EP3 recommended dealers/specialists for buying EP3

[Flotsam]

Hi all

I'm new on here, so please excuse the general ignorance and possible stupid questions...

I'm a former Lotus addict (have owned 5 Elises in the last ten years) looking for something more practical that is still peaky and fun to drive. I'm familiar with the K20 engine from various converted Elises I've driven and think it's a brilliant engine, so have decided on the EP3 CTR.

I've driven a couple of EP3s, of course, but I'm not massively familiar with the car and the Honda scene. I've read various buying guides and other threads here and elsewhere but my knowledge is limited on these cars. Can anyone recommend a specialist dealer (anywhere in the UK) who is generally trusted and well regarded? I doubt I'll have time to travel and see lots of cars, so don't mind paying a bit of a premium to buy from a good dealer. Alternatively, is there a good specialist who might inspect a car for/with me? My budget is £5k- £6k and I'd like a late car with low-ish miles.

Any help and advice appreciated!

Tony

 

[dweezle]

I tend to find forum owned cars are the best to buy, well looked after & any history is usually available on the forum.
I like the Cw ep3s, bit more HP amongst other differences, DC5 is another shout
Both slightly over budget though

 

[Stamford78]

You will be hard pushed to find a Jdm ep3 or a good Dc5 for 5-6k.
But a Ukdm model you will get a very clean low mileage example.
Very good guides on here what to look out for when buying.
Check out Pistonheads/Autotrader etc and you will find a nice one.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Flotsam]

Thanks, guys

I think I'm after a Premier Edition with under 60k miles and that should be okay in my budget. Good tip on the forums. I'll keep an eye out - particularly as a few choice mods would be great and I'm more likely to get that on forum classifieds.

Does anyone know R Performance? They often have quite a few interesting cars but I don't know anything about them...

 

[Ep3steve]

Not sure if you sorted this, I seen them recently when looking for mine. Cars look clean but they seem overpriced (even more so than normal) when compared to private. I'd say take your time and try and find a private sale backed up with history and a all round good feeling for the owner..

 

[Hazz]

Avoid 2nd hand dealers, they're only after making a quick few quid with the absolute minimum expense possible. You're more likely to find a duck egg at a dealers.

As has been said, private sale and particularly forum cars are the ones to buy.

The best advice I can give is take your time & wait for the right car to come along.

 

[Flotsam]

All very sensible advice, indeed. I'll keep looking. In the meantime, I've just bought a CR-Z and I have to say it's excellent. Slooooow but great in all other respects, so a CTR would make the perfect complement...

 

[ad_illest]

I purchased my premier edition ep3 over a year ago from a performance car dealer who have sold many ep3's, as the guys have said above, they are always pricier than private sales and it is generally harder to negotiate with dealers. There are plenty about so I would advise not to rush, good luck with the search, they are good fun!