Welcome Dave.
Price ranges are still somewhat lower in North America, but have gone up in the last two years. The one bit of consistent advice though; buy the best example you can afford and you will come out ahead. Suggest getting someone familiar with the Plus 2 to look it over with you.
My car is the earlier style that Mark references. I also prefer the simplicity of the earlier interior, but the issue for getting a clean one is the centre console is NLA, textured vinyl difficult to source. The later more plush interior is probably easier to restore to stock appearance. The wiring in the early cars is somewhat simpler; not a big on-going issue for me as I entirely rewired the car during restoration. If I were dealing with a later Plus 2 130/5 I would still completely rationalize the wiring to closer to modern practice anyway.
In terms of reliability,
once sorted the Plus 2 can be great. The thing I found was getting my car to
fully sorted seemed to take about a year and a half of use after complete restoration. I have since taken several long trips (1,200 to over 5,000 miles round trip) to various car events with no significant issues. Pretty sure even the best examples will require some sorting; lots of help here though.
The Plus 2 makes a terrific 'Two for the Road' long distance vintage touring car with lots of luggage space and interior room. The weak points / improvements I can think of include interior getting a bit hot (I have a NOS sunroof that works great), gets a bit loud (I use ear plugs on occasion), and the chassis can handle more power than stock (said like this is a bad thing, but hence the Zetec
). Getting a modern radio installed is a bit difficult due to the dash depth, but there are some solutions available. Ground clearance and being lower than other traffic needs a bit of awareness in use, but not a big deal.
I really like my aftermarket five speed; if you are going to have to use the car on significant motorway runs I would recommend getting the Lotus five speed, or at least try one out. With the taller diff and five speed my car loafs along at 3500 rpm at about 80 mph. Mark is correct that the four speed is very nice, but for my use the trade off is well worth it. We didn't really get the five speed model here in any quantity, so the conversion route was the only option.
Routine required maintenance is a bit more expensive than say a Triumph or MG, but nothing too onerous. Thinking here of valve clearance adjustments as an example. Clutch is easiest done by removing engine and transmission. Really the other stuff like brakes, suspension, carbs, ignition, etc. are the same as any British classic, although access can be a challenge. The refreshed body work on my car has held up reasonably well, but understand that some cracking and chipping of the fibreglass with use is part of the drill. My car has Spyder supplied frame and suspension. Very happy with how that all went together, and some repair jobs are a lot easier.
Thinking in terms of your experience with the '80's Porsche vs. the Plus 2. Keep in mind the Plus 2 is truly a product of the Sixties. It is more raw and crude than any '80's sports car, but it is also more visceral and immediate. The design and execution are way simpler, routine needs more frequent. I find the Plus 2 a lovely classic as the basic design is so incredible, and the short comings in sixties quality control can largely be overcome with sorting. My '80's classic is a BMW M6, which is an interesting contrast; twice as good is some ways (power, comfort, dignity) and half the car in others (weight, response, agility). In terms of hassles, objective performance, and long distance comfort the M6 leaves the Plus 2 in the dust. For interesting conversations at every gas stop, small marque car meets (with occasional zipping around a track), and smiles per mile I think the Plus 2 comes out on top.
HTH Really great cars and a ton of fun. Budget some time and resources to get stuff sorted and you will love it.
Stu
Posted: Sat Mar 29, 2014 10:17 pm
