Ed needs to offer a service where for $10 he will place a 5 minute call to people who have wronged you in some way and tell them how dishonorable and untrustworthy they are.
Thisss is a Lotus Evora, and I will show you how it can catch on fire in front of the customer, but first head over to Autotrader where I have compiled a list of the cheapest Lotus Evora's in the country.
I spent 22 years in exotic car sales. Every time I hear an Ed car sales story, my left eye starts to twitch uncontrollably. Presumably triggering some auto industry PTSD.
@@racetracknerd9484 Obviously, but I'll tell you this much. I have a friend who is SM for and Exotic Car dealership and has worked in this niche industry for 10 years. He says some of them are some of them are not. I can tell you my Porsche dealership is/has always been fantastic. All Porsche dealerships I've had to deal with have always treated me extremley well. Now used Exoctic Car Dealerships is what I was mainly addressing, not your local Ferrari, Aston Martin or McLaren dealership....though I've been told they do exist.
@@Peanutdenver i am a porter at a used luxury dealership, my god do they do shady things, selling upbadged cars, lying about damage, hell we just sold a corvette with a bent and snapping frame and didnt disclose that to the customer, literally every car is a lemon, i dont really get too good money, so im starting my detailing business soon to follow my passion of cars and to also be able to own a cool car myself
@@sirforest9453 I believe it and good on you for starting your own detailing business. It's more difficult becoming wealthy working for someone other than yourself and you'll be happier being your own boss. You'll also be armed with your experience from this dealership. You'll know ins and outs of multiple performance manufactures, plus you can warn your future customers if they're looking for a used exotic, don't go to your former employer. Good Luck.
As a former 07 Exige S owner, this is one of your best vids, Ed. Because everything is so spot on. First of all, these cars are insane. They are as near a race car as you can get for the street, bar none. Aluminium tub, full mechanical steering, semi slicks - mine had more boost, more fuel and was even more stripped, so around 880kgs and 300hp - absolutely brutally quick car to drive. Brutal. People would always be so shocked at how violently they can do everything - accelerate and turn (Porka's brake harder, I feel). With solid engine mounts, felt like sitting in a single seater formula car every time you kicked the throttle. Genuine big go-kart for the street. And every flick of dust on the chassis tub can be heard and felt. And that's exactly what people want. The newer Loti, have lost a lot of that. They're heavier, and more refined. They won't be making Loti like they used to, for the foreseeable future. When people claim 'oh my 430 or 650 or power-steered, electronic diffed, TC, ABS car is like a go-kart, they can go pull the other one. THIS is what a big go-kart actually is. However, all of those talking points on the car, quickly become talking points OUT of the car. And by that time, they are a bloody hard car to sell. I had mine listed for 7 months. Because you have to sell it as a race car, essentially, albeit among ACTUAL race cars (so it's not quite there), and proper street cars (not quite that either). It's too much of one, but not enough of the other. This is where the 911 just gets it so right. And those who want it WANT the raw weekend race experience. Owning this car, was the defining tip over point to me, to say "never again". No track cars on the street. You either have a race car, which you can tow to the track etc, or a street car. No cross-over point. It just got too much. Too loud, too low, too hot, too rough, too hard to enter and exit, too many sore backs, too many refusals from women to get in, too impractical, too... much of a race car for the road. I always used to wonder why anyone would buy a Cayman (non GT4) over the Exige, and from that point I realised why. You can easily get a more capable street/track car, that IS ACTUALLY refined enough to drive on the street. And that's where the Porka's shine. So that's one point. If you can go as fast as the Lotus - in something like a Porsche Cayman with leather trim, and all the electric mod cons, but a little less raw-ness and a little more weight, believe me, no matter how long it takes you to realise it, you will eventually prefer to do that - on a STREET car this is. Next point - they are incredibly, shoddily, Englishly built. I had a wiring fire in mine, I had the battery failure (replaced with a cool Chimera carbon fibre one, about the size of a Cheeseburger and just as light as one), I had the off-gassing plastic dash, I had the creaks, the leaky windows, the bad electrics, the shitty Euro AC that feels like a 90 year old smoker with emphysema blowing through the dash vents, the stripped threads on cheap bolts and misalinged body bits. These are a true, hand-built style kit car. No two are alike. QC might as well be non existent. But all part of the charm, right? Genuinely. For the driving experience you can look past all that as nothing comes close. Lastly - the owners. I've been around Porsche crowds (true family), I've been around Ferrari crowds (friendly baller ego-maniacs), I've been around Lambo crowds (hip baller less ego maniac) and by far, the Lotus crowd, has been the oddest, snootiest, rich-boy-snotty-kid-syndrome-superiority-complex crowd I've ever experienced. I could never understand why. I think it has something to do with the accessibility to that type of a techy / exotic car, for that LESS of a budget, that just attracts a really odd type of person. Granted I met some great people, but also some real knobs. Your story of the potential buyer solidifies that exact attitude. A Lambo guy would just pay the asking price because they want the car, a Ferrari guy would be willing to pay more for it because they want the car, and the Lotus guy would pull that kind of shit wanting to pay less, regardless of whether he had the money or not, just because he thought he could. It's weird. My tip to anyone wanting to buy... go black. By far the best colour. Batman, mini McLaren-esque. There are times I sorely regret selling mine. You need a Lotus on your 'have owned' list as much as a 911. I've never had more thumbs up on the street in any car than cruising a Starlight Black Exige S.
Don S or just buy a miata chuck some coils decent tires a cold air intake and an exaust have fun in that and then buy a 01 carrera s cheap quick nice interior
Always be a Miata though. At least the Lotus has that exotic "what-even-is-that-sorcery" kind of look. But Miata is definitely more practical. As Ed was alluding to, people don't realise just how unpractical the Lotus is. They (at least think at first) they want that whole raw to the core experience, but it gets old quick. Even a more exotic car - like a Gallardo or Fezza - is more practical IMO.
Yep, trickle down Corolla technology (somebody somewhere sometime raced a Corolla) which, ironically, is probably the most reliable tech they could have put in the engine compartment of an English car.
Google top 10 innovations in F1 and Lotus will own half of them. By far more than any other manufacturer. Granted you could buy a chevy cobalt with a spoiler and say it has trickle down F1 technology 😂
I worked at a local lotus dealer back in 2014 , the Evoras had constant electrical issues and would always have a dead battery requiring you to jump the car. I made the same mistake ed made with the red wire and fried the ecu on a new Evora . Man this brought back memories lol
My dream car is a Lotus Elise, and I’m exactly like to customers he was describing. I don’t care about excessive amount of features. In fact I think lotus’s stripped out interior is still much too weight ! I love this crazy brand.
