1989 Lotus ESPRIT Turbo SE

As a Special Equipment, or SE model, this Esprit benefits from the 264bhp - 280bhp on overboost – 2.2-litre Type 910S engine, which offers a 0-60mph time of around 4.7 seconds and a top speed some way north of 160mph.

The SE models also have unique side skirts (it’s been a while since I last wrote that…), five air ducts in the front air dam, a rear wing and door mirrors pinched from the Citroen CX. The result is pretty damn cool.

This one is in great shape, too. The paintwork looks to be largely (although not completely) original, and the interior has been partially retrimmed at some point to a very high standard.

And, while the owner might be somewhat laissez-faire in matters of appearance (he never wanted his Esprit to be too pretty for him to be able to drive it long and hard when the mood took him) he is a self-confessed stickler for all things mechanical and has spent far too much money on it over the years maintaining it in the sort of condition that allows him to drive it to Spain, Italy and Portugal.

He’s also owned it twice, once for 13 years and once for four, and is having wobbles about whether to sell it now or not. He admits that he just doesn’t use it as much as he should now, and refuses to relegate it to the status of garage art, no matter how beautiful it is. You should get in and place a bid quickly before he changes his mind…

The cherished number plate of RSU 838 is being replaced with F55 KUS.

The Lotus’s fibreglass bodywork is in really good shape for its age. The shut lines, never previously a Lotus hallmark, are impressively tight and even. The flanks are free of ripples and panels line up well too; Lotus had, by the time this one was built, moved from hand-laid fibreglass to a process known as VARI (Vacuum Assisted Resin Injection). Patented by Lotus, the method allowed for much improved quality control and the shell now has Kevlar reinforcement to the roof and sides for additional roll-over protection. Which is only right, given its Bond-car status.

The paintwork looks great from 10 yards, however close inspection reveals that it has been touched up here and there over time, and there are swirl marks, minor scuffs and chips, and a couple of areas of minor fading too. BUT, there’s no damage, much less stress cracks or the sort of ‘star’ marks that signify imminent, costly problems in a fibreglass bodyshell. There is a crack in the rear bumper caused by a low-speed impact from another car and an inch square of lacquer peel above the passenger door.

A decent three-stage polish would get rid of an awful lot of the problems, and what remains could be easily ignored until your love affair with it leads to the inevitable full respray – and if your other half quibbles over the cost, why not suggest that of all the hot red-heads you could be lavishing money and attention on, this is one of the safer options, surely?

The wheels are fine but could do with being refurbished too, but that would be another nice-to-do job at some future point rather than something that’s going to keep you awake at night.

The smoked-glass sunroof works and seals well, but the boot struts are weak and will need replacing, and the driver’s door has dropped a touch and would benefit from being adjusted.

The cream leather interior is in a wonderful condition; where many old Lotus Esprits are suffering from peeling, loose trim panels and cracked, peeling leather, this one is an absolute delight. It has been partially retrimmed in matching leather, and the job has been done so well that we’re struggling to be able to tell what is old and what’s new.

So, the leather-finished interior is soft and supple, and the seats are almost unmarked. It even smells gorgeous in there; while a lot of old British sportscars smell of hot oil, dust and stale farts, this smells of new leather, overlaid with that hard-to-define aroma that only the most treasured sportscars emit. (On a more factual note, the smell is probably equal parts glue and smugness.)

The air-conditioning system works but it is, in the owner’s own words “pretty ineffective”. Still, as far as we can see it hasn’t been recharged since 2004, so the answer might be cheap and simple.

Quirks abound. Like the button that lives under the steering column that needs depressing before you can take the key out of the ignition barrel. (That caught at least one of us out.) And it’s probably fair to assume that the switch to toggle between the left-hand and right-hand fuel tank filler cap release would have done so, too. Not to mention the front bonnet release mechanism, which is utterly unintuitive - and the centre armrest’s cubbyhole is so small that while a packet of 20 Dunhill would fit, a packet of Benson and Hedges wouldn’t.

