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Isnt that car belong to a member on here?
Your thoughts on this Esprit
Hello everybody, we recently got a listing in NY 3 days ago from a private seller with a beautiful Esprit. The seller is asking $23,500 for the car. He is the original owner and from the pictures it seems to be well taken care of. Looking for a fair number that this car should bring. They are in no means "desperate" but would prefer to move the car this spring/summer. Its for sale in the lotus classifieds and our website for $23,500.
Here are the pics: 1988 Lotus Esprit Turbo For Sale in Dix Hills, NY 11746 | Global Autosports
If anybody is directly interested in the car, you can send them an email through Global Autosports, otherwise we would appreciate any positive feedback you can input to this thread.
Here are the pics: 1988 Lotus Esprit Turbo For Sale in Dix Hills, NY 11746 | Global Autosports
If anybody is directly interested in the car, you can send them an email through Global Autosports, otherwise we would appreciate any positive feedback you can input to this thread.
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The thread title is 'your thoughts on this Esprit', but you go on the say ' we would appreciate any positive feedback you can input to this thread’. A little too self-serving for me and this looks like it should be in the ‘for sale’ section. I have some thoughts, but some are and some aren’t positive! maybe a little constructive criticism would be helpful?
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Sure, our apologies. Speak your mind.
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I also think it was on Craigslist for 17000 or maybe less.
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Not worth that price to most informed buyers.
Car looks fine, but this is a less desirable model, than the '89 Turbo, and even more so the 89 and up SE
Randy
Car looks fine, but this is a less desirable model, than the '89 Turbo, and even more so the 89 and up SE
Randy
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Beerman has an 88 and so do I - I also agree with Beerman's comment above
My car even looks like the car in question:
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Apologies if my first reply sounded sharp, the curse of the electronic word! The following is solely my personal opinion based on the very limited information provided (I.E. No service history shown, no status of tires, Timing belt, repairs required etc.) I have owned a lot of various models of the Esprit including six 88’s of varying condition, from the mint to the ‘project’. IMHO the premium being asked for this ‘one owner/low mileage’ model is quite high, especially given the current market for a used Esprit is very much a buyers one. As the Esprit gracefully (!) ages more and more become available that have been sitting for way too long, and as anyone who knows will tell you the Esprit hates to sit. The 88’s are revered by some, but the 89’s and up have typically been preferred models due to the simpler GM FI, Renault trans and various other changes when GM took ownership of Lotus. The car is the popular ticket me red, looks good, in 100% original condition, though the pictures are limited (would like to see the driver’s seat pic the same as the passenger seat, always an indicator of wear on the drivers when only the other is shown, dash close to base of windshield, and an indication of age of tires as they look like Goodyear’s) The engine photo shows to me an overall lack of care for a car with such low mileage (timing belt history?) with all the crap laying on top of the intake manifold between #3 & #4 injector and the carpet peeling back from the access panel (indicates someone has been in there, she needs to be detailed and shown at her best, this looks like a ‘let’s haul her out of storage and get rid of her approach’) The 88 is considered by many in the know to be one of the ‘purest’ Esprits due to the suspension, brakes and steering geometry (which was changed in later years to reduce manual steering effort) and this one would likely appeal to someone more ‘mature’ who wants originality, but the typical buyer of the first generation S cars is a younger enthusiast who knows some of the Lotus history but can’t quite stretch to the 91-95 SE/S4 price range (which IMO is where this one is priced) It’s always a touchy subject to criticise pricing but to give you a couple of examples i paid 11k for an 88 with 32,000 miles that needed the same amount of remediation that this one would, I also paid 20k for a one owner mint 88 commemorative edition with 19,000 miles. Now, that being said I have also paid 25k for a 78 (overpaid but I was young and didn’t know any better at the time) and more recently paid 19k for a second S4 with 20,000 miles on it that needs very minor TLC (stole it :clap
With these cars being as rare as they are, but not as desirable as some other exotics, its increasingly becoming worth whatever someone is prepared to pay for it, but anyone with a little tech savvy will have a quick look at ebay, autotrader, cars.com or craigslist and get a good indicator of what’s ‘too much’. Additionally there are a few posts on this forum from members with well maintained cars for sale that are more than comparable and 5 to 8 thousand dollars less. My 10 cents (9 CDN ) worth
Colin
With these cars being as rare as they are, but not as desirable as some other exotics, its increasingly becoming worth whatever someone is prepared to pay for it, but anyone with a little tech savvy will have a quick look at ebay, autotrader, cars.com or craigslist and get a good indicator of what’s ‘too much’. Additionally there are a few posts on this forum from members with well maintained cars for sale that are more than comparable and 5 to 8 thousand dollars less. My 10 cents (9 CDN ) worthColin
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If that car sells for at least 85% of asking price in a timely manner we must all bookmark Global Autosports - Buy or Sell Exotic Luxury Sport Cars for when the time comes for us to sell our cars. For those of us that have cars and are not looking to buy it is in our best interests to have sellers such as this get as much as they can for their offering. Sometimes we owners are our own worst enemy as we often comment on the high asking prices of cars and then complain when market prices are low when it is our time to sell. I am guilty of this too.
