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$16,200
1991 Lotus Esprit SE Red Manual
Price:
$16,200
Financing:
Summary:
Used 1991 Lotus Esprit Red
Location:
2593 Chardonnay Drive, Beaverton, OR
Description:
Probably one of the nicest SEs in the country. Aside from the standard (but minor) road rash on the lower front valance, the car is essentially in showroom condition. Original Calypso Red paint is in beautiful condition and tan interior is pretty much perfect. Really no wear to speak of on the upholstery. Zero cracks in the wood dash or upper dash cover. All panels line up with zero sag. AC blows cold. All gauges and lights function. Etc. Etc. Current mileage is 31,858, of which my wife and I have put just over 2600 on it on weekend drives and attending local Cars & Coffee events the last two summers. It's been stored indoors and covered and while I can't speak for previous owners, I've never driven it in inclement weather. Given its condition I doubt it's ever seen a drop of rain.As you can see from the photos, the Esprit comes with A TON of paperwork documenting many years of service and parts history. Service for at least two of the previous owners was performed by Barry Spencer of Spencer Motorsports in Rohnert Park, CA. Barry is a former Lotus factory technician and one of the foremost experts on 4 cylinder Esprits in the country. Blue timing belt has about 5000 miles on it per the service documentation. I do my own service on my vehicles and the list of repairs/upgrades I've done to the car consists of the following:- Replaced all of the fuel venting hoses in the engine bay with high quality rubber hosing to get rid of the fuel fume smell in the cockpit. The cheap factory clear hoses are notorious for cracking and venting fumes into the drivers compartment. All you smell now is nice clean leather.- When I got the car the left headlight wasn't raising so I rebuilt the motor with replacement Delrin gears. It's been working great for many months but I just recently noticed that the headlight now doesn't like to retract. I rarely drive the car at night so it hasn't been a priority to get fixed, especially since it can be retracted manually in a pinch. Very common problem with these cars and should be an easy fix. Got a couple of suggestions to check on from a resident expert on the Lotus Talk forums that I'll pass on to the new owner.- Horn wasn't working when I bought the car. I replaced all of the air hoses and it now functions per factory spec.- Headliner was sagging a bit in a couple of areas when I bought the car so I pulled it off completely, cleaned and prepped the surface, and reapplied using 3M interior spray adhesive.- Spark plugs, engine oil and filter, and rear differential fluid were all replaced at 29,600 miles. I have a few extra quarts of Castro Edge Supercar oil that I can include with the sale for the new owner's first oil change.- Found a small leak in the left axle seal so replaced it at 31,650 miles. Right side looked ok at the time but appears to be slightly seeping now. Probably not a bad idea for the new owner to get that one done as well.- Replaced reverse detent shifter bushing with high quality Delrin unit from JAE. Reverse detent functioning per factory spec.- Installed new Kenwood CD player with Bluetooth for hands free phone calls and streaming audio.- Purchased new Morel Maximo speakers. I've already installed the rear six inchers. The 4” fronts are still new in their box and will come with the car.- Noticed a slight leak from the right rear shock. Rather than replace just the one I bought 4 brand new OEM factory shocks AND springs from Geoff Downhill at Esprit Engineering in the UK and installed them at 31,000 miles.Car came with the original style Certificate of Provenance paperwork and I also purchased the brand new COE kit from Boardwalk Lotus in Redwood City, CA that includes not only the paperwork detailing the vehicle, but also a beautiful presentation box with some collectibles including a pen, keychain, VIN card, and a couple of other cool items. A fitted California Car Covers cover and two sets of keys are also included. Factory radio antenna was removed by a previous owner but will be included with the sale. Very low mileage on tires with lots of tread remaining.Thanks for looking. Car needs to go to a good home and someone who will enjoy it and USE it. The worst thing for a car like this is sitting. They need to be driven and enjoyed. Value on Esprits has been steadily increasing over the last couple of years and that trajectory will likely continue given the current crazy collector car market. These cars are finally getting the recognition they've deserved for a long time, and this one's worth every cent of the asking price and will bring huge smiles to the face of its new owner. I'm not a collector, flipper, or dealer, just a guy with a love and passion for cars and speed. This Esprit was my high school dream car and I'll miss her for sure, but I just brought another track-only vehicle into the shop and I need the room. Too many cars, not enough time! :-)As for the Experian Autocheck Score my suggestion is to ignore it. Take a look at the report itself and you will see that the car's history is perfect. No accidents, no title issues. It's 100% perfect. But despite the perfect history report their Autocheck Score system rates the turbo 4-cylinder powered Esprits low on the scale. The sample size is extremely small and unfortunately the automated scoring system doesn't seem to have the ability to rate an individual vehicle based on its individual merits, only a vehicle type based on class. The ONLY possible factor that could be contributing to the Below Average score would be the high number of owners, but that in and of itself should not dictate a low score. High ownership numbers are very typical with this type of car. There's a ‘93 for sale here on eBay was well. It's got higher mileage, a VERY worn interior, and an accident reported on the Autocheck and yet is given a higher score. Both eBay and Experian have ignored my requests for assistance in resolving this matter. Rest assured that this ‘91 is near showroom condition. The Autocheck system is flawed.
Body Type:
2dr Car
Transmission:
Manual Transmission
For sale by:
Dealer
Features:
CD Player
Posted:
July 16 2023 on Carseva
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More About this Listing: 1991 Lotus Esprit SE Red Manual
1991 Lotus Esprit SE Red Manual is a Red 1991 Lotus Esprit Car for Sale in Beaverton OR. Find other listings by searching for 1991 Lotus Esprit in Portland on Oodle Classifieds.
1991 Lotus Esprit SE Red Manual is a Red 1991 Lotus Esprit Car for Sale in Beaverton OR. Find other listings by searching for 1991 Lotus Esprit in Portland on Oodle Classifieds.