[mbiamonte77]

I noticed some odd temperature behavior in my 2011 NA Evora: climbed at idle, dropped when in motion. The engine bay fan on the driver's side would invariably come on after pulling into the garage even on very cold (25° f) days.

I checked the coolant level and added some (about a quart.) That didn't fix it.

I thought it might be the thermostat. The car only has 10k miles. Weird.

It never actually overheated, but the oddly high temperature readings, and the "hot engine" (coolant) smell provoked me to bring it to the dealer for a check up.

Turns out I have a "leaky head gasket."

WTF?

I thought the engine, being Toyota sourced, was one of the more reliable parts?

Anyone else? Or is this a fluke?

I do not drive the car aggressively. Never tracked, and I've only seen the red line warning lights three times in two years.

Also - dealer says he needs approval from Lotus to do the warranty work. Is there seriously a chance they might deny it??

 

[Allan Gibbs]

I seriously doubt Lotus will deny it. I've had lot of warranty issues on my Evoras and not once has Lotus turned a claim down.

Just wondering, are you the first owner or how many miles did your Evora have when you took delivery? Just wondering if someone may have been pushing the car - perhaps during break in.

 

[mbiamonte77]

I'm the first owner. The car had 49 miles on it when I took delivery.

 

[brgelise]

An oddity. It happens to them all. Shouldn't be too big a deal to fix.

 

[Allan Gibbs]

I agree. I think the limited number of posts on this thread is because it's usual. The plus side is Lotus is very good at covering such issues under warranty.

I wonder if they need to take the engine out of the car to repair? If so, it may be worth it just to replace the clutch while the engine's out.

 

[cdn_alien]

I do not drive the car aggressively. Never tracked, and I've only seen the red line warning lights three times in two years.

You need to stretch the legs of your Evora more often.

 

[mbiamonte77]

Been driving the 2007 Ford Escape loaner for three weeks, and I finally have an update.

The dealer said it was difficult to get Hethel to respond over the holiday, but yesterday they reviewed the data dumps and confirmed what cdn_alien suspected: I've babied the car - there are no warranty-voiding issues.

Here's the kicker: they've decided to forego figuring out why oil is leaking into the coolant, and just replace the engine.

I'll be at least another three weeks without her.

They're going to do a thorough review while she's apart and suggest opportunistic maintenance while they're "... in there."

I might pop for a new clutch.

 

[2011 chrome orange]

....Here's the kicker: they've decided to forego figuring out why oil is leaking into the coolant, and just replace the engine.

I'll be at least another three weeks without her.

They're going to do a thorough review while she's apart and suggest opportunistic maintenance while they're "... in there."

I might pop for a new clutch.

Sorry to hear it'll take so long but at least they are taking care of it.:clap:
What dealer is it at?

 

[JLSELISE]

In spite of the wait, I would say this is an excellent outcome.
Seems to me this is really a Toyota problem, so getting the engine back to them "in tack" for diagnosis/analysis will likely improve future reliability.

 

[mbiamonte77]

The work is being done at Park Avenue Saab/Lotus in Maywood, NJ. I'll meet the techs when I drop by there Saturday to swap loaner cars. (The Ford Escape has a nasty grind coming from the left rear brake.)


Sent from AutoGuide.com App

 

[invictusmaneo]

from what my two servicing dealers have told me, warranty work in excess of $500 always has to be approved by LCUSA. For an issue like this that requires parts from the UK, it will also go through the factory for approval as well.

It is good they are doing your whole engine-it is honestly probably cheaper to do it that way anyways vice all the labor to remove, disassemble, repair, reassemble, and reinstall the motor...and as stated above I am sure their QC guys want an intact engine to take a look at.

Glad your dealer is giving you a loaner.

FWIW-I have had very good luck with Lotus warranty and they have been quite fair overall. Some have had horror stories, and I think a large part of that is due to the servicing dealers' level of support, but Lotus also takes a hard look at how you treat the car and its service history. I am in the midst of having a clutch done under warranty after 20k miles and Lotus told me the same thing-it is clear I don't abuse the car and something failed that shouldn't have.

