1994 Lotus Esprit Sport 300

For customers that missed out on the very limited production run of X180Rs, the Esprit Sport 300 was offered in 1993 and was essentially a road-going version of the American SCCA race cars. Styled by Julian Thompson, Lotus’ talented chief stylist, and originally shown as a concept at the Birmingham show in 1992, the Sport 300 was destined to be sold in a Limited Edition of just 50, however, in the end 64 cars were eventually built. At £64,995 the Sport 300 was a rare and very expensive commodity – a whole £18,000 more than an Esprit S4 but still £9,000 cheaper than a Ferrari 348tb.

To simply stunning effect, Thompson added a new front air dam with integral brake cooling ducts, extended wheel arches and a new rear wing to the existing S4 bodywork. Underneath, however, this is not a modified S4 but was effectively a derivative of the successful American SCCA and IMSA Supercar Esprit X180R racers. Extensive use of composites in its construction shaved about 80kg from the S4’s 1,366kg kerb weight and torsional stiffness was improved through the use of an engine bay cross-brace, a bonded-in panel where the sunroof used to be and a modified front cross-member and backbone. The same double wishbone front and transverse link/trailing arm rear suspension was retained, but stiffer springs and dampers were fitted all round and the geometry was tweaked. In addition, the hub carriers were modified and an adjustable top-link on the rear suspension added.

Easily the Sport 300’s most eye-catching feature is its massive OZ three-piece wheels which measure 8½ x 16-inch at the front and 10½ x 17-inch at the rear. Grip, therefore, is a Sport 300 forte and so is stopping ability with 327mm ventilated discs at the front and similarly specified 280mm discs at the rear. Four-piston AP Racing calipers do the grabbing and are supplemented by a Delco ABS anti-lock system.

The Sport 300 was fitted with the same, canted 2,174cc twin-cam 16-valve engine as in the S4, however, with handling and grip that have never been equalled by any other Esprit models, it was obvious that a little more power would be welcome. The hybrid Garrett T3/T4 turbocharger was fed air through a more efficient charge-cooler and the engine sported larger inlet valves with polished ports which, when combined with recalibrated engine management, a little more boost and 98-octane unleaded fuel, resulted in 302bhp at 6,400rpm and 287lb.ft of torque at 4,400rpm, compared with the S4’s 264bhp at 6,500rpm and 261lb.ft at 3,900rpm. As well as taking the specific output to a heady 139bhp per litre, the power-to-weight ratio takes a hike from the S4’s 197bhp per tonne to 243bhp per tonne which was not too dissimilar to Porsches latest 3.6-litre 911 Turbo.

With pin-sharp handling, race bred responses and a bit more power, it’s no wonder that over the years the Sport 300 has become the ‘Holy Grail’ amongst Esprit enthusiasts and with only 64 ever built, they are seldom to be found on the open market.

This, UK-supplied, right-hand drive Sport 300 is one of those 64 cars built for the worldwide market and has covered just over 50,500 miles. It presents superbly in Camel Yellow (after the Camel cigarettes - sponsored Lotus F1 cars of the period) with a distinctively trimmed interior in Royal Blue and Dark Charcoal Alcantara.

We understand that it was damaged in an accident around March 2001, however, this was not recorded as no insurance company was involved. The owner at the time decided to send it back to Lotus to be fully reinstated and a new chassis was fitted and a number of small jobs attended to whilst the car was being returned to its pristine best. He was obviously delighted with the result when it returned from the Hethel factory and subsequently kept the car for several more years. There are photographs showing this work when it was carried out and supporting documents in the history file. So, although it’s a 1994 car it effectively dates from 2001 and we welcome and encourage interested parties to come and see this sparkling Esprit for themselves.

There’s a large amount of documentation and photos with the car, including paperwork covering the factory rebuild in 2001, all original handbooks and service books and the original keys. The three-piece, Oz Racing alloy wheels have been dismantled, refurbished and reassembled, and all are fitted with excellent tyres. The car comes with two original specification rear tyres, quite special in the 300's sizes along with a few other parts. The cherished registration number, L300 LTD (Lotus 300 Limited Edition), will remain with the car.

With only 64 ever built and regarded by all concerned as “The best Esprit ever”, this isn’t an opportunity that’s likely to present itself any time soon.