Electric Green S2 Elise 111S
Discussion
Hello all, since I've had my realistic dream car for about 6 weeks now I thought it time I introduce Kermit to PistonHeads.
Here it is.... my 2002 Lotus Elise 111S.
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on Flickr
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on Flickr
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on Flickr
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on Flickr
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on Flickr
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on Flickr
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on Flickr
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on Flickr
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on Flickr
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on Flickr
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on Flickr
I have wanted one of these since I was at school, my RE teacher had an early 2001 S2 in Laser Blue and I spent years staring out the window lusting over it, now finally at the age of 21 I have my own, and it is perfect.
Bit of background, I had my E46 330i for 2 years while at Uni before I dropped out, that car is well documented on here too. Sold it after the subframe had cracked, then just as a gap filler I bought a cheap Saab 9-5 Aero Estate for winter and sold that on a few months later in February this year, I was then ready to make my most substantial car purchase yet. I pushed the man maths to the limit and figured driving around in a house deposit was far more fun than looking at it, and heck once I have a house I'll probably have a diesel shed, so it was now or never to get a realistic(ish) dream car. I'd spent all the time since selling the BMW trying to work out what to get, driving my mates mad going round and round in circles. I wanted something that would put a smile on my face every time I drove it, and wasn't compromised like the 330i was, being both a sports car, but also a sensible daily driver.
The Lotus was of course top of my list, sadly the first I drove didn't impress me. It was a boggo 120bhp S2, standard everything, and having never driven anything like it I hated the rattles, the heavy brakes and steering, and in this case the lack of any real noise or excitement, I drove it back to back with a 987 Boxster S and the Boxster felt fantastic! I went away and thought about, and felt the Boxster would depreciate too much, and for me I didn't want the negative attention being 21 and driving a Porsche would generate away from my car friends. However, while I was at the dealer (a well known Lotus Main Dealer) the salesman told me of a 111S that was being prepared for sale. I had a look, it was a 2002 111S, it had a sports exhaust and intake, harnesses, semi slicks, the works. I came back 2 weeks later to drive it..... What a difference. The noise transformed the whole experience for me, also having a second go I began to enjoy the physical nature of the car, up to that point it was the best driving experience I'd had. Sadly I really couldn't justify it being my only car, so with a heavy heart the search went on, I test drove a Chimaera, loved it, but ruled it out for fuel consumption and costs, but it did fill all the other criteria. I then settled on a Z4M Roadster, I loved the familiarity from the 330i, but with more power, more grip and more entertainment. I looked at several examples but none were really quite right, too many owners, or not the right type of seller. The longer I looked the more I began to wonder if this was the right car, and my thoughts kept moving back to the Lotus... I did some more man maths and realised I could potentially look into getting a second sensible car to fulfil the practicality I needed. As I'm still living at home the parents did also have a little say in what I got, and a second car was out of the question, then after showing them some figures on the Lotus, telling them what a sensible 1.8 car it was after my last thirsty cars, how economical it was, what good residuals they have and how there was plenty of space on the drive, they gave in and granted me space on the drive. The Lotus hunt began!
I knew I wanted a 111S, as a 111R was out of budget, I wanted one with a sports exhaust and it had to be a bright colour, it also had to be on sub 50k miles so after the 3 or so years I intend to keep it I wouldn't have a mega mileage car. It seemed finding a bright coloured 111S was a problem, I really wanted a Yellow car, and it seemed the bright colours only came on the later 111R cars, so instead I focused on the other criteria, I kept an eye everyday on the classifieds, had wanted adverts up on various Lotus forums. I came so close to getting a Lotus Racing Green car, but it Sold the day before I was due to see it. I was gutted, the history was spotless, and the owner was a proper enthusiast and F1 Engineer. I was disappointed in the quality of some of the other cars I looked at, including a very low milage later 2005 car, that was very tatty in the flesh and the history somewhat confusing with stamps in the wrong places.
