Why did you buy an Esprit?
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136 Posts
Always loved the way they looked as a kid. Came to the realization as a younger adult i will never be able to afford an F40. 3.0L v8 tt mid engine rwd vs 3.5L v8 tt mid engine rwd . both light weight and very similar in looks. The more research i did on them, the more i had to have one. I had no idea how rare they were. Knew i had to snag one before i have a kid or two, otherwise itd be a lost dream. Car is way more than i expected it to be. Cant wait to start modding 
A Story of Love
We were looking at Panteras, but most of the ones FS were rust-buckets. Discouraging. :sad:
But one guy who had just sold his Pantera said to my wife (the Lady Patricia):
"You'd look GOOD driving an Esprit" Showed her some pictures of one he had owned. Similar proportions, being mid-engined.
She agreed. :clap: So we started looking. After several months we found the '88 that CarSalesman was selling.
We bought it. :UK:
The turbo's rush was what sold me, plus I had come from a rally-car background, where we wrung out high revving 4 bangers (some of them turbocharged) for hours on end...so I felt right at home driving one.
And I had to admit, it DID make her look good!!!!!!!! :nanner:
:shift:
We were looking at Panteras, but most of the ones FS were rust-buckets. Discouraging. :sad:
But one guy who had just sold his Pantera said to my wife (the Lady Patricia):
"You'd look GOOD driving an Esprit"
Showed her some pictures of one he had owned. Similar proportions, being mid-engined.She agreed. :clap: So we started looking. After several months we found the '88 that CarSalesman was selling.
We bought it. :UK:
The turbo's rush was what sold me, plus I had come from a rally-car background, where we wrung out high revving 4 bangers (some of them turbocharged) for hours on end...so I felt right at home driving one.
And I had to admit, it DID make her look good!!!!!!!! :nanner:
:shift:
Joined
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29 Posts
I spent 40 years in the automobile industry. I worked for Land Rover, BMW, Ford, Porsche and Fisker. My first job was at a Lotus TVR dealer in Scotch Plains, NJ in the early '70s as a mechanic. I fell in love with Lotus. CABC's "adding lightness", the use of small high revving engines, their racing accomplishments and at the time cutting edge engineering just touched a chord in me. Over the years I restored an Elan, purchased and assembled a Super 7 Series 4 kit, owned a Lotus Cortina and a Twin Cam Europa. I always lusted after an Esprit. I retired a few years ago, sold all the car junk on ebay I accumulated over the years, searched for 6 months and found my '93 SE with 22k miles. The car is a challenge but I do love it.
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310 Posts
From the first time I saw an Esprit (back in 1984) I fell in love with it. I truly think next to the countach a G bodied esprit driving down the road is one of the most awe inspiring cars. I had to have one.
I also have had ferrari and currently own a maserati.. so I guess I love em all.
I also have had ferrari and currently own a maserati.. so I guess I love em all.
When I saw it for the first time, I fell in love with the design. I said one day I will own one and I did. Still beautiful in 2014 for an '89.
Then it was even better on Basic Instinct with Sharon Stone let alone Pretty Woman.
Best line I had from a guy...Wow it must be nice being rich to afford that $200,000 car. That says a lot about an Esprit.
Then it was even better on Basic Instinct with Sharon Stone let alone Pretty Woman.
Best line I had from a guy...Wow it must be nice being rich to afford that $200,000 car. That says a lot about an Esprit.
Tom's Pit Stop?
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327 Posts
I'm a masochist at heart I think.
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29 Posts
Yes, Tom's Pit Stop.
I've always liked unique cars. You can't beat a Corvette or Porsche in the bang-for-the-buck category (even though some Porsches are not remotely inexpensive), but you also see them every day. Every. Single. Day.
Even if you have one of the super rare examples, most people can't tell the difference and won't give it a second look.
For me the journey to Esprit ownership started with loving the Lamborghini Countach, to Bond movies, Pretty Woman, and the DeLorean.
I had a 1981 DeLorean for about 6 years, and even though they are different in a lot of ways, it was designed by Lotus and they shared many traits with the Esprit (overall styling, suspension, interior, etc.).
The DeLorean lacked the power though, so a move to the Lotus Esprit V8 twin turbo was an easy transition. A unique car with great styling in the Giugiaro vein, and loads of power to match. Also a relative bargain in the supercar world.
To sum it up, the Esprit is a beautiful, powerful, rare, fun, hand-made British supercar that is attainable. You can't get much better than that!
Even if you have one of the super rare examples, most people can't tell the difference and won't give it a second look.
For me the journey to Esprit ownership started with loving the Lamborghini Countach, to Bond movies, Pretty Woman, and the DeLorean.
I had a 1981 DeLorean for about 6 years, and even though they are different in a lot of ways, it was designed by Lotus and they shared many traits with the Esprit (overall styling, suspension, interior, etc.).
The DeLorean lacked the power though, so a move to the Lotus Esprit V8 twin turbo was an easy transition. A unique car with great styling in the Giugiaro vein, and loads of power to match. Also a relative bargain in the supercar world.
To sum it up, the Esprit is a beautiful, powerful, rare, fun, hand-made British supercar that is attainable. You can't get much better than that!
Joined
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265 Posts
I had posters on my wall in the 80's of the Esprit and the 308...when I graduated college, I knew I had to get them. So i started to look at both and I found the Esprit first and that was 11 years ago. It has been a dream come true to own this car and now tha my son was born, I plan to pass it to him. I still want the 308 though...and have been discreetly saving for it a few years.