I like it. You can ask Turbo R or Esprit888 why. rotfl
I agree with everything Colin said.
Good luck selling at that price. Not trying to be harsh...if the car was indeed on C-List for $17K, it sounds as if only a consignment fee was added. (Or, some negotiating room)
I agree with everything Colin said.
Good luck selling at that price. Not trying to be harsh...if the car was indeed on C-List for $17K, it sounds as if only a consignment fee was added. (Or, some negotiating room)
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I agree and have posted similar many times. I have owned and do own Ferrari cars. They are in no way better than the Esprit. Different, but not as reliable and much more involving to work on at times.
However, Ferrari tend to command higher prices than the Esprit because Ferrari owners bally up the brand without fail. Or, in other words, it has been my observation that Esprit owners tend to point out things go wrong and Ferrari owners pretend nothing ever goes wrong and if it does "it is the cost of admission" attitude prevails.
That said, I do not personally believe there is a greater group of owners any place on the planet the Lotus owners and given the access I have personally experienced to even factory folks... Ferrari could learn a thing or two from Lotus!
Now, onto the car... yes, it does seem a bit on the high side given the fact I do not readily see a service history etc. Now, I am one of those odd balls that purposely shopped for an 88'... and that is what I have. I prefer the Citroen gear box and feel the Renault is a tad over rated. I am familiar with the K-Jet fuel system and have some thoughts regarding the GM parts not being very off the shelf anymore as the cars age. I have owned mine for 11 years and love it every day... So... that is to say that I totally agree that the shopper most def will determine the "buy".
Cameron
At least the mileage is low. From history any Lotus with the Citroen transaxle over 40,000 miles needs to have had the circlip replaced. The asking price is high especially considering the seller is not saying anything about the service history so we can only assume it doesn't have one or at least it is not up to date. I would guess a good price for a well-sorted '88 would be closer to $18K. There was a preponderance of '88's compared to other years and that causes the price to be lower (in addition to the Citroen transaxle for which parts are getting scarce and expensive). BTW, I find it presumptuous on Global Auto Sport's part to be posting what is obviously a For Sale ad under the guise of "Your Thoughts on This Esprit". For the record I have advertised my '99 with them so there! I wonder why they didn't think of adverting it here too (Oh, Wait, I JUST DID!
David Teitelbaum
David Teitelbaum
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Agreed on all points. My good buddy has an '84 308QV which is from the same era as my '87 HCi. He spends much more on parts than me. His car is slower than mine. His car does NOT get any more "looks" or gawks than mine. But, when we park together at a cruise or a diner/whatever.... his car is more recognizable and that Horse badge works wonders!
His car also sounds WAY better than mine ever could!Value wise, yeah, F-cars get top buck pretty much no matter what. For what I paid for my Esprit, I would have had to settle for a totally clapped-out, fairly crappy 308. Its the way of things.
But Esprit guys have just as much fun as ferrari guys without as much fuss.
Cameron, spot on, ditto. I have two 80's ferraris and they are no better built than the '88 esprit I have...in some ways, not as well built. I prefer working on the Lotus as well - parts are less expensive, less complex in many ways, etc.
You're right, it's the strong ferrari brand which contributes the most to the higher prices of the f-cars. And while there are some good and smart forum participants on the f-car chat sites, there's a whole lot of ninny who can't do anything more than wipe on some polish and update the wheel center caps.
If you want to check out a real smart and fun and collegial bunch of gear head guys, check out GT40s.com - Powered by vBulletin - on a par with lotustalk in many ways (different cars obviously).
OK, back to the original thread....good luck with the sale.
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