Then one morning when I checked my inbox on one Lotus Forum, I had a message about a 2002 low mileage green 111S from a chap toying with the idea of selling it, as such it wasn't for sale anywhere. I replied straight back, and got a few photos through. It was a colour I had never seen before, the owner called it Electric Green. I went to see it the next day. It was stunning. It had been owned by Lotus since new for 4 years, and then this chap had had it 8 years. Lotus had done 20k, apparently it was the R&D Managers company car, the seller had then done 8k, in the last year alone it had only done 80 miles, hence him selling it. It was in fabulous condition, it had the sports exhaust, a clean MOT from the week before, it was all looking too good to be true.... then I had a look at the history. It had one stamp at 20k and 4 years old for an 'A' service from Lotus and nothing else since the seller had serviced it himself. Yes there were lots of receipts, but it didn't look good to me. I walked away to have a think and do some more research.
It turned out the car was not a Manager's car at Lotus, instead it was a Development car, this had alarm bells ringing right away. However I was told that this is very different from a Test car, which ultimately are tested to destruction then crushed. This car instead would have lived on the test track at Hethel, and used to develop parts for the 111S and later models, essentially any weak spots on the car would have been found and replaced. I asked then why the book hadn't been stamped if it was destined for sale after this process. I was told simply the Development department don't have a stamp, and it would have essentially been given a service several times over after each test session, it was only then stamped before it left Lotus and sold on. It was also a development colour. I haven't done it yet, but I will purchase a certificate from Lotus which states exactly how many cars exist in this spec and colour, but I am told it is not more than a handful. The forums suggest 3 Esprits were made in this colour and 2 Elises. I also haven't seen another Elise with a two-tone leather seats. The second aerial on the roof was also used to transmit data from the car back to the engineers. Things were look very good again. Thinking back to the Test Drive, it hadn't rattled like the other Elises I had driven, the gear change seemed a little sweeter too. I got the MOT data online too, and it has never even had an advisory let alone a fail! Oh the name Kermit also came from it's time with Lotus.
I agreed on a price with the owner, this included him taking the car to his Lotus Specialist and getting a full 'C' service including Cambelts. The service manager called me after this was complete and said the car was excellent, one of the best they had seen, they had actually taken it from Lotus and sold it on to the seller, and seen it a few times since for things like bleeding the brakes and checking a few things on behalf of the seller after he had serviced it in the past. They were gutted he hadn't offered it to them first, apparently 2 customers had enquired was it for sale while it was in. I was glad I had put a deposit down. It also turned out they knew the earlier Lotus Racing Green car I had missed out on, and said this one was the better car. I daren't tell them I was paying less for it.
I picked it up the following weekend and had the most fantastic roof down drive back home, I went down to Brighton the same weekend to see mates and sadly the Alternator failed, and I had to get recovered home, being a Sunday no where was open, so home it went. Frustratingly the recovery company managed to ground the front taking it off the truck and put a nice small hole in the clamshell. I was so upset, and furious at the same time. They did however pay for the repair a few weeks later at a Lotus Specialist of my choice, I also had the alternator fixed before that, lack of use, then suddenly doing 200 miles seemed to have killed it. Since the car had come in nicely under budget, I decided to get all the bits I wanted done right away, I replaced the Janspeed Exhaust with a Larini Club Sport with Race Pipe and installed a Hurricane Induction kit. There was the sound I had enjoyed from my earlier drive in the modded 111S. Oh my God! It is just incredible. I was worried it would be too loud, but another thread here someone had stated that "an Elise is not loud enough until it makes small children cry and people's ear drums bleed" so I figured I should do it. Best thing I have done. The crackles, bangs and pop are just awesome, if you tickle the throttle on the overrun in 2nd gear it pop and bangs all the way down to about 4500rpm. I also finished off with the personalised plate for a bargain £250. Not because I like them, just that the full size 7 character plate on it looked stupid, so I got a 5 character and relevant plate, then had it made to the minimum UK Legal requirements. I think it finishes it off perfectly.
