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1986 Lotus Esprit S3 Coupe 2-door 2.2l on 2040-cars

Year:1986 Mileage:19253 Color: The paint is in excellent condition except for a few small blemishes that are captured in the pictures
Location:

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
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 Behold an amazing example of the beautiful Lotus Esprit S3. This car is arguably the ultimate Lotus Esprit, marrying the gorgeous Giugiario body with S3 galvanized chassis, 5-lug BBS wheels, bigger brakes, and more robust rear suspension than the earlier models. This car is one of only a few in the United States and may be the nicest example on Earth!

This car was purchased new at the factory by a Californian and shipped back to the United States when the gray market was alive and well. It has lived it's life in garages in California and Nevada and has zero rust and corrosion. I am the second owner of the car.

The original owner parked the car in his garage with a thick cover on it in 1991. There is sat for the next 20 years. When I purchased the car, it needed a little TLC to get it running again.

Exterior:
The paint is in excellent condition except for a few small blemishes that are captured in the pictures (some rock chips in the lower front valence area, 1 chip in the right rear bumper, and one craze mark in the rear hatch near the lower left corner of the window.) The red color is very deep and could be polished to new condition without much elbow grease. I polished a few sections with Zymol as a test and they turned out beautiful.
The BBS wheels are in perfect condition except for one small curb mark shown in the one picture of the front right wheel. The Goodyear Eagle GT tires are certainly period correct, and may be the original units. The tires are in very good condition with no cracks in the rubber.
The sunroof is one of the great features of the S3. I've seen many Esprits hacked to try to recreate this effect, but this car has the actual factory sunroof with all the required reinforcement that go with it. For taller drivers, this feature helps provide more head room. The sunroof mechanism works fine and there are no leaks.
All of the lights on the car are in good condition except for one crack in one of the front turn signals.
The underbody of the car is in excellent condition with no signs of damage or jacking at the wrong location.

Engine: I checked compression, rebuilt both carburetors, replaced the factory fuel line with modern braided stainless lines made by Dave Bean, replaced the fuel pump with a New Solid State Unit, replaced the spark plugs, changed the oil and filter, and rebuilt the clutch slave cylinder. It comes with a K&N air filter that has not been installed yet. The engine runs rough when cold but smooths out when warmed up. A tune up by a Lotus expert would help get the most from the engine, but it is driveable as it is. The engine has no oil leaks.

Drivetrain: The transmission shifts perfectly into all gears. The clutch works perfectly.
Brakes: The brakes do not pull to either side, indicating that all the calipers are functioning correctly.

Interior:
The interior is in excellent condition. The leather dash is like new and has had no chemicals put on it under my watch. The seats are in new condition, having been protected by custom sheep skins their entire life. The sheep skins are in excellent condition too.
The carpet is in perfect condition. There are slight signs of wear on wear points like door handles.

 
Electrical:
All electrical components that I have tried work including the dash lights, turn signals, headlights, power windows, and radio, except the horn.  I have not tried the air conditioning, but suspect it would need a recharge at a minimum. Note: the car will not be shipped with a battery.

Accessories:
The car comes with the original spare, manual, jack, and tool kit.
The car has an audiophile stereo from that era including Nakamichi TD-500 deck, Proton amplifier behind the passenger seat, and Blaupunkt speakers.
The car comes with service records dating back to the 1980s and all the receipts I have generated.
It also comes with a thick form-fitting car cover that protects the car well.

Things the car needs: The shocks for the rear hatch need replacing, I took the buckles for the engine cover off when I was replacing the fuel lines and have not put them back on. This is why the carpet looks like it is falling down off the engine cover in the boot area.

The Actual VIN number is SCC085912GHH10647. I had to change the check digit to 6 for Ebay to accept the VIN number. This is probably the result of the Gray Market entry into the US. You can decode the actual VIN at espritfactfile dot com to see the manufacturing details of the car.

Bottom line: If you have ever wanted a Giugiaro-bodied Lotus Esprit, this is your best shot of having a museum example. This car is amazingly correct with perfect seats and good original tires. It is currently located in Las Vegas, NV. I'd be happy to answer any other questions that you have. Happy Bidding!


On Oct-21-13 at 19:27:08 PDT, seller added the following information:

 


On Oct-22-13 at 17:26:50 PDT, seller added the following information:

 Additional Information..
Several people have asked about the paint. The paint is all original and there is no evidence of body damage and/or respray. This car will easily be a competitive concourse car.