Ah, give 'um a break. Not everyone has English as their first language, And at least they tried....... I've seen worse from some supposedly native English speakers ! :)
If you ever buy one, get it with a hard top. The soft top leaks even from a stiff breeze, much less a drop of rain. There's also no insulation in an aluminum box so in the summer it turns into an oven and in the winter, a refrigerator. Better yet, get an Exige, just a better car.
Love the ending! People who do that think they're so smart, trying to "outplay" the the dealers. From my binge watching of VINWiki, the lesson I learned not just from Ed, but all the other guys as well, is that it never hurts to put a little bit of faith with your guy at the dealership. Not everyone's as good as Ed, but if there's someone who can help you with getting you your car, it's them. And yes, I would definitely buy a car from Ed whatever it is. He makes purchasing expensive cars look really achievable and that's saying a lot since I'm in a 3rd world country.
Andrew Murphy I know lol, it’s county but I often drive past the factory and have been inside for a tour of it too. It’s just been taken over by another company hasn’t it?
Connor Spooner yeah I'm 90% sure it was brought bye a Chinese man my step dad works there and brings them home most week ends and they are rather shite
Yeah. He was a right winger and yet be was obviously frequenting massage parlors. Family values? He also never made a single payment on his loan. Typical right wing hypocrite.
I worked on the prototype Evora during my tool making apprenticeship. Trust me, the whole car was made as cheap as it legally could be. The die tools were made in China and never worked but we had to struggle on. The excuse we got from Lotus was, "We're going to make less than 2,000 cars, so do what you have to do to get the parts".
He was insane , remember? He thought the secret service was chasing him because he tried to attend a protest. And who would take a yellow Lotus somewhere if they thought they were at risk of being spotted by the secret service. And if he was making all that up , only a crazy person would come up with a such a bizarre lie.
As a guy that purchased a 2017 Evora 400 more than a year ago, it’s my warm weather daily driver, all I can say is, it’s been great. I’ve had exactly one minor build issue, an ambient temperature sensor that wasn’t connected by the factory, and should have been caught during the dealer prep. The only component failure I’ve had is one of the TPMS senders, in the left front tire. That’s it, the full list of faults. At the same time it’s best sounding V6 I’ve ever heard, it’s nothing short of brilliant to drive and I get more positive comments on the car than anything I’ve ever owned. People are simply fascinated by the car because they’ve never seen one. It’s one of those rare cars where driving it always feels special. I also am very familiar with the Lotus brand, my father owned and campaigned a mark 11 in the 1950’s, owned a couple of Elan’s in the early 1970’s. In fact a lotus was literally the first car I drove after passing my drivers license road test, in 1972. People enjoy the brand for what it is, not what it isn’t. On a different subject and as a veteran high dollar industrial capital equipment sales executive, I really feel you’d be happier doing something other than sales, no customer facing job is easy but when you sit around and malign your customers and the products you’re selling, I can only conclude your in the wrong job.
I have a friend who is a retired neuro surgeon, he used to have a white espirt turbo until one day he was driving it, then heard a loud pop. He got out of the car and watched it burn to the ground on the side of the road. He then went on a journey to get an Elise and every time he was about to buy a car from private sellers they would wreck it a day before he bought it. When he finally got one he had it for a few months and the motor blew die to some oil line defect. So he got a new engine puthat into it covered under the warranty. Once that was fixed, the car was totalled out due to a teenager texting and plowing a jeep into the rear end at a stop light. He said he got out of the car and called the kid a "stupid f!#/". It was pretty sad to hear all of this, the guy is a pretty quirky fellow, but one of the most down to earth people I've ever met. He never replaced the elise. But he does have a locost he's building and 2 Europas that he is always tinkering with. He also has a 3sgte rav4 that I've heard is interesting.
JayEmm on Cars thanks for letting me know. I read a forum earlier though about someone with a 2015 Evora that had water leaking into the floorboard. I'm not looking at getting one for another few years though so hopefully I can get ahold of one of the better made ones
One reason to buy a S2 Lotus Exige or Elise over a Cayman: From Monkeywrench Racing, as of 05/18/2019: Complete rebuilt 2ZZ-GE engine: $1995.00. Complete, brand new (not rebuilt) C60 6-speed transaxle with close ratio, 4.50 limited slip differential: $4095.00. Rebuilt Cayman engine: $8000.00+. Replacement Cayman transmission (from Jim Ellis Porsche): $21,811.00. Another reason: Cayman weight: 2900 lbs. S2 Elise/Exige weight: 2000 lbs. Another reason: 2 Elise/Exige engine / transaxle are Toyota, and are dead nuts reliable if not abused, and dirt cheap and easy to maintain.
I feel grateful that my Toyota can be full of food and not get any incests appreabtly it’s locked up like Fort Knox. Had no idea this happened to vehicles. I’d still cherish that lotus if I could afford one though despite its problems. Probably would rather just drive a corvette though if I had money and a choice. This is one of those cars I’d never complain for a second if I was given it but at that price you have options like corvette and Porsche.
I am a Lotus fan, something carried over from my childhood (thank you James Bond) - but I would agree, you hit the nail on the head - it's a weird following involving unique individuals. But that describes me so I am keeping good company.
New to the channel, Love the Car Stories. If you guys haven't already you should do an interview with a auto claims rep from an insurance company (preferably one of the bigger ones, GEICO, State Farm, Allstate, etc.) I have worked in Claims for GEICO for over 3 years, at one time, and I have some CRAZY stories I have heard from people and how there vehicle was damaged/stolen/f*d up. Keep up the great work Vin!
Very interesting life stories with cars, Ed. Watched a dozen or so. The worse car times of mine is when I walk into a car dealer for a new purchase. I have met some good people and some not so good. But I have never had a good and comfortable sitting with a financial agent. It seems you have a way with people and a personable demeanor. That's rare with salesmen. And if you pay cash it would be a bit easier I imagine. I thought I did a good job a couple years ago with my 2017 WRX Limited. When all was said and done, it never fails. I noticed a $200.00 charge for 2 year insurance for window etching for stolen vehicles. I was told this is mandatory. Insane policy.
I actually have clients who are exactly like the last sales call you are dealing with. It's always best to get rid of those deadbeat clients. There a lot of people out there who think just because they've got a few dollars that are pocket that somebody owes them something. Great video thank you
A Rogue Chihuahua Dude... the "slantnose" part of that refers to the car the customer Doug needed to pick up from the airport was going to buy. There's literally nothing antisemitic about it... and it sounds like seeking out mental help could do you a lot of good. Just saying...
