Ferrari Mailing List: Re: OT - Update on Rick's purchas

[francis newman (francis]

Hi Rick and others

If you ever do get involved with a TR7 or TR 8 I have a very good friend here 
in the UK who is probably the world's top expert on them. In fact his whole 
business is based on them.

So just remember that if any of you go down that track in the future.

He also owned and restored 2 348s, now sold, which is how I got to know him.

Francis

On 16 Oct 2014, at 13:50, Rick Lindsay wrote:

> Morning Friends,
> 
> I now own 10 cars, 8 of which are of particular interest. They are varied 
> marques and styles of cars - a point many marque-specific guys can't seem to 
> understand. Point is, I'm not a Ferrari guy, or a Triumph guy, or... I'm a 
> machine guy, and old cars top the list of my interests.
> 
> A friend on the Triumph TR3 list wrote,
> 
> > Rick, don't worry about "the wedge"
> > in the garage...they get along very
> > well with TR's...
> 
> Harmony in the garage is very important. Side by side, my two TRs make for 
> quite a contrast. That's a Triumph TR3 next to a Testarossa. :-P And 
> contrasts keep life interesting. 
> 
> John went on to write,
> 
> > My TR7 "wedge" is very happy next
> > to the TR2, and they are so different,
> > that it makes for  great conversasions.    
> 
> Personally, I really like the TR7 and TR8. In fact, when I went searching for 
> the next late, great project, I started out looking for a Triumph 'wedge', of 
> either 7 or 8 fame. Failing in that search, or perhaps because I became 
> distracted, my quest turned toward a Lotus Europa. Having previously owned an 
> S2 Europa with Renault power, I searched specifically for a Lotus-Ford 
> TwinCam powered car. I found either total basket cases with damaged 
> fiberglass and broken drivetrains, or overpriced running examples ranging 
> from 'drivers' to show cars. CG's response to my frustration was, "How about 
> an early Esprit?" That car was not even on my radar.
> 
> My quest changed but my budget didn't. I found a quite rare '79 Esprit 'John 
> Player Special' in dreadful but complete and undamaged condition. Hadn't 
> turned over in decades, but the price was a little steep, considering that it 
> needed everything - plus a year or two of work. This isn't my first rodeo so 
> I know what a restoration costs, even to 'just usable' status. And that cost 
> can double with a limited production exotic! I passed on the JPS but by then, 
> I was firmly on the search for an Esprit. 
> 
> At the outset of the search, I joined the early Esprit e-mail list. That's 
> where I found the JPS car, which has since been purchased buy a guy with the 
> means to restore it correctly. I have no clue as to what it will be worth 
> when he is done, but that's not the point. Of greater importance is that a 
> rare car (about 100 made) will be saved from parts-car status, or worse.
> 
> Shortly after declining the JPS car, a long-time Lotus owner and expert 
> restorer offered to me his restored '78 Esprit. That car too is acceptably 
> rare, with only 474 cars (hand) made in 1978. The restoration is about a 
> decade old but the work was done expertly and has been treated with TLC ever 
> since. What the car needed, and still needs today, is a thorough exterior 
> cleaning, polishing and waxing, plus tires and the routine maintenance 
> brought up to date. It appears that the PO's interest in the car declined and 
> it was left unused in dry storage for over a year. About 6 months ago it was 
> driven but performed poorly thanks to quite old fuel and probably a bit of 
> gum buildup in the carburetors. At not quite twice the price of the JPS, this 
> normally aspirated '78 Esprit S2 is the car that I bought.
> 
> So in my immediate future are numerous maintenance steps. None the least of 
> these are draining (pumping) any remaining old fuel, flushing the fuel lines, 
> and probably rebuilding a pair of Dellorto carburetors. (The Dellorto side 
> draught carburettors are quite similar to and interchangable with, Weber 
> 45DCOEs, and are of similar quality devices.) They are easily rebuildable and 
> ultimately tunable.  Of course, also in the queue are replacing all fluids, 
> new hoses and ancillary belts. An A/C recharge, if not rebuild, is almost a 
> certainty. Fortunately, Houston's weather has cooled a bit so that can wait.
> 
> Granted, this note and the whole theme is 'off topic' but that never stopped 
> us before. I'll share a few pictures and stories, and hopefully no horror 
> stories, all in limited quantity, once the car arrives.
> 
> We now rejoin your regularly scheduled program, already in progess.
> 
> -rick
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