NuncoStr8

Yes, if by "know," you mean "have first-hand knowledge." Which is how most of us define the term.

How much does an oil change cost for an Esprit V8? How much are factory replacement front rotors, and what are the aftermarket options? It's a rare car in the US so motor replacement in the event of catastrophic failure won't be pocket change, but what is the actual failure rate and how does it compare to the BMW S54 motor, for example? If you cannot answer any of these questions, you have zero knowledge of the costs of owning a Lotus and can only pretend to "know" whether they are expensive to fix and maintain.

The Esprit cost ~$90,000 in 2000. Consumables WILL cost more than for a 2012 $30,000 family sedan, and it's a safe bet major repairs will also be more expensive, both because it's rare and because $90,000 cars are usually built from more expensive parts than $30,000 cars. But do you have any first-hand knowledge of the actual running cost of an Esprit? And how it compares to any other low-mileage $90,000 car of similar age?

I realize many here do not distinguish between tired cliches and verifiable facts. But yeah, typically first-hand knowledge is required before a person can claim to "know" about a subject. In this thread, only Hasan sugested doing actual research before making a decision. That's just... :shakeshead:

rnye

Ok let's go with first hand experience. My dad had a 95' S4S in the early 2000s that grenaded at 11.5k miles and required $7k in valvetrain work. The car was sold shortly thereafter.

The transmission was sourced through Renault and, in the 4cyl turbo, had to be babied. Interior trim pieces were fragile and the car also had some electrical issues.

There is plenty of information available online (and has been for the better part of the decade.) it takes a special (read: loving, patient, and financially comfortable) person to own an Esprit as they are hand built botique cars from a small British manufacturer with parts sourced from various (non performance oriented) manufacturers.

Owning an Elise vs an Esprit is like comparing a 5.0 mustang to an RS200 when it comes to sourcing parts and overall reliability. (Simple analogy for Nuncodimwit).

So to keep it short and simple ill just go back to my initial post.

MaxGeek

Yes, if by "know," you mean "have first-hand knowledge." Which is how most of us define the term.

How much does an oil change cost for an Esprit V8? How much are factory replacement front rotors, and what are the aftermarket options? It's a rare car in the US so motor replacement in the event of catastrophic failure won't be pocket change, but what is the actual failure rate and how does it compare to the BMW S54 motor, for example? If you cannot answer any of these questions, you have zero knowledge of the costs of owning a Lotus and can only pretend to "know" whether they are expensive to fix and maintain.

The Esprit cost ~$90,000 in 2000. Consumables WILL cost more than for a 2012 $30,000 family sedan, and it's a safe bet major repairs will also be more expensive, both because it's rare and because $90,000 cars are usually built from more expensive parts than $30,000 cars. But do you have any first-hand knowledge of the actual running cost of an Esprit? And how it compares to any other low-mileage $90,000 car of similar age?

I realize many here do not distinguish between tired cliches and verifiable facts. But yeah, typically first-hand knowledge is required before a person can claim to "know" about a subject. In this thread, only Hasan sugested doing actual research before making a decision. That's just... :shakeshead:
[/quote]

Like you said you can research it. You don't have to own one to do so.

CosmosMpower

Not exactly there are are only about 6,000 or so Elises running around the US total. There are 6,000 Mustangs in one suburb of Dallas.

mosesbotbol

What about a Ferrari? There are few models that within that price range and they are not too difficult to fix.

rnye

True.

However, I don't think people understand how rare the Esprit is (or just how difficult parts can be). Less than 800 Esprit V8s were brought into the US from 1997-2004. Even over the course of its 27 year run less than 11,000 were built, and production rarely broke 500 cars a year.

NuncoStr8

Cool story, bra!

Just for the record, "firsthand" means it happened to you, not someone else. What you just related is secondhand. Kind of thought that'd be covered in elementary school, but whatever. I'm stupid because of the car I drive, apparently. What's your excuse?

JonBoy

And how many BMW and Lotus cars have you owned?

NuncoStr8

How many times have I told people not to buy them because I heard they are unreliable and expensive to fix and maintain?

JonBoy

You're putting out a judgement without personal experience - even to say you'd trust a Lotus of an M BMW is an expression of an opinion without personal experience to back it up. You have nothing to offer this thread, so why be here at all? Everything you have is, at best, anecdotal as well.

For all the grief you're giving people for not having firsthand knowledge of the vehicle in question, I'm not sure why you're even bothering to type anything in this thread. Heck, why are you on the board? You don't even have an S2000 and never have.