Dilemma E89 v Lotus Evora - opinions welcomed

Well the Lotus' interior is held together mostly with ziplock lies and velcro. I'm serious. It can get very annoying.

Sure, the engine doesn't eat itself, but as every BMW owner knows, the plastic can matter a great deal even when it comes to reliable driving, let's say all the cooling.
 
The 35iS in comfort mode is no more difficult to drive than a fiesta.

Infact in Sport+ mode it's not either.

Have you driven an e89 with the DCT box ?

I HATE "automatic" boxes - the DCT is most definately not an auto box :thumbsup:
 
Hi jaRED - oddly I have been on exactly the same journey this past week.

I test drove a Lotus Evora NA on Friday morning as a potential replacement for my Z4 Coupe.

Loved the direct steering, the semi-exotic looks, the mid mounted engine, the poise, balance and overall sense of occasion.

However, the gearbox was not very nice to use - notchy and missed third a few times, which apparently is not uncommon. Also the overall quality of the interior and the refinement were too lacking for me - the cabin quality wasn't good enough on the car I drove and there was too much tyre roar and outside road noise. I expected it to be a notch up from the Z4 in terms of refinement, but even with the suspension upgrades and big wheels on my Z4, the Evora was actually a bit more raw again which surprised me given it is billed as the 'every day Lotus'.

I understand that later cars were better built, so I suppose it depends on your budget and what you want the car to do. For me I am looking for a daily driver to do business and personal duties and at a budget not much beyond £30k.

Therefore given my requirements, the softer and more luxurious nature of the 35is is the way I will be going now I think.

Maybe if I had the budget to stretch to a later car with the IPS gearbox it would be a different story.
 
James Junior said:
Loved the direct steering, the semi-exotic looks, the mid mounted engine, the poise, balance and overall sense of occasion.

However, the gearbox was not very nice to use - notchy and missed third a few times, which apparently is not uncommon. Also the overall quality of the interior and the refinement were too lacking for me - the cabin quality wasn't good enough on the car I drove and there was too much tyre roar and outside road noise. I expected it to be a notch up from the Z4 in terms of refinement, but even with the suspension upgrades and big wheels on my Z4, the Evora was actually a bit more raw again which surprised me given it is billed as the 'every day Lotus'.
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Pretty much agree with everything you have said there, but we were trying a 2015 demonstrator and there have been a few quality improvements to the cabin which makes it feel more refined. A nicer place to be in than the Zed, but I guess most new cars are finished better than one that's almost eight years old - let's see how the 2011 version we're thinking about feels when we go out in that.

The gearbox in the car we both tried was great - very positive feel (once you had got used to the pedal position and avoided braking at the same time!)

Felt almost as chuckable as my Cayman S, and the Evora S is (and feels) quicker. Will need to try for longer than 30 mins obviously before I can judge these with any real clarity.

Toyota V6 sounded great, with a nice Supercharger whine to add to the noise.

Fortunately, other than going hooning it's not going to be a mile muncher, so the road and engine noise adds to the occasion rather than detracting - I've had the Cayman exhaust tweaked to add a little more noise.

I think the Zed is more sensible as a main car, the Evora would be more of a compromise, especially if you wanted to take luggage!
 
original guvnor said:
I don't see why an Evora would attract any more anti-social attention than an E89? On the contrary I reckon there is probably more goodwill out there towards Lotus as a small, British manufacturer (yes I know they are Malayasian owned but you know what I mean).
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sorry but i think that a load of bullshit. from some one who knows maybe but from your average person it will just be a small flash car ripe for a ding
 
I think from a build quality ,reliability , dealer availability ,point of view the E89 gets my vote,however if the car is to be a sunny w/end high days holidays car , the lotus could tempt me , a couple of years ago there were plans to do another esprit , that may have been shelved though , I think lotus fortunes are a bit dicky at the moment , buyer beware , :thumbsup:
 
Hi

I have been watching this thread, so I have driven my z4 e89 35is today to Duxford air museum and back ...

and I even had in sport mode .. shock horror, and I 100% recommend the e89 35is , the dct is great and then the massive torque !! plus the dealer network if things go wrong, and they can be chipped to over 400bhp ! sorry but I have seen this Lotus, very kit car to me .. I could smell the glue and fiber glass when i sat in one, and their dealer network and parts availability is very shaky at the moment !!!

