phoenix

Happy B day 🥳

Escape. I own a series 2 Bagheera. A nice little rare find! You have an early series one Bagheera there which were produced between 1973 and 1976. Probably 1.3 litre. They are basically a monocoque steel body mid engine 3 abreast seater wrapped in a riveted and bonded fibreglass shell. In good condition they are fantastic little fun sportscars which are very economical to run. Not a performance drivers car like the Lotus but the ride is typically French, very smooth and soft like a magic carpet. The bad bit is that they were constructed in the 70’s and the mild steel inner panels received just a light coat of black paint at the factory so many have fallen by the wayside due to tin-worm. The good thing is that being of an unexposed mostly flat box construction, restoration is possible with a modicum of welding skill. All cars left the factory as left hookers and they seem to be worth a fair amount more on the continent. You need to get in touch with The Matra Enthusiasts Club and have a chat with them about your options. They have a website and still produce a good old fashioned club magazine booklet with a for sale section at the back. They are also a really friendly bunch to deal with. Clive Nelson the club president is a good person to talk to. If you decide to keep it and put the effort in, you won’t be disappointed with the outcome. Good luck with it. https://www.matra-club.net/ Email President@matra-club.net

Wonderful presentation. It’s nice to see these cars and owners getting that kind of treatment.

They look fantastic in yellow.

Super Duper 👍🏻

Many thanks for that wonderful in-site and great pictures.

Well done that man. 👍🏻

That’s one I haven’t seen before! Thank you for sharing.

😐 what about ride height!

If it’s the same car, I knew a previous owner who worked as a flight instructor in Oxford but we are going back to the early nighties. You’ll have to PM me for the name. I last saw it about 25 years ago parked up in a side street in North London with a For Sale sign on it. I think it needed some work. 3 grand if my memory serves me right was the asking price which at the time I thought was dirt cheap and I always wished I’d been able to buy it and tuck it away somewhere. As I say, if it’s the same car, there cannot be that many S3’s in Lotus Yellow.

Very nice.

Stunning care Dave 👍🏻

If your wheels take the same nuts as those found on S2 esprit’s (& S2 elites, then this set available from Halfords for around £25 should work. Not a great snap but there is an S2 nut in there and if you look hard enough, you can make out the matching cone seats. Forgive me for scrubbing out the key serial number, it’s not that I don’t trust you lovely people. Hope that helps. MCguard 24195 SU

Have to say, that looks really cool. This project looks superb. That will turn out to be a really special car. The first and last cars are always the best to have if you’re a serious collector. I wish I had the space.

Stunning.