from 911 to Elise Mk1?

[RGubbioli]

Dear All,

I have a 1993 Porsche 911 (964 C2 for you Porsche nuts) which I use strictly as a second car. I love it to bits and know its an amazing car, however, I am often weary of owning it because of fear of understeer / vandalism / something expensive breaking (clutch @ £1k for ex).

Thus, I have been considering getting an Elise instead. It would definitely be an S1 and an early one at that (97 to 99), mainly because they are cheaper than the Porsche so would leave some money for a sensible car (Merc 300 estate).

I have a few questions which you guys could help me with:
- being 6"6' will I fit in OK? (I don't in the 911)
- how much is the Lotus warranty and is it worth it?
- I have seen 97 R reg cars with 10k miles for about £13k, is this a good price (or even suspiciously cheap?)
- is there any boot at all? could I even contemplate a weekend away with girlfriend? (ie: loads of clothes)
- can I take my golf clubs around in it?

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

Riccardo

[RGubbioli]

Guys, thanks for the useful and quick replies and links, they are really useful insights.

There are a few arguments I have in favour of the Elise:
- I do like the styling and some of the touches (like bare metal interior, that sweet exhaust, the small size)
- as its a second car I think it fits the being raw factor more than my 964, which is (relatively speaking) almost a grand tourer by comparison
- I don't fit in the 964 with a helmet; part of the reason I wanted a sports car was to do track days, which I am am not able to do at the moment
- it will be a newer car (20k miles vs 62k in the Porsche, and 4 years younger) thus less likely to have age related problems such as failing heater servos (£50 a pop x 4) and failed alternators (£450 + fitting!!)

On the 'against' side:
- as mentioned below, it not a Porsche in build quality (mine is 10 yrs old this year and still looks stunning)
- I am very much into the Porsche scene, and I'd find it hard to bring myself to sell it
- the Elise is very much a toy, which might mean I'd only be able to drive it 'for fun', which is about once a month

Thanks again!

[RGubbioli]

Guys,

Thanks once again for the great advice. More and more I see the Elise as possibly being a good choice for what I want. Basically, a fun car which I can use both in more 'mundane' situations as well as for track days and the odd trip. Mostly I'd be using it for group drives, visit friends dotted around the country, etc.

Reading back on my original post, I see it probably seemed like the whole decision was just cause of money. It isn't, but its just that I would like to know that an Elise won't cost me as much to run as the 911, otherwise I might as well stick to the 911. At the moment I spend about £2.5k a year just in maintenace (no upgrades at all) but that can easily escalate to about £4k is anything goes wrong.

At the same time I also would like a 'raw' car which the 911 isn't as much exactly due to it being an expensive car to start off with. Put it this way, if I had the money I'd buy a 964 RS immediately.

Finally, two questions:
- is this the main site for the Elise, or are there other Lotus only web boards?
- are there any sites with service costs etc?

Best regards,
Riccardo