We put those eccentricities down to the anarchic influence of the Citroen CX door mirrors, while the owner says that his Lotus is “a bloody [ergonomic] nightmare” but one that he has fallen in love with not once, but twice…

The car still has its original toolkit and jack, two sets of keys and the immobiliser, and a three-month-old Pioneer stereo. It’s a lovely place to be and we’d strongly encourage you to come across to us here in Abingdon to take a look at it for yourself.

Faults? Well, the carpets are in a good condition but slightly faded, and the wood veneer is cracking. That aside, the only problem we can find is the aftermarket central locking. 

The engine starts well when it is cold, but (as with many classics) can be hard to start when it is hot, probably due to fuel vaporisation. It will always start, but it can take some perseverance and we imagine sorting this out will be near the top of the new owner’s list of work to do.

The temperature and oil pressure gauges sit where they should, and the gear linkage (a common problem and one that most people ignore) has been done recently, too. The clutch has a nice feel to it and bites at the mid-point, and the exhaust has the sort of burble to it that causes shivers down your spine rather than a headache. Even the pop-up headlights work. It really is a exquisite old thing.

As to recent work, a minor oil leak was traced to the differential output bearing seal, which had failed. Rectifying this means removing the engine and gearbox, so he went ahead and had the work done. This included stripping and checking the gearbox, fitting a new gearshift linkage kit and cable, flushing the engine, fitting a new timing belt, idler pulley and a remanufactured waterpump, installing all new drive belts, and servicing the engine with new oil, filters, coolant and sparkplugs.

The final bill came to almost £5,500 – all to repair an oil leak that almost all of us would have ignored. Nothing sums up the care and attention to detail that has been lavished on the car while it has been in his hands better.

The online MOT history shows nothing of concern whatsoever and the last test highlighted only the need for two new rear tyres and a wiper blade. The MOT certificate itself expires in February 2020.

The car also comes with the two Lotus Service Notes manuals for the model, the original owner’s manual and wallet, and a stamped service history booklet. It also comes with a huge number of expired MOT certificates plus a thick sheaf of invoices and bills from the likes of H.R. Owen Sports Cars and Merritts Lotus to confirm the work that has been done to it.

Please visit the documents section of the gallery of this listing where you will find photos of this and other paperwork to support our claim that this car has been maintained to the very highest standard.

The owner himself admits that there are Esprits out there with better paintwork than his, but is adamant that there are few in better mechanical shape. He’s a man whose priorities are very clear, which means he’s done all the heavy lifting leaving you free to prettify it to whatever condition best suits your attitude towards your classic cars.

As to its value, we think it will fetch something between £18,000 and £24,000 (as is often the case the reserve is set even lower) at which point the new owner will be in possession of one of the best fettled Esprits in the country, and the owner of a car they can continue to cherish and enjoy for many years to come in the knowledge that they will be adding value with every cosmetic improvement they make.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this car can be seen here at The Market HQ in Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.

If needed, please remember we have a network of trusted suppliers we work with regularly and can recommend: Classic & Sportscar Finance for purchase-financing, Thames Valley Car Storage for storing your car, AnyVan for transporting it, and Footman James for classic car insurance.

BORING, but IMPORTANT: Please note that whilst we at The Market always aim to offer the most descriptive and transparent auction listings of any auction, we cannot claim they are perfect analyses of any of the vehicles we have for sale. While we use our trade experience to assess every car that comes through our hands (and between us we have bought hundreds of classic cars over the years for our personal use…) we are fallible, and our assessment of a car's condition may contrast with that you might form yourself.

This is why we offer a far greater opportunity for bidders to view, or arrange a professional inspection on their behalf of, each vehicle prior to bidding than any traditional car auction, and we will never stop encouraging bidders to take advantage of this by coming to see it in person.

That said, we do take a good look at the vehicles delivered to our premises for sale, but this only results in our unbiased personal observations, not those of a qualified inspector or other professional, or those formed as a result of a long test drive.

Additionally, please note that most of the videos on our site have been recorded using simple cameras which often result in 'average' sound quality; in particular, engines and exhausts notes can sound a little different to how they are in reality.