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I've wanted an Elise since they came out. A tutor at college had one, if I got high marks she said she would take me for a spin in it, I did and from that moment it's been the car I've always promised myself. I need a new car. I only passed my test in January so I've not got any NCB but insurance is managable, I'm now 30, no children, I could buy the car outright and buy a more practical cheap hatchback like a focus... Didn't think I would be in this position and I'm thinking why not... Since my car failed it's MOT I've been borrowing my MIL to be's mx5 and BMW 335, I can live with the impractical side of the MX5 I actually prefer the no frills of it. Before I go and buy a diesel estate, anyone had an older Elise?
Are you female?
Do it
Like you the Elise is my dream car. Do it whilst you can!!
Do it tomorrow.
Lol no I'm male, had a few 'gay boy' jibes while in the MX5, doesn't really bother me 🙂
dont dent or crash it though, its a tub job so will be expensive
For heavens sake why not.
Just do it. They hold value well,you won't catch a cold on resale...
Its a car. It will get you from A to B. It has Rover/Nissan mechanicals and a non rusting body with minimal electrics inside togo wrong.
If you *need* an estate occasionally, hire one. If you can aford an elise, you canafford a days hire once in a blue moon.
Its a good fun/track day car for sure... if its what you want then go for it fella.
Agree, go for it. Long time dead etc.
Do it. they are a fantastic drive.
(plus, if you have a triple jointed spine and you are under 5'2" you'll be able to get in and out of it too 😆 )
Cracking car I'd go for it. Especially cool when running a K series V tec conversion.
Next door had one. They still have regrets about getting rid. I was very envious. Get one.
It was actually a serious question 🙂 If you like them, go for it, they are meant to be fun.
Friend had one - I never worked out how to get out of it and remain looking cool. His (quite abused and uncared for) one always felt incredibly agricultural; the clonks and groaning noises inside and smell of brakes in the cabin was slightly disconcerting but a hoot to drive.
If you don't mind me asking, what is the insurance for a newly qualified male, even a 30yr old one, set you back? Has to be painful!
It is the one car I would sell my soul for. If you can afford it, go for it.
Do it.
If you can afford it go for the toyota engined one if not check the head gasket on the rover engined one. You can get stainless water pipe kits for them as well. Go and buy one tomorrow. Only a cateram or westie comes close. I'm now very jealous!
Convert it's £1500 fully comp, £500 excess. For 4k miles a year.
Inbred it's funny you mention the gasket, my current car has similar engine and has blown the head gasket. Someone a mate knows wants to buy it as a track toy.
My mate is a petrol head - had super 7s, elises, etc.
said the handling on the elise wasn't up to the hype that top gear gave it, so give one a good try before you buy it.
I'd say give it a go - good time to buy a soft top.
But from what I hear they are WAY more impractical than an MX5 (which I own and love)
If I get to own another fancy car it'll be a Boxster or Elan M100, or if I have a Mrs who wants a Yaris/Focus etc maybe an Elise/Midget/Cooper.
Buy it! I had one of the early ones, in fact one of the original Lotus test cars and it was one of the best cars I've had, apart from the aforementioned head gasket problems, Rover K class engine. It had to go with the arrival of the first child. Still find myself looking on the internet for Elises for sale from time to time...Didnt have any hairdresser comments with the Elise though did with my previous car a MkI MR2.
It was actually a serious question If you like them, go for it, they are meant to be fun.
? Elise is about the best handling road going car available, not sure where sex has anything to do with it (apart from the fact that you could probably do without it for ages with the fun of driving one). Not exactly a "girly" car.
IME the folk making hairdresser comments drive Focuses, Mondeos, Vauxhalls etc - not Porsches or Beemers. It's just envy/inadequacy.
+1
I'd have one. Pre kids Mrs North and I seriously considered it. Only reason we didn't was her size (4'10") - not that she couldn't drive one, but that the build wad so variable, some cars fitted and some didn't!
We bought an MX5 instead and had a hoot for 5 years. The only car we've both been sad to see go (bought a hatchback when Baby North was born).
I had one. Brilliant handling cars, also go like greased shit off a teflon shovel. I will have another some day.
I had the pleasure of taking mine to knockhill a couple of times on lotus track days. When you're not worrying about blasting your license out of the water or cars coming the other way they are truly amazing cars.
Get one.
ourmaninthenorth - Member
but that the build wad so variable, some cars fitted and some didn't!
😀
If you really want one then go for it. You'll find it hugely impractical and it'll break down every five minutes but you really need to do things you want like this.
oh no, do this do that, but **** it, get the elise. have fun. They look like a laugh. regret it later when you are old and boring.
The k series rover 1.8 has plastic dowels in the earlier engines to hold the head gasket in place. These go soft over time and the gasket fails. The later engines addressed this problem with steel dowels. Because it doesn't hold a lot of water when it goes its hard to catch before any damage is done. If its an early one get the gasket done as a matter of course, circa 400 quid. Other than that they are a fantastic engine. I had an old 200vi great car.
There was an article in an few year old copy of Banzai Jap car mag I got. Fella in there did a load of research into an Elise and ended up going for a FI mk1 MX5 with all the toys. Quicker, more fun to drive, cheaper etc (apparently).
