Evora...problems??

[lorenzor]

Hi everyone! So after a nice test drive I'm convinced; I would like to buy a beautiful second hand Evora :) But after a careful research on the internet my enthusiasm has suffered a little shake because I've read not much great stuff ... I found out that all evoras (and I'm not just referring to models from 2009 but also more recent ones like from 2014) have tons of misfuncions: air conditioning that does not work, infotainment that does not start, cluch/transmition that does not work, windows that do not close, etc. Now, I do understand that people complain about anything and sometimes one is simply unlucky, but what got me is that I found many people describing the same problems ... EVORA owners over here, what do you tell me? Is it so troublesome? What problems have you guys had and how did you solve them?

[Bibs]

I've had 7, they're all been fine

Every car has problems, it's the nature of bolting lots of things together in a harsh environment, but the Evora is no different from any other hand built sports car, in fact in my experience they've been better. Accept that it's not perfect, no car is, and enjoy the drive. 

[Stuno1]

Had mine for 2 years and only issue was a window motor with a needed replacing. If you read about issues with any car you will find many! People use forums to problem solve so expect to find the same web researching any model car from any manufacturer.

[phenoyz]

Stuno1 just curious what are you gonna replace your Evora with

[andyj007]

mines been perfect, s1 evora...  love it...  never fails to excite when driving......

[C8RKH]

@lorenzor I have had my 2010 NA Evora for 2.5 years and in that whole time the only failure I have had is a failed electric window motor that was replaced under warranty immediately by my Lotus dealer.

There is a lot of stuff that is constantly repeated but never substantiated. For instance:

Gearbox:

robust units that are fitted to Toyota trucks and last and last.  A small percentage of owners have replaced clutches in the 7+ years the cars have been available and the reason this is constantly brought up is the cost of the clutch change - it can be between £2-3k due to the fact it is essentially a clam off, engine out job. However, they do not fail regularly.  There is a known issue with a "batch" of gearboxes from 2010 that had "softer" internals but many of these were fixed under warranty by Lotus.

The last criticism of the gearbox is over quality of gear change. Earlier cars needed some adjustment (though mine has been perfect and like a rifle bolt ever since I got it) to the cables which was fiddly with some owners looking to / or having warranty upgrades to the a revised design that came out with the 2012 MY.  To be clear, a "notchy" gear change is not a gearbox failure or a potential gear box failure.

To my knowledge, there has not been a single gearbox failure on an Evora (watch me now be proved wrong!)

Aircon:

Most common "issue" is that the drain pipe gets blocked and water is let in to the cabin. Easy fix and most cars by now have had this done.  Some air conditioning units have failed and have needed to be replaced. Indeed, my service agent has told me that mine is staring to corrode and may need to be replaced in the next 2 years (hardly surprising given the harsh weather conditions in Scotland) but this is not a major worry for me - just something to be done.

Radio:Infotainment:

The radios are shite. There is no other word to use to describe them. However, part of the problem is that to really get the best out of them you need to invest time in setting them up (several guides on here and elsewhere) and you need to read and digest the bloody instructions book.  They are a standard double din unit and simple to change out for anything else that you prefer. @TBD on here used a couple of Android based units that were inexpensive and worked great. I upgraded to a different Alpine unit (W987D and it has been superb). At the end of the day these are not "built in" units and are easy to swap.

Electrics:

The cars have been known to have some electrical gremlins including the central locking and window functions, generally these are loose connections or failed motors which happens to EVERY car brand.  Once fixed, they usually work OK. As stated above, my drivers window motor filed, was replaced, has worked ever since.

Generally, the cars are pretty bullet proof mechanically and the NA in particular is cheap to run and maintain.  There have been problems with trim, interior squeaks and rattles, but these are hardly "mechanical failures" or catastrophic. You have to remember that these are handbuilt cars in low volume - not mass produced shit like a Porsche or Audi (who by the way have many issues themselves).

Speaking of Porsche - you are aware of all the catastrophic engine failures they have had?  maybe not, as thy tend not to be rolled out as often as Porsche and their owners are very protective of their "reputation".

The biggest issue you may have is around how local your lotus dealer is and how good they are.  I am fortunate in Scotland as I have a fantastic Lotus dealership (MMC) and a fantastic independent (Moncreiff) near to me.

Don't be fooled by the whinging and moaning of some owners over bits of trim. What you are buying is the sweetest handling and best looking sports car for the money. Do it, you won't be disappointed. I haven't been, only sorry I did not do it sooner!

[PaulCP]

9 hours ago, lorenzor said:

 I found out that all evoras (and I'm not just referring to models from 2009 but also more recent ones like from 2014) have tons of misfuncions: air conditioning that does not work, infotainment that does not start, cluch/transmition that does not work, windows that do not close, etc. 

Had mine for just over 2 years & 13k miles without any problems problem so far, hence this plus other comments above suggest your research (I found out that all Evoras) is a little flawed 

[pickle]

I bought my 400 new 12 months and 8000 miles ago. We also have a new discovery sport. Both cars have had niggles but the Evora has been the more reliable of the two and the dealers much more efficient in getting things sorted. The problems that I've had have been minor and certainly wouldn't put me off getting another

[Stuno1]

3 hours ago, phenoyz said:

Stuno1 just curious what are you gonna replace your Evora with

Nothing initially as in need to see how much a house will cost! Probably a 2013-2014 c63 AMG coupe. With a engine tune alone it will be a almost 500hp weapon. Then hopefully back in to lotus ownership again after that. Maybe a 400 ?

[Cypriot]

most of the people on the internet writing negative things about Lotus have never owned one, and probably not even driven one, so I would take take their comments with a pinch of salt.  the evoras are certainly not known to have lots of malfunctions (the odd car with lots of troubles will exist, but thats true of any car), and in fact with they are know to be very reliable.  Reliability concerns certainly did not put me off moving from porsche to Lotus!

