Howdy and Welcome!
I've had my 2018 Evora 400 since Mid March 2020. Had 1079 miles when I bought it. Now has 9300 miles on it. Would not hesitate to jump in it and drive 500 miles away in a day. Couple few warranty issues but nothing major. Absolutely love it.
Are you comfortable with your Dealer?

 

Thanks for the warm welcome and for sharing your first hand ownership experience.
I do not have a relationship with the dealer here in Denver but they are Ferrari, Bentley, Rimac dealership so probably good.

 

I have owned/own two Lotus Evora's first was a 2012 sold in late 2017 and second a 2017 received in late. Both vehicles I have jumped in and driven cross country., i.e. made 3500 mile road trips with a track day in between on more than one occasion. I friend on here @iDuc had an Evora that he drove as his DD, if memory is right about 70 miles/day and he frequency tracked the car too.

 

@FlatCrank @Julian73
It is certainly very encouraging to read your experiences. I don't know if I'd drive cross country in the Evora but very nice to hear that it's that kind of car. I do like to drive a lot, my most recent vehicle has 6000 miles on it and was purchased on July 3rd. I do maintain my vehicles diligently but I do not baby them. Basically, I don't want to think twice before driving anywhere about whether it's a good idea to take this car. If Evora can be that kind of car then I am going to buy one.

 

Not a GT but my experience with MY13 S MT has been great.
Daily drive 40-50miles with several 1000mile trips without thinking twice.
I did have to put a new clutch in when I bought it which is a known issue with the older ones so they can have their issues. But since then its just been a workhorse.
I do keep an eye on things regulatory so I catch things early but to date everything is working like a normal car. Not like my Elise that I seemed to be working on every second weekend!

In conclusion:
Buy one

 

What was the cost on the clutch replacement? Is it really 8k?

 

@not-a-number
Thanks for sharing your feedback and for the clear buy recommendation.

 

I daily mine in NYC and have had no problems once the car was getting driven. When I first picked up the car I had some issues (covered under warranty) but I credit the issues to the fact that the car sat for 6+ months without being moved. Now I have 55k and no issues. 2011 evora that started NA and now makes about 430whp with the supercharger upgrade

 

... now makes about 430whp with the supercharger upgrade

Mods please. This sounds like Komotec's highest output kit for the 400.

 

I have an S1 that I ordered in '11, so I cannot comment specifically on the GT's reliability. However, I think its been proven that overall these cars have been very reliable. Sure there have been small issues that pop up, but very, very few owners (from S1's up to Gt's) have posted that they were stuck somewhere and unable to drive their car. Actually, I don't recall anyone posting that they were broken down in a GT, but maybe I missed it.

As far as the small issues that pop up, many have been solved by forum members who are more than happy to share the remedy. There are tons of posts on here of owners helping each other out. So, you are in good company. Of course, with a new car, your warranty will take care of that first.

For additional information regarding reliability, you may also want to peruse The Lotus Forums. Many owners over there drive their cars daily and have put many miles on their cars. Although, I can tell you that I've seen very few posts of being broken down on that forum too.

Anyway, welcome to the forum. Good luck with your purchase!

 

@John Z
Thanks for your input. So far its all positive feedback. And I am feeling reassured.

 

@2011 chrome orange
Thanks for the welcome and sharing your experience. Very glad to hear that there have not been reports of anyone being stranded or catastrophic failure.

I am a car guy and have bought more than my fair share of cars, as I am sure many here have. I am getting to a point in my life where I’d just like to buy a car that I enjoy and just keep it for a long while. I have tried to do that a couple of times but somehow the cars have not been reliable. I am just trying to make aure Lotus is not going to be the same i.e. satisfying to drive but unreliable to own.

So far I am encouraged by the responses.

 

I'm in Denver as well. Very lucky to have a great Dealer here. FBLOD has been great with me. PM me if you'd like to talk more.
Jamie Park at FBLOD has been phenomenal.

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

@FlatCrank
Glad to hear your positivity about FBLOD. That’s definitely good news.

