New Member Hello!

[B2]

Hey Folks, 

My name is Bernie and although new to the forum, I have a decent history of working some pretty cool cars. 

Like most of us I assume, we tackle some of these machines out of pure love rather than as a investment opportunity and I am no different. I have lusted after the Esprit from the very first time I saw one in the James Bond movie but admit that my primary inspiration comes from the original wedge designs and the smaller engines. Although the newer cars are stunning and the V8 option would certainly make a helluva ride, I keep referring back to the earlier cars. 

My first project car was a 1976 Corvette Stingray with a smallblock V8 (L48). Nothing to write home about in the world of Vett's but it was mine and I loved it. It was also cool that it was the last year they used "StingRay" until recently. 

Second up was a keeper for some time and that was a Porsche 928S. I stumbled on this car and really knew very little about the differences in model years but the price was right and as it turned out the car was kind of unique. It was a 1985 which was the first year that the 928 got the 32V engine.

Currently, I have a 2003 Jaguar XK8. First year of the 4.2L engine and the 6-speed ZF Transmission. Love the car and I really enjoy working the kinks out here and there. 

Recently I started looking into Lotus Esprits again (for like the 5th time) and I think it may be time to go for it. I won't unload my Jag as it is pretty darn reliable and I want to be able to do lots with the Lotus. I think that means there could be plenty of downtime on the car so I best be prepared for that eventuality. Currently looking at at 1984 non-turbo car from Texas with 46k on the clock. Owner has brought the asking down to 17k so before I start learning about what sort of problems I will be buying, I wanted to get a reality check from the forum. The prices I have been able to find have shown some cars below the 20k mark so its not the deal of the century but it does seem pretty reasonable compared to many of the prices I have seen. I will head off to do a bunch of reading and get myself more acclimated to the prospect of the work at hand. I know full well its a project but considering the lower asking prices and the classic looks, I think it would be cool to have a car that is cheap enough to do with whatever I like. I admit to just recently dreaming about what it would take to drop a Kawasaki H2R motorcycle engine in the chassis after removing as much weight as I can? It's good for 300HP and sounds amazing so why the heck not I say. Great to be here and look forward to the experts providing answers as I go. 

 

 

 

Edited May 30, 2019 by B2

[markw996]

Hi Bernie,

Welcome to TLF 

I used to own a 1985 Porsche 928 (S2) but that was about 24 years ago.

It was an incredible car to own in my early twenties while all my mates were driving Novas and Corsas..... 12mpg wasn't so much fun though 🙄

Mark.

 

[jonwat]

1 hour ago, B2 said:

Currently, I have a 2003 Jaguar XK8. First year of the 4.2L engine and the 6-speed ZF Transmission. Love the car and I really enjoy working the kinks out here and there. 

Wellcome to the forum Bernie,

After many happy years of Esprit ownership I bought an 2004 XKR, was way too soft for me so I replaced it with an 09 which is much better.

Hope you find your Esprit & if it ever needs fixing there's loads of knowledge one here. 

[Vanya]

Keeping the XK8 is a good call - the X100 XK8/XKRs are some of the best cars out there for the money - elegant and reliable, although as John pointed out the X100s are a little soft (but it's worth it for the looks alone).

Don't bastardize the Esprit with another engine - better to find an unmolested Turbo SE/S4/S4s which is closer to the 300 hp you're after than to perform an engine swap on a G-car. These cars are rare and it's a disservice to their historical value to mod them in that way - especially considering the original engine is from a period when Lotus developed their own engine before moving on to 3rd parties. 

However, even if you do decide to go ahead and mod,/engine swap - a warm welcome to the community! 

[silverfrost]

Welcome to the forums, good luck on the search   

[B2]

10 hours ago, Vanya said:

Keeping the XK8 is a good call - the X100 XK8/XKRs are some of the best cars out there for the money - elegant and reliable, although as John pointed out the X100s are a little soft (but it's worth it for the looks alone).

Don't bastardize the Esprit with another engine - better to find an unmolested Turbo SE/S4/S4s which is closer to the 300 hp you're after than to perform an engine swap on a G-car. These cars are rare and it's a disservice to their historical value to mod them in that way - especially considering the original engine is from a period when Lotus developed their own engine before moving on to 3rd parties. 

However, even if you do decide to go ahead and mod,/engine swap - a warm welcome to the community! 

Yeah, its funny because I didn't really understand that part until later last night watching various videos on the cars. The fact that these particular variations were in the Chapman era and the brand did build their own engines in keeping with his vision and alignment with his racing car philosophy makes it special indeed and worthy of keeping the package as-is. I won't be able to help myself from upgrading many other aspects of the car but I think I will limit that to either creature comfort or out and out aesthetics while maintaining the cars originality as much as possible. In other words - keeping the cutting of holes to a minimum lol. 

I have not heard anyone comment on the asking price for the car so far, so I am going to assume that the price is fair based on whatever the condition of the car is. I have to travel to see it in person and will certainly do that prior to plunking down the asking price but I am certainly a realist with the work ahead. Having owned other cars considered to be similar in their repair and maintenance requirements allows for that. 

I'll be a regular member going forward now regardless as it might not end up being this particular car I purchase but if history shows anything about me, once I have it in my head, it eventually becomes a reality

Thanks so much for the warm greeting. It seems that we are a special breed considering the previous cars some of you have owned. 

Below is a picture of my 1985, 928S the day I sold it. I can tell you that the car certainly did not look like this when I purchased it. The second photo is of my current Jaguar XK8 and I have changed a lot on that car while still maintaining its overall image I think. The final photo is of my BMW X5 which got major treatment over the years I owned it. These were all considered problem cars by many car enthusiasts but with the exception of the X5, that pissed me off on a regular basis, they were all unique vehicles that told a story and I was proud to have driven any of them. Look out Lotus Esprit, your time has finally come. 

Edited May 30, 2019 by B2
Added content

[theelanman]

welcome to TLF Bernie

enjoy the research.........theres quite a bit of it......and certainly lots of useful info in here

good luck and heres to getting your first lotus

[Loose Cannon]

Love the Jag