Elise as all year daily driver?

[J^2]

Definitely realistic if you've got the right mindset - don't expect the most refined car but do expect to grin lots and have small children pointing at you!

FWIW, my '98 S1 was my only car for over 10 years and still gets used for commuting if the sun is shining. I even enjoy driving it in the snow!

[Benspickup]

Spot on, guess its just being realistic what you want from the car. We have a civic as a family car but the elise would have the task of getting me to work. Budget wise it,l be one of the first s2 cars. I could raise 10k max and they seem attainable at that price. At least with the lotus, I would use it daily and not worry about it rusting away as I do my mini. I would hope I would get as much enjoyment from it too- wanting one ever since watching a program on tv, all about the development of the very first cars. Cheers ben

[kambites]

At the 10k price point, you get a lot more VX220 for your money than Elise.

[Benspickup]

I would agree, but I've got myself set on a elise.

[MJK 24]

otolith said:

pthelazyjourno said:

otolith said:

I don't find the S1 noticeably harder to get in and out of, but I guess that's one of those things that depends a lot on what shape and size the driver is.

I get the impression it's a LOT harder if you're particularly tall - specifically in terms of getting your right leg into or out of the car, and over the sill.

A couple of people have really struggled with mine, physically having to hold their foot to try and get it over the sill. Just a couple of inches makes all the difference (that's what she said!) here.

Then again it's not something that has an impact on me as I'm short and thin, so it could have been designed for me!

Yep, I don't have any trouble, but large/tall unpractised passengers can be a different matter. I've only driven an S1 alone, so I've only my own experience of getting in and out of that to compare. Being able to easily roll back the roof on the later S2s also helps to get beanpoles into the car, which is another thing the OP may want to consider - the later roof is a lot less tent-like.

S1 / early S2 roof (admittedly really making a meal of it)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ozDw8Tbzfg

Later S2 roof:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIN6JxkXaXQ

Early S2 roof removal is nothing at all like S1 roof removal.

[edo111s]

I have been using an Elise SC as a daily for 5 years and moe than 60k miles. Still loving it (also thanks to a 2bular exhaust and TRD air box :-)

Only point - to enjoy it in winters without worries, put on winter tyres to dela with the low grip roads ...
... and keep snowsocks in the boot. With them I drove the Elise up and down hills in the snow with a laugh. magic.

[otolith]

MJK 24 said:

Early S2 roof removal is nothing at all like S1 roof removal.

Yes, Kambites pointed that out.

kambites said:

That's only partially true. The "short tail" roof came in in 2004ish but early S2s still had a much simpler design than the S1.

[jondude]

[quote=RobM77]A friend of mine is 6'3" and had no issue getting into his S1 - he used it as a daily driver for years. Perhaps flexibility is a factor also?

Yep - think our own weight is more the issue! I had few problems swinging out of an S1 when 85kilos, but then went through a lazy period and put on 12 kilos....made a massive difference to leaving the car issues!! Get that swing of leg and kick out wrong and I just fall straight back in the seat.


It is the getting out of the car that still would be my only concern. If I was to use the car daily and this meant getting out just a few times, no worries. Any more than that and well yes, of course it can be done but it does get tiring.

So my advice....lose weight or go to Yoga classes if you will be in and out of the car a lot.

[RobM77]

jondude said:

RobM77 said:

A friend of mine is 6'3" and had no issue getting into his S1 - he used it as a daily driver for years. Perhaps flexibility is a factor also?

Yep - think our own weight is more the issue! I had few problems swinging out of an S1 when 85kilos, but then went through a lazy period and put on 12 kilos....made a massive difference to leaving the car issues!! Get that swing of leg and kick out wrong and I just fall straight back in the seat.


It is the getting out of the car that still would be my only concern. If I was to use the car daily and this meant getting out just a few times, no worries. Any more than that and well yes, of course it can be done but it does get tiring.

So my advice....lose weight or go to Yoga classes if you will be in and out of the car a lot.

At <70kg during ownership I didn't think of that actually. My 6'3" mate is even lighter. Leg length must help too, we both have very long legs - I never actually used my arms to get out at all, they normally just held my CDs, bag etc.

