Yep - Lotus probably could stand
for "Loads Of Trouble Usually
Serious"
The cracked exhaust manifold problem I had on the 4 cylinder 910 engine was virtually impossible to deal with with the engine in situ
Time to get the screwdrivers out
and start taking ancillaries off
The 910 turbo is a great engine
for a 4 cylinder but with it canted over at 45 degrees I can't
help visualising another bank of cylinders on the right...
Click here to see where this effectively did happen in the
experimental Lotus Etna, with the Lotus 909 V8 engine
which was the planned power unit for the Esprit in the
original Lotus Project M71
Here's a photo of me and the original 4
cylinder Lotus 910 turbo engine, after finally removing it
from the Esprit in the mid 1990s - my pose and expression
says it all about whether the "Loads Of Trouble Usually
Serious" adage is true!
Not the easiest
of jobs... but engine and transaxle are safely out!
The manifold was so overheated, that I had to cut it off with a grinder
The old 4 cylinder engine behind the Esprit in 2001, just before being collected in part exchange for the new V8 unit
My 910 engine didn't
disassemble itself before I sold it - but here's one that did!
Actually, I did remove the exhaust manifold
and the turbo, of course, but it's a shame you can't get the
engine to remove itself from the car!
Click
here for more on the Giugiaro
Turbo Esprit design
and specifications
Click here for production of the Giugiaro Turbo Esprit at the
Lotus factory