RE: Lotus Elise S1 - PH owners speak
Discussion
RYH64E said:
itcaptainslow said:
Opened the garage door on mine for the first time in ages...to put the battery on charge 
Miss driving it, but unfortunately the weather lately isn't Elise friendly.
You need a trickle charger, leave it connected all the time then the car is ready when needed.Miss driving it, but unfortunately the weather lately isn't Elise friendly.
Tickle said:
SidewaysSi said:
Been a good day today so took mine for a spin. Some guy in a Zafira GSI wanted to prove he is a big man and blew me away! 
He will be spinning that tale in his local now zebedee said:
Tickle said:
SidewaysSi said:
Been a good day today so took mine for a spin. Some guy in a Zafira GSI wanted to prove he is a big man and blew me away!
He will be spinning that tale in his local now Even if I had a P1, there is no way I would go deep into 3 figures to make a point. It looked tricked up-positively flew around roundabouts! But it's still a Zafira
I have owned MY03 S2 ST, then MY04 S2 111S, currently own S1 Elise and S3 Cup. Just sold the cup kept the S1 since 2009. Problem is finding something to replace it with.
Used my S2's as an only car for a while, use in all weathers, snow, rain etc, every journey was always an experience! For me the S1 really is the peach of the lot, the S3 is too good and a bit too fast for UK roads where as my modded 160bhp S1 is great fun with out worrying too much about being knicked for speeding, it attracts the right kind of attention, people wave you past when looking to overtake etc Love it. I have three/four cars these days so don't use it daily but still take it out in all weathers, missing out if you don't imho, just this week, took out on the damp roads around the Eden Valley into Northumberland, snow and slush on the edges, roof off and some not so sensible R888's make for a focused drive.
Used my S2's as an only car for a while, use in all weathers, snow, rain etc, every journey was always an experience! For me the S1 really is the peach of the lot, the S3 is too good and a bit too fast for UK roads where as my modded 160bhp S1 is great fun with out worrying too much about being knicked for speeding, it attracts the right kind of attention, people wave you past when looking to overtake etc Love it. I have three/four cars these days so don't use it daily but still take it out in all weathers, missing out if you don't imho, just this week, took out on the damp roads around the Eden Valley into Northumberland, snow and slush on the edges, roof off and some not so sensible R888's make for a focused drive.
zebedee said:
Tickle said:
SidewaysSi said:
Been a good day today so took mine for a spin. Some guy in a Zafira GSI wanted to prove he is a big man and blew me away!
He will be spinning that tale in his local now Former owner of a Sport160. Owned it for 3 years, didn't do nearly as much mileage as I should have, but every mile I did cover was the best road driving experience I've had. That car was something else, and 5 years on, I regret selling it more than any other. I would have it back in a heart beat, despite knowing that it's been in other owners hands.
Flawed in many ways, but oh boy, what a car. The driving experience is second only to things like a mad Caterham/track special.
Flawed in many ways, but oh boy, what a car. The driving experience is second only to things like a mad Caterham/track special.
oceanview said:
zebedee said:
Tickle said:
SidewaysSi said:
Been a good day today so took mine for a spin. Some guy in a Zafira GSI wanted to prove he is a big man and blew me away!
He will be spinning that tale in his local now 
Sorry to spoil the party...
I had a really early S1 - I did some consultancy for Lotus at the time.
I had a Caterham HPC at the time, which I intended to sell and keep the Elise, but the opposite happened.
Problem was, Elise impressed me, but the Caterham made me shout out loud with excitement. It was faster, wilder, crazier - and in truth no less practical.
Elise S1 was neither fish nor foul. Not as mad as a 7, but not practical enough to use much.
Made £5K when I sold it after 5000 miles though, so not all bad.
I had a really early S1 - I did some consultancy for Lotus at the time.
I had a Caterham HPC at the time, which I intended to sell and keep the Elise, but the opposite happened.
Problem was, Elise impressed me, but the Caterham made me shout out loud with excitement. It was faster, wilder, crazier - and in truth no less practical.
Elise S1 was neither fish nor foul. Not as mad as a 7, but not practical enough to use much.
Made £5K when I sold it after 5000 miles though, so not all bad.
itcaptainslow said:
Mine has a beautiful, rifle bolt, tight gearshift action. Eliseparts sell a quick shift kit which by the looks of the paperwork was fitted to mine prior to me buying it-I can't recommend it enough.
I fitted the quickshift and didn't notice much difference at all. The lower gear stick was a better addition, not least cos it gave a few helpful cm additional clearance on the gear knob to my leg when in fifth.Ex Boy Racer said:
Elise S1 was neither fish nor foul. Not as mad as a 7, but not practical enough to use much.
See this is exactly the opposite of why I've been thinking of jacking in the kitcar for an Elise. They may not be great for trundling to work down the motorway but in terms of just being able to book a trackday without having to wait for the last minute weather forecast (and risk it selling out) or just being able to jump in it and go for a spin they're way more practical. I do occasionally drive my MNR in the depths of winter but it's as much of a ballache as riding a motorbike in terms of having to wear masses of layers, gloves and a helmet and still freeze to death whilst praying it doesn't rain. With an Elise you can just jump in and go. otolith said:
As in the Apple adverts, "Steps removed and sequence shortened"...
(demisting)
Well you have to demist any car with a windscreen so I won't hold that against it(demisting)
An Elise may not have quite the level of driver involvement of a 7 but I reckon it might be as close as you'd get whilst still retaining "normal" car practicality. Haven't actually driven one yet to say for sure though!
otolith said:
Probably not so much of a problem with one that has air conditioning. But the minimal interior means they retain very little heat. Add in a bit of leakage and demisting them can be something of a pain in the arse.
My S1 was the only car I've ever owned where the dash needs defrosting if you leave it outside, the Stack dash used to get ice on the inside in winter.Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff