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General General Lotus Talk
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HoooooorrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyI picked the motor up last night! What a joy again. Forgot how great it was!Picked up takeaway from 3 miles away and did 30 miles in end - takeaway cold by the end and all over the bag! oh well!

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Tubbs,Forget the past, live for the future [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/grin.gif[/image]

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quote:Originally posted by Steve:Tubbs,Forget the past, live for the future [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/grin.gif[/image] I can’t afford the future thanks to this car! [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif[/image] [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif[/image]

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Congrats Tubbs,I saw you when you picked it up, you looked very happy.Twas my car that showed up on the flatbed as you where leaving, I’m having some cooling issues at the mo…I miss my car…

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quote:Originally posted by LRdriver:Congrats Tubbs,I saw you when you picked it up, you looked very happy.Twas my car that showed up on the flatbed as you where leaving, I’m having some cooling issues at the mo…I miss my car…Was well chuffed to get it back to say the least. I chuckled with Max when I saw another Lotus on a flatbed after the problems with mine! I hope that yours will be straight forward. Credit where credit is due, the guys did well down there, and it was quite an enduring experience for all of us!Hope they can get it back to you soon as the roads are great in this weather!

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Can Lakeside provide a loan car while they work on yours?

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quote:Originally posted by IDG:Can Lakeside provide a loan car while they work on yours?I think they have a push bike?

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Carsten,Didn’t Lakeside also ‘fix’ your car after it cracked a liner, just last month wasn’t it?

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quote:Originally posted by Phil:Carsten,Didn’t Lakeside also ‘fix’ your car after it cracked a liner, just last month wasn’t it?why ‘fix’ in abbreviations?

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Yep,For some unknown reason the tempeartures are fluctuating, so I took no chances and got it recovered to Lakeside instead of something potentially blowing.We seem to have it traced to a wonky stat and a persistant blob of air in the system.Also am getting the head pressure tested and HG changed just to be sure that isnt the cause of any problemsOh the joy of it all…

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quote:Originally posted by Tubbs: why ‘fix’ in abbreviations?Well errr it just seems that the work they done hasn’t really been 100% has it [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/blush.gif[/image]

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Ok, before we go down that road let just point out that they repaired my car, but for some silly reason the temps where playing around. They have, no questions asked, taken the car in and are sorting the issue for me.I have dealt with them ever since I got my elise(2 years and 7k+ on mods) and they have done nothing but exellent work on my car. The car has performed flawlessly on 15+ trackdays over as many months and it is all due to them being professional. There are alot of BS dealers/workshops/garages which literally take the p*ss, hence leaving you not trusting them with your pride and joy.IF a mistake was made by Lakeside they will tell you, that has been my experience dealing with Max/Tim/Art.This posting may sound a bit defensive, but I am only a satisfied customer who gladly drives halfway around the M25 to get the oil changed as I dont trust anybody else with my baby. The other reason is that we all know how easy it is to destroy somebodys reputation with one careless posting on the world wide web.

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I don�t want to be contrary here but if they repaired your car correctly the first time round then the coolant system would not have had air in it or unstable temp readings. Look at Tubbs car, his engine had to be rebuilt twice after they repaired his, once because they left swarf in the engine and it blocked an oil feed to one of crank journals (carelessness and dangerous) and the second time it failed again (reason unknown) whilst they were testing it !Granted they fixed it in the end but if you�re paying good money for it to be repaired then would you not expect it to be done first time? Don�t get me wrong, I�m not trying to destroy Lakeside�s reputation but everyone is entitled to there own opinions and mine is��based on the information given on this BBS the above does not portray a great deal of confidence in there engine rebuilds.

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Errr, that was actually three rebuilds and not two!!!I will still use Lakeside I have to admit. They fixed the car no questions asked, and have been very apologetic. You could see the frustration over the issue! No garage has a 100% record, and yep, from time to time problem cars do come up that seem to take an age to get it right. The only thing that has annoyed me is the car was off the road for 4.5 Months, which when you have paid so much for something and never get to use it, it bugs you somewhat.When my Porker got hit, the car went back 3 times as the spray job was crap. Sure, I am picky, but that was from the main AFN UK dealer in Reading! Then again, they didn’t apologise once as they were too stuck up their own arses as I never bought the car from them! Add to that, I rarely met anyone who rated AFN in Reading anyway.Lakeside do alot of Lotus’, and sure they will get one wrong once in a while on a problem case. What makes a garage is the fact that they have accepted this, apologised and done everything they can do fix it. Which they did.Don’t deny you have your opinions, and under the circumstances, many would feel the same way.I deliberatley did not name and shame because a: B&C are too expensive even though nearer to me, b: they fixed the issue no questions asked(ok three times!)

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Yes i did say the engine was rebuilt twice after the repair.I’m glad that Lakeside do take that attitude as it shows commitment to their customers which is rare these days, i’am sure there must have been 100’s of good engine rebuilds which have never showed a problem. The trouble is thats its normally only the negative issues which you hear about and it tends to put the wind up you !!Talking about AFN (Steve Harris, Kelvin et al), they have always been absolutly perfect with my 3 pokers, in fact they sold me my Turbo 8K under the “list” price, it had just come in as a PX. Always got double discount on parts and servicing and never once gave me cause for complaint.Its the “fixing of the issues” that worries me, they are professionals, on a totally different scenario what would have happended if it was an aircraft engine?Be honest now, Whats your confidence level that the engine will not go again?Obviously the more time that passes the higher it will get.[This message has been edited by Phil (edited 17 April 2003).]

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Errrrmmm, yeh, confidence levels are probably the lowest they will ever be. Just the slightest noise that seems out of place I am out of the car peering into the engine bay!The top end seems rattly, but I am sure they always were (same on the Elise) but you get soooooo paranoid it does spoil the fun at times. Let alone taking on a track day in May and Le Mans in June! Luckily, I am quite patient, and I only start to shout when I am really ****ed off. Lets face it. If the car goes again, it will be going straight to Lotus and the bill to Lakeside. Simple. Touch wood, all should be ok now!Fortunately, Lotus don’t make planes or engines for them. Otherwise they would be dropping out of the sky every day! lol [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif[/image]AFN I always found treated you well if you bought a car from them. I had a LHD, thus they tended to dismiss you somewhat, even though it was still a 30K car and my money is as good as anyones! Never ever called back either!

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LOL, know exactly what you mean, same here, got a bit paranoid myself at a rattle until i sussed it was the handbrake cables on the undertray [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/smile.gif[/image]Not sure about the top end, originally when CTM did some head work on mine it was dead quiet, now there is some noise, at some time i’ll re-shim to make it quieter.All i can say is that you must be a lot more patient then me !!Oh well, back to looking for a job [image]http://www.exiges.com/ubb/NonCGI/images/icons/frown.gif[/image]