Lotus esprit S3 1982, Restored after being in a collection for 18 years

Lotus Esprit S3 registered in late December 1982.

91000 miles and has just been fully recommissioned after being stored for 18 years in a classic car collection.

I will start by saying that this car does have a nice story behind it. Were the gold decals and black paint an option from Lotus in 1982 as you see them now? No, and yes for this one particular esprit.

The original owner who purchased this new in 1982 owned the Esprit for less than a year, why? because it continuously broke down, it got to the point where he had it trailered to the Lotus factory and requested his money back. Lotus asked for one more chance, during which time they would fully strip the car, replace the whole loom and fuse box, then assemble the car with the hope the gremlin will disappear. At this point Mr Pierrepont requested they paint it black (originally red) with a JPS theme as way of an apology. Lotus agreed and carried out a full glass out repaint in A30 black and applied the decals as you see them now. So this is a Lotus factory painted black Esprit with unique Lotus decals. Ironically soon after receiving the lotus back it broke down and was returned.

40 years later the fault has clearly been rectified as it has covered 91000 miles. The above story is backed up by Mr Pierrepoint's Son's who were teens when their father owned the car. I found the story on Piston heads which was published 12 years ago as they were looking to track the Lotus down. They have since been reunited and been for a nostalgic drive, the internet is an amazing place, having allowed this history to be unearthed and meeting to have gone ahead 40 years after they last saw the car.

I originally purchased the Lotus at the start of the year (I have a collection of classic cars including 3 other Esprits). Purchased off a like minded collector after a long period in hibernation. Fortunately it had been correctly stored with the fuel drained and the wheels off the ground

At the point of it coming off the road this Esprit received some mechanical restoration, the cylinder head was removed, new valves, guides, seals, head gasket, water pump, front calliper's, rear lower arms, steering rack and a stainless exhaust were replaced along with adjustable AVO front dampers, All these parts still look in great almost new condition.

All the mechanicals have been serviced, new front upper wishbone ball joints, lower roll bar bushes, rear spring insulators, matching AVO rear adjustable dampers, anything that was not serviceable has been replaced.

The brakes received new flexible hoses, a new master cylinder, new pad fitting kit, the fronts that were new were stripped and checked, the hand brake cables replaced and a PNM racing rear caliper conversion carried out as old calipers are obsolete. Various suspension parts have been removed, cleaned, checked and painted.

The chassis being galvanized is immaculate, zero rust including beside the exhaust manifold, and when I say zero rust I mean that. No trolley jack dents along the width and length of the chassis either.

The cooling system has been refreshed, a new aluminium radiator upfront, the dashboard has been removed and the heater box restored along with a new heater matrix, thermostat, radiator fan, fan switch, gauge voltage regulator and various pipes to bring the cooling system back up to factory spec.

The Engine has been serviced, fluids, plugs, leads, cap, rotor, the carburettors have been stripped and rebuilt, new cambelt, and for good measure an AP racing road clutch to replace the original along with a clutch slave and master cylinder rebuild. The engine and head are matching numbers as is the gearbox. Zero smoke on start up, no leaks, nice smooth idle, the gearbox is very smooth right from cold and has had various gearshift linkage bushes replaced. Obviously the engine has been cleaned, detailed as I like things to be as good as they can be, the airbox is original and still wears its factory sound deadening which I have never seen before.

The above really is just the tip of the iceberg, I could say things like the rocker covers have been painted with new gaskets etc, everything has been checked and cleaned, new genuine SU fuel pump but it all goes without saying.

The interior has aged well, I have had the seats fully retrimmed in leather as I felt the interior inserts always looks grubby even from new, the entire interior has been removed and restored including painting the IP beam, its had a new head lining and various parts trimmed to match whilst keeping as much as original as possible. The gauge surround is new (they go brittle with time), the gauges have had their bezels painted along with the gauge bodies for the sake of them looking new, the temp control panel is new, anything that is tatty was replaced or restored including a new full carpet set.

Headlamp motors have been refurbished along with new control relays. The jack and tools have been painted, the spare is original and unused.

The lotus has been repainted to a show standard, it has been wet sanded and polished so no orange peel. All the window trims had the sealant removed, painted and resealed. New badges, new chrome roof strips, new decal kit made from measurements from the originals in the same JPS gold. The window surrounds have been sanded back and polished.

All electrics work, even the electric mirrors were stripped and serviced, the interior clock works, as does the power aerial.

Period correct Pirelli tyres, refurbished BBS alloys

I have a rough time line of owners, some pictures from when the engine was removed 18 years ago for head work and suspension/brake work. I have around £10000 in receipts for new parts mostly from PNM and SJS, plus things like paint and the interior then all the misc parts which are online purchases like battery, fixings etc

This is a 40 year old car, it's not new, that being said it will stop people in their tracks to admire it. The new owner may decide they want to do other things, no project is ever finished as we all know. I've covered around 150 miles since the work was completed which was a 6 month challenge on and off.

I have pictures prior to the restoration work, the paint had zero osmosis and zero accident repairs

Genuine reason for sale - buying a house

£29000

Steve

07799887507

Also published at eBay.co.uk

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