The Exige S is the one you want regardless. The 260 is overpriced considering how little it offers for the price over a regular S, but I'm sure Ed was just hinting that it - being the scarce premium offering - is the one you'd want from an all-round investment / resale / fun / pedigree point of view. Total salesman recommendation! :)
I owned a 2006 Elise Touring as my daily in Colorado. Handles .. interestingly in the snow. Mid-Engine and all... NEVER lift-off that accelerator, friends. I went through 4 instrument clusters. It'd wrap right around and get stuck, that tach. There was a reset-tach option that the Lotus team knew about, involving several button pressings and start-up routine. Read it in the manual. Worked most of the time. They called it the Ghost of Brian Chapman. Loved/hated it. That Blaupunkt radio was pointless. Changed that out, and those 4-watt speakers. I grudgingly added a tiny subwoofer and it was really a good daily, one wiper-blade and all. Most rare color for me? Moonstone. I can NEVER seem to find THAT color! In 2010 there was (gasp) cruise-control!
God I love this story!! The exige is amazing! I was asked to house sit for a guy for a month. He was offering 1 grand. He forgot to take the keys to his bright ass yellow exige. I spent every penny I made on new tires...worth every cent! They are so responsive
I owned an Elise as a daily driver for 5 years. It was an early 2002 series 2 elise with the K-series Engine and not the toyota engine. It had no power steering, no traction control, no abs, no electric windows. It did have A/C which when working was terrible. The car rattled and squeaked over bumps. The seating position is fantastic and it always felt like a little Le Mans race car from the 60s. The view of the car out of the windscreen and in the wing mirror was great, it made you feel like you was in a race car. The noise was loud even though the engine was only a 4 cylinder due to no sound proofing and the engine being right behind your head. On short blasts through the country the car is fantastic. However in traffic after about 30mins of idling the car would overheat. Overall the car was reliable and cheap to maintain compared to other exotic sports cars. My next car was a cayman s, another great car but in terms of reliability not much between them and in terms of costs the cayman is 2x as expensive to run and maintain. I would own another lotus for sure.
Didn't have to go that far. One very loose screw made the dash sound terrible. I love this car so much more now that there isn't a terrible rattle(for now)
The stories are interesting, I must admit. But buying a sports car or anything a little bit out of the ordinary is also interesting in and of itself. Nearly bought a used 911 C4S 997.1 a few years back. Went as far as go pick up the car the next day and the attitude of the salesperson in trying to negotiate payment dissuaded me so much that I stopped within hours of pick up and signing. Fast forward, purchased and M5 and now have an M6, I am going to move to a Porsche as the next car but I will not go back to that dealership (another incident occurred because a salesman thought I looked too young).
One of my first jobs in the 90s, was next door to an lotus specialist repair shop, the mechanics and our shop would take breaks together every now and again, apart from been around these great vehicles, the mechs would poke fun at them when stumped, saying LOTUS stood for "lots of trouble usually serious." Still... If I had the "fun" money available I'd have one in a flash.
Right now keeping this content stream coming is a full time job along with keeping the VINwiki app going but I am trying to think of the right type of content to put up there. I will work on something and start releasing content there at some point so be sure to subscribe and I will roll stuff out there eventually.
Ed Bolian The only narrators I really enjoy as much as you are The Straight Pipes, and they’re obviously a totally different channel type and demographic. I think though if you got together in a room it could be weird magic. I send them a couple bucks monthly via Patreon; I drop in on this channel to hear your stories. You guys could make a magic demented TopGear USA or something.
Ed - No matter how you feel about Lotus models, at the dealerships, dealing with the English guys from USA HQ, especially Dave (Ill leave his name at that but Im sure you know who Im talking about) when he made dealership visits, was the best compared to any other brand I worked with.. I left the biz in 2007 for something totally different, but still friends with him to this day. The crew at HQ personally and Lotus as a brand are the ONLY thing I miss about working at a dealership.
VINwiki And the use of common Japanese engines in the newer cars is a bonus toward that. Too bad I just change oil at a dealership for a living. The Integra I have right now doesn't have a lot of features by today's standards, and I like it just fine.
Clasics from the 60s to 70s are nice and simple too but come at a cheaper starting point and cost less to keep running in most cases. But they are a whole different beast
Matmoo me I actually have a 1973 MG B-GT. However it was purchased as a "ran when parked" car (guessing late 80's to early 90's) that I have been struggling to get running over the last decade. I've only recently been able to find the time and money to restart this sporadic project of mine. It's been in the family as a non-operational vehicle since the late 90's, and various family members have taken up the torch.
Jonnda, just buy a mr2 spyder and 2zz swap it 8/10th's of the performance for 1/3rd the price or better if you can negotiate shrewdly. You just wont have the exotic looks.
Here’s how to fix lotus, partner with a German auto manufacturer for build quality, partner with Yamaha for a gem small but beefy engine and get an Italian designer and boom
This is amazing! I’m in the process of lemon lawing my Lotus Evora 400. It was the one from the TV show, Jay Leno’s Garage. It literally dies on the highway randomly. So it’s been in the shop for months! I wish I had seen this video before I bought it.
Man, I really miss my Elise, but it just made no sense to have as a DD. Wish I could afford to buy it back. They have appreciated since I sold it too, bummer!
Had a buddy who owned a beautiful white lotus esprit. It was a blast to drive as well. He bought it in the spring, had a great summer driving it on the weekends. By the fall both turbos needed replacing, the rear suspension had an issues, and the transmission needed to be serviced. So he sold it. To this day we can’t decide if that or his Maserati was the least reliable car he ever owned😂
Personally, I’d take the evora over the cayman any day just knowing how Porsche’s are infamously unreliable and expensive to fix. The evora has a Toyota Camry engine so I’m sure it would outlast the cayman and in the event something does break, it will be cheaper than the Porsche.
I have a fully restored, 1972 Lotus Europa Special.. She weighs just 1500lb, is super quick, agile and the interior is luxurious! I wouldn't change her for anything! (Except a Stratos or Miura!)
