Eclise

I heard my local salesman had a Lotus Esprit for sale, so I decided to drive down today while nobody was around. Much to my surprise was this sad little 928 sitting on the lot, begging me to take it home.

Sorry for the picture quality, it's from a phone cam.


That's right, it says $22K for an '87 Esprit.

Giovanni

Let me be the first one asking how much they want for that 928?

Eclise

Interestingly, the gold/purple seat covers held up better than anything else:


And the obligatory shot of my car next to a 928

Eclise

Gio,

I don't know, I didn't ask (nobody at the dealership on Sunday). But given what they are asking for the Esprit, I'm sure it would be ridiculous. I seriously doubt the 928 runs, and I can't imagine how much it would cost to fix-up.

kary4th

Those seat covers are just plain hilarious.

Marcquito

It has rear flares!! <3

928ntslow

Seems to be a nice job on the flares and the flares actually look like a decent match for the car...gives it a nice look I think. I'd give them a grand and rebuild her.I do see the diamond.... What year is it? And where is it?

Thanks for sharing!

Giovanni

There is an 1988 Lotus in GA that is on ebay. The BIN price was $15.9K and last time the maximum bid reached $12,000. It has been relisted with a BIN $14.9K. Maybe you can talk him down on the price.

Eclise

It is located in Morgantown, WV. If you guys are seriously interested, I will call out there in the next week. I've got a couple of decent leads, in much better condition than this one, so I ain't touching it with a 10 foot pole.

Eclise

Gio, I'm not really interested in the Esprit. I just wanted to see it. Not many on the roads, so it was cool to see. Those cars can be as expensive (if not more so) to maintain/rebuild than the 928.

Nope, I got my heart set on a 928. Red/blue/black, manual.

Thanks for the advice though, Gio.

ew928

5-speed. Front and rear flares. Thrashed interior.
Needs TLC. Paul Champagne/Rob Budd interior upgrade or track car candidate.

The rear flares look pretty nice. The angular flaring gives the 928 some nice aggression.

Eclise. Thought about cruising down to Western NC in late May to see SITM.
Don't think anyone will kick your Elise out.
You will probably see all manners of 928 there.

Mike Frye

Those flares do look nice. Somebody loved it once...

Hope it gets saved instead of parted.

Scott M.

Mines been way more reliable than any 928 i've owned (and that's a ****load), but if he's getting that kind of money ask him if he'll sell my Esprit.

Eclise

Ernest, I thank you for the invitation to NC. Might be possible, but unfortunately one of the partners in my group fell off a bike and broke his hip; we are going to have to work more shifts to make up for him. Let me check the schedule and see if I have some time near the end of the month. I will have to do a search, as I can't remember the exact date of the NC meet. Thanks again, man.

Mike, I went back out there and looked at the cars again, LOL. Somebody did indeed love the 928 at one point. The wheels on it are probably aftermarket, but I think the Porsche emblems have been stuck on. I looked closely at the flairs. I can see some of the bondo color coming through the yellow paint. I took my GF out there this time, and I pointed out the 928 to her. She goes "you're gonna get one of them, aren't you." I said, "yep!"

Scott, what year is your Esprit? I have heard many horror stories regarding the Esprit. Almost scared me away from buying my Lotus, and I'm sure one of the many reasons why the Elise/Exige aren't doing so well is the public perception of Lotus Q&A. I have to say, the design of the Esprit I looked at looks so dated, while the 928 seems to maintain a modern design, likely due to the rounded rear-end which was a design ahead of its time. Honestly, I wouldn't mind having either car in my drive, but my preference is for the 928. Now, a late model turbo Espirt might change my mind....nah, I'll take a 928!

Man, I gotta get a 928...

Scott M.

True, the 928 is timeless. I had the opportunity to stare at the nose of one for the last 12 hours (damn thing kept following me home), and it never gets old.
My Esprit is an 83 Investors edition, the classic James Bond look. I still stare at it on occasion but it doesn't captivate me like my GTS.