So here it stands. My perfect Elise. Nothing else I need to do it, well maybe do the wheels black but I'm very undecided. I really did write a lot here, well done for making it this far. I still need to find my other car, so for the moment this is my daily. Chuffed to bits. 21 and in my dream car. Now to enjoy it! Thanks for reading.
Here it is.... my 2002 Lotus Elise 111S.
Lotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on FlickrLotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on FlickrLotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on FlickrLotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on FlickrLotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on FlickrLotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on FlickrLotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on FlickrLotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on FlickrLotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on FlickrLotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on FlickrLotus Elise S2 111S by tlynchie, on FlickrI have wanted one of these since I was at school, my RE teacher had an early 2001 S2 in Laser Blue and I spent years staring out the window lusting over it, now finally at the age of 21 I have my own, and it is perfect.
Bit of background, I had my E46 330i for 2 years while at Uni before I dropped out, that car is well documented on here too. Sold it after the subframe had cracked, then just as a gap filler I bought a cheap Saab 9-5 Aero Estate for winter and sold that on a few months later in February this year, I was then ready to make my most substantial car purchase yet. I pushed the man maths to the limit and figured driving around in a house deposit was far more fun than looking at it, and heck once I have a house I'll probably have a diesel shed, so it was now or never to get a realistic(ish) dream car. I'd spent all the time since selling the BMW trying to work out what to get, driving my mates mad going round and round in circles. I wanted something that would put a smile on my face every time I drove it, and wasn't compromised like the 330i was, being both a sports car, but also a sensible daily driver.
The Lotus was of course top of my list, sadly the first I drove didn't impress me. It was a boggo 120bhp S2, standard everything, and having never driven anything like it I hated the rattles, the heavy brakes and steering, and in this case the lack of any real noise or excitement, I drove it back to back with a 987 Boxster S and the Boxster felt fantastic! I went away and thought about, and felt the Boxster would depreciate too much, and for me I didn't want the negative attention being 21 and driving a Porsche would generate away from my car friends. However, while I was at the dealer (a well known Lotus Main Dealer) the salesman told me of a 111S that was being prepared for sale. I had a look, it was a 2002 111S, it had a sports exhaust and intake, harnesses, semi slicks, the works. I came back 2 weeks later to drive it..... What a difference. The noise transformed the whole experience for me, also having a second go I began to enjoy the physical nature of the car, up to that point it was the best driving experience I'd had. Sadly I really couldn't justify it being my only car, so with a heavy heart the search went on, I test drove a Chimaera, loved it, but ruled it out for fuel consumption and costs, but it did fill all the other criteria. I then settled on a Z4M Roadster, I loved the familiarity from the 330i, but with more power, more grip and more entertainment. I looked at several examples but none were really quite right, too many owners, or not the right type of seller. The longer I looked the more I began to wonder if this was the right car, and my thoughts kept moving back to the Lotus... I did some more man maths and realised I could potentially look into getting a second sensible car to fulfil the practicality I needed. As I'm still living at home the parents did also have a little say in what I got, and a second car was out of the question, then after showing them some figures on the Lotus, telling them what a sensible 1.8 car it was after my last thirsty cars, how economical it was, what good residuals they have and how there was plenty of space on the drive, they gave in and granted me space on the drive. The Lotus hunt began!
I knew I wanted a 111S, as a 111R was out of budget, I wanted one with a sports exhaust and it had to be a bright colour, it also had to be on sub 50k miles so after the 3 or so years I intend to keep it I wouldn't have a mega mileage car. It seemed finding a bright coloured 111S was a problem, I really wanted a Yellow car, and it seemed the bright colours only came on the later 111R cars, so instead I focused on the other criteria, I kept an eye everyday on the classifieds, had wanted adverts up on various Lotus forums. I came so close to getting a Lotus Racing Green car, but it Sold the day before I was due to see it. I was gutted, the history was spotless, and the owner was a proper enthusiast and F1 Engineer. I was disappointed in the quality of some of the other cars I looked at, including a very low milage later 2005 car, that was very tatty in the flesh and the history somewhat confusing with stamps in the wrong places.