I really wanted an Elise as a weekend car a few years back. I got as far as driving to a local second hand car dealer who I'd heard had just taken a nice one part exchange. At 6'1" I knew it would be a bit of a squeeze getting in, But Jesus feckin' H !!! The sill is ridiculously high and wide, The seats are very low, And the door opening is short as hell. Entering the car was very reminiscent of trying to get on the super skin tight jeans we all wore in the 80's. :) I found the only way I could get in without dislocating limbs was to pop off the canvas roof first, Step in and sort of slid down the seat back as I shuffled my legs down either side of the wheel. Getting out with the roof on was a doddle though. I just needed to roll sideways over the sill and walk my body out on my hands while dragging my legs along behind........ Very dignified. LOL ! It was around that point that I realized that there was no way I could live with an Elise, So didn't even bother with the test drive........ Though he did also have a very tidy 2.8 Ford Capri special that I eventually went on to buy. So, Thanks to desperately wanting an Elise I ended up finding a Capri....... Bloody loved that car, And kept it for 14 years before structural rust and scarcity of replacment panels meant it would have cost several times the cars evenual worth to get it rebuilt !!! If they hadn't gone and got all collectable (ie, stupidly overpriced even for an incomplete rot box "Fixer upper") I'd still contemplate having another one today. :)
Ed needs to offer a service where for $10 he will place a 5 minute call to people who have wronged you in some way and tell them how dishonorable and untrustworthy they are.
Ed should create a fiver account. Lol
Maybe he could throw "shrewd negotiator" in there somehow as well... ;)
Holy crap... This comment grew some legs. How about a 20% kickback on the idea, Ed? I'm starting at "shrewd". ;)
I would be getting a lot of calls from Ed.
I'm going to need at least an hour of his time.
“And caught the thing on fire in front of the customer”. Ahhhh yes, this will be a good episode.
That was a crazy day for sure.
Yup, my thoughts exactly.
SpeedMayHaveBeenAFactor Not to mention the red negative battery terminal... I wonder how many people killed their battery/car with that alone.
SpeedMayHaveBeenAFactor yas
My Vauxhall's both have brown negative and black positive. Confused me a few times but yet to blow it up!
"As our boy Doug would say they were full of a lot of quirks and not that many features." This is why Ed is the best
Thisss is a Lotus Evora, and I will show you how it can catch on fire in front of the customer, but first head over to Autotrader where I have compiled a list of the cheapest Lotus Evora's in the country.
I spent 22 years in exotic car sales. Every time I hear an Ed car sales story, my left eye starts to twitch uncontrollably. Presumably triggering some auto industry PTSD.
The industry of car salesmen is a narrow hallway filled with snakes, pimps and thieves.
@@racetracknerd9484 Obviously, but I'll tell you this much. I have a friend who is SM for and Exotic Car dealership and has worked in this niche industry for 10 years. He says some of them are some of them are not. I can tell you my Porsche dealership is/has always been fantastic. All Porsche dealerships I've had to deal with have always treated me extremley well. Now used Exoctic Car Dealerships is what I was mainly addressing, not your local Ferrari, Aston Martin or McLaren dealership....though I've been told they do exist.
@@Peanutdenver i am a porter at a used luxury dealership, my god do they do shady things, selling upbadged cars, lying about damage, hell we just sold a corvette with a bent and snapping frame and didnt disclose that to the customer, literally every car is a lemon, i dont really get too good money, so im starting my detailing business soon to follow my passion of cars and to also be able to own a cool car myself
@@sirforest9453 I believe it and good on you for starting your own detailing business. It's more difficult becoming wealthy working for someone other than yourself and you'll be happier being your own boss. You'll also be armed with your experience from this dealership. You'll know ins and outs of multiple performance manufactures, plus you can warn your future customers if they're looking for a used exotic, don't go to your former employer. Good Luck.
Haha
Cant get enough Ed stories
buy his book it has sooooo many in it
Caelen Carstensen what's the name of the book?
"For the Record, 28:50 " its on amazon
420 likes lol
Adam Stefano dude, seriously. This guy has delivery and presence with his stories, on top of the most welcoming charisma.
That last guy thought he was a shrewd negotiator, but little did he know, he was dealing with the most shrewd negotiator in the world lmao!
My thoughts exactly. He got "out-shrewded".
I think Ed just achieved demi-god status among car sales people. ("Holy crap! He did what?")
My wife lost her phone I told her i was going to look in the garage for it.... Or watch this video lol
Did it help?
Did you find it ?
Absolute Chad.
Sad to say guys, but Aaron has passed away.
@@jtyree0226 what??
As a former 07 Exige S owner, this is one of your best vids, Ed. Because everything is so spot on.
First of all, these cars are insane. They are as near a race car as you can get for the street, bar none. Aluminium tub, full mechanical steering, semi slicks - mine had more boost, more fuel and was even more stripped, so around 880kgs and 300hp - absolutely brutally quick car to drive. Brutal. People would always be so shocked at how violently they can do everything - accelerate and turn (Porka's brake harder, I feel). With solid engine mounts, felt like sitting in a single seater formula car every time you kicked the throttle. Genuine big go-kart for the street. And every flick of dust on the chassis tub can be heard and felt.
And that's exactly what people want. The newer Loti, have lost a lot of that. They're heavier, and more refined. They won't be making Loti like they used to, for the foreseeable future. When people claim 'oh my 430 or 650 or power-steered, electronic diffed, TC, ABS car is like a go-kart, they can go pull the other one. THIS is what a big go-kart actually is.
However, all of those talking points on the car, quickly become talking points OUT of the car. And by that time, they are a bloody hard car to sell. I had mine listed for 7 months. Because you have to sell it as a race car, essentially, albeit among ACTUAL race cars (so it's not quite there), and proper street cars (not quite that either). It's too much of one, but not enough of the other. This is where the 911 just gets it so right. And those who want it WANT the raw weekend race experience. Owning this car, was the defining tip over point to me, to say "never again". No track cars on the street. You either have a race car, which you can tow to the track etc, or a street car. No cross-over point. It just got too much. Too loud, too low, too hot, too rough, too hard to enter and exit, too many sore backs, too many refusals from women to get in, too impractical, too... much of a race car for the road. I always used to wonder why anyone would buy a Cayman (non GT4) over the Exige, and from that point I realised why. You can easily get a more capable street/track car, that IS ACTUALLY refined enough to drive on the street. And that's where the Porka's shine. So that's one point. If you can go as fast as the Lotus - in something like a Porsche Cayman with leather trim, and all the electric mod cons, but a little less raw-ness and a little more weight, believe me, no matter how long it takes you to realise it, you will eventually prefer to do that - on a STREET car this is.
Next point - they are incredibly, shoddily, Englishly built. I had a wiring fire in mine, I had the battery failure (replaced with a cool Chimera carbon fibre one, about the size of a Cheeseburger and just as light as one), I had the off-gassing plastic dash, I had the creaks, the leaky windows, the bad electrics, the shitty Euro AC that feels like a 90 year old smoker with emphysema blowing through the dash vents, the stripped threads on cheap bolts and misalinged body bits. These are a true, hand-built style kit car. No two are alike. QC might as well be non existent. But all part of the charm, right? Genuinely. For the driving experience you can look past all that as nothing comes close.
