Lotus Esprit As Daily Driver

[Deep Blue]

The manager of a local car dealership has his 1990 Esprit SE up for sale. Mileage is 45,000. He says all major services have been done, new clutch and upgraded Turbo; says he can show me the receipts.

I've always wanted a Lotus Esprit (like most of you) but I'm torn between buying the dream or buying a small pickup as a daily commuter. Is it possible to have the best of both worlds and drive the lotus daily (except in snow or ice)? How much should I expect to spend in maintenance per year if I drive the Esprit say 4 days a week on average?

Thanks

Deep Blue

[arbell9]

I have driven my GT3 as a daily driver since I got it last november. Nearly 6000 miles so far this year. Best Daily drive I have ever had.

They were born at Hethel to be driven

Go for it..live the dream every day, just put up with the painful grin!

Alex

[KENCO]

I drive mine everyday as a daily driver, no more costly than any other car.

[jfitz981]

I would steer towards telling you that it depends where you drive it. If it is in the city then probably not a good idea as the car would take a beating on the bad roads and it is not an easy car to parallel park. If your drives are long and parking is not a problem then it could work. I would put aside a fund for the car just in case of about 3000 USD to have ....I have never come close to using that much, I can about 1000USD is all I have spent so far in a year. Best of luck

Jason

[esprithk]

I enjoy driving my Esprit to business meeting in HK..

it is great fun time (enjoyment and relaxation) for a short moment of a day's hard work....

I use it as my primary transportation

[MPx]

I used mine as a daily driver when I got it (16000 miles each of the first two years) but....

I decided I wanted to keep it and like anything else, it will eventually wear out so I now ration myself. Servicing is really important to Lotus longevity and I found a "C" every year (in addition to the rest) just too much to fund. Also, some parts (eg tyres) started to get impossible to buy anyway so once they've gone the path away from original spec inevitably speeds up.

Other than that, no reason not to. So if you're Ok with all that, then I say go and enjoy it!

Mike