Tech help needed - I'm trying to buy a V8

[Ken Hilliard]

Hi everyone

I am looking at buying a 2002/3 V8. I have looked around for a little while, but will be looking at 2 between Christmas and New Year. I have noted a few (?) probs which I would really like everyones help and comments on.

1. Why would a 2002 have an over heating prob? - I thought this had been resolved post 2000.

2. Why is it that the oil seals from the gear box to final drive are damp and leak oil. I have noticed this on a 2003 model. Is this a common prob with all V8s?

3. Is there a prob with the leather seats? - it looks like, despite low mileage, that every V8 I have seen the leather on the pad of the seat has gone loose and crumpled.

Look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks

Ken

[gmendoza]

Hi everyone

I am looking at buying a 2002/3 V8. I have looked around for a little while, but will be looking at 2 between Christmas and New Year. I have noted a few (?) probs which I would really like everyones help and comments on.

1. Why would a 2002 have an over heating prob? - I thought this had been resolved post 2000.

2. Why is it that the oil seals from the gear box to final drive are damp and leak oil. I have noticed this on a 2003 model. Is this a common prob with all V8s?

3. Is there a prob with the leather seats? - it looks like, despite low mileage, that every V8 I have seen the leather on the pad of the seat has gone loose and crumpled.

Look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks

Ken

1. No Esprit should everheat. Although up to 100*C is normal since thats when the fans come on. While driving, the temp should be about 85-90

2. This is common. The fluid line is higher than the axles. So very often oil will seep out. It is possible to get them to stop leaking but it usually takes several attempts + luck to get the rolls pins to seal correctly.

3. Because the Esprit is so low, many people fall in to the seat rubbing on the bolster on the way down. Some people are more carefull than other but in the end, they will end be a bit scuffed. The severity of this will depend on how the previous owner got in & out of the car.

[Jonathan]

Hi Ken, check the gearbox oil level if there are signs of leaks.

As already said above leaks from the driveshaft do happen when one of the 2 seals leaks and or the roll pins are not correctly set. However it can be a slow leaking process and most cars are not checked (if at all) for the 2 years or so between their service intervals.

If I were looking at a car that had these symptoms I would check the oil level and then crack the drain plug and see how good the oil is (and or check when it was last replaced).

I took a gamble with my SE as I noticed this problem when I inspected it (essentially the same gearbox), left unchecked the gearbox was quite happy to drain itself of 2/3's of its fluid leaving it dangerously low (especially for 5th gear which was almost un-lubricated) and also the oil gets very hot....mine was almost black when I drained it out.

Thankfully the gearbox was fine when I took it off so it's by no means a terminal illness.

The other thing to check is that the large castle nut that pre-loads the differential bearing has not been tampered with which can cause the inner seal to leak - this is on the side of the gearbox on one of the output shafts from the unit and should be held in place with a keep plate.

[superdavelotus]

1. Overheating can be caused by a number of things. The first thing to check thermostat. After this checking pipes for blocking and restrictions. After this, the radiator. I would always look to budget for a new radiator. On the 4 cylinder cars they had a triple core radiator but when they introduced the V8 they decided to back to a double core but make the fins finer. This has resulted to debris passing through the air con rad but trapping in front of the cooling radiator. You won;t see this from just looking at it. I have a 2000 V8 and mine lokked perfect from front and rear. Lotus are aware of this problem and have introduced a note in the service schedule for the dealer to blast the radiator from behind to unblock this as part of every service. In reality though this doesn't work and your radiator soon becomes inafficient.

By the time you've strip your radiator out, you might as well replace it. I have gone for a recon rad from PNM as they use triple core with bigger fins. This will solve the problem.

2. Driveshaft oil leak is common and is a very small problem. don;t let this put you off buying a car. It only takes an hour or so to fix depending on the problem.

3. Seats wera quickly due to the accessibility etc and the way people get in and out. I have odopted a different way to get in my car and have noticed that since my 18 month ownership, not a hint of wear on my seats. I normally get it either two feet first or make sure I sit forward of the seat bolster then put my second leg in and put my back to the rear of seat last. This sounds alien and very strange but it does make a huge difference. I have a daily driver with similar sports seats and just jump in the car. I've only owned this 6 months and the side is already wearing.

Edited December 19, 2006 by superdavelotus

[atgnat]

i don't care what anybody says, the stock radiator is junk, and needs to either be upgraded with something much bigger, or recored to increase its capacity. if the car has a history of running hot, it should be a deal breaker. heat just kills the 918 engine. get a leak down, and compression test.

[actwon]

i don't care what anybody says, the stock radiator is junk, and needs to either be upgraded with something much bigger, or recored to increase its capacity. if the car has a history of running hot, it should be a deal breaker. heat just kills the 918 engine. get a leak down, and compression test.

Heat kills ANY engine. A radiator should not be a deal breaker as they are easily fixed/replaced. If ther car has a history of overheating, I would steer clear or use it as a bargaining chip.

[atgnat]

like i said, if it has a history of running hot, walk away.

[mamovaka]

I would also look at the price, if it looks cheap and too good to be true, usually is..

[bimmabimma]

if over heating is such a problem why don't people just put in a lower thermostat and lower auxilary fan switch (very common trick on bmw's it would keep temps below 190F even on track days where as normally they would go up past 210+), just a suggestion.

[Artie]

if over heating is such a problem why don't people just put in a lower thermostat and lower auxilary fan switch (very common trick on bmw's it would keep temps below 190F even on track days where as normally they would go up past 210+), just a suggestion.

This is a good idea in a warm climate, but on a precisely computer controlled engine, in cool climates this limits boost and timing if the thermostat doesn't let the car warm up to operating temps on the highway. I have this very issue with my 93 RX7 which I installed a low temp thermostat in, in spring and summer it's great, car takes a few extra minutes to warm up but stays cool. Winter time sucks, can't get any boost and timing, car runs pig rich and sputters on hard accel because there's no timing! If the car is overheating, then it's fault should be diagnosed and corrected other wise cylinder head warpage and block deformation is a potential problem.

Artie

[bimmabimma]

This is a good idea in a warm climate, but on a precisely computer controlled engine, in cool climates this limits boost and timing if the thermostat doesn't let the car warm up to operating temps on the highway. I have this very issue with my 93 RX7 which I installed a low temp thermostat in, in spring and summer it's great, car takes a few extra minutes to warm up but stays cool. Winter time sucks, can't get any boost and timing, car runs pig rich and sputters on hard accel because there's no timing! If the car is overheating, then it's fault should be diagnosed and corrected other wise cylinder head warpage and block deformation is a potential problem.

Artie

you are comparing apples to oranges though, plus you only go a little bit lower. 100 is way too high for fan to kick in on ANY car, thats 212F (which is borderline rediculous). And i wouldn't be suprised if thermostat is hot as well. Typically lower thermostat 8-10C is safe but some people try to lower thermostat by like 25 and its just way too much, i agree.

[atgnat]

If the car is overheating, then it's fault should be diagnosed and corrected other wise cylinder head warpage and block deformation is a potential problem.

Artie

i couldn't agree more.