Lastly - the owners. I've been around Porsche crowds (true family), I've been around Ferrari crowds (friendly baller ego-maniacs), I've been around Lambo crowds (hip baller less ego maniac) and by far, the Lotus crowd, has been the oddest, snootiest, rich-boy-snotty-kid-syndrome-superiority-complex crowd I've ever experienced. I could never understand why. I think it has something to do with the accessibility to that type of a techy / exotic car, for that LESS of a budget, that just attracts a really odd type of person. Granted I met some great people, but also some real knobs. Your story of the potential buyer solidifies that exact attitude. A Lambo guy would just pay the asking price because they want the car, a Ferrari guy would be willing to pay more for it because they want the car, and the Lotus guy would pull that kind of shit wanting to pay less, regardless of whether he had the money or not, just because he thought he could. It's weird.
My tip to anyone wanting to buy... go black. By far the best colour. Batman, mini McLaren-esque. There are times I sorely regret selling mine. You need a Lotus on your 'have owned' list as much as a 911. I've never had more thumbs up on the street in any car than cruising a Starlight Black Exige S.
Don S or just buy a miata chuck some coils decent tires a cold air intake and an exaust have fun in that and then buy a 01 carrera s cheap quick nice interior
Nice write up. I owe a super 7 , hopefully no electrical issues
Always be a Miata though. At least the Lotus has that exotic "what-even-is-that-sorcery" kind of look.
But Miata is definitely more practical. As Ed was alluding to, people don't realise just how unpractical the Lotus is. They (at least think at first) they want that whole raw to the core experience, but it gets old quick. Even a more exotic car - like a Gallardo or Fezza - is more practical IMO.
Please please, I want one.
I could argue that a caterham is more Go kart for the road but I won't
I just bought a manual Evora 400, things got a lot better since the original Evora.
I just posted a comment asking about that. Are you having good luck with the car? I was thinking to toyota engine would be a huge plus.
@@glennbaptiste7973 2GR-FE is a great engine
“Yup, absolutely, trickled down formula one technology, that’s what I’m looking for” LMAOOO
Yep, trickle down Corolla technology (somebody somewhere sometime raced a Corolla) which, ironically, is probably the most reliable tech they could have put in the engine compartment of an English car.
Google top 10 innovations in F1 and Lotus will own half of them. By far more than any other manufacturer.
Granted you could buy a chevy cobalt with a spoiler and say it has trickle down F1 technology 😂
I worked at a local lotus dealer back in 2014 , the Evoras had constant electrical issues and would always have a dead battery requiring you to jump the car. I made the same mistake ed made with the red wire and fried the ecu on a new Evora . Man this brought back memories lol
"The Evora was the car they bought because they didn't know they made Caymans". Oh that gave a me good laugh.
except it's not remotely true.
@Scott Cooper Hmm...
Land Rover Defenderitis 😂😂😂😂😂
EG1 Del sol and CF8 Accord i
The way he sold the lotus using reverse psychology though lol
'ye ye ye, shut up salesperson. I want the car.'
yep it’s like the customer sells themself the car !
The car sales job would be great if you didn't have to interact with other humans
Great for sure, but perhaps a bit less entertaining to reflect back on.
Haha sell on ebay rickydee!
I disagree, because if it did, we wouldn't be here watching my man Ed and his awesome stories
That's true of all retail sales. Great job if you don't have to deal with customers.
Erik Gonzalez you have a very good point sir!
Lotus owners are definitely a thrifty bunch ;)
Graham Stephan, you are the person who got me into lotus, and i find you here.
I guess thrifty is subjective, and maybe Lotus clubs vary country to country. They certainly aren't cheap cars to maintain.
^also applies to cars in general
Lotus is one of my favorite brands of cars. They are unique and drive well. I actually want a Lotus Elise 05-06 as my dream car.
Never thought I would see Graham here.
"You don't want to buy this".
"SOLD!"
My dream car is a Lotus Elise, and I’m exactly like to customers he was describing. I don’t care about excessive amount of features. In fact I think lotus’s stripped out interior is still much too weight ! I love this crazy brand.
Jingtian Wang I can hardly understand u
"wight"
He loves that car more than the English language
Ah, give 'um a break. Not everyone has English as their first language, And at least they tried....... I've seen worse from some supposedly native English speakers ! :)
If you ever buy one, get it with a hard top. The soft top leaks even from a stiff breeze, much less a drop of rain. There's also no insulation in an aluminum box so in the summer it turns into an oven and in the winter, a refrigerator. Better yet, get an Exige, just a better car.
Lotus microphone used
Can confirm, have a S2 Elise.
Love the ending! People who do that think they're so smart, trying to "outplay" the the dealers. From my binge watching of VINWiki, the lesson I learned not just from Ed, but all the other guys as well, is that it never hurts to put a little bit of faith with your guy at the dealership. Not everyone's as good as Ed, but if there's someone who can help you with getting you your car, it's them.
And yes, I would definitely buy a car from Ed whatever it is. He makes purchasing expensive cars look really achievable and that's saying a lot since I'm in a 3rd world country.
"They fancy themselves as the shrewdest of negotiators" - Classic Ed!
finally! i have waited a long time for ed to say "shrewd negotiator"
Farhan Pramadipta 6:56
Ah a lotus, built in a shed in Norfolk by a man with a pipe
Mr.Woggle my home town! :)
lol
Norfolk isn't a town you absolute spoon.
Andrew Murphy I know lol, it’s county but I often drive past the factory and have been inside for a tour of it too. It’s just been taken over by another company hasn’t it?
Connor Spooner yeah I'm 90% sure it was brought bye a Chinese man my step dad works there and brings them home most week ends and they are rather shite
Yeah I think Ed is my favorite story teller on here. He does such a good job at painting a mental image and progressing through his stories.
"Add lightness" that's an interesting way to say reduce weight 😂
Popular vernacular among Lotus owners
VINwiki Ah nice one! Never heard that one before, the more you know
Lotus founder Colin Chapman's most famous quote: "simplify, then add lightness."
@@VINwiki klpo
@@VINwiki klpo
I laughed pretty hard at Land Rover Defender-itis. A disease we all wish our cars would catch.
LOL perfect word, huh.
Clint Gliford bought one for 8 is worth 20
In 30 years, if your 2001 Honda CRV you got for $4000 is still running it will be worth $80,000.
@@gorkyd7912 only if its stock. Even the running ones have mostly gone through the NFS underground treatment and are ruined for future gains.
