The Lotus Esprit S4 - Driven! (My 15K Subscriber Special)
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- Опубліковано 30 вер 2024
- The Esprit has always been my Kryptonite. I want one so badly, but I've only ever briefly driven one. Since then I've always wanted to drive more, but been worried about how much I would like it!
Today, Charlie from the channel Charlie Drives ( / @charliedrives ) brought me his well used Esprit S4 - and I've got the right weather and roads for it!
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Great work jayemm not seen this one and been subscriber for a number of years !!!! You’ve come along way since this video 🎉🎉
My Grandad “Charles Prior” helped to develop this car but he was also the pattern maker at Team Lotus. He was pulled of the F1 cars to help make the very first one 😀
A lot of the F1 team worked on the Esprit at Ketteringham Hall
10/10 T-shirt once again.
Lotus Esprit turbo challenge on the commodore Amiga 🙌🏽I have been a fan ever since then.🙏🏽
Video games are important! Where a lot of my car lust comes from
Yes, I played it (Part I + II + III) together with friends. Lots of fun. Then my friend have a Esprit, because he was a race car driver for Lotus (Elise GT1) :-O
Why were the 70's sports cars like the Esprit comfortable? Because there was no such thing as track days. The cars were designed to driven long distances by their owners, (such as London to the south of France) which is why they also have some boot space. Increasing regulations and performance have given rise to cars designed to perform well on track, to the detriment of their on-road performance. One of the first things I look at when assessing a potential purchase is what tyres it has, if they are ridiculously low profile, I'll reject it, knowing that those tyres will ruin the ride, regardless of how many tenths of a second they may shave off a lap at a track......
I watched a Harry's Garage video on his Esprit HC and now if i was to buy an esprit, i would want that one :D
I am enjoying your videos considerably. I will admit I would have liked to have seen a walk around of this lovely Esprit. I could see the tail end from a 3/4 view, but would enjoy an exterior looksee plus a go around of the interior. That said, keep them coming. Great content!
Makes me want to get another Esprit..
Definitely one of the best car channels. Congrats on 15k from Australia.
Thanks!
Love the Esprit, such a timeless design.
Well done mate. Love the channel and inspired to dream of a Evora 400 one day...!👍🏻
Its good to dream! They may not stay that way
Just imagine what this car could have been if lotus had had more than £5 to develop it. And those wheels 👌, gotta love a dished alloy.
I think they did a pretty good job even with the limited budget!
Well done - great achievement! Looking to get in to Evora ownership in the next few months, the extra Lotus content you’ve provided here has been excellent, it’s great to see Lotus getting more and more presence
Thanks Dean
Jay, the only thing you have to worry about with Esprit ownership is the fact you will want more of them. You can't only have one.
As for maintenance, just ensure you buy a car that is a known quantity so that you don't buy a lemon. Much like you mentioned in the video, Ferrari's are valued higher and even at the nadir of their depreciation they were prohibitive to the everyman. Not so the Esprit. So these ended up in the hands of people who could afford to acquire one, but not maintain it properly - mostly for lack of funds. Over the years I've seen a lot of botch jobs done on these cars, from paint touch ups done with spray cans, to making gaskets out of subway maps and worse. None of these are fault of the manufacturer of course, but it nevertheless helps to buy a car from a TLF member or other vehicle known in the community.
I bought my first Esprit, a Turbo SE, 6 years ago and lucked out - turns out it had been quite well taken care of during its life and had already had the steel fuel tanks replaced with aluminium as well as a whole host of other extras. Over the years it has given me absolutely no trouble whatsoever. In fact I've refreshed the suspension and brakes etc and the parts cost LESS than what I was paying for my daily driver's over the years (Ford Focus, Peugeot RCZ, Toyota GT86) thanks to specialist parts sites like SJ Sports Cars etc.
As for wanting more, about two years after the SE I bought a V8 in mint condition for a pittance and have been quite lucky so far - I've only performed basic service. The only unexpected thing I had to change were brake hoses due to the 20 year old rubber ones splitting. Since you live in the UK servicing an Esprit will be even easier - there are so many specialists taking care of them and they have very very reasonable prices.
/rant
Vanya Stanisavljevic totally agree with this :)
Congratulations on hitting 15,000 subscribers. That’s good going.