Then one morning when I checked my inbox on one Lotus Forum, I had a message about a 2002 low mileage green 111S from a chap toying with the idea of selling it, as such it wasn't for sale anywhere. I replied straight back, and got a few photos through. It was a colour I had never seen before, the owner called it Electric Green. I went to see it the next day. It was stunning. It had been owned by Lotus since new for 4 years, and then this chap had had it 8 years. Lotus had done 20k, apparently it was the R&D Managers company car, the seller had then done 8k, in the last year alone it had only done 80 miles, hence him selling it. It was in fabulous condition, it had the sports exhaust, a clean MOT from the week before, it was all looking too good to be true.... then I had a look at the history. It had one stamp at 20k and 4 years old for an 'A' service from Lotus and nothing else since the seller had serviced it himself. Yes there were lots of receipts, but it didn't look good to me. I walked away to have a think and do some more research.
It turned out the car was not a Manager's car at Lotus, instead it was a Development car, this had alarm bells ringing right away. However I was told that this is very different from a Test car, which ultimately are tested to destruction then crushed. This car instead would have lived on the test track at Hethel, and used to develop parts for the 111S and later models, essentially any weak spots on the car would have been found and replaced. I asked then why the book hadn't been stamped if it was destined for sale after this process. I was told simply the Development department don't have a stamp, and it would have essentially been given a service several times over after each test session, it was only then stamped before it left Lotus and sold on. It was also a development colour. I haven't done it yet, but I will purchase a certificate from Lotus which states exactly how many cars exist in this spec and colour, but I am told it is not more than a handful. The forums suggest 3 Esprits were made in this colour and 2 Elises. I also haven't seen another Elise with a two-tone leather seats. The second aerial on the roof was also used to transmit data from the car back to the engineers. Things were look very good again. Thinking back to the Test Drive, it hadn't rattled like the other Elises I had driven, the gear change seemed a little sweeter too. I got the MOT data online too, and it has never even had an advisory let alone a fail! Oh the name Kermit also came from it's time with Lotus.
I agreed on a price with the owner, this included him taking the car to his Lotus Specialist and getting a full 'C' service including Cambelts. The service manager called me after this was complete and said the car was excellent, one of the best they had seen, they had actually taken it from Lotus and sold it on to the seller, and seen it a few times since for things like bleeding the brakes and checking a few things on behalf of the seller after he had serviced it in the past. They were gutted he hadn't offered it to them first, apparently 2 customers had enquired was it for sale while it was in. I was glad I had put a deposit down. It also turned out they knew the earlier Lotus Racing Green car I had missed out on, and said this one was the better car. I daren't tell them I was paying less for it.
I picked it up the following weekend and had the most fantastic roof down drive back home, I went down to Brighton the same weekend to see mates and sadly the Alternator failed, and I had to get recovered home, being a Sunday no where was open, so home it went. Frustratingly the recovery company managed to ground the front taking it off the truck and put a nice small hole in the clamshell. I was so upset, and furious at the same time. They did however pay for the repair a few weeks later at a Lotus Specialist of my choice, I also had the alternator fixed before that, lack of use, then suddenly doing 200 miles seemed to have killed it. Since the car had come in nicely under budget, I decided to get all the bits I wanted done right away, I replaced the Janspeed Exhaust with a Larini Club Sport with Race Pipe and installed a Hurricane Induction kit. There was the sound I had enjoyed from my earlier drive in the modded 111S. Oh my God! It is just incredible. I was worried it would be too loud, but another thread here someone had stated that "an Elise is not loud enough until it makes small children cry and people's ear drums bleed" so I figured I should do it. Best thing I have done. The crackles, bangs and pop are just awesome, if you tickle the throttle on the overrun in 2nd gear it pop and bangs all the way down to about 4500rpm. I also finished off with the personalised plate for a bargain £250. Not because I like them, just that the full size 7 character plate on it looked stupid, so I got a 5 character and relevant plate, then had it made to the minimum UK Legal requirements. I think it finishes it off perfectly.
