❔ QUESTION How do you tell which suspension a car has?

[paulbutcher]

I'm in the process of buying a second-hand Emira. Is there an easy way to tell whether a particular car has the sports or touring suspension? Clearly Michelins suggest sports and Goodyears suggests touring, but it's not foolproof (some sports suspension cars have Goodyears, and they could have been changed). Is there some way to tell from the documentation or VIN?

Thanks!

 

[VL3X]

I'm in the process of buying a second-hand Emira. Is there an easy way to tell whether a particular car has the sports or touring suspension? Clearly Michelins suggest sports and Goodyears suggests touring, but it's not foolproof (some sports suspension cars have Goodyears, and they could have been changed). Is there some way to tell from the documentation or VIN?

Thanks!

You can get under the car or turn the wheels and check out the springs. They'll actually say sport or tour on them.. Or maybe it's a sticker on the shock body... I forget to be honest, but it's clearly marked on the suspension. 🙃 Maybe someone else can confirm.

 

[Porter]

Both the springs and the damper bodies are marked clearly with their type next to the part number.

 

[paulbutcher]

Thanks both, much appreciated!

 

[Andrew P]

Thanks both, much appreciated!

I would also recommend that you drive both rather than taking what various reviewers say. I have Sport suspension with Goodyears and and am very happy with it. I personally wouldn’t get the Michelin tyres for general UK road use. The markings are clear so there should be no confusion

 

[paulbutcher]

I would also recommend that you drive both rather than taking what various reviewers say.

I already have (and decided that touring is a better match for the awful bumpy country roads round here) 😜

This is more about confirming that the spec the vendor tells me the car has is actually what it has…

Thanks!

 

[2BIG2FAIL]

Shouldn't you be able to get the original window sticker from Lotus?

 

[paulbutcher]

Shouldn't you be able to get the original window sticker from Lotus?

I’ve no idea? Where might I find that?

 

[Nick Sticks]

I’ve no idea? Where might I find that?

We don't really have the equivalent system in the UK to the USA Window Sticker.

Monroney sticker - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Jack Stone]

The setup is denoted in the VIN but I can't recall the exact details. A Lotus "agent" should be able to advise

 

[forest]

In the rear, I think you can check the description of the spring through the wheel gap.

 

[Nick in Sydney]

Shouldn't you be able to get the original window sticker from Lotus?

Window stickers (also called Moroney stickers) are an American thing. They were created by an act of Congress in 1958 to stop dealers from inflating the MSRP and lying about the size of the discount they were offering to consumers.

I'm not aware of any other countries that provide them.

 

[Porter]

View attachment 34643

Window stickers (also called Moroney stickers) are an American thing. They were created by an act of Congress in 1958 to stop dealers from inflating the MSRP and lying about the size of the discount they were offering to consumers.

I'm not aware of any other countries that provide them.

100% this. We have a long, long history of unethical and bad-faith dealings by auto dealers in the US. They also collude with each other in unusual ways. It's been said that the NADA is the only legalized crime syndicate in the United States.