 

Like any car you can get a good one or a bad one. But it seems like the GT has really addressed a lot of the remaining issues. It’s early days though so maybe we’ll see some in the future.

If you’re fortunate enough to get a car with a warranty and you’re planning to drive it a lot. You would be in a good position to get any issues sorted early and you’d be sorted for a long time.

 

If you’re fortunate enough to get a car with a warranty and you’re planning to drive it a lot. You would be in a good position to get any issues sorted early and you’d be sorted for a long time.

Yes, with a new car that would most definitely be possible to sort out any issues under warranty.

But the hope is there wont be much to sort out. And whatever sorting is needed would be of the cosmetic variety.

 

Also, the Colorado Lotus Club is fantastic. Many great people and drives!!

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

2500 miles so far on my 2020 Evora GT. I made some adjustments to the tailgate latch as it did not consistently release. VERY easy, VERY minor. that's it. Runs perfect!

 

I found I have to press it twice on the key fob or door panel. Each time it makes a sound but the second time it releases.

 

2nd Evora and 57,000 miles on it. DD and love it. 3 good cars and I choose the evora every time. My issues were all little cosmetic things.

 

@Lckitty
57K miles is a decent number of miles. Glad to hear you have not had any major issues. Thank you!

 

4 Lotus since 2005. Never had any breakdowns. maintenance and wear items. 110+ track days on them...always drove home.

 

@brgelise
Pretty much all positive feedback from all you Evora owners.
I think I am feeling much more confident about my thought process and direction.

 

I have the same question as a prospective 1st time Lotus owner. Every car has its weak spots. From what I gather, on the Evora it seems like the clutch (the whole system) is a weak spot although not terrible. There seems to be a thread of some electrical gremlins and some weak body/trim hardware. Seems like a big part of service and maintenance trouble is getting the right parts in a timely fashion.

My biggest concern as a possible owner is a $10k clutch replacement. Hopefully that would never be needed, or at least not for a very long time.

 

The clutch isn’t a weak spot. The master cylinder has been a weak spot, though many fewer reports of problems in the 400/GT models. The clutch will have to be replaced eventually. But there are plenty of anecdotal reports of clutches lasting 60k or more miles. $10K replacement is the expensive outlier. $4K replacement is the cheap outlier. Expect somewhere in between. A service center that has done it before will be able to tell you exactly and should be cheaper as they know the process and can minimize the service hours.

 

Mine runs like a clock three years on. How long a clutch lasts is largely up to the driver's skill.

 

There are quite a few threads about things that might prolong the life of the clutch. I think one easy thing we can do is regular bleeds of the slave cylinder to get rid of fluid in the line and cylinder that has been heated up- you definitely get a few mls of discolored fluid out at the start of the process. The clutch swap is a clam off/engine out job- there are some pictures around of someone who did it through the wheel well but apparently that required disconnecting the engine mounts and if I was doing that I would rather just take the whole thing out.

 

Another +1 fun Lotus of Denver. Just got mine serviced there and am super satisfied to have them as a nearby dealer.

Only 1,200 miles but I don't have any fears for reliability. Simple electronics, one of the most reliable engines made, tough drivetrain.

 

2017 Evora 400 owner with almost 17K miles. I drive it whenever I can and drive it "vigorously" all the time (after a nice long warm up and in the context of an aggressive service schedule). As with many, there were a few nits when I originally received car (air conditioning compressor not working!) but they were sorted quickly under warranty and no issues since. I don't worry at all about the car breaking down and frankly worry about it much less than I worried about my 2013 M3 which wasn't terrible but was good for one or two limp mode events every year. This year with the Evora has been a joy as it has just run like a top.

 

I've only had mine for just over 1 month with 1600 miles so far so I don't think my experience holds much weight, but I haven't had a single problem so far except for the rear view mirror breaking off as I adjusted it, taking a chunk of glass with it. Lotus is replacing the windshield under warranty since I had only had the car for 6 days when it happened. Other than that, nothing but smiles. Love this car!!