“They fancy themselves the shrewdest of negotiators”
Black Conservative Patriot Man Man, how in the fuck do you have 12k subscribers and only 2 videos?
Oh gross you're one of them. Good job UA-cam, for once
bitchute won"t censor you
decidiousrex why is it a good thing?
"Unsurprisingly He didn't make any of his payments"
Yeah. He was a right winger and yet be was obviously frequenting massage parlors. Family values? He also never made a single payment on his loan. Typical right wing hypocrite.
@@8PMFORMULA way to generalize an entire political leaning on one person
8PMFORMULA typical liberal, generalizing a population he disagrees with. Nice work, bigot.
@@ThePikmin18 oh the irony
Ah yes, generalizing. Who does not love some generalizing in political matters.
Last time i was this early, the bank still wouldn't pay out $31,000
He speaks the truth. Up until recently I worked in Lotus sales and it was the exact same story.
It’s that Lotus charm that you learn to love.
Ed has to be one of my favorite car story teller. The guy is just fascinating to listen to.
I worked on the prototype Evora during my tool making apprenticeship. Trust me, the whole car was made as cheap as it legally could be. The die tools were made in China and never worked but we had to struggle on. The excuse we got from Lotus was, "We're going to make less than 2,000 cars, so do what you have to do to get the parts".
We brits have a saying about Lotuses it goes “Loads Of Trouble Usually Serious”
That seems to be all British cars, Jaguar, Land Rover, Range Rover, Lotus...unreliability is the common thread.
From experience Elise S1 and S2 cheaper to run/own than BMW, Alpha, Audi etc.
Sometimes shrewd negotiation cannot overcome logic hurdles.
how in the hell does someone walk away from a 30k downpayment and make zero payments?? Holy crap!
I guess to him it was just a very expensive rental.
Carson D i’m curious too
He was insane , remember? He thought the secret service was chasing him because he tried to attend a protest. And who would take a yellow Lotus somewhere if they thought they were at risk of being spotted by the secret service. And if he was making all that up , only a crazy person would come up with a such a bizarre lie.
As a guy that purchased a 2017 Evora 400 more than a year ago, it’s my warm weather daily driver, all I can say is, it’s been great. I’ve had exactly one minor build issue, an ambient temperature sensor that wasn’t connected by the factory, and should have been caught during the dealer prep. The only component failure I’ve had is one of the TPMS senders, in the left front tire. That’s it, the full list of faults. At the same time it’s best sounding V6 I’ve ever heard, it’s nothing short of brilliant to drive and I get more positive comments on the car than anything I’ve ever owned. People are simply fascinated by the car because they’ve never seen one. It’s one of those rare cars where driving it always feels special.
I also am very familiar with the Lotus brand, my father owned and campaigned a mark 11 in the 1950’s, owned a couple of Elan’s in the early 1970’s. In fact a lotus was literally the first car I drove after passing my drivers license road test, in 1972. People enjoy the brand for what it is, not what it isn’t.
On a different subject and as a veteran high dollar industrial capital equipment sales executive, I really feel you’d be happier doing something other than sales, no customer facing job is easy but when you sit around and malign your customers and the products you’re selling, I can only conclude your in the wrong job.
your stories and the way you tell them are great ED ive watched them all , i hope theirs more to come keep it up
I have a friend who is a retired neuro surgeon, he used to have a white espirt turbo until one day he was driving it, then heard a loud pop. He got out of the car and watched it burn to the ground on the side of the road.
He then went on a journey to get an Elise and every time he was about to buy a car from private sellers they would wreck it a day before he bought it.
When he finally got one he had it for a few months and the motor blew die to some oil line defect. So he got a new engine puthat into it covered under the warranty.
Once that was fixed, the car was totalled out due to a teenager texting and plowing a jeep into the rear end at a stop light. He said he got out of the car and called the kid a "stupid f!#/".
It was pretty sad to hear all of this, the guy is a pretty quirky fellow, but one of the most down to earth people I've ever met. He never replaced the elise. But he does have a locost he's building and 2 Europas that he is always tinkering with. He also has a 3sgte rav4 that I've heard is interesting.
Seen the title, "ooh this looks interesting" click on it, seen ed "YASSSS this is gonna be lit" Ed never tells a bad story
I love my Lotus Exige S240. Ed is right, what I love about it is that it lacks creature comforts
Ive allways loved the look of the cars lotus puts out i just wish they werent so minimalist on the interior
Nothing better than a smooth educated speaker. Kudos Mr Ed!
You should definitely try a later model Evora S, dramatically different cars in both performance and build quality
That is correct. Not immune to issues but certainly improved.
Ed Bolian does the S have the same issue with water leaking and bowing dashboard
Cody Goins Post 2012 cars fixed a lot of these issues
JayEmm on Cars thanks for letting me know. I read a forum earlier though about someone with a 2015 Evora that had water leaking into the floorboard. I'm not looking at getting one for another few years though so hopefully I can get ahold of one of the better made ones
What about the Evora 400?
One reason to buy a S2 Lotus Exige or Elise over a Cayman:
From Monkeywrench Racing, as of 05/18/2019: Complete rebuilt 2ZZ-GE engine: $1995.00. Complete, brand new (not rebuilt) C60 6-speed transaxle with close ratio, 4.50 limited slip differential: $4095.00.
Rebuilt Cayman engine: $8000.00+. Replacement Cayman transmission (from Jim Ellis Porsche): $21,811.00.
Another reason: Cayman weight: 2900 lbs. S2 Elise/Exige weight: 2000 lbs.
Another reason: 2 Elise/Exige engine / transaxle are Toyota, and are dead nuts reliable if not abused, and dirt cheap and easy to maintain.
I could listen to Ed narrate a 2 hour long video of paint drying. That dude is such a damn good story teller.
Sold Lotus cars here in Austin for years, loved every minute of it. Damn I miss those days.
Ed's storytelling abilities (and stories) are the best!
I love hearing Ed's stories. He's definitely my favorite vinwiki host.
TIL how to get ants out of a car.
Tricks of the trade
I always thought it was to BURN THE DAMN THING TO THE GROUND!!!
This entire VINWiki binge I've been on has been worth it for that information alone.
I feel grateful that my Toyota can be full of food and not get any incests appreabtly it’s locked up like Fort Knox. Had no idea this happened to vehicles. I’d still cherish that lotus if I could afford one though despite its problems. Probably would rather just drive a corvette though if I had money and a choice. This is one of those cars I’d never complain for a second if I was given it but at that price you have options like corvette and Porsche.
@@domnoya4130 I figure incests in the car would a bigger issue with Chevy and Ford trucks more than toyotas.