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480 Posts
When I lived in England I had a picture of an Esprit on my bedroom wall when all my college buddies had one of Farah Fawcett-Majors in that iconic red swimsuit. Seeing the car in Pretty Woman and Basic Instinct only reinforced my desire to own one.
After college I worked for a bearing company as a sales engineer and one of my customers was Lotus. We supplied a small flat metal plate with a self-aligning bushing that was used on the Esprit headlight assembly. During my visits there I used to get a plant tour (but never any free samples) and always swore I would own an Esprit one day not thinking that decades later I would achieve that dream.
It really is a magnificent car, the styling is timeless and as somebody said in a previous posting, it's relatively affordable.
After college I worked for a bearing company as a sales engineer and one of my customers was Lotus. We supplied a small flat metal plate with a self-aligning bushing that was used on the Esprit headlight assembly. During my visits there I used to get a plant tour (but never any free samples) and always swore I would own an Esprit one day not thinking that decades later I would achieve that dream.
It really is a magnificent car, the styling is timeless and as somebody said in a previous posting, it's relatively affordable.
Joined
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51 Posts
Always loved the look and wanted something unique - where I live 911s are like F150s in Texas. Price was also a great value in my opinion - looks like a $100k+ exotic, drives as well as most anything in the price range.
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175 Posts
When I was younger ,I was a real sports car nut(in my 20's). I had bought a Jag XKE(4.2 engine), Porsche 911, and a Lotus Europa.
Out of all of those cars,the Europa was the most fun to drive, and the least known.
When I decided to get back into sports car, I remembered the Esprit with longing and bit the bullet and bought one .
Alan
Out of all of those cars,the Europa was the most fun to drive, and the least known.
When I decided to get back into sports car, I remembered the Esprit with longing and bit the bullet and bought one .
Alan
WHO SAYS I have a bad memory??????
WHO SAYS I have a bad memory??????
WHO SAYS I have a bad memory??????
WHO SAYS I have a bad memory??????
rotfl
I won't tell you what year it was (we old codgers are SLY) but I brought my first car to Tom's for a carb problem. I guess my mistake was, it was German. Dual Zeniths, IIRC, on a flat-four....
Ended up learning how to rebuild carburetters (but I never learn how to spell the word). rotfl
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87 Posts
The Esprit was one of the early concept cars that fired up your imagination of what the future has in store for us right now.
Besides the Countach there was no other car (imo) that stirred the passion and imagination as I looked upon them with awe on pages of magazines.
It was burned in my soul that every time I saw those classic wedge shapes I liked them. When I was younger the closest thing I could afford at that time to a Lotus was a Triumph TR7, I loved that car.
I had the chance to buy an earlier 87 Esprit but did not do it because all I heard was how horrendous they were with maintenance, so from that moment forward I would just admire them from afar.
When the V8 Esprit and new body design came out I was smitten all over again, but by this time I was lucky enough to be able to afford some of the most exciting cars in the world. Started with Jaguar, BMW, I did my Porsche evolution through all the series, moved on to, Ferrari, Lamborghini etc.. which I still own today.
I recently sold my Porsche Roadster and found myself wanting a summer daily driver, I stared looking at an Exige S and was sad to find out that the one I was looking at in California was not able to be transported to Canada due to our silly import laws. The fellow I was dealing with informed me of an Esprit in Nevada that I might be interested in. Thats when the light went off -eek-:clap:
I had totally forgotten about them by this time, well my research began and within 10 days my deal was made. I now owned what many believe to be one of the most iconic car shapes (as Jeremy Clarkson would say) in the woooorld:drool:
Besides the Countach there was no other car (imo) that stirred the passion and imagination as I looked upon them with awe on pages of magazines.
It was burned in my soul that every time I saw those classic wedge shapes I liked them. When I was younger the closest thing I could afford at that time to a Lotus was a Triumph TR7, I loved that car.
I had the chance to buy an earlier 87 Esprit but did not do it because all I heard was how horrendous they were with maintenance, so from that moment forward I would just admire them from afar.
When the V8 Esprit and new body design came out I was smitten all over again, but by this time I was lucky enough to be able to afford some of the most exciting cars in the world. Started with Jaguar, BMW, I did my Porsche evolution through all the series, moved on to, Ferrari, Lamborghini etc.. which I still own today.
I recently sold my Porsche Roadster and found myself wanting a summer daily driver, I stared looking at an Exige S and was sad to find out that the one I was looking at in California was not able to be transported to Canada due to our silly import laws. The fellow I was dealing with informed me of an Esprit in Nevada that I might be interested in. Thats when the light went off -eek-:clap:
I had totally forgotten about them by this time, well my research began and within 10 days my deal was made. I now owned what many believe to be one of the most iconic car shapes (as Jeremy Clarkson would say) in the woooorld
:drool:
Joined
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1,505 Posts
My passion comes from an early age. As a teenager in the mid to late '70's I used to ride my bike over to Lotus East in Millerton, New York and lust after the Series 1 Esprits.
The shape and suede stylistic interior just blew me away... love at first sight. 25 years later my dream came true. My car is an '87 black over red, one of two made that year out of 196.
Robert
:UK:
The shape and suede stylistic interior just blew me away... love at first sight. 25 years later my dream came true. My car is an '87 black over red, one of two made that year out of 196.
Robert
:UK:
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