[pthelazyjourno]

RobM77 said:

At <70kg during ownership I didn't think of that actually. My 6'3" mate is even lighter. Leg length must help too, we both have very long legs - I never actually used my arms to get out at all, they normally just held my CDs, bag etc.

Oh the envy. I'm 5ft 8 and definitely need to use my arms/hands to get out. Massive pain as the spring in my door is broken, so no spare hands to open the door on a camber. End up using my head!! Or kicking it with my foot.

Suave.

[RobM77]

pthelazyjourno said:

RobM77 said:

At <70kg during ownership I didn't think of that actually. My 6'3" mate is even lighter. Leg length must help too, we both have very long legs - I never actually used my arms to get out at all, they normally just held my CDs, bag etc.

Oh the envy. I'm 5ft 8 and definitely need to use my arms/hands to get out. Massive pain as the spring in my door is broken, so no spare hands to open the door on a camber. End up using my head!! Or kicking it with my foot.

Suave.

I didn't know they ever put springs in Elise doors! To be honest the notchy sprung doors in most modern cars annoy me, I much preferred my '03 Elise. By the way, my legs aren't long enough to get out of my 2-Eleven no handed... Mind you, no CDs to carry!

[pthelazyjourno]

RobM77 said:

I didn't know they ever put springs in Elise doors! To be honest the notchy sprung doors in most modern cars annoy me, I much preferred my '03 Elise. By the way, my legs aren't long enough to get out of my 2-Eleven no handed... Mind you, no CDs to carry!

Well, it's two metal plates that are pressed together. One can snap after time. Irritatingly the front clam is in the way, so needs to come off to replace them - I've done it once already but can't be bothered to do it again.

Without it the door just doesn't stay open - not an issue 99 per cent of the time, just a bit embarrasing if parked on a hill with a crowd of people nearby!

[RobM77]

Interesting; must be an update that mine didn't have.

[pthelazyjourno]

RobM77 said:

Interesting; must be an update that mine didn't have.

S1 and Exige only, not sure how the S2's doors stay open or if the design of the hinge differs slightly.

https://www.eliseparts.com/search/?phrase=door+spr...

In its absence, I've gone for a high-tech highly adjustable solution:

[piers1]

5 years 111R daily driver here....loved every day, but mine was garaged, so much easier to start each day with a car that was'nt iced up on the inside, which it would do if I ever left it out in the winter

Try it and see how you get on, many do, but them 10x more say they would never daily drive them. Just go your own way.

Incidently I find it totally comfortable, not back pain at all, and roof was off 99% of the time too

[Skyedriver]

How easy are the Elise to home maintain?
Access etc
I have a mini clubman and am fed up with the lack of accessibility fiddly nature of the car. And the bonnet spike in the top of my head.
Do the clams remove easily, can they be made to hinge, maybe Stratos style?

[kambites]

Skyedriver said:

How easy are the Elise to home maintain?

There's two tiers of jobs on the Elise - those that require the clams to come off and those that don't. This generally means that major jobs are easier than you'd expect but minor ones are harder.

Taking a clam off takes an hour or so (assuming none of the bolts are rounded off) and requires two people. I think there are kits to make them hinge, but the ones I've seen aren't invisible and I suspect they aren't light because the clams aren't strong enough to take their own weight without reinforcement.

[Captain Muppet]

I've taken my front clam off by myself. A few offcuts of carpet on the ground help avoid scratching the clam. I did a radiator swap, replaced the rusty tow eye bracket and slapped in a new headlight. All of those things were 15 years old at the time, which isn't bad.

[kambites]

Captain Muppet said:

I've taken my front clam off by myself. A few offcuts of carpet on the ground help avoid scratching the clam. I did a radiator swap, replaced the rusty tow eye bracket and slapped in a new headlight. All of those things were 15 years old at the time, which isn't bad.

I must admit I've never tried, but everything I read said you need to support it under both wheel arches and the centre bridge or there's a risk of it folding up around the access panels.

It's certainly easily light enough for one person to lift if it's strong enough.

[pthelazyjourno]

kambites said:

I must admit I've never tried, but everything I read said you need to support it under both wheel arches and the centre bridge or there's a risk of it folding up around the access panels.

It's certainly easily light enough for one person to lift if it's strong enough.

Depends if S1 or S2. S2 clam is a lot weaker along the central spine. S1 doesn't have that part.