so thats my vote :D .. go for a 35is
 
domsz4 said:
original guvnor said:
I don't see why an Evora would attract any more anti-social attention than an E89? On the contrary I reckon there is probably more goodwill out there towards Lotus as a small, British manufacturer (yes I know they are Malayasian owned but you know what I mean).
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sorry but i think that a load of bullshit. from some one who knows maybe but from your average person it will just be a small flash car ripe for a ding
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think what you like. I don't care. I still reckon I'm right and you're wrong.
 
original guvnor said:
domsz4 said:
original guvnor said:
I don't see why an Evora would attract any more anti-social attention than an E89? On the contrary I reckon there is probably more goodwill out there towards Lotus as a small, British manufacturer (yes I know they are Malayasian owned but you know what I mean).
Click to expand...

sorry but i think that a load of bullshit. from some one who knows maybe but from your average person it will just be a small flash car ripe for a ding
Click to expand...

think what you like. I don't care. I still reckon I'm right and you're wrong.
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I think you're wrong too. Your average brain dead moron that damages other people's cars have no idea what lotus is never mind where they are from.

I do leave my e89 parked in the streets of Aberdeen. Personally I don't think I would do the same with the lotus.

:thumbsup:
 
original guvnor said:
Well you're entitled to your opinion. But I disagree.
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The world would be very boring if we all agreed.

I never see exotic cars parked anywhere which is the point I'm making.

I know for a fact if I had an Evora I would not leave it parked in the street which has to be a factor in whether or not you want to buy one :).

I also know for a fact my pal with his maclaren is the same.

Depends what you want the car for :thumbsup:
 
Just caught this thread Ruth. Good luck with the decision - fwiw - I think the evora looks great with good reviews. Seen one in action at the Alford speedfest last year - looked the part.

It's a tricky one but I think it's really rather sad that we have to consider what we buy based on external factors like parking etc. but understand. Evora does look rather special but not to such an extent I think it attracts an undue amount of attention - depends where you are too I guess.

Good luck.
 
Jasey said:
original guvnor said:
Well you're entitled to your opinion. But I disagree.
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The world would be very boring if we all agreed.

I never see exotic cars parked anywhere which is the point I'm making.

I know for a fact if I had an Evora I would not leave it parked in the street which has to be a factor in whether or not you want to buy one :).

I also know for a fact my pal with his maclaren is the same.

Depends what you want the car for :thumbsup:
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I understand your point but I think we see Lotus differently. I see Lotus as a Caterham type brand and I've seen plenty of
Elises, Evoras and nobody particularly bats an eyelid.

The dearest Lotus is about 50% of the cost of McLaren's new entry-level car. I suspect you'd have a lot more grief in a Porsche than a Lotus with regard to anti-social behaviour.
 
Jasey said:
I HATE "automatic" boxes - the DCT is most definately not an auto box :thumbsup:
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I hate auto`s too and I have driven a DCT in the M3 and owned a twin clutch in a TTS and don't get me wrong they are very quick shifting and a very good gearbox but its still an auto because it only has two pedals...which means a very boring drive after about ten minutes, flappy paddles and two pedals are for the lazy...sadly I am getting on a bit now so it suits me! :D

OP what a nice position to be in and good luck with the decision. :thumbsup:
 
I think regardless of what I buy the biggest likelihood of scratching it is the pillars in the car park I use :cry:

I won't be parking it in any supermarkets - have you seen the size of the boot :rofl:

Thanks to all for the feedback. I know there are some other brands I should probably be looking at but I've always hankered after a Lotus and though the dealer issue does worry me a bit it's not putting me off

Further test drive this week :driving:

Oh and Jack ironically one of the cars we are looking at it in Scotland :roll:
 
Just curious if a decision has been reached yet ? If you're coming to Scotland do let us know - I guess Edinburgh ?

Good luck ! :driving:
 
jaxZ4 said:
Just curious if a decision has been reached yet ? If you're coming to Scotland do let us know - I guess Edinburgh ?
Good luck ! :driving:
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Demonstator was great, but deal on used one didn't feel quite good enough. Close to buying, but left without it.

Was a good day anyway - having the keys to a £70k sportcar and being told to go enjoy yourself and bring it back in 4-5 hours was nice!

Yes Edinburgh have a nice looking selection - especially if we fancied a facelift MY12 for £48k!
 
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