So here it stands. My perfect Elise. Nothing else I need to do it, well maybe do the wheels black but I'm very undecided. I really did write a lot here, well done for making it this far. I still need to find my other car, so for the moment this is my daily. Chuffed to bits. 21 and in my dream car. Now to enjoy it! Thanks for reading.
Fantastic car, a great find and well worth the research you did.
I will always have a soft spot for Lotus, I've had a couple and love the pure fun you can have in them. They are too limited as a daily driver for me now (I'm 40), but I have managed to persuade Mrs Findtom that we "need" one as a track car.....
I hope it brings you many hours more of fun and enjoyment!
Thanks for sharing.
Tom.
I will always have a soft spot for Lotus, I've had a couple and love the pure fun you can have in them. They are too limited as a daily driver for me now (I'm 40), but I have managed to persuade Mrs Findtom that we "need" one as a track car.....
I hope it brings you many hours more of fun and enjoyment!
Thanks for sharing.
Tom.
Edited by findtomdotcom on Saturday 19th April 17:55
FTW said:
Interesting read, what horsepower does the standard S2 K series have?
Standard cars are 120bhpThe 111S has 156bhp as it is the VVC K-Series
The 111R that replaced the 111S is the Toyota engine and has around 190bhp, they also replaced the standard car with a 120bhp toyota engine.
Nice car. 
Word to the wise - Has it had a suspension refresh?
Are you going to store it outside, and if so has it had the later heater shield thing installed?
Do you plan to track it, as later spec rear drop links are a recommended upgrade if so.
If it was a r&d car all of this may already be done...
Word to the wise - Has it had a suspension refresh?
Are you going to store it outside, and if so has it had the later heater shield thing installed?
Do you plan to track it, as later spec rear drop links are a recommended upgrade if so.
If it was a r&d car all of this may already be done...
Great read and I had similar experience when I bought my last SC.
The first one I drove had a boggo exhaust and I was under whelmed and gutted after having made the decision to get one.
It was too quiet no drama.
Ben at Castle Lotus called me a few weeks later when he had another with the TRD induction kit and Lotus Sport stage 3 exhaust. The difference was amazing, I was sold immediately. The sound is addictive and adds to the drama I'm hooked again.
Enjoy.
The first one I drove had a boggo exhaust and I was under whelmed and gutted after having made the decision to get one.
It was too quiet no drama.
Ben at Castle Lotus called me a few weeks later when he had another with the TRD induction kit and Lotus Sport stage 3 exhaust. The difference was amazing, I was sold immediately. The sound is addictive and adds to the drama I'm hooked again.
Enjoy.
Thanks for all the kind words folks.
It was down at MB World today for a Lotus meet, it led the parade laps that 20 or so cars took part in, lots of compliments on the noise, and the number plate seems to have gone down very well indeed.
It will be back there next week for PHSS too.
It is being stored outside, and no idea, although I think the heater matrix has been replaced.
I will track it once I'm really comfortable with it, but no imminent plans to.
It was down at MB World today for a Lotus meet, it led the parade laps that 20 or so cars took part in, lots of compliments on the noise, and the number plate seems to have gone down very well indeed.
It will be back there next week for PHSS too.
Mr E said:
Nice car.
Word to the wise - Has it had a suspension refresh?
Are you going to store it outside, and if so has it had the later heater shield thing installed?
Do you plan to track it, as later spec rear drop links are a recommended upgrade if so.
If it was a r&d car all of this may already be done...
As for your questions, not aware of suspension re-fresh, feels great to me, and only done 31k now.Word to the wise - Has it had a suspension refresh?
Are you going to store it outside, and if so has it had the later heater shield thing installed?
Do you plan to track it, as later spec rear drop links are a recommended upgrade if so.
If it was a r&d car all of this may already be done...
It is being stored outside, and no idea, although I think the heater matrix has been replaced.
I will track it once I'm really comfortable with it, but no imminent plans to.
