jaymcminn Posted April 29, 2017 Posted April 29, 2017 This is the "300 Sport" issue of Monogram's Lotus Esprit Series 4. It's an interesting kit... it's like the Morton Grove boys wanted to compete with the Fujimi Enthusiast and Tamiya kits of the time. The molded detail is nice, the parts count is high, and it has a lot of forward- thinking engineering (windows that mount from outside, for example). Unfortunately, none of it fits together very well. One of the best things about the internet is the ability to see a lot of builds of a kit you're interested in, which made me realize that the stance is particularly tough to nail down on this kit... most buildups I've seen tend to sit way too high and with a nose- up stance that ruins the lines of the car. Extensive test fitting showed that the front spindles needed to be repositioned and a lot of work needed to be done to bring the chassis down on the interior tub. I also trimmed the rear springs and replaced the inboard rear discs with outboard ones. Even with all the test fitting I was continuously having to tweak things as every single assembly step kept trying to push the ride height up! In addition, this kit does NOT build an accurate Esprit 300 Sport- the ruched leather interior is a carryover from the earlier Esprit Turbo release and does not reflect the lightweight racing buckets of the 300. The 300 has a prominent cross brace in the engine bay that isn't reflected in the kit. In the end, I decided to keep the inaccuracies as they were... in my mind, it's an earlier Esprit Turbo with the 300 bodykit on it. I stripped the terrible "satin chrome" parts and refinished the beautifully-molded OZ wheels in Alclad Polished Aluminum. The clear roof panel and rear windows were tinted with Tamiya smoke. The paint is Tamiya Mica Red over white primer and the interior is Tamiya Gunship Grey with a custom-mixed light grey for accents. Flocking is Ken's light grey. On to the pics! One of the best uses I've found for the Molotow chrome pens is for reflectors for headlights and taillights. The rear bumper took a LOT of finessing to get to fit right. Panel lines were washed with a mixture of red and black acrylics. The engine bay detail is fantastic, as is the interior with that '80s fantastic leather! The tinted glass looks great against the bright Mica red. I'll definitely be using that color again! Overall, this was a rewarding and challenging build that I'm glad is in my case as opposed to my workbench. Thanks for looking!
darthsideous Posted April 29, 2017 Posted April 29, 2017 I really like your build up. Thanks for explaining what you modified. I'm not too familiar with this car, so it was also cool learning a bit more about it. More about your build up, beautiful paint work, I really like the shot through the moon roof too, nice engine detail.??
Jonathan Posted April 29, 2017 Posted April 29, 2017 This may be the very best build up I've seen of this kit. Simply stunning!
bogger44 Posted April 29, 2017 Posted April 29, 2017 That is a great looking build! Just beautiful. Thanks for sharing the fit issues this kit is plagued with....ugh, doesn't sound like much fun. I've always loved the Esprits, and have been thinking of bringing mine to the bench lately for something different, but now I'm gonna push it back for a later time.
Bainford Posted April 29, 2017 Posted April 29, 2017 That is a gorgeous Lotus. Your hard work in taming the stance paid off well, as you have captured the essence of the Lotus nicely. Nice work on the details. Simply beautiful.
Nacho Z Posted April 29, 2017 Posted April 29, 2017 What a great looking Lotus, Jason! She looks good in the red you've chosen.
Funkychiken Posted April 29, 2017 Posted April 29, 2017 Top build, really like the finish! And I love this car...
Dann Tier Posted April 29, 2017 Posted April 29, 2017 This is one of my favorite cars of all time! I really wish a better company would make a kit of this, or the V8 version. I built one of these about 20 years ago, and you are right -its a nightmare kit with great detail. mine didn't survive, so my wife found me another one at a time when they were difficult to find. I try to build cars that no one is posting at the time, so that there is more variety, but I think i'm going to abandon that concept, LOL. I have been digging into my Lotus kit too. You really did do a FANTASTIC job on this kit!!!!!!!! -Thanks for the motivation, and sharing this........this has to be one of my top three favorite builds I've seen since I joined this forum!!