[tim_marra]

I have owned my September 2012 Evora S from new, and I have covered over 21000 miles.

The air con has worked well without issues since purchase.

The infotainment works fine (Pioneer unit)

The clutch is fine and original

The windows have always worked.

What's not to like 

[Bruss]

Add my tuppence worth re reliability.

 

2  Evoras owned. The first a 2011 rhd S. Air con was changed after Lotus motorsport noticed it wasn't working properly ( I never noticed as it was still functioning, just not as it should have been apparently).

Master cylinder replaced as a factory recall at service.

Clutch cables replaced at my request, the old ones were working but I thought it needed improvement. Lotus paid for this, done at regular service.

Hydraulic lines around supercharger replaced as factory recall.

Loved the car, no probl;ems found by me in running the car, just those picked up on service above. 

2nd car is another S but lhd 2013 model.  No problems at all with this one.

 

I have upgraded various parts from the 400 - clutch, flywheel, LSD and a power hike supplied by Lotus motorsport. None of the upgrades has given any problem.

Overall the car has been a joy to own and use and no problems.

I like the new gt430 and if the price were below 100K I would be looking at getting one with no worries about reliability.

 

[Bruss]

Re niggles.

 

The radio doesn't work in any Lotus. They have never bothered to understand the need for a ground plane in a fibreglass car. Period.

Air con is basic. They should be fitting full climate control by now but don't seem to want to.

Both the above would make a huge difference to the perception of interior quality in this market segment.

 

[C8RKH]

Air con is fine, climate is over rated in my humble opinion.  I actually like the fact that my Evora does not have too many electrical "toys".

OP seems to have lost interest in his thread.

3 hours ago, Stuno1 said:

Nothing initially as in need to see how much a house will cost! Probably a 2013-2014 c63 AMG coupe. With a engine tune alone it will be a almost 500hp weapon. Then hopefully back in to lotus ownership again after that. Maybe a 400 ?

In a straight line, yes.  What a front heavy lump of a car you're going to. After the Evora's sweet handling too and all for the sake of freeing up £10k-£12k. Barmy

Hate to think what the running costs and maintenance costs are on a C63 AMG anything.

 

[Stuno1]

It will be tail happy and heavy but nothing else floats my boat at that price point. Can hold my daughter, gt, track, rwd, quick, high spec. 

[PaulCP]

5 hours ago, pickle said:

I bought my 400 new 12 months and 8000 miles ago. We also have a new discovery sport. Both cars have had niggles but the Evora has been the more reliable of the two and the dealers much more efficient in getting things sorted. The problems that I've had have been minor and certainly wouldn't put me off getting another

Snap!!!

We also have a Discovery Sport (wife's choice after I bought the Evora) and I can't wait for the day it gets replaced. Rattles, various other issues including fuel dilution of the oil and crap, couldn't care less dealers and manufacturer. 

In my experience not only does the Evora score well in reliability stakes, the Lotus dealers and Lotus themselves also score highly compared to JLR & BMW who were also crap at sorting niggles out.

[C8RKH]

I shouldn't of, but I really really laughed my socks off at that last post Paul.  The Discovery Sport is just about the biggest reliability lemon you can buy according to which magazine and to be honest, I know people who have paid £100k+ for a top of the line Range Rover who physically despise their dealers after the treatment they have received.

They look good, great even, do Range Rover's, but I really would not touch one with a barge pole, let alone spend my hard earned cash on one.

At least it shows the missus just how great your Evora is and Lotus dealers are. She'll not complain when you come home in a GT430 now  I mean, it makes perfect buying sense especially when you point out how much money the Range Rover has lost in depreciation compared to your Evora.

So. What colour you going for in the GT430?

 

[pickle]

@PaulCPmust be something about people called Paul ?

[DarrylV8]

Total strangers waving at you as though they know car/you, when parked up kids wanting parents to take a photo of them in front of car

[PaulCP]

@C8RKH, Andy, laugh all you want. -- I do . The DS has not been unreliable per se,, just full of little niggles. I've seen the Which report and IMO it is a wee bit slanted although there are production problems which JLR are aware of and have not rectified in 2 years. The previous RRS which it replaced was totally fault free over 4 years, never saw the dealers until service time so unfortunately we had little experience of their abysmal contempt for customers. It was also traded in for 60% of what we paid for it after 4 years so residual on that one was acceptable for a mainstream car. The missus now won't give JLR a second glance in future & I fear we will take quite a hammering on the residuals on this one

As for the GT 430, as nice as it is my current Evora does 95% of what I want it to do so I'm having major problems with the man maths in moving up to a 400 let alone the GT . The more important need will probably to dump the DS first.

[C8RKH]

Lol was only being my usual piss taking self  Paul.  The main problem with Range Rover is that with the RR, the RRS. The new Discovery and Velar and the Evoque they do make some seriously attractive cars. Build quality though can be massively variable with some owners happy, some gutted, but most unhappy with the dealers.

However like you I also struggle with the man maths with moving from an S1 Evora to a 400.

[LotusLeftLotusRight]

Perhaps the OP would like to check out this thread?

 

[mik]

I got 99 problems but the Evora ain't one....

[C8RKH]

I've got a wife and two grown kids. The Evora is my escape from my problems....

[Alfa2Evora]

I've had my 2011 NA for 2 ¹⁄₂  years and covered 27 k miles (now sitting at 59k). In that time, the only 'beat missed' was a failed clutch master cylinder so not a bad reliability record by any standards.

Brings a huge smile to my face every time I drive it, and will hopefully continue to do so for a long time to come,  .