Elise with CAT D repair made
Discussion
Elise experts,
Thinking a buying an Elise which was involved in a Cat D but has been cleared by Autolign (www.autoligninspections.co.uk/) - they are the only company in the country to inspect and approve fixes for HPi.
Does anyone have any experience of Autolign? I did call them and the bloke did assure me that the car would be very very straight if it had been through their workshop.
Just want to hear of experiences with other drivers of 'fixed' cat D elises.
I just want to use the car for tracking and nothing else so its a pretty cheap option (or is it)?
Thinking a buying an Elise which was involved in a Cat D but has been cleared by Autolign (www.autoligninspections.co.uk/) - they are the only company in the country to inspect and approve fixes for HPi.
Does anyone have any experience of Autolign? I did call them and the bloke did assure me that the car would be very very straight if it had been through their workshop.
Just want to hear of experiences with other drivers of 'fixed' cat D elises.
I just want to use the car for tracking and nothing else so its a pretty cheap option (or is it)?
I wouldn't trust the car unless it had been checked very carefully by a Lotus specialist with the right experience and tools. If the chassis has been damaged it cannot be repaired and must be replaced. Saying that, isn't cat D the lowest form of write off, so the damage may not have been too severe.
Anyway, my personal opinion is that it is barge-pole territory.
Anyway, my personal opinion is that it is barge-pole territory.
Bonce, it is the lowest category of damage. The car still sport a poor paint job on the rear driver's quarter, but this is fixable (£700). My question really was with regard to experiences with cars of this nature, does anyone on the forum drive a CAT D (Condition inspected)?
I have read a fair bit about Autolign and by all accounts they do an excellent job. Being the only company licensed to do this type of work I guess they have to keep their nose clean. What I haven't read about are personal experiences.
I have read a fair bit about Autolign and by all accounts they do an excellent job. Being the only company licensed to do this type of work I guess they have to keep their nose clean. What I haven't read about are personal experiences.
The Elise is a particularly specialist car and any body damage, however minimal, may have knocked out the geometry of the vehicle. To this end I would certainly have a geo check completed on the car before considering purchasing it, as a minimum. If you can find out who did the repair work on the car this would help (a Lotus dealer *should* have done an excellent job.) You shouldn't have any problem insuring the vehicle as it's been autolign inspected. However be aware that when you come to sell the vehicle it's going to be worth less than a comparable vehicle not Cat registered. So you should be buying the vehicle considerably less to start with. There are cars on Autotrader that have been there since I bought my current car in March, unsold and Cat registered.
With the prices of Elises these days I'd go for one which was straight in the first place.
Just heading in to winter is the best time to buy as the prices drop as soon as it starts raining!
www.pistonheads.com/sales/list.asp?p=1&s=12
and with 118 cars for sale just on PH I'd take a look round at some of these first.
Just heading in to winter is the best time to buy as the prices drop as soon as it starts raining!
www.pistonheads.com/sales/list.asp?p=1&s=12
and with 118 cars for sale just on PH I'd take a look round at some of these first.
What work have they done? You cannot put an Elise on a chassis jig to straighten it, the materials and way its manufactured prevent this.
It is possible to do an aluminium weld sometimes, which aircraft specialist can attempt, but lotus don't like these and it would negatively impact resale value.
It is possible to do an aluminium weld sometimes, which aircraft specialist can attempt, but lotus don't like these and it would negatively impact resale value.
unless its like 60% of the price of an equivalent 2nd hand one I wouldnt bother. You are gonna really struggle to move it on come resale time...if its gonna be a 2nd car, that you want to pick up cheap, mod it to death and run it on track days then yeah...maybe Id go for it...otherwise Id steer well clear...pay a bit more and get a well looked after, sorted car
Rudeboy, how much is it?
