Lotus Esprit S3 on Air and V8 Power!

What's the Lambo based on?

MR2 MK3, if I build one for myself then it will be getting a V8 of course.........

Your Lotus is chuffing gorgeous.

carcoon is still working well, had some bad wind the other day and no issues with the cover!

If I may ask, is it fairly quick/easy to get the car in and out or is it more of a longer term storage solution? I.e would it be suitable for a 'weekend' car?

Thanks. It sounds perfect for me. Would a few strategically placed bricks hold it in place?

Ok it’s been a while? Yes I still have the Esprit and progress has been very slow! Have been tinkering with some bits and bobs and some parts have been removed/changed re-fitted, removed and some things are new to the project.
Have had some down time well in fact had a mental break down! which never helps and took a couple of months to get back to wanting to do anything with life and cars……..life sucks at times and things go to curse word.

The Carcoon was a bit of a disappointment I still had a damp interior and mold was growing again! But it did help keep the car paint and bodywork clean and protected, so its worthy of being used but shame it does not do what it’s claimed to do.

The air ride is still fitted and has been upgraded with a computer based control system which lets me store 3 ride heights into memory and can be remotely changed with a key fob (can’t wait to catch people out when it’s parked!) This works really well as I was having issues trying to set the front at a consistent height and having issues with tracking/bump steer. Now it can be set accurately every time with just a press of a button.
Once I get some more miles done and found the ride height I can live with I plan to get it all setup as its not right at the moment steering feels like a hyper sensitive go kart at 60mph and the slightest input/movement of the steering wheel is exaggerated to dangerous levels! The heavy steel air tank has gone and I have a twin pair of alloy air tanks.

Have extended the side ears around 15mm and made both just air inlet now, as the stock setup had the lower part inlet and upper outlet? The tailgate now has locking bonnet pins instead of the original catches, they kept undoing and the tailgate would open which was really annoying as the tailgate stays upright fully open when you get up to speed! I got stopped by the police and was oblivious to the fact the hatch was fully open while driving around! I can now lock it place (open a jar) to allow heat out.

Front radiator has been removed and in the process of fitting a bigger 60mm core Cosworth alloy rad, also changed the angle/rake of the rad. Engine bay boot floor area again has been ripped out and being redone, I think the issue with the rear hatch catches failing was due to the rear body flexing? I have made a steel frame to support the rear body, and rethinking the boot area again, was never really happy with the finished look so still working on that. Started to fit the new carpet, the hand brake gator is a total ass and just does not fit too good? These carpets are not cheap and never worth the money.

Will do a proper update soon with some pictures and more info.

Mounting the rad is simple with the stock Cosworth side lugs, I just made up some mounts from alloy U section. Not yet finished, have some spare time today so hope to get it done today.

When fitting the rad I have decided to change the angle and have it sloped forward as apposed to backwards I have seen other cars like this? Not sure why it may work better? this actually worked out better fitting the hoses and fans with it angled forward, I cut the front lower floor to gain more room and to enable the rad to stand up a little more to increase the amount of air forced into it.


Also checked clearance for fitting the A-Frame and made sure it fits wouldn’t want to remove the rad every time I towed it! Yes I expect break downs! The car has given me no reason to trust it to be reliable………its still an old Lotus with Lucas and British Leyland parts at best. I still love it and still get a buzz from seeing it every day which is why we do it.






While I was under the car at the front I noticed a little leak from the small hose feeding the heater matrix, the joining tubes were rusted to hell and the other just fell apart when I tried to remove the retaining clips. That was a lucky escape catching that in time as that would have caused a major break down with all the coolant pumping out! All fixed now with stainless tube and new stainless hose clips.

I just read through the whole thread. First, AWESOME car. Great work. Two years solving problems and making things work, getting it running and driving, passing the MOT- serious accomplishments. Congratulations, it was and is, a joy to watch you solve design issues with the car.

Second thing is,I love the sound. These have always been one of my dream cars. We don't really get the Rover engines over here, but they're based on an older version of a Chevy engine, so who cares, it's a V8! In another post about a lowered silver Esprit, I commented that it was ruined because it was lowered. I was wrong. Seeing what it took to make it happen and the fact that you used air so it can go up and down correctly- I concede they look freaking awesome and if I see that thread, I'll apologize to the guy. They're super cool and that's it.

Your car and your work are inspiring to many. Not everyone can take something and change it into what they want it to be. Again, great car, bitchin' sound and great thread.