V8 Eclat swap

very nice site: https://www.belchamber.org/index.html

so what do you think of a Rover V8 in a Lotus?

Sounds like a cool idea! V8's are a blast!

I just had to let you know..that was a fantastic read..

The project sounded like a real blast...although I will probably never get to do one sounds like a true enthusiasts dream.

I wish you the very best of luck with your amazing car.

Really great !

Thank you for taking the time to create such a through story line.

Let us know how its going.. how is the car doing ...any problems or has it been smooth sailing ever since..

You certainly gained a lot of experience..had a lot of fun and lived a dream.

One day..maybe I'll have the free time to do such a thing..if not at least I got to read about your adventure.

Thanks

JB

oh sorry its not my site or car. I wish it was.

Anybody ever contact this gentlemen to see if he's still pleased with his car?

I just sent an email inviting him over to tell us more about his great adventure..

Well, I've heard that a guy in British Columbia has put a Rover V8 into the back of a S1 or S2 Esprit. I just saw it advertised for sale a few months ago.

From what I know, the Rover V8 goes into almost anything British.

Heres an email I got from the gentlemen who did the V8 Eclat swap...

This guys cool I hope you all enjoy this email as much as I have.

BTw I'd also like to say..Thanks to Basil!!!

Your a great webmaster!

----

Dear All,

webmaster@britishcarforum.com wrote to me and told me you'd been
having a discussion about my site.…which surprised me as I didn't
think it would attract that much interest!

Anyway thanks for all your kind comments - much appreciated. The
story is pretty much self explanatory and was definitely a voyage of
discovery. Blinkered by the romance of 'wanting a Lotus', I did it
all wrong….no service history.…bought from a bloke who was emigrating
(= no comeback whatsoever!)….bought the first one I saw…taken in by
the nice paint job.

Actually the seller was very fair and made sure I knew what I was
buying (not that I listened, of course!) It literally got put
together to see what happened and it ran every day (it was my only
car) as a 2 litre for 2 years with only a puncture and sticky starter
motor (towards the end) for problems. Not bad for a 'Lots Of Trouble
Usually Serious.'

The V8 idea only came because I wanted more torque fairly cheaply -
but to tweak the Lotus engine was megabucks. I bought a 50 quid (£
GB) lump in a barn, rebuilt it and, again, started it to see what
happened. It went!

Having owned the car for a while now I can say that the top end of
the Lotus engine (4000rpm+) was amazing (even by today's standards)
but the low end was poor. With the V8, the grunt is astounding - but
I do miss the top end fun. If I'd spent 1000s (£ GB) on the engine
rebuild I could have had the best of both worlds but I'm not SUCH an
enthusiast that I'll spend £ 5 000 GB on an engine for a car worth
£3000 GB.

This car was more about realising a boyhood dream - and no dream has
ever been impossible in my eyes.

The handling of the Lotus is fantastic - and I would rate it over the
Nissan Skyline types. Not because it's better, but because I have a
steering wheel, four tyres and my own competence to keep me on the
road. If you want to drive this thing HARD, you've got to be good
enough, or it'll bite you. My granny could drive a Nissan Skyline
with all it's computer stuff. That might sound like sour grapes,
and, as driving goes, I'm not particularly good - but every slide,
skid and move and judgement is mine - not owned, controlled and
'assisted' by lumps of silicone. Sorry, I'll get off my soap box
now!

I've now realised my dream and it's been great! At times traumatic,
but always worth it. The Lotus still doesn't have a proper boot
lock, bonnet stay, or interior lights, but that doesn't matter! What
matters is that when everyone said "You'll never own a Lotus", and
then when I got one "You'll never get it running" (and then, when it
ran, they wanted a ride) - I never listened.

The windscreen cracked recently and so that's being replaced - then I
can MOT it again and tax it - and I think then I'll sell it. It's
been my joy for a long time now and I think it's time to move on. I
bought it for £1100 GB and it's now worth £3000 GB and I probably
won't make any profit on it. But I'll never ever forget the sexiest
shape I've ever seen: approaching MY yellow Lotus from the front and
seeing the low sloping front, hugging the ground saying "Come on then
- where are we going today?"

Thanks again for all your interest
Mark

mark@belchamber.org
1976 Lotus Eclat
Kawasaki GPz 900R
https://www.belchamber.org
(Surrey, U.K.)

No.. Thank you... that was a very interesting read.

Couple of Comments

Rover in a Lotus - anyone remember the 47?

The "Elite" on the gentleman's Donington page is an Elan +2