And a comment on the Esprit, it makes a lovely sound for a blown 4 pot...it really, really does.
One of THE iconic sports cars of the last 50 years
Well it *was* manufactured for a good part of those 50 years.
Well, 28 years - so really only just over half ;)
What a car! Congrats on 15k 🎉🎉
This was a 15K sub special?? You're now closing in on 100K.!
That has to be one of my favourite Lotus cars ever. What a road presence they still have, and that looked fab in red too! Congrats on reaching 15k James, it's a great channel, so well deserved fella!
Thanks Mikey!
Norfolk mustard is the best colour😉
I always wanted one of these.
I do love the Esprite, never driven one because I’m now broke 😂 but always fancied the S4 over any of them
Waouh!!!! Iconic car 4 me since Basic Instinct. Thank u so much and congratulations from France 👍👏😎 .
Merci Michael!
JayEmm on Cars 😉
Enjoyed this very much.I live in Thailand and have found a 1996 S4 for sale in Bangkok for 40,000 quid. Cars are expensive here.Loved my GTR R35 and 911 Turbo, both of which l sold, when I left Australia for Thailand.My late father bought an Esprit from Len Street Motors in 1977.Respect from a fellow petrol head. Subscribed. 👍👍👍
one of my favourite cars of all time ! would love one in blue. and that shirt is fuckin fantastic haha paul smith ?
Claudio Lugli - check the link in my description
Expensive to run yet what a beauty. Enjoy and thank you to the owner for allowing the video to be produced for all of us to enjoy
Yay. I test-drove one years ago. I didn't fit. I don't remember much about the driving experience but I do remember being overall disappointed. My interest in Loti has waned since then, although I'd still love a go at an Elise/Exige (if I can fit in one)
Stating that you'd like an Esprit, but probably won't be able to afford one.
Fast forward 5 years & you've got 3 (or is it 4?) Ferraris plus numerous other nice stuff.
Production quality has noticeably improved also.
Well done chap. You deserve the success.
It sounds great for a 4 cilinder and I'd even say it sounds quite much better than the V8
Congrats on 15k subs! Love your content...and your shirts 🤣 onwards to the next 15k!
Thanks!
Congratulations pal! Great channel. Got to love that sun roof. Liked
Thanks!
Kryptonite⁉️ I've not noticed you wearing your underpants on the outside of your pants‼️ Mind you, now I come to think about it, I've never actually looked.😳😳😳
Great video of one my wishlist of cars - was some of this aroung the Hedinghams/Yeldham area as it looks familar
Yep, well spotted
i had an 1998 s4s 25 th anniversary to buy my porsche boxster s which has been a great car that i still own) ,i regret selling it for the last 19 years and have tried to buy a v8 ever since .If your wondering to uy a lotus ,i d recommend the s1 ,s3 or the V8.hugely underated cars.I can confirm the gear box is shit and thats why i sold it
Today is the 31.03.2021, and I'm watching the "15.000 Subscriber Special" from the 24.04.2018 ... and today he has 144.000 subscribers!!! Well done 👍👏🥂
Thankyou
👍 for your fifteen. Cheers.
I don't like spoilers, that's why they are called spoiler as they spoil the look :-)
that's why I drive a non turbo s3, simple clean lines
Love this car
I wouldn’t worry about the odd blooper, it doesn’t detract from your excellent content... and today’s shirt is on point!
Thankyou!
JayEmm on Cars you’re welcome, keep up the good content... and shirts!
The Renault 25's gearbox was the only one that would fit and handle the power.
Is there no other gearbox that can be used as a replacement ?
Not easily. People did uprate them years ago but not sure the demand still exists
Well done on the 15k.
Congratulations on hitting 15,000 subscribers × 8 ... 😁👍
The Esprit is a great looking machine.
I like these collaborations. I watch both your channels. The Esprits seem to be all the rage these days, Harry Metcalf just reviewed his.
I saw, I would love a G Turbo (as would Charlie)
apart from the fact they always break down :)
Terrific as usual. Will we ever see a new V8 Lotus? An Esprit 500 with a design taking the Evora theme further would be a game changer. Either way, I’ll keep dreaming of the 410 Sport.
Who can say? I'd love to see a new Esprit, but I may not like what it is!
