S1 Elise Running Costs

[chrisobrien54]

Hi all,

I have a VX220 Turbo and absolutely love it – it’s changed my perspective on driving and never want to go back to driving a ‘normal’ car.

One of my mates drives a Ford Escort and is looking to upgrade – he’s been thinking about the new Fiesta ST, or even just a sporty Fiesta. Thing is you can pick up an early S1 Elise, in my opinion a better handling car than my VX, for less than a Fiesta! I want my mate to appreciate and enjoy driving as much as the VX has allowed me only for a little less money. He is a good driver (he gave me a running for my money on the go-karts!) and I think would enjoy the Elise.

However. He is tight as a ducks arse and as short sighted as Gordon Brown. I think he’s a little intimidated by the perceived ‘exotica’ status of the Elise and frightened of the overall running costs.

So my question is – how much more (if at all) would an S1 cost to run over a Fiesta ST?

[mikey P 500]

Parts will wear out a lot faster on a ten year old lotus than a new fiesta but the Elise will obviously be the far more fun car to own. When parts do wear out I would guess they would generally cost no more than a fiesta (just be more frequent) if you use the specialists for parts and many parts come from rover or other sources anyway.
I think if you can get your friend to test drive an Elise, you will have won the battle as this really sold me. I cant imagine going back to a hatch back out of choice now.

[chrisobrien54]

Are there any well known failures on the S1? Ill not mention the K-series (although I have heard the Elise doesn’t suffer as badly as most) but in terms of suspension, clutch etc? The VX suffers all sorts of nigh-on guaranteed long term failures. Suspension bushes, radiators, coolant tanks cracking, water in the spark-plugs etc. I think every car like this has its ‘quirks’ and Id like to know the S1’s

Cheers,

Chris

[bogie]

loads of info in the techwiki on www.seloc.org ...yes, they do wear things out as any other car, so bushes and dampers will do need doing on an old one

if you buy the right car though, well maintaned, it should have it all done

[bocky]

once you drive one there's no going back. you have to drag me out of mine kicking and screeming. not only that see how much the ST will be worth in 10 years.

[boobles]

I owned my previuos S1 for 18 months & used it as my daily car & covered approx 35k in that time. Ok i did have to pay out £600 for the head gasket but for 18 months worth of driving, i dont think thats too bad. Servicing will be more expensive than the Ford but its not silly prices tbh. I have just sold my Clio 182 cup & bought another S1 & love it big time.

[piooly]

If he gets a standard S1 and does not modify it, then I would say just the same running costs. Dont use Lotus for servicing. A little decent garage will do. Just find a loved car in good nick and the running costs should be very low indeed. Question is, can he live day to day with an S1 !!!!

[Ganglandboss]

I paid £10,000 for mine about 18 months ago; it is not one bit expensive to run. I have spent: -

• New exhaust front pipe - £125ish
• New N/S front caliper (thread on bleed nipple overtightened before I bought it) £37 from Douglas Valley Breakers
• Catalytic converter - de-catted when I bought it so I needed it to get through MoT - £85 from www.cats4less.co.uk
• N/S front ball joint - failed MoT due to wear - £18 from www.eliseparts.com

Service items are not expensive but I spend a bit more on Mobil Motorsport oil and competition brake fluid. I do all the work myself with help from my mechanic cousin.

Remember, a lot of parts come from a Rover/Peugeot/Vauxhall parts bin.

I can seriously recomment an S1 - they're great fun!

[TIPPER]

If you shop around in the bargain basement you're more likely to find a dog that needs a fair bit of TLC (although there are bargains!). I reckon £8-9k should land you a properly maintained car with the S2 suspension upgrade and everything tickety-boo. The thing is all S1s are getting on a bit now so unless suspension work (bushes) and steering rack have recently been done then they could be getting near replacement.
I bought my car with 39k miles 3 years ago and apart from routine service items she's costs me just just under £20 for a new dizzy cap and rotor arm (service items really). I've spent a good few ££££££ on 'upgrades' and she's definately coming off the road for a while this winter for a complete suspension strip and overhaul (I'm replacing all bushes, ball joints, the TREs, upgraded toe-links, uprated ARB, a new/refurbed rack and anything else I can think ofwhilst I'm at it. If I get round to taking the front clam off I might even replace the radiator with a nice shiney new Ali one (the plastic end caps on the OE job can split/fail).
I think your mate needs to drive an Elise and see if its for him. And he's right BTW it is a taste of the exoctic but needn't cost a fortune.

[jondude]

Others have pretty much covered things, all I would add is that because of the immense grin factor given to you by a Lotus, it is probably the easiest car in the world to forgive for bills every now and then.

When my 2nd car, a standard box, needs 20-30 quids work done on it, I get annoyed....when the Elise needs 100 or so to replace some bushes or service the brakes.....I dunno, you just kinda accept it easier as you know an already great car will come back with even more of an edge.

I have not had many costs with my S1, but it is a weekend and holiday car, and I do all servicing myself, where I am very meticulous and quite petty.

But there are no guarantees, of course.

I'd simply say get one - the grin factor eases any financial outlays that may (or may not) come your way!

[noodleman]

Don't forget that if he buys a nice S1 wisely, he'll suffer almost zero depreciation.

