I guess I've just heard enough Isuzu bashing to feel compelled to respond.
I own an 1989 Isuzu I-mark RS. That's the one with Lotus-modified
suspension and the new Elan's engine, sans turbo. Isuzu only made 3200
of these cars in 1989, so most people don't even know that they exist.
This isn't the japanese-cars mailing list, so I won't extoll the virtues
of the car, just the engine.
The engine in question is a 1.6 liter, 4 valve/cylinder, efi inline four,
producing 125 HP and 102 lb/ft of torque (peak) (for 1990 it's up to
130 HP). The engine redline is 7800 RPM, and the peak HP and torques are
up in the 6500-6800 RPM range. Lotus did know that they were going to use
this engine in the Elan before the engine was designed, and therefore they
had more than a little say in its construction/design. According to
various publications (AutoWeek, in particular), Lotus designed the head
for the engine.
As you would expect, this engine is a dog until you get the revs up to,
oh, 3500 RPM or so. From 3500 - 6000 RPM, it's a really sweet sounding,
quick-revving engine. From 6K up (I've never had it above 7K) it gets
buzzy, but it's still willing. I never taken it higher than 7K because
the torque falls off quickly up there, and there's always another gear.
The turbo on the Elan engine will probably actually improve low-end
response.
I've only put 11K miles on the car so far, but I've yet to have problem
number one with the engine (or any other part of the car). The engine is
certainly high-strung, but then so is the Esprit engine. I think it will
go the distance. I'll certainly know a LOT more about the engine before
I'm able to buy an new Elan.
So much for the engine. I hope Lotus has either chosen another gearbox
or redesigned the shift linkage. The Isuzu has a pretty sloppy linkage,
and a too-tall shifter. As to the weight of the Elan, my Isuzu 4dr,
a four seater with a steel body, weighs 2150 lb. The Elan is a pig. I'm
also, my current car notwithstanding, not a front-drive fan. We'll see
if the Elan's designers eliminated torque steer. Isuzu didn't.
Ken Neff
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Ken Neff kneff@osf.org -or- kneff@osf.osf.org
Open Software Foundation ...!uunet!osf!kneff
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