You're not asking about what car to get - you've got an option to buy a car you've lusted after since your female tutor took you for a quickie in one. Do it.
Why not an elise? Well heres a few reasons..
Ive driven one and would love to own one (edit: for the looks,not much else ;O)) Not impressed with the power and thats coming out of a 106gti. o.k. theres 160bhp+ models.. but for 120bhp,same as the pug,it wasnt a good start.
Anyhows.. what do i know?
If Richard Burns and his two mates in this vid put the 106 gti ahead of the elise for handling.. then save 6k+ and buy the peugeot.
Problems with getting called a boy racer? Well its either going to be a boy racer or a hairdresser so take yer pick.Definitely spend 10 mins watching this and listen to what they say.
Golf VR6,"one of the best handling cars" gets a bit slated in this. "I`m afraid Golfy isnt going to win today!" - Clarkson. Check it wallowing like a hippo!
Besides looking gorgeous.. i cant think of any other reason why i`d go out and buy an elise after watching this,driving one, and owning a pug for the past 5 years.
think id rather the 335
I always preferred the vx220 to be honest.
how tall are you ? and do you need to carry anything larger than a plastic bag of shopping ?
I too would have an Elise if I could - cars are very subjective, so make your own mind up as to what you want!
Just a thought though - MR2? cheaper, more reliable, (slightly) more practical...?
However, you seem to want an Elise, so why not just get one? It's not an irreversible decision|!
Elise, or VX220 Turbo?
I know where my money would be heading.
**spoiler** it's not Norfolk.
Do it 🙂
I'm on my second, had a few years off with an Evo and messing about with motorbikes but for a combination of "feeling special" and not being too expensive to run it can't be beaten.
A few replies to things mentioned above:
1) Build quality
No, it ain't as slickly put together as an Audi and it will rattle and clunk. It won't however suffer from anything falling off. There is very little sound proofing and the chassis acts as a boom box so makes it sound worse. Later bilatein suspension has different valving and is a lot quieter. Most cars will be on that by now.
The build quality is certainly not so variable that you can't fit certain people in it? Different models have different seats which can increase leg room.
The Pug 106 is better:
With all due respect, do me a favour! No doubt that they can be made to pedal along as quickly but a well set up Elise feels like nothing else. I include Sevens in this. Also, when has a VR6 EVER been considered a good handling car? No mK3 golf has ever had a cult following, certainly not one with a boat anchor in the front. 😉
You'll write it off if you damage the chassis:
The front end has an F1 style carbon crash box (replaceable) and the rear has a steel subframe (replaceable). Any impact that leads to the chassis being wrecked would also in all likely hood destroy a "normal" car. The difference being that the Elise chassis won't have folded like a tin can (see 106 above).
Head gasket:
If it was going to go, it will have gone. Don't ever be tempted to replace it "just in case". If it goes get someone who really knows what they are doing to fix it and all will be well. I sold my 1st Elise with 46k and plenty track use with no issues. My second has 103k and had a repair about 40k miles ago. It's about £500 so keep that stored up in case of emergency or get AA parts and labour. Look for a car that has been fixed by a good independent and has had an all aluminium radiator fitted. The OEM Peugeot one pops its plastic end caps off.
It's impractical:
Put the roof on straight and the rain stays out. MK2s are better in this respect ans the roof is easier to remove/refit. Kit wise i have fitted myself and a passenger, 2 crash helmets and all the stuff needed for a week away on euro trackdays. You just learn to pack better. Space wise I'm 6ft and fit in with no grief. I know a guy 6ft 4" and built like the proverbial, he also fits. With practice you'll hop in and out without thinking. MR2 is no where near as practical if you look at the newer style for storage and interior space!
Power:
It doesn't need a lot of power as it doesn't weigh much, then again neither does the aforementioned 106. The Elise however is about much more than 0-60 (which isn't shabby). Without wanting to get all ethereal it's about the experience. Without wanting to appear a snob the "feel" of an Elise can't be replicated buy a hot hatch, even a good one.
What you need to do is decide on your priorities. The S1 is a bit more (forgive me) undiluted in its driving experience and the s2 a bit more comfy for the commute. The S2 roof in undoubtedly less faff. Toyota engines are probably more reliable but are thirstier and a bit more expensive for road tax and servicing.
Best thing to do is sign up to http://www.seloc.org and find your local meet and have a look around and chat with the owners. The forum is very active with an excellent wiki & FAQ. Any other questions feel free to ask.
Did I say just do it!
Remind again where the VX220 was made again, and by whom?
Great cars once you've taken some of the "vauxhall" out of them.
Yes, we all know the VX220 is pretty much an Elise underneath.
They do happen to look better though - in my humble opinion, of course - and you can get a VX220 Turbo for the price of an S1 Elise. Why [i]wouldn't[/i] you want one over an Elise? It's the same car but with 70% more power.
70% more power, Nah. Look better? Nah.
[img] 
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118bhp * 170% = 200.6bhp
Where's the nah?
Looks are subjective though, so that's a moot point. EDIT: [i]And[/i] that's a S2
didn't know we were only talking S1's
the one above is 220HP
Agree on Looks, I just happen to prefer the Lotus, the VX220 is an excellent car, especially the turbo, but surely if you are comparing with the Turbo, then a fair comparison would be with and S2 as they are the same era?
They are all good, love mine.