Congrats! Beautiful S4. I'm a long time Esprit owner and found your channel when searching for recent Esprit videos. Now I'm a subscriber!
Thanks Gary!
What a shirt!!
Congrats mate been subbed since the beginning of your channel
Top content as per
Really enjoying the channel and reviews, especially the CRZ film. Keep it coming Jay!
Thankyou
I've had a 97 esprit gt3 in orange for 23 years an tbh just spent oil changes, brakes, timing belt change twice, an 2 clutches, one radiator over the years, engine gearbox an reliable tbh👍😊
Ps... Loadsa batteries till i discovered a battery maintainer.. Lol
Congratulations, nice car to celebrate with.
Here's to the next milestone which is 50k! Good luck.
Thanks!
So for the 50k special, Esprit giveaway? :)
Congrats on the milestone, can't wait to see the channel continue to grow!
Thanks!
haha :)
Amazing car but, what is the deal with those roads? Two way traffic and cars parked on a 1.5 lane wide street? That`s loony.
Small English towns and villages, it happens frequently
Europe and Asia. It's all too common on back roads.
As one of your 15K subscribers - just watched this and your new BMW video - great stuff as always - thank you!!! BUT, 'emm' (
Patreon is available - see the description. But the retina searing shirts are going nowhere :)
I am however saving for a trip to the East Coast of the USA where I may have some content to film!
Thanks JayEmm! If you do make it to the East Coast (Northeast specifically), please feel free to contact me - and I'm quite confident I might be able to assist you in lining up some more rather neat cars and events for you to consider. As you say your shirts are "going nowhere" - I presuming they'll stay in the UK, then?? ;) (just kidding! ;) )
John, drop me a line on Jayemm89@gmail.com - I have no plans for the NE (depends what you define as NE) but never say never!
My first sports car was a 911 Turbo.My second was a Nissan GTR R35.I now own an Aston DB9.I wish I had bought an Esprit before the 911 when I had the chance.Beautiful car.
makes me jump each time at 7m15s when the pillar hides the oncoming Citroen slush-box. Takes 30s for my heart rate to come back down. That could have been a painful one. Lovely car the S4
You don't look too perturbed by the acceleration when you get it on the faster road. What car have you driven that you've felt is proper fast, or even frighteningly so? And what cars are on your upcoming list that demonstrate this characteristic? Any plans to do a McLaren or two? (Personally I'm not impressed with Lamborghinis, probably because they seem to have fallen from iconic "real man" hairy chest/large "attachments" cars to status symbols for rich scions; Ferraris - mid-engined ones anyway - still cut it in my opinion, so I'd be interested to see you test one of those too, preferably a 458.)
I dont find much "scary fast" these days, although you will enjoy Thursday's video release...
Looking forward to it! Any particular reason - you're acclimatized to speed, going on-track quite a bit, or the scariness has been engineered out of modern cars? (It's still possible to get into trouble quite easily as many UA-cam vids attest, including the one today of a dick flooring a McLaren 720S and then oversteering at a right-angle into a parked R8.) If the latter maybe you need to get your hands on an older big-engined sportscar with no nannies, say from the 60s or 70s. Unfortunately that probably means a very expensive car, or a rickety kit. GT40 for instance ;-)
Yes, many cars do an excellent job of masking their power. My Evora has "only" 400hp but it puts it to the ground well. Going round corners fast impresses me more these days.
I have driven a McLaren but briefly and not at speed, I dont know if I will be able to get one on the channel
Grade inflation: it's not just for exams anymore!
Also old school turbo motors were kinda hilarious in their delivery. I drove a 993 turbo with 550bhp once. That was memorable
The Esprit is the kind of car that 40 year olds should have been putting posters of, on there walls as kids. Unfortunitly I couldn't find any Esprit posters growing up. I've only seen an Esprit once in my whole life in the US. Thanks.
I recently went to the UK to find a post SE esprit.....I drove most them all from an S4 ( 3 of them ) S4S ( 2 of them) and the V8s ( 96 , 98 x 2 and a 350) finally I drove a couple of GT3s. Sadly I never got into a 300 or a final edition.
They were all somehow almost the same yet very different. They also vastly differed from car to car in the same model.
I haven’t yet decided which one but I think if I can get it it’s going to be the S4S. I loved the way the turbo smashed in and the handling was noticeably better than the 8s.