 

[lov2bugu]

I noticed some odd temperature behavior in my 2011 NA Evora: climbed at idle, dropped when in motion. The engine bay fan on the driver's side would invariably come on after pulling into the garage even on very cold (25° f) days.

I checked the coolant level and added some (about a quart.) That didn't fix it.

I thought it might be the thermostat. The car only has 10k miles. Weird.

It never actually overheated, but the oddly high temperature readings, and the "hot engine" (coolant) smell provoked me to bring it to the dealer for a check up.

Turns out I have a "leaky head gasket."

WTF?

I thought the engine, being Toyota sourced, was one of the more reliable parts?

Anyone else? Or is this a fluke?

I do not drive the car aggressively. Never tracked, and I've only seen the red line warning lights three times in two years.

Also - dealer says he needs approval from Lotus to do the warranty work. Is there seriously a chance they might deny it??

What oil have you used in the car? what was your change interval?

 

[tbd_Evora]

from what my two servicing dealers have told me, warranty work in excess of $500 always has to be approved by LCUSA. For an issue like this that requires parts from the UK, it will also go through the factory for approval as well.

It is good they are doing your whole engine-it is honestly probably cheaper to do it that way anyways vice all the labor to remove, disassemble, repair, reassemble, and reinstall the motor...and as stated above I am sure their QC guys want an intact engine to take a look at.

Glad your dealer is giving you a loaner.

FWIW-I have had very good luck with Lotus warranty and they have been quite fair overall. Some have had horror stories, and I think a large part of that is due to the servicing dealers' level of support, but Lotus also takes a hard look at how you treat the car and its service history. I am in the midst of having a clutch done under warranty after 20k miles and Lotus told me the same thing-it is clear I don't abuse the car and something failed that shouldn't have.

Yeah, Lotus will always change the engine if there is a need. Remember, it is suppliead by Toyota and will have a back-to-back guerantee from there. Why pay a lot of money to fix it on site when you can send it back to Toyota and let them solve it.

Particularly as engine issues are extremely rare with the Toyota powerplant.

 

[mbiamonte77]

What oil have you used in the car? what was your change interval?

Oil was changed every 3K miles, dutifully. First two at dealer, 3rd at 9K miles was DIY with Castrol Edge (SPT) 5W-40.

UPDATE: Engine was received at Park Ave Saab/Lotus this past week. Disassembly has commenced.

As mentioned, I'm probably going to swap out the clutch while we're in there. Est. cost $1k for the new clutch and "minimal additional labor".

Been without her 5 weeks now. :-(

 

[invictusmaneo]

Do the S clutch and flywheel...totally worth it..trust me

 

[Julian73]

how about the '12 and newer shifter unit

 

[Chris D.]

I noticed some odd temperature behavior in my 2011 NA Evora: climbed at idle, dropped when in motion. The engine bay fan on the driver's side would invariably come on after pulling into the garage even on very cold (25° f) days.

I checked the coolant level and added some (about a quart.) That didn't fix it.

I thought it might be the thermostat. The car only has 10k miles. Weird.

It never actually overheated, but the oddly high temperature readings, and the "hot engine" (coolant) smell provoked me to bring it to the dealer for a check up.

Turns out I have a "leaky head gasket."

WTF?

I thought the engine, being Toyota sourced, was one of the more reliable parts?

Anyone else? Or is this a fluke?

I do not drive the car aggressively. Never tracked, and I've only seen the red line warning lights three times in two years.

Also - dealer says he needs approval from Lotus to do the warranty work. Is there seriously a chance they might deny it??

Wow. Every time I seriously start to thin about purchasing an Evora, I read something like this and lose interest.

 

[Julian73]

This must be a very very rare event, how many Toyo Camry, Rav4 V6 and Lexus ES350's are falling by the wayside with leaking HG's

 

[invictusmaneo]

Julian the latest shift cables (I got those too in nov) don't require an engine out and I'm not really sure how much you'd save by doing it now or later

 

[Julian73]

I figure since for engine out they need disconnecting anyways and probable readjusting after install,just add it to the workload if you got the funding.