Lotus cars have always had a reputation for being cantankerous.  Sublime handling and build quality issues are the yin and yang of the Lotus experience.  It was no different for the father of the seller of this 1989 Lotus Esprit Turbo for sale on Craigslist in Scottsdale, Arizona.  Despite having just 37,422 miles on the odometer, this Lotus has required numerous repairs since it was acquired years ago with just 900 miles on it.  With all of this work now done, can the next owner simply enjoy this car?  Is the juice ever worth the squeeze on these incredibly handsome automobiles?  It is worth the $36,500 asking price for a nice example?  Thanks to Tony P. for bringing this Lotus to our attention!

The story of this Lotus is another father-and-son saga.  As previously mentioned, the father of the seller purchased this 1989 Lotus Esprit Turbo somewhere around 1995 or 1996.  The car had a scant 900 miles on the odometer.  It had left the factory painted Calypso Red with dark gray lower body accents and a rich leather interior.  The year 2000 found the Lotus and the father living their best lives in California.  In 2021, the seller retrieved the car and brought it back to Arizona to refresh everything.

That refreshment entailed pulling the engine and transmission from the car.  As exhausting as that sounds, this is often the case for mid-engine automobiles unless you like doing your finest beached porpoise imitation working through the tiny engine access area in the middle of the car.  While disemboweled, the water pump was rebuilt, the timing belt was replaced, the driveline mounts were switched out with fresh ones, and the air conditioning system components were gone through.  In addition, the transmission was resealed, the clutch and flywheel were replaced, and the shifter linkage was repaired.

As you would expect from an expensive British car, this Lotus is swathed with dark gray leather from the seats to the center console.  Even the door panels are draped in rich cowhide.  It is also equipped with power windows and locks, a built-in radar detector, and a Kenwood CD stereo with Bluetooth.  Even the air conditioning works after the refurbishment.  A replacement compressor and dryer were fitted at that time and the system was updated to R134a refrigerant.

There are still a few finish issues to address.  The brilliant red paint has started to fade on the hood and the roof, and the seller also notes an area of “checking paint” on the hood as well.  Other than that, the car seems to present well in the pictures.  In an odd twist of fate, the Esprit had just come off a styling update of the Giugiaro-designed car in 1988.  Styling duties fell to British designer Peter Stevens, who did a masterful job softening the hard-creased lines and making the car fit in better with its supercar contemporaries.  This design was enhanced over the years, but it still looks fresh today despite the car’s production run ending in 2004.

Above is the Lotus 2.2-liter turbocharged engine, which looks all the world like a race car engine.  This is what you would expect from Lotus, as this was one of the most powerful four-cylinder engines produced at the time.  While its performance was exceptional, the supercars that it competed with had the benefit of more cylinders and higher horsepower numbers to lure customers in.  This always put the Esprit in an odd position of being equally attractive, but not quite fast enough to run with the top dogs in the ubiquitous comparison tests that the magazines loved to run.  Lotus eventually acknowledged this by putting a V-8 in the car in 1996.  As far as this car is concerned, the 215-horsepower paired with a curb weight hovering around 2,900 lbs. is more than ample.

As you would expect for such a vehicle, the seller will provide all of the literature from the manufacturer, recent service records, a clean CARFAX report, and a ready to transfer Arizona title in the seller’s name.  While not perfect, perhaps the buyer of this beautiful Lotus has a chance to drive and enjoy it for a while thanks to the seller’s efforts.  Thanks to the previously mentioned car magazines and the movie “Pretty Woman,” this edition of the Lotus Esprit is a well-remembered automobile from that time and place.  Hopefully, whoever purchases it both shows the car and drives it.  They are wonderful cars, even if it takes some patience and deep pockets to own one.