Description

1989 Lotus Esprit X180

Much recent expenditure including full repaint in Ferrari Grigio Opaco; mechanically sorted with excellent service history; interior needs attention

Supplied new by Bell & Colvill of Surrey in August 1989, this Lotus Esprit has covered 74,600 miles with an excellent service history comprising 16 stamps in the book up to 47,863 miles in 1997, all at Bell & Colvill. The service book then runs out of pages but there are a further six Bell & Colvill stamps on supplementary sheets, the last at 52,967 miles in 2000, giving an average service interval of just 2,500 miles.
In more recent years the Esprit has been looked after by marque specialists GST Performance of Newmarket, expenditure of note including a Powerflow stainless steel exhaust with a lifetime guarantee in 2003, new rear shock absorbers in 2009, a new clutch kit in 2010 at 67,166 miles plus various other routine service items. In 2013 it was bought by the No. 2 mechanic at GST for his own personal use, a document on file detailing the work he carried out to bring it up to scratch following a period in storage which included a rebuilt cylinder head, new cam belt and tensioner, re-cored radiator, refurbished carburettor, new front brake discs and pads etc (see photo for full details).
Our vendor acquired the car from the GST mechanic in 2015, being impressed by the mechanical condition and by the way it drove. As the original Claret Red paintwork was in poor condition he had it repainted in Ferrari Grigio Ferro Opaco, a silk finish grey metallic, and also had the gold alloys refurbished and one saddle tank renewed, the other refurbished. A new set of Lotus wheel centre caps are also included but not yet fitted.
Tidying up the interior was going to be the next job on the list (the dashboard fabric needs attention and some of the stitching in the driver’s seat has come adrift) but in the meantime he has gone and bought himself a much more modern Ferrari so the Lotus is now surplus to requirements.
The vendor has done about 3,000 miles in the Esprit and reports that it drives very well indeed, although he does state that the electric windows are rather lazy, the cabin heater is not especially effective and one of the wiper arms is loose. Barely used for the last couple of years due to the arrival of the Ferrari and then the Covid crisis, the Esprit’s last MOT expired in October 2020 but had no advisories recorded so getting a new one should be straightforward. In fact there are 16 old MOTs on file and the MOT history shows that the car has barely had any advisories for a dozen years or more.
Starting promptly and running nicely as we moved it around for these photos, this is a most distinctive looking Lotus at an attractive guide price which leaves plenty of scope for the interior cosmetics required.
For more information contact James on 07970 309907 or email james.dennison@brightwells.com
MODEL HISTORY
First shown as an Italdesign concept car at the 1972 Turin Motor Show, the Lotus Esprit did not actually go on sale until 1976.
Among the first of Giorgetto Giugiaro’s polygonal ‘folded paper’ designs, it had futuristic sharp-edged lines and a dart-like profile that looked like no other car on the road. Beneath the dramatic GRP bodywork lay the famous Lotus steel backbone chassis and sophisticated suspension which made it one of the finest handling cars of its era. Power initially came from a mid-mounted 2-litre Lotus 907 engine producing some 160bhp and 140lb/ft of torque mated to the 5-speed gearbox from the Maserati Merak.
In 1987 the whole car was subtly restyled by Peter Stevens (designer of the sensational McLaren F1) with Kevlar reinforcing to the bodywork which improved torsional rigidity by 22% and a more spacious interior, this being known as the X180. Power came from a 2.2-litre Lotus 912 engine producing 172bhp and 163lb/ft of torque. Mated to a 5-speed transaxle gearbox from the new Renault GTA, it could propel the car to 60mph in just 6.5 seconds with a top speed of 138mph and up to 29mpg economy. A 215bhp turbo version was also available which reduced the 0-60 time to 5.4 seconds with a top speed of 150mph.