The 8 s were amazing with the torque across the board but the S4S weren’t too far off albeit just slightly later and it felt actually felt quicker and way more nimble. The turbo kick was actually a sublime feeling.
The S4 were excellent too but the S4S was another step up in comparison. One was stock and one S4 had some aftermarket chip in it and felt very S4S like but I don’t know what stress that engine was getting and it didn’t look as good as the S4s /V8s.
Then the GT3..... this had slightly better handling than all of them. One had seen a lot of salt and would need almost all of the under chassis bolt ons replaced ( apart from the actual chassis which was mint due to a very good galvanising process I would guess). The other was lovely but overpriced and for what they wanted I could get close to an S4S and get the noticeably increased power which was addictive.
The V8s were very neat but not as fun to throw around and interestingly didn’t make as nice a sounds as the 4s ......
I will try for an S4S but to be honest they vary from car to car and there is not much in it.
Esprits started getting too heavy and Lotus also dialed-in understeer for the USA Pussy showboater market, sometime after the first versions of the Stevens re-hash. The aerodynamics were improved though, i admit.
Bring back the Esprit. Please Lotus you have the "in" in the supercar market...USE IT!!!!
Good on ya! I look forward to your third year on The Tube, my second year of my subscription with you.
Great stuff - the British supercar of my childhood. Now Harry Metcalfe has a S3 Turbo it must be time to buy one quickly before they double in price.
One of the mot beautiful cars ever!
Why could they not redesign the Esprit to take a different engine. I know it would have taken some effort but surely it could have been done?
Wonderful car. If I had to choose one car to own before I died, it would be an Esprit.
Just wish i'd bought one 5 years ago...
You really can't compare Esprit running costs with a Ferrari! I spent 2k on a land rover once.
Heard you saying how space limited it is but always wondered: Can you exchanged the renault box for say a tremec?
Lovely car , well done on the channel, 15k really well done 🖒
Thanks Ryan!
You lucky, lucky man.
I would like to ask a simple question... why in the name of God, you guys in England have this extremely narrow roads and if that wasn’t enough, you also park the cars as if they were still in traffic, I mean, you’re driving along nicely and then all of a sudden, boom, stop the car wherever you are and left if there for good... WTF? At least put half of the car on the sidewalk
Many of our roads were designed a long time ago- when there weren't many cars. We haven't got as much space as in America.
Some times we do make people park on the pavement (common in London) but the issue is if you park wrong you will block wheelchair users
@@JayEmmOnCars The good ol' England :D
15k and well deserved my friend
Thankyou!
Need For Speed 2
Esprit rare
I have a S1 Exige -even less exist!
I have always loved the Esprit,timeless design.
I want an S4S very badly!
had the old S2 not fast but fun as hell to drive and going round bends was like being rail tracks.
Definitely special!
The engine is actually based on a Bedford CF van unit......
Hahaha Tom Frost ;-) Test Drive 2 (PC version).
Great video Jay. Love your style and delivery. 👍🏻
Classic
fantastic JE....
This channel is really growing.
Now 200,000 subscribers 🥂
Crazy!
Many congratulations on the 15K - I look forward to the black MPS review!
jay - you need to drive a post 2002 or final edition esprit.
I have. Go waaaaay back into my history, was one of my first videos. Not a brilliant video but its there!
No i mean really DRIVE IT. lol That video is how i found your channel. If you are ever in NYC you are welcome to drive mine.
I'd love to. If I find myself that way, I'll let you know. Must be a hell of a sight in the US
Yep have one of the handful of 2004 FEs as well so generally nobody has any clue. Assumed by most fellow citizens to be a Lambo. There are worse things to be mistaken for i guess. I find in the latest models the brakes are top tier, steering and chassis remains gem, power more than sufficient, shifter ... while evolved as best possible still the weak link. But its really a GT as you mention so not about quickest shifts anyway.
You may not like the Renault box, but their were Esprits that came with an even more horrible Citroen gearbox.
The SM box right? Maserati used it too I think
Not sure which one it was. I had an 89 SE and a 95 S4s and neither had that box. I just remember there was a series that had a Citroen gearbox that was unloved.
The Giugiaro cars used it
"the car is shrinking around me" er... shame about the Barrage Balloon in the driver's seat.