Red negative leads are a throwback to the days of lucas positive earth electronics, it all makes perfect sense...
I am a Lotus fan, something carried over from my childhood (thank you James Bond) - but I would agree, you hit the nail on the head - it's a weird following involving unique individuals. But that describes me so I am keeping good company.
New to the channel, Love the Car Stories. If you guys haven't already you should do an interview with a auto claims rep from an insurance company (preferably one of the bigger ones, GEICO, State Farm, Allstate, etc.) I have worked in Claims for GEICO for over 3 years, at one time, and I have some CRAZY stories I have heard from people and how there vehicle was damaged/stolen/f*d up. Keep up the great work Vin!
“He was a shurd negotiator”
The line i wait for in every video.
Anyone else ?
Very interesting life stories with cars, Ed. Watched a dozen or so. The worse car times of mine is when I walk into a car dealer for a new purchase. I have met some good people and some not so good. But I have never had a good and comfortable sitting with a financial agent. It seems you have a way with people and a personable demeanor. That's rare with salesmen. And if you pay cash it would be a bit easier I imagine. I thought I did a good job a couple years ago with my 2017 WRX Limited. When all was said and done, it never fails. I noticed a $200.00 charge for 2 year insurance for window etching for stolen vehicles. I was told this is mandatory. Insane policy.
Ed's stories are always the best,,PERIOD!!
I actually have clients who are exactly like the last sales call you are dealing with. It's always best to get rid of those deadbeat clients. There a lot of people out there who think just because they've got a few dollars that are pocket that somebody owes them something. Great video thank you
That’s true. However, it works In the same way that they don’t owe anything to the dealers who just happen to have the cars.
Last time I was this early, Doug hadn't picked up the slantnose buyer from the airport yet.
Ditto lol
A Rogue Chihuahua Dude... the "slantnose" part of that refers to the car the customer Doug needed to pick up from the airport was going to buy. There's literally nothing antisemitic about it... and it sounds like seeking out mental help could do you a lot of good. Just saying...
@@CGoody564 If you're going to lash out at someone's misspelling, do try not to misspell the word you're lashing out at them for misspelling.
Wow. Time to watch the vales of Exige S 260s skyrocket because Ed said it.
They're already way overpriced as is. There's nowhere really to go higher.
The Exige S is the one you want regardless. The 260 is overpriced considering how little it offers for the price over a regular S, but I'm sure Ed was just hinting that it - being the scarce premium offering - is the one you'd want from an all-round investment / resale / fun / pedigree point of view. Total salesman recommendation! :)
+1 for the Exige S, it’s what I have and you can get a tune for $850 and they will be just as fast as the S260...
Ed, please dear God never change! Love to hear your hilarious stories!!
"the shrewdest of negotiators" LOL
Yep! Was waiting for that.
Sort of had to at this point!
And today I learned the phrase, “martyrdom complex”.
Dayum.
I owned a 2006 Elise Touring as my daily in Colorado. Handles .. interestingly in the snow. Mid-Engine and all... NEVER lift-off that accelerator, friends.
I went through 4 instrument clusters. It'd wrap right around and get stuck, that tach. There was a reset-tach option that the Lotus team knew about, involving several button pressings and start-up routine. Read it in the manual. Worked most of the time. They called it the Ghost of Brian Chapman. Loved/hated it. That Blaupunkt radio was pointless. Changed that out, and those 4-watt speakers. I grudgingly added a tiny subwoofer and it was really a good daily, one wiper-blade and all.
Most rare color for me? Moonstone. I can NEVER seem to find THAT color! In 2010 there was (gasp) cruise-control!
I love that talk about selling with the negitives. Sounds just like me being compulsive and stubborn. Thanks for sharing 😁
God I love this story!! The exige is amazing! I was asked to house sit for a guy for a month. He was offering 1 grand. He forgot to take the keys to his bright ass yellow exige. I spent every penny I made on new tires...worth every cent! They are so responsive
I owned an Elise as a daily driver for 5 years. It was an early 2002 series 2 elise with the K-series Engine and not the toyota engine. It had no power steering, no traction control, no abs, no electric windows. It did have A/C which when working was terrible. The car rattled and squeaked over bumps. The seating position is fantastic and it always felt like a little Le Mans race car from the 60s. The view of the car out of the windscreen and in the wing mirror was great, it made you feel like you was in a race car. The noise was loud even though the engine was only a 4 cylinder due to no sound proofing and the engine being right behind your head. On short blasts through the country the car is fantastic. However in traffic after about 30mins of idling the car would overheat.
Overall the car was reliable and cheap to maintain compared to other exotic sports cars. My next car was a cayman s, another great car but in terms of reliability not much between them and in terms of costs the cayman is 2x as expensive to run and maintain. I would own another lotus for sure.
Ed is the best speaker on UA-cam hands down
This is making me not want to buy an Esprit v8 anymore... Thanks for enlightening me on the world of Lotus.
I'm a simple man, if the video has Ed Bolian in it, I like it. Another awesome video Ed!!
Thanks so much. Crazy to believe I have done 40 of these already.
Ed Bolian You're a master at these, I hope to continue seeing you on these videos and keep up the amazing work!
Thanks. I will keep them coming.
I'm pretty damn close to taking my evora dash out to try to fix my rattle by my gauge cluster.
Let us know how that goes.
Didn't have to go that far. One very loose screw made the dash sound terrible. I love this car so much more now that there isn't a terrible rattle(for now)
The stories are interesting, I must admit. But buying a sports car or anything a little bit out of the ordinary is also interesting in and of itself. Nearly bought a used 911 C4S 997.1 a few years back. Went as far as go pick up the car the next day and the attitude of the salesperson in trying to negotiate payment dissuaded me so much that I stopped within hours of pick up and signing. Fast forward, purchased and M5 and now have an M6, I am going to move to a Porsche as the next car but I will not go back to that dealership (another incident occurred because a salesman thought I looked too young).
So its 11pm here in wa and ed is telling me a bed time story
I love lotus, so unique
Lotus Diaries uniquely total crap.
Yes they are. They have their quirks but there are a lot of great reasons to own them.
VINwiki So you mean they're unique or crap? Haha
I swear I watch Ed stories 5 times each minimum. So interesting
That is dedication! Thanks.
Saul Ramos t
One of my first jobs in the 90s, was next door to an lotus specialist repair shop, the mechanics and our shop would take breaks together every now and again, apart from been around these great vehicles, the mechs would poke fun at them when stumped, saying LOTUS stood for "lots of trouble usually serious." Still... If I had the "fun" money available I'd have one in a flash.