Also, I was contacted by a fellow sports car enthusiast in Florida that recently sold a white S3. You can see how an S3 looks and sounds on his you tube video by searching for (Lotus Esprit S3 owner)


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Auto blog

Lotus chief promises upcoming SUV will be true to brand

Tue, Jul 7 2015

Lotus isn't the first sports car manufacturer getting into the crossover game. It's just the latest, and perhaps most surprising. That's because the British automaker made its name by keeping things as light as possible, and SUVs are anything but. Still, the company's chief executive is adamant that the crossover will be very light... and very Lotus. Speaking with TopGear.com, Lotus CEO Jean-Marc Gales asserted, "If Colin Chapman was alive I believe he would have done" a crossover. That's a pretty bold claim made in the name of the man known for his featherweight sports and racing cars, but Gales may not just be blowing hot air. "It will be the size of a Porsche Macan but only 1600kg, and will be the most agile and fastest of that class on a track," Gales told TG. "It's logical for us to make one in the Macan segment - the rest are all two tons, even a BMW X3. They take a normal car platform with big tires and brakes and transmission. We will use a four-cylinder engine." Keeping it light will be a vital part of the equation for Lotus, but it won't be all. It'll also have to bring up the quality, because quirks that owners might forgive in a sports car might not be tolerated to the same extent in a more mainstream product. Fortunately, Gales has been working on that ever since he took charge of the company just last year. He'll have that much more time to get it right by the time the crossover hits the Chinese market in 2019 or 2020. The vehicle is being designed principally for that market, and will be built locally. The design and engineering work is being carried out, however, at the company's headquarters in Hethel, England. Two designs are reportedly being considered, each with signature Lotus design traits to convey the image of light weight, with a profile reminiscent of the Elite four-seater from the 1970s. If the model proves a success in China, it could make its way back to the UK and Europe, though North American availability remains a question mark, and Lotus spokespeople have been cagey at best about plans to expand their US offerings. Gales also told TG that the crossover will end up only helping the company's sports car offerings, not hurting them. Increasing its quality will be one part, but developing more robust components (like air conditioning systems) will be another. At very least, it will help Lotus stay profitable and fund future sports car projects that may not be possible based on their own revenues alone.

Turns out the 2020 Lotus Evora GT is one of the best sounding cars on sale

Fri, Jun 19 2020

Toyota has built plenty of engines that sound the business. We know the company has it in them, but what comes out isn’t always enthusiast-focused. Yet, hereÂ’s a fairly normal Toyota 3.5-liter V6, sitting in the middle of a Lotus. YouÂ’ll find it under the hood of a Toyota Camry, but here it is sitting under the engine cover of this 2020 Lotus Evora GT. Of course, Lotus hasnÂ’t dropped the engine in there without Lotus-fying it. This one has an Edelbrock supercharger with an integrated water-to-air charge cooler, plus a special calibration and tune from Lotus. In the Toyota, the base engine makes 301 horsepower. This Evora GT is putting out 416 horsepower and 317 pound-feet of torque. It also breathes through a set of pipes that the Brits would call ace. Check out the video at the top to get a taste of what we heard for a week straight. Our Evora GT was equipped with the standard exhaust. ThereÂ’s an optional titanium exhaust that drops 22 pounds from the curb weight, but Lotus says that it doesnÂ’t actually sound all that different. What does make a difference in the sound is changing the drive mode. ThereÂ’s a valve that opens in the exhaust when you select Sport mode or press the exhaust button. This drastically changes the sound heard from the cabin. In normal Drive mode, the exhaust is muted and just hanging out in the background. ItÂ’s shockingly quiet, but perfect for highway cruising because the drone goes away. Sport mode completely changes the tone and unlocks a sweet wail we didnÂ’t know the Toyota V6 had within it. ThereÂ’s no computer-enhanced or synthesized noises to be heard here. ItÂ’s all real. Taking it one step further in Race mode unlocks the tiniest bit more noise, Lotus says, but itÂ’s hardly noticeable in practice. We found the best experience was in Sport mode, since that reigns in traction control, retains stability control, and boosts throttle response by a bit. 2020 Lotus Evora GT View 6 Photos Under tunnels and overpasses — and this does feel weird to say, knowing the engineÂ’s origins — thereÂ’s a hint of Formula one car sound in there. WeÂ’re talking F1 from a few years ago, not the boring turbo engines of today. The way it shrieks and screams off walls, completely immersing you in the echoing sound, is intoxicating. Very few cars can match the Evora in sound quality, and thatÂ’s impressive considering some of the noisemakers car companies put out these days.

Lotus to receive $16M government grant

Mon, 25 Nov 2013

Troubled British automaker Lotus is getting a second infusion of cash following a 100-million-pound ($161.5-million) investment by its parent company DRB-Hicom that was made in August. The substantially smaller investment, a mere 10 million pounds ($16.2 million), comes from the British government's Regional Growth Fund.
The fund, which is part of a 3-billion-pound ($4.8-billion) fund to spur economic growth in the UK, will allow Lotus to invest even further in research and development as it seeks to reinvent its lineup of lightweight sports cars. The fund will also allow the UK-based outfit to provide further training for its new crop of employees.
"This grant is part of a wider strategy for Lotus created to ensure we thrive and grow. We are responding to increased global demand for our cars and engineering consultancy services and this grant will help to position Lotus as the forefront of global automotive innovation," said Aslam Farikullah (shown above with UK Business Secretary Vince Cable MP), the chief operating officer at Lotus.