jaymcminn Posted April 29, 2017 Author Posted April 29, 2017 Thanks everybody! I love taking on a challenge like this one once in a while... it's really satisfying to work through the issues of the kit to unveil what the designer had in mind in the first place. It can be frustrating at times ( I actually walked away from this one for about 6 months after the initial chassis mockup and modifications) but the results are really worth it!This is one of my favorite cars of all time! I really wish a better company would make a kit of this, or the V8 version. I built one of these about 20 years ago, and you are right -its a nightmare kit with great detail. mine didn't survive, so my wife found me another one at a time when they were difficult to find. I try to build cars that no one is posting at the time, so that there is more variety, but I think i'm going to abandon that concept, LOL. I have been digging into my Lotus kit too. You really did do a FANTASTIC job on this kit!!!!!!!! -Thanks for the motivation, and sharing this........this has to be one of my top three favorite builds I've seen since I joined this forum!!Thanks Dann! I'd love to see a full-detail Series 1-3 Giugaro car... I'll probably break down and buy the Fujimi curbside kit at some point. I'm with you on building unique and unusual subject matter. I love a nice '32 Ford or tri-five Chevy as much as the next guy but I like some variety in my display case! I can't wait to see your Esprit up here and you can always PM me if you have any questions or get stuck!
Dann Tier Posted April 30, 2017 Posted April 30, 2017 (edited) Thanks everybody! I love taking on a challenge like this one once in a while... it's really satisfying to work through the issues of the kit to unveil what the designer had in mind in the first place. It can be frustrating at times ( I actually walked away from this one for about 6 months after the initial chassis mockup and modifications) but the results are really worth it!Thanks Dann! I'd love to see a full-detail Series 1-3 Giugaro car... I'll probably break down and buy the Fujimi curbside kit at some point. I'm with you on building unique and unusual subject matter. I love a nice '32 Ford or tri-five Chevy as much as the next guy but I like some variety in my display case! I can't wait to see your Esprit up here and you can always PM me if you have any questions or get stuck!It really is a beautiful job on your lotus!, I will be hacking-up the heck of my Lotus to be able to turn it into a "one-piece" body -that rear bumper is a horrible pain all by itself! the last one I built doing the "one-piece" body, and it worked brilliantly, but it didn't survive. I plan on doing mine yellow with a multi-shade gray and knarlwood interior, AND a V8 engine -if we cant do it in modeling, then whats the point, right? By the way, the Fujimi Lotus Esprit may be curbside, but it is a fantastic kit! Edited April 30, 2017 by Dann Tier
D. Battista Posted April 30, 2017 Posted April 30, 2017 Well worth the work...!! Outstanding build..!
NY Modeler Posted April 30, 2017 Posted April 30, 2017 Fantastic build!Makes me appreciate the real one even more.
Dragline Posted April 30, 2017 Posted April 30, 2017 That's a stunning rendition. Looks like you overcame what was in the box.
iamsuperdan Posted May 1, 2017 Posted May 1, 2017 This is great. I have this kit in the stash, and your description of the issues is going to help me a lot. I like how yours turned out. The colour combo is perfect.
NYLIBUD Posted May 2, 2017 Posted May 2, 2017 Great looking car.I love these cars,especially in red...."That's gross!!Gary,that's Chet".Ha
Dominik Posted May 8, 2017 Posted May 8, 2017 I really like your build up. Thanks for explaining what you modified. I'm not too familiar with this car, so it was also cool learning a bit more about it. More about your build up, beautiful paint work, I really like the shot through the moon roof too, nice engine detail. ?? X2 This is one of my favorite cars of all time! I really wish a better company would make a kit of this, or the V8 version. I built one of these about 20 years ago, and you are right -its a nightmare kit with great detail. mine didn't survive, so my wife found me another one at a time when they were difficult to find. [...] You really did do a FANTASTIC job on this kit!!!!!!!! -Thanks for the motivation, and sharing this........this has to be one of my top three favorite builds I've seen since I joined this forum!! sounds like my story about my (non-existing-) Lotus i've built years ago ...it Looks like a 4WD i agree in all Points about that fabulous car.
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