Bolian.. king of storytelling.
Thank you. I am enjoying it.
Ed Bolian Would you ever consider uploading more to your own youtube channel? We all just want to hear you speak on cars.
Right now keeping this content stream coming is a full time job along with keeping the VINwiki app going but I am trying to think of the right type of content to put up there. I will work on something and start releasing content there at some point so be sure to subscribe and I will roll stuff out there eventually.
Ed Bolian The only narrators I really enjoy as much as you are The Straight Pipes, and they’re obviously a totally different channel type and demographic. I think though if you got together in a room it could be weird magic. I send them a couple bucks monthly via Patreon; I drop in on this channel to hear your stories. You guys could make a magic demented TopGear USA or something.
Ed - No matter how you feel about Lotus models, at the dealerships, dealing with the English guys from USA HQ, especially Dave (Ill leave his name at that but Im sure you know who Im talking about) when he made dealership visits, was the best compared to any other brand I worked with.. I left the biz in 2007 for something totally different, but still friends with him to this day. The crew at HQ personally and Lotus as a brand are the ONLY thing I miss about working at a dealership.
I would love to work with Ed, although unfortunately the only way I could ever afford those exotic cars would be a 6 number change in my life
Try to find a video where Ed doesn't mention a "shrewd negotiator" lmao
"Add lightness"
ua-cam.com/video/UyZxsZlMS7s/v-deo.html
I think I could listen to Ed read off the back of a cereal box and be enthralled.
Riveting nutritional facts!
I used to sell these too. Everything he said about the Evora is 100% spot on!
I've worked at two lotus dealerships. I concur 100%
I'll probably never be able to afford an Elise, esprit, or Exige, but I like that it doesn't have a lot of features.
The simplicity is a great selling point, particularly when it comes to the odds that they still work a few years from now.
VINwiki And the use of common Japanese engines in the newer cars is a bonus toward that. Too bad I just change oil at a dealership for a living. The Integra I have right now doesn't have a lot of features by today's standards, and I like it just fine.
Clasics from the 60s to 70s are nice and simple too but come at a cheaper starting point and cost less to keep running in most cases. But they are a whole different beast
Matmoo me I actually have a 1973 MG B-GT. However it was purchased as a "ran when parked" car (guessing late 80's to early 90's) that I have been struggling to get running over the last decade. I've only recently been able to find the time and money to restart this sporadic project of mine. It's been in the family as a non-operational vehicle since the late 90's, and various family members have taken up the torch.
Jonnda, just buy a mr2 spyder and 2zz swap it 8/10th's of the performance for 1/3rd the price or better if you can negotiate shrewdly. You just wont have the exotic looks.
I'll take a 2005 Elise thanks..... ;-)
An excellent choice!
I like the compact body style, I've always had MG's Triumphs, and now Miatas. Yea, none super cars, but I loved them all.
Yea, I'm used to that with my non-super cars. ;-)
Get a 2006 or higher, it has the LED tailights that make it look a lot more formal.
Ill take a 2008
Cuz fukin cup holder
Our boy Doug..God bless him.
Elise and Exige are street legal go karts.
And that’s why I love them.
Here’s how to fix lotus, partner with a German auto manufacturer for build quality, partner with Yamaha for a gem small but beefy engine and get an Italian designer and boom
Hearing Ed BOLIAN say quirks and features puts Doug out of business. I love watching Doug but it would be amazing to see Ed do a parody of one.
This is amazing! I’m in the process of lemon lawing my Lotus Evora 400. It was the one from the TV show, Jay Leno’s Garage. It literally dies on the highway randomly. So it’s been in the shop for months! I wish I had seen this video before I bought it.
Let us know how it works out.
the best Lotus Elise is an 01-05 Opel Speedster Turbo.
I’ve watched every video you’ve made ever sense I found your channel!
Man, I really miss my Elise, but it just made no sense to have as a DD. Wish I could afford to buy it back. They have appreciated since I sold it too, bummer!
Had a buddy who owned a beautiful white lotus esprit. It was a blast to drive as well. He bought it in the spring, had a great summer driving it on the weekends. By the fall both turbos needed replacing, the rear suspension had an issues, and the transmission needed to be serviced. So he sold it. To this day we can’t decide if that or his Maserati was the least reliable car he ever owned😂
Do you want ants lotus? Because thats how you get ants!
Edit; "the evora is for people that didnt know caymens existed" LMFAO savage AF
I love the look of the Evora but I don't see how you could buy one over a Cayman. The new 400s are nearly the same money as a GT4. Insanity.
Personally, I’d take the evora over the cayman any day just knowing how Porsche’s are infamously unreliable and expensive to fix. The evora has a Toyota Camry engine so I’m sure it would outlast the cayman and in the event something does break, it will be cheaper than the Porsche.
I have a fully restored, 1972 Lotus Europa Special.. She weighs just 1500lb, is super quick, agile and the interior is luxurious! I wouldn't change her for anything! (Except a Stratos or Miura!)
This Guy is Great.
I bet it would be great working with this guy, such opportunities......
Thanks Ed. 👌
In 1998 I bought a red 1989 Lotus Esprit Turbo with the wing. Fantastic fun. A mechanical nightmare, but fantastic to drive.
I love lotus, they seem underrated
I really wanted an Elise as a weekend car a few years back. I got as far as driving to a local second hand car dealer who I'd heard had just taken a nice one part exchange. At 6'1" I knew it would be a bit of a squeeze getting in, But Jesus feckin' H !!!
The sill is ridiculously high and wide, The seats are very low, And the door opening is short as hell. Entering the car was very reminiscent of trying to get on the super skin tight jeans we all wore in the 80's. :)
I found the only way I could get in without dislocating limbs was to pop off the canvas roof first, Step in and sort of slid down the seat back as I shuffled my legs down either side of the wheel. Getting out with the roof on was a doddle though. I just needed to roll sideways over the sill and walk my body out on my hands while dragging my legs along behind........ Very dignified. LOL !
It was around that point that I realized that there was no way I could live with an Elise, So didn't even bother with the test drive........ Though he did also have a very tidy 2.8 Ford Capri special that I eventually went on to buy.
So, Thanks to desperately wanting an Elise I ended up finding a Capri....... Bloody loved that car, And kept it for 14 years before structural rust and scarcity of replacment panels meant it would have cost several times the cars evenual worth to get it rebuilt !!! If they hadn't gone and got all collectable (ie, stupidly overpriced even for an incomplete rot box "Fixer upper") I'd still contemplate having another one today. :)
Man I would absolutely love an Espree too but god the maintenance on them would be crazy..