1988 Lotus Esprit

Coupe

4 - Cyl.

Manual

SCCFC20A3JHF62453

Gasoline

I bought this car about a year and a half ago from a dealer in Colorado. It runs really, really well, and the engine emissions are super-clean. Look at the Oregon DEQ emissions test record from a year ago: Hydrocarbons: reading of 72 vs. limit of 220; CO reading was 0.18 vs. limit of 1.0. The engine was rebuilt by the prior owner at approximately 62,000 miles-which explains why it runs so well. It got new tires at 63301 miles (2000 miles ago). At the same time, I had all of the suspension bushings replaced (yes, even the real pain-in-the-butt ones) with new stock parts from JAE (www.jaeparts.com). If you're looking at a car where this has NOT been done, be warned that the bushings not only get hard as rocks, but some of them disintegrate--including two large ones in the rear, which when they go allow the suspension to slop 1/2" between on/off throttle, which causes the car to change course about 10 degrees. Replacing the bushings made a huge difference in the ride and handling, as well as obviously fixing the wandering behavior I described. I had Car Toys in Jantzen Beach installed an Alpine CD player/receiver, and 4 new speakers. The receiver has the best Bluetooth performance of all my cars--I'll definitely buy Alpine again. It's got an iPod cable wired into the glove box so it's hidden and gentle on the iPod; and it's the kind of connector that does allow the iPod to charge (unlike the #@(&*@#% Kenwood I have in my truck!). Car Toys also installed a Clifford alarm system; they did a trick job of putting twin blue flashing LEDs for the alarm just barely inside the front speaker housings on the dash so they're invisible unless they're blinking (through the grilles), and no new holes in the dash. The passenger window motor gave up the ghost; I had it rebuilt and reinstalled by Craig Nelson at The Jag Shop in Portland; had him do an oil change, replace the clutch slave cylinder and line at the same time, along with some fuel hoses that were getting old, the oil cap seal, etc. I'm a big believer in fixing about-to-become problems before they happen. Other little fixes: new O2 sensor; changed transmission oil to Red Line synthetic 75W90NS. I replaced the fuel tank vent hoses. The stock ones are cheap plastic and not resistant to the fuel fumes; after just a couple of years, they always get hard and brittle and crack, and because they go right behind the cabin window, you end up smelling fuel in the car--not very pleasant. I replaced them with proper fuel line. If this hasn't been done on a car you're looking at, you're about to have to do it. The headlight pod control module went and I replaced that about 2 months ago. I also replaced the battery; the existing one had a faulty cell. The paint is very good; but not perfect. In the photos, note a tiny chip in the rear edge of the sunroof (2 photos, one that shows the entire rear edge of the sunroof, then a close-up); also spider cracks in the gel coat at one of the bumper corners. There's a tiny chip right below the right-hand fuel filler door too--this is the photo right after the sunroof photo. I've included photos of the badges on the car; they're all there, and in good shape. I also have Lotus-emblem valve stem caps on all 4 wheels. The wheels are in nice shape too, as you can see from the photos. I've included photos of the VIN plates; it is a US car originally, so no worries with EPA/DOT etc. The leather is very good. Driver's seat shows some wear (really just creasing--see the photos), but no tears. All the lights work; all the dash lights & rheostats work too, including the center console light. There's a tiny crack in the dash between the speedo and the temp gauge--I've shown this in the pic where you can also see the mileage. Clock works. Oil pressure gauge and light both work; had to replace the oil pressure sender (The Jag Shop did this for me). AC works. All the tools are there, and they're in nice condition. You'll see the tool roll in the front storage area photos. Owner's handbook is in good shape, but has some stains and wear; I wouldn't call it "like new". I have a workshop manual on CD as well--it's in PDF format. It's been a great car, wonderful to drive, and definitely draws attention. But I recently bought a plane, and I've got a new motorcycle, and a couple other cars, and I really don't drive it that much--here in Oregon, we only get 5-6 months of good weather. Insurance is reasonable for the car: Chubb Collector Car Insurance will cover it comp & collision 300/300/300 for $540/year. See www.chubbcollectorcar.com. eBay only allows 24 pics in the gallery; for the full set in higher resolution, see my photo album here: https://picasaweb.google.com/MichaelCottam/1988LotusEspritTurbo# and if you really want high-res of any particular photo, email me. The originals are 4MB each, 4288 by 2848 pixels. ***NEW INFO*** I just realized, I forgot to mention that the electric radio antenna doesn't retract. It's got a little kink in it near the base. Didn't want anyone to be unpleasantly surprised when they discovered this!