When did Stevens Esprits get an attached spoiler

[Peter H.]

Hi guys,

I'm a newbie to this forum and looking to purchase an Esprit. My personal preference is for an early Steven (S3) car without the spoiler.

That said, I've found it very difficult to determine which year/model separately attached spoilers first appeared?

I have see images of 1988/89 turbos and NA models......with and without spoilers.

[Bibs]

Hi and welcome Peter. Have a read of this, you'll see the cars with spoilers...

http://www.lotusespritworld.com/models.html

The S3 is the last of the Giugiaro cars, the Stevens Esprits started with the X180 shown on that page as the 'Esprit - 1987 - 1990'. 

[theelanman]

hi and welcome.......

at a guess........as I dont have an Esprit.....and not knowing much about the spoiler history............

I do know of a couple of folk who have taken theirs off......

so Id presume this is a do-able option if you wish........

[ramjet]

Welcome to TLF Peter.

I was going to point you to the same place as Bibs.

You should duck over to the Introductions area and say hi in there as well. ) 

 

 

[CarBuff]

I believe that the only 88 or 89 non-SEs that had spoilers were the Pearl White Commemorative editions. This was a 'unique' fitment, its shape was subtly different from any later factory fitment.

 

I try to put that out of my mind though, as I firmly believe that the spoilers 'spoil' the looks, and nothing more. 😣

 

Of course in this age (more than 30 years past initial production) many present and past owners have fitted rear wings and spoilers, to their tastes.  As mentioned, the factory appendages varied, too.

[chris]

Hey peter,

I’ve usually found the spoilers were added in 89 along with the different (Citroen) wing mirrors. Other option is a gt3 which is a younger model but didn’t have the wrap around style spoiler.

Are you looking for a turbo or n/a and would you prefer carbs or fuel injection?

[Dan E]

Peter GT3 all day long IMHO

[Chillidoggy]

17 minutes ago, Dan E said:

Peter GT3 all day long IMHO

With air-con.

[Dan E]

29 minutes ago, Chillidoggy said:

With air-con.

Feck .............off

[Escape]

Hi Peter, and welcome.

If you're looking for a Stevens car (which is a good choice if you ask me 😉 ) but don't want a spoiler, you might want to look for an 'S'. That's pretty much an 'SE', but without the chargecooler (still plenty of power) and the spoiler. Hard to find though, only produced in 1991. Alternatives would be an NA or Esprit Turbo (either the European carb version or the US Bosch injection). You could always remove the spoiler, but I thinks it suits the SE.

Do keep us posted of you search.

Filip

[Barrykearley]

2 minutes ago, Escape said:

If you're looking for a Stevens car (which is a good choice if you ask me 😉 ) but don't want a spoiler, you might want to look for an 'S'. That's pretty much an 'SE', but without the chargecooler (still plenty of power) and the spoiler. Hard to find though, only produced in 1991.

4 in the uk - my old one had a spoiler fitted - ones painted black with an added chargecooler. Dunno about the remaining 2..... might be a tough search that one. Fabulous cars though - imho the perfect balance of power to vehicle 

[chris]

I love the clean lines and the interior of a GT3 especially with the sports seats and the transmission tunnel trim but I don’t get why you would want less power (granted, Ive been chasing BHP for the last 17 years and therefore may be in the minority on this). I’m sure you could tune a gt3 up, but in this case it would be cheaper to remove the spoiler off any SE, S4 or S4S or even lighten them a little as well. 

If I was buying an Esprit today (assuming that I wasn’t so emotionally invested in the one I have lol) I would look for a turbo fuel injected car with air conditioning. The exact style would then be down to your preference or era. 

Most important thing above all else and anyone’s opinion including mine is... buy what makes you happy!! 😍😎

[silverfrost]

Welcome to the forums Peter, 

   The stevens N/A normally aspirated cars had no spoilers, early ones even had black sills.   They are very nice cars but fairly rbeare and do not come up for sale often,    But as said the GT3 would be the best option,  more expensive, but the 2.0 turbo engine is bullet proof, it was late in the production run of the stevens models so benefits from mant advances such as chassis,suspension, interior etc..

Prices are now climbing on the GT3 , but the clean lines, nice alloys make it a great car,    Chrome orange on this model looks stunning imo.

Good luck on your search,   p.s you could always look at any stevens model though and just have the spoiler removed as some folks have done in the past,  then at least your search pool is open to all stevens models

 

[Llewelyn82]

I'd consider selling my 88 carb turbo (non-spoiler!) car... I've spent £thousands on it and it needs nothing. Message me if of interest 

[Peter H.]

Many thanks for all the replies and advice, I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Llewelyn, lovely car....but I promised my wife I would not get a red car. Regrettable, but a small price to pay to have an Esprit.