[kambites]

noodleman said:

Don't forget that if he buys a nice S1 wisely, he'll suffer almost zero depreciation.

That's the key thing really. A 10k Elise will lose 500 quid a year at most, a 10k Fiesta will be losing something like 3k a year initially. So even if he spends an extra 2500 quid on running the Elise (which he wont) he'd still break even.

[Gad-Westy]

kambites said:

noodleman said:

Don't forget that if he buys a nice S1 wisely, he'll suffer almost zero depreciation.

That's the key thing really. A 10k Elise will lose 500 quid a year at most, a 10k Fiesta will be losing something like 3k a year initially. So even if he spends an extra 2500 quid on running the Elise (which he wont) he'd still break even.

Its tricky though isn't it because you have to have the cash in the first place to pay for running costs where as lower depreciation is like a sort of cash-back bonus at the end of your ownership but on balance I would imagine an S1 should be susbstantially cheaper to run over the course of a year.

Things for your friend to consider:

1) If he's used to creature comforts, its going to be a culture shock. I've always loved cars like this where every journey feels like an occassion but I know many don't.

2) In my experience Elises are reliable but I have had several niggles that have needed addressing. Most have required no more than 30 minutes of fiddling in my garage but if your friend isn't mechaniically minded, these may involve a trip to a specialist, or a big trawl through the internet.

3) The car might leak.

4) MPG is exceptionally good on K-series Elises. Think high 30's for most driving.

5) Insurance is likely to be more for an Elise than the Fiesta but make sure he puts some effort into getting a good deal. I almost didn't buy one because the best the likes of confused.com could do for me was £1800 per year. An hour or two phoning around has brought that down to less than £900 (ok, I know its still a lot but I only had 1 year NCB)

6) Most S1's will either have had a suspension refresh by now or are going to need one. This is expensive. If dampers needed replacing and a few other bits, a £2k bill could be on its way.

7) The AA offer an excellent warranty for around £65 per year (plus standard cover) which will mean that in the event of the dreaded HGF or bust radiator, the car will be repaired for only the price of the £25 excess on the policy. Peace at mind!

8) If he doesn't buy one and buys a Fiesta instead, he'll need some form of psychiatric help.

Edited by Gad-Westy on Tuesday 7th October 15:16

[AIG]

I've just had a £220 M.O.T and £500 HFG bill in the same week - AA refused to payout on the warranty on the smallprint but that's another story.
Have spent ££££££ on the thing in 3.5 years. Know people who have spent absolutely nothing on similar age/mileage cars, it's impossible to say if you'll get a good-un no matter how hard you research. From what you describe of your mate, he'd be mad to buy one (as much as I love mine, it's a 11 year old sports car and they need tinkering on as you say)

[lee111s]

AIG said:

I've just had a £220 M.O.T and £500 HFG bill in the same week - AA refused to payout on the warranty on the smallprint but that's another story.
Have spent ££££££ on the thing in 3.5 years. Know people who have spent absolutely nothing on similar age/mileage cars, it's impossible to say if you'll get a good-un no matter how hard you research. From what you describe of your mate, he'd be mad to buy one (as much as I love mine, it's a 11 year old sports car and they need tinkering on as you say)

Why did they not pay out? please do tell

[Davey111]

THe things that swung me round to getting the Elise were the great mileage and the fact that it is pre 2001 which I believe means that it is exempt from all these stupid road tax changes. YOur friend may find he is paying less road tax for a sport car than he would for a hatch back! The fact that when (if) I come to sell it it will have retained so much value is also one hell of a bonus!

[kambites]

Davey111 said:

THe things that swung me round to getting the Elise were the great mileage and the fact that it is pre 2001 which I believe means that it is exempt from all these stupid road tax changes.

Unfortunately that's not true for a K-series Elise - the CO2 output is low enough that a post 2001 car is cheaper to tax than an early car.

[griffter]

kambites said:

Unfortunately that's not true for a K-series Elise - the CO2 output is low enough that a post 2001 car is cheaper to tax than an early car.

Not for long - at least no so as to be meaningful:

VED Rates in 2010-11
Band A (up to 100g/km CO2) no fee
Band B (101-110g/km CO2) £20
Band C (111-120g/km CO2) £35
Band D (121-130g/km CO2) £95
Band E (131-140g/km CO2) £115
Band F (141- 150g/km CO2)£125
Band G (151 to 160g/km CO2) £155
Band H (161 to 170g/km CO2) £180
Band I (171 to 180g/km CO2) £210
Band J (181 to 200g/km CO2) £270
Band K (201 to 225g/km CO2) £310
Band L (226 to 255g/km CO2) £430
Band M (Over 255g/km CO2) £455

Elise 'K' is 163
111S is 174

(according to http://www.smmtco2.co.uk/co2search2.asp)

I have to admit I thought the 111S was lower than the non-VVC - but they're all over 160g/km so will be £180+ to tax next year+1.

Edited by griffter on Friday 17th October 12:57

[Justin S]

My series 2 111's on a '53 plate is currently £145 a year road tax.

[SeanyD]

Chris - I'm guessing your mates had a go of your vx right, but if he want a go in my s2, I'd be more than happy - other than that there's a few s1's in our area who would probably be willing. Let me know.

Not getting into the s1 v s2 debate (I love both, for the record ), but there's some real bargain s2's around at the moment.