Last one (allegedly)

[Jazzy]

At least it's at a more realistic price currently £620
- sorry I couldn't resist

[Dwaynem884]

Hello all,

New to here and new to Lotus ownership.

I'm the new owner of this car.

Where to begin... I'm from Northern Ireland and drove the car the c.500 mile journey home and what a drive! Car performed very well and drove very smoothly.

The car is in a tired state. previous owner had no attention to detail but more unfortunate.. he was a DIY merchant and probably thought he did. eg. decided to re-dye some of the leather with a brush . and this was done after his photo's in his ad.

Few bits of missing trim here and there which i didn't mind. but not knowing a lot about the cars has shown. eg. having no idea what the original looked like, The fuel cap ended up being an emergency twist and pull on with a Lotus badge stuck to it, didn't notice until i pulled up at the pumps after the deal.

The respray is definitely not the wonderful job that he said it was. Both C pillar and bonnet will need repainted due to microblisters. The rest is good but shoddy masking.

All of which will be rectified.

I don't mind a project (which imo this is, but I am a bit of a perfectionist) as a son of a professional classic car restorer that hasn't followed in the business, I still enjoy the tinkering on the side.

But the real kicker....

The car was sold to me on the knowledge of the car having c.60,000-80,000 (due to clocks being rebuilt) with a selection of MOT's. However... whilst sitting at the port in Holyhead i decided i would flick through the owners's handbook that i spied in the centre pocket. I had no idea that in the back of it is the service history. And it was not pretty reading. You can slap another 100,000 miles onto that original estimate.

Now if you have a car in your possession for 3 years, you're going to know about that and for him to not bring that up when i directly asked about the mileage is straight up lies.

Sent him a message just to say i was disappointed in him, and to no surprise... no response.

So from the outset I want to be honest with the car. I've been driving 10 years and the youngest car i've owned was a '93 Corrado, the oldest an '83 Escort with a smattering of a dozen or so classics in between, I use them, fix them, learn about/from them and have enjoyed the help and company of each car community. She will be for sale in the future, I never own them very long but will restore her to some former glory, which it deserves.

Also there will be lots of help and info needed. And parts, if there is a breaker that would be very useful. Thanks!

There's enough gangsters in this world, don't need them making fools out of those that enjoy these cars.

Dwayne

[Jazzy]

Hello Dwayne,

Welcome to the Lotus Grand Tourers.

I am very sorry to hear about the odometer problem. From my experience of viewing the Excel over the years, I have found a very high number of cars which have suffered odometer failures.

Sadly these cars have not been the most loved amongst the Lotus models and because of that, they have not been the best cared for either.

While I have been looking for one, over the last two years, I have paid particular attention to service/MOT records pre-2005 because even the big-name car history record checkers don't seem to go back beyond that - probably something to do with DVLA/VOSA records.

I went to see your car back in August last year and was shocked at how inaccurate the description was, so much so, that I didn't even get to the paperwork checks ( i apologise for that). At the time the car was up for around £11000 and I remember saying to the owner I wasn't looking for a running restoration project.
When I asked the owner Clive, very particular questions, he avoided answering them and when I enquired for someone this year about specific service history between 1992 and 2005, all I got back was "loads"

So was the "browning" I saw on the gearshift gaiter and door cards etc where he had attempted to colour/restore the leather?

Unfortunately, Excel's (along with every other Lotus) are now on the crest of a wave with regards to values and because of that there are a lot of wide-boys who think their cars (that haven't been moved or loved for the last ten years) are suddenly worth a lot of money as well.

I tried to give an honest opinion of the car earlier in the post.

You are at least amongst friends here, as I have found - the group is always friendly, polite and helpful

[Dwaynem884]

Thankyou.

Yes, I certainly deserve a slap on the wrists for having too much faith in Clive.

Gaiter and door card had all been "painted" by his good self. So from a distance it looked "amazing" as he says. Up close, a different story is revealed.

A self-proclaimed "Lotus enthusiast", he is a man to be avoided.

Unfortunately I only coming across your post after I purchased the car.

[Jazzy]

Quite a lot of the cars I'm coming across at the moment are not being sold by what I call "Lotus enthusiasts" ......or even decent human beings

The guys on here will no doubt help you along the way - I am still learning the car, so not the best person to be asking about tips tricks and the "how to"

But you know what they say "every day is a school day"

[ChrisJ]

Hi Dwayne - Welcome to Lotus ownership.

I wouldn't get too fixated about Service History as whether it had a stamp in the book in 2003 is a bit irrelevant today.

My main priorities would be (and this goes for all Lotus cars).

- How much has the car been driven over the past 5 years, more - good, less - bad. I drive 3-5000 miles a year in mine.
- Who has regularly maintained the car during this period, one of the recognised specialists (GST, LB, SJs etc.) - good, local village garage - bad.
- When was the cambelt last changed, <3 years ago - good, 3-5 years ago - Okish, change sooner rather than later, >5 years - bad, change before driving.
- Has the engine ever been rebuilt (especially if really high mileage)? If so, when and by who.

MOT history should give you the annual mileage. If you know who has maintained it, maybe give them a call. For example if GST has maintained the car, they will probably give you some great info, and be more than happy to continue after you purchase it - which I know would really annoy a few people who have been trying to get into GST for years.

Good driving, and good luck with your search Jazzy.

[Jazzy]

"I wouldn't get too fixated about Service History as whether it had a stamp in the book in 2003 is a bit irrelevant today."

I totally agree with you but the point I was trying to make was if you are going to pay a premium for it being a low mileage car and then you find it has done 60-100k more then that has got to affect its value and naturally component wear/replacement schedule.
Nobody likes surprises like that.

[rbgosling]

Hi Dwayne,

Welcome to the group, and I'm sure we'll be able to offer all the advice, emotional support, and suggestions you need with this car.

Buying a used car is often a bit of a gamble, but that's the way it is, once the deal is done you have to accept what you've got and move on. Sounds like you've got the right attitude about it all, as frustrating as it may be, and have the right plan to sort the car out.

If you are after used parts from a breaker, there's one place to go - LotusBits. They specialise in 900-series engine'd cars (Esprit, Elite/Eclat/Excel, also Jensen-Healey and Talbot Lotus Sunbeam), and have broken a number of cars, they have sheds full of parts. They are more receptive on the 'phone than internet-based communication, although they've just launched a refreshed website so they might finally be getting the hang of that.

For new parts, also LotusBits, but you can add to the list SJ Sportscars, and Classic Team Lotus Parts (used to be Paul Matty Sports Cars, but he retired and sold the whole operation to Classic Team Lotus).

Also it's often worth putting a query in the "For Sale / Wanted" section of this site, many of us have a fair amount of stuff stashed away at the back of our sheds!

For such a rare car, you'll be surprised that most of the parts you need will be available one way or the other.

[Hawaiis0]

....

So from the outset I want to be honest with the car. I've been driving 10 years and the youngest car i've owned was a '93 Corrado, the oldest an '83 Escort with a smattering of a dozen or so classics in between, I use them, fix them, learn about/from them and have enjoyed the help and company of each car community. She will be for sale in the future, I never own them very long but will restore her to some former glory, which it deserves.
..

Dwayne

We'll park this for the moment and see if this is the one that you don't move on

and welcome

Stu

[Dwaynem884]

Haha you never know....

A lovely car to treat to a full restoration, as tempting as it is...

[Lotus520]

Hey Dwayne

Welcome and good luck with the car, I reckon you will soon have her ship shape

[MetBlue]

Welcome Dwayne.
As others have said, I wouldn't get hung up on the mileage. As others already said, far more important is level of use and general condition.
Most things are easily sorted and reasonably economical, especially if you can swing a spanner.
Sounds like you have a good attention to detail too which bodes well.
Enjoy the car. It followed mine down the production line all those years ago.
Tony

[Dwaynem884]

Hi Dwayne - Welcome to Lotus ownership.

I wouldn't get too fixated about Service History as whether it had a stamp in the book in 2003 is a bit irrelevant today.

My main priorities would be (and this goes for all Lotus cars).

- How much has the car been driven over the past 5 years, more - good, less - bad. I drive 3-5000 miles a year in mine.
- Who has regularly maintained the car during this period, one of the recognised specialists (GST, LB, SJs etc.) - good, local village garage - bad.
- When was the cambelt last changed, <3 years ago - good, 3-5 years ago - Okish, change sooner rather than later, >5 years - bad, change before driving.
- Has the engine ever been rebuilt (especially if really high mileage)? If so, when and by who.

MOT history should give you the annual mileage. If you know who has maintained it, maybe give them a call. For example if GST has maintained the car, they will probably give you some great info, and be more than happy to continue after you purchase it - which I know would really annoy a few people who have been trying to get into GST for years.

Good driving, and good luck with your search Jazzy.

£2500 worth done by SJ in 2015