Federal # 027
Chassis Number ???
Engine Number ??
39K Miles (November 2000)
Andrew N. Bobro bought this car from Phillip Millar in summer 2006.
I asked Phillip about his car when he originally purchased it. His response follows:
You want me to talk about my car? (I almost hear my wife uttering, "oh
no!") I have found out that my car was originally imported by a Lotus/Rolls
dealer in Atlanta GA, in late '79. After sitting for a couple of months on
the showroom floor, one of the co-owners of the dealership bought the car
for his personal collection. In '83 he sold the car to Mel Richardson of
Atlanta GA. While Mr. Richardson owned the car, he swapped the Stromberg
Carbs with Webers and the exhaust manifold with headers. Everything else
remained stock. I bought the car from him in spring of '98 with 63.5K
Kilometers (39K miles).
This is my dream car. I was a Valet through most of my higher learning
experience and was able to "test drive" many exotic cars (don't ask how -
just don't valet your car!). Lotus' were always my favorite. This was due to
the rarity of Lotus seen, their ravaging good looks, and great handling. Of
all Lotus', I was (and still am) always attracted most to the early Esprits
for their crisp lines and steep angles. Believe it or not, but it wasn't
until I was seriously looking to owned an Esprit that I realized that it was
a James Bond car. So no, I am not some British spy want-to-be.
When I got the car, it was in pretty good repair but did need all the things
one would expect with a 20 yr. old car. Since I've had it, I have pulled the
engine and rebuilt everything on the front end and replaced all the gaskets
on the top end with new. I have rebuilt the brakes, the clutch, replaced the
wheel bearings, and changed all the rubber or plastic hosing with stainless
steel. I plan on replacing all the rubber in the suspension over the next
year and upgrading to Koni shocks. I have also just acquired a Rover 3.9L
V8. I have been playing around with the idea of swapping the 907 engine with
the 3.9L. The Rover engine is lighter, smaller, and has the potential of
putting out over 300 hp. And I would be able to keep the 907 well preserved.
I know that many purists would bristle at the thought of a V8 in a S2 and
many more would just scoff at me being another American who needs his high
horse power and 8 cylinders. But my plan is to keep it as British as
possible. I have heard that Lotus offers a cylinder head that will work with
the 3.9L block. I have also learned that there is an individual in England
who offers a swap kit. So we'll have to see - all of this would take money
and time, two commodities that I seem to lack.
I have mostly used the car to hold my jack-stands to the garage floor and to
filter clean Red Line transmission fluid before depositing on to the ground
below the Auto. Other than that, I have enjoyed time trailing it at several
race tracks around Mid-Western United States and attending a few
autocrosses. Other enjoyments include touring around the Mid-West with the
car, answering the long list of typical Lotus owner questions, and
convincing co-workers that I really don't make more than them.
Phill.