Lovely car OP, I ran a S2 as a daily for a couple of years and would love another one in 111s flavour as a second car.
I don't think I could go to a Toyota powered elise as I loved the un-servoed brakes, rawness and proper window winders of the K-series cars.
Enjoy, I cant imagine you not doing though
I don't think I could go to a Toyota powered elise as I loved the un-servoed brakes, rawness and proper window winders of the K-series cars.
Enjoy, I cant imagine you not doing though
Welcome to the Elise world, I have had my second, a 111R for the past 8 years, 4 and a half of those as my daily driver. Regularly tracked and it has been brilliant.
Get a Euro jaunt to Italy in if you can, that is what it is made for, mountainous roads, and was developed on Stelvio.
The seats would'nt have come out of Lotus like that, someone has put the later Probax seats in and had them retrimmed.
Also you have the later LED lights, and the latest raised letter LOTUS badging, so someone has spent time and money doing some nice upgrades there.
Get a Euro jaunt to Italy in if you can, that is what it is made for, mountainous roads, and was developed on Stelvio.
The seats would'nt have come out of Lotus like that, someone has put the later Probax seats in and had them retrimmed.
Also you have the later LED lights, and the latest raised letter LOTUS badging, so someone has spent time and money doing some nice upgrades there.
Edited by piers1 on Sunday 20th April 20:53
going to sound quite boring here, but I am genuinely interested as im hoping to buy new car soon and have no idea what to get, or should i say there are soo many cars i would like to have.
But what are the service costs/Fuel bills like?
BTW absolutely love that colour, more cars should have striking colors available
But what are the service costs/Fuel bills like?
BTW absolutely love that colour, more cars should have striking colors available
Lynch91 said:
Really nice car. My mate has one with the aftermarket exhaust etc and I know exactly what you mean about the sound, it's absolutely incredible!
Bearing in mind that I'm an old man these days but; it gets a bit wearing after an hour or so at motorway speeds. Regarding costs, good on fuel, generic bits are reasonable, cheap to insure, very low depreciation and light on tyres (unles you rip them to bits on a track).
Generally a simple car, not much in the way of electronics to fail.
But, because it is what it is, you cannot live with suspension that's a bit baggy - and it will fail at about 50k. The early cars had problems with the heaters (mines just failed). And yearly servicing gets a bit painful when you only do a handful of miles.
I am aware these are first world problems.
With a snorty exhaust, nitrons, a decent sunny day and the right road with a good eatery at the end of it it is the best car in the world.
Lynch91 said:
Really nice car. My mate has one with the aftermarket exhaust etc and I know exactly what you mean about the sound, it's absolutely incredible!
Mr E has covered it off really. I would just add that the alternator is also a weak spot. Heat from manifold can damage the internals. Just watch the usual HG problems, though I suspect this is less of an issue than people make out. Oh and cracking surname there btw 
piers1 said:
Welcome to the Elise world, I have had my second, a 111R for the past 8 years, 4 and a half of those as my daily driver. Regularly tracked and it has been brilliant.
Get a Euro jaunt to Italy in if you can, that is what it is made for, mountainous roads, and was developed on Stelvio.
The seats would'nt have come out of Lotus like that, someone has put the later Probax seats in and had them retrimmed.
Also you have the later LED lights, and the latest raised letter LOTUS badging, so someone has spent time and money doing some nice upgrades there.
Italy is 100% on my list this year, as is Sweden.Get a Euro jaunt to Italy in if you can, that is what it is made for, mountainous roads, and was developed on Stelvio.
The seats would'nt have come out of Lotus like that, someone has put the later Probax seats in and had them retrimmed.
Also you have the later LED lights, and the latest raised letter LOTUS badging, so someone has spent time and money doing some nice upgrades there.
Edited by piers1 on Sunday 20th April 20:53
Probax seats were fitted by Lotus before they sold it on, Exige LED lights and 3D lettering were fitted by previous owner and IMO make the car look a lot newer than it is. As mentioned before it really is my perfect Elise.
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