Well it seems that my initial estimate for the poly count was a bit premature. I've currently completed the nacelle meshes, saucer support (about 80% complete) and saucer (about 60% complete) and the mesh stands at around 4190 polys. I won't be skimping on the detail with this as I would like to see if I can produce a better mesh than my Achilles (Stargate model, not the trek ship).
Appologies for the quality of the attached pic, but I don't use 3dmax for my modelling.