX I got used to ignoring the lines & it's the same with the Evora. It's one of those personal preference things I guess. Picked up mine in July and I can see 2 marks on the paint shield on the front bumper which would look much worse as stone chips. Another slight problem that I have is that it looks as though the only way I can get some touch up paint is to get some mixed at a paint shop. One downside to picking a limited edition colour scheme

The one thing I noticed when I was looking at different colours was that the paint protection film did make white cars look a different shade. Still worth it being there though IMO

Looks nice, the next week will be worse than the weeks trying to find it. Stuart, there is no 3rd cat on post 2012 S models so decat means changing both manifolds, not a cheap option

Isn't it possible to adjust the window pressure on to the seals? The VX windows were adjustable in this manner. Re the headlight, there's a broken unit on eBay for £90 (nothing to do with me) which is said to contain the bulbs, lamps & ballast

Either of the latter two IMO only because I like the red interior, but hey, we are all different, no doubt you will make the right decision for you

Remember, a budget is just your bottom line. As Bamber Gascoigne says "it's just a starter for ten"

I bought 4 from Seriously Lotus for £38, still on sale at discounted price http://www.seriouslylotus.com/wheels-tyres/lotus-wheel-centre-cap-for-forged-wheels-and-v6-exige-wheels I was advised to take them out when tracking. Apparently they can pop out when the wheel gets hot

Congratulations i am always surprised how many low mileage examples exist are out there

Choose your polish carefully and apply it so you don't get build up on the edge. It's never going to look perfect but after 13 years of Armourfend on my VX220 i can say with confidence that it looked much much better than cars that had undergone one or two front end resprays during that time.

Re the Armourfend question, I'm not sure that there is a standard kit hence you really need to ask B&C. When I bought mine I was told that the Armourfend (or whatever is fitted) coverage could be what I wanted it to be. If there are bits on the car in question that aren't covered which you think should be or you would like to be then it should be all part of the negotiation process. To give you an idea I specified:- bottom third of bonnetall front bumper All lower front valencetop of front wings to blend in with bumperbottom half of rear wing in front of wheels (I believe Lotus normally fit some here as standard but mine was fitted with those awful decals shown in the avatar pic which I had removed). The sills and lower doors are also usually coveredSome also have it applied to headlamps and door mirrors.

Yes please

do you always bring good news to the members

Lee, that's worrying that CCI has increased by so much. I had to pay £90 extra when changing from the VX half way through my insurance year & £35 of that was an admin charge. Have they explained the background to the increase to you? I don't have full ncb due to not being UK resident for 4 years but CCI gave me a decent introductory bonus so if I change insurers I could get stuffed on that bit. Wonder how competitive AIB will prove to be

Sounds a great idea to me The VX220 community have been arranging annual meets for the last 12 years usually including a (more or less) exclusive track day. I guess many Evora owners would not be interested in a track day, and probably the numbers wouldn't justify one, but a meet in a nice part of the country away from city congestion would be excellent.

It's time the UK motoring journalists grew some balls and tell us all what they really think rather than have an over riding concern for their next exotic "perk" I stopped buying motoring mags some time ago due to the contradictory reasoning in most of their reviews (not just those with Lotus content). I honestly believe that most of the conclusions are formed before driving the cars. Ironically enough, I had lunch today with someone I'd not seen for a few years who described his 2015 Boxter as capable but bland and uninspiring to drive. A car he only bought because he wanted a roadster and the Exige was too hard core for him in everyday driving. A roadster version of the Evora, whilst taking some sales away from the current version, will also open up a market for Lotus that they are currently losing out on.

Wish i had the patience to mess around with all this syncing stuff. If anyone can give me any pointers on how to link my phone to the Alpine 920 head unit it would be very much appreciated