I'm selling mine for £9450 & it's straight.
www.pistonheads.com/sales/detail.asp?i=30761&s=12
I'm selling mine for £9450 & it's straight.
www.pistonheads.com/sales/detail.asp?i=30761&s=12
Thanks for all your comments, here is the deal.
2000 X Elise 111s with 23,500 miles. The car had a spin in a slip road and it damaged the front and rear offside suspension arms. The bodywork on the rear offside quarter was damaged (cracked). All items were repaired/replaced but the paint job on the rear quater is less than perfect (slight undulations in the finish). The car went off to Autolign to be inspected had some laser alignment checks done and camber and caster adjustments accordingly. The important point is that the chassis is straight (see original post). I have had a quote for the body work and it should be no more than £700 to put right. I was told by the vendor that the car was written off as the original owner had a replacement option on his policy. If I had that I'd have a replacement too.
Now, down to what I want to do with it. It has already had an exhaust and air filter upgrade. Also it has had an ECU upgrade which boosts it to over 155BHP which I would disconnect for normal road use and keep it for the track - which is the crux of my argument. I want to do track days with it, thats why I don't see the point of getting a mint car. But I do want the close ratio box, more power, better suspension etc etc. All for £9k plus £700 for the paint. I do also intend to keep it for 5 years or so. The resell value is an issue for me but do you think its a good deal at the price??
2000 X Elise 111s with 23,500 miles. The car had a spin in a slip road and it damaged the front and rear offside suspension arms. The bodywork on the rear offside quarter was damaged (cracked). All items were repaired/replaced but the paint job on the rear quater is less than perfect (slight undulations in the finish). The car went off to Autolign to be inspected had some laser alignment checks done and camber and caster adjustments accordingly. The important point is that the chassis is straight (see original post). I have had a quote for the body work and it should be no more than £700 to put right. I was told by the vendor that the car was written off as the original owner had a replacement option on his policy. If I had that I'd have a replacement too.
Now, down to what I want to do with it. It has already had an exhaust and air filter upgrade. Also it has had an ECU upgrade which boosts it to over 155BHP which I would disconnect for normal road use and keep it for the track - which is the crux of my argument. I want to do track days with it, thats why I don't see the point of getting a mint car. But I do want the close ratio box, more power, better suspension etc etc. All for £9k plus £700 for the paint. I do also intend to keep it for 5 years or so. The resell value is an issue for me but do you think its a good deal at the price??
Agree with Bogie. Given your intended usage and timescales, you're the ideal buyer for a Cat D.
As for the alignment, any reputable workshop with laser 4-wheel alignment should be able to verify if a car is or isn't straight, relative to factory settings. The issues about "setting up" geometry are more to do with their ability to make adjustments. If you've got a printout from a reputable source which states the car complied with factory settings, that should be a good starting point. For track use, you'll probably be changing the standard stuff anyway.
Graeme
As for the alignment, any reputable workshop with laser 4-wheel alignment should be able to verify if a car is or isn't straight, relative to factory settings. The issues about "setting up" geometry are more to do with their ability to make adjustments. If you've got a printout from a reputable source which states the car complied with factory settings, that should be a good starting point. For track use, you'll probably be changing the standard stuff anyway.
Graeme
Bogie, Graeme thanks for your input.
One of the criteria of the Autolign inspection is to make sure the chassis is straight and not damaged. I have seen the report and it does detail the factory setting and the current settings. The vendor has had it adjusted by Autolign to match the factoy defaults.
One of the criteria of the Autolign inspection is to make sure the chassis is straight and not damaged. I have seen the report and it does detail the factory setting and the current settings. The vendor has had it adjusted by Autolign to match the factoy defaults.
I'm suspicious about the suspension arms etc. Aren't they mounted direct to the chassis at the frone (and rear subframe at the back)? If so have the mounting points been damaged?
Given that whoever did the repair can't even do a decent job of a respray, I'd be cautious. You really ought to take this car to a lotus specialist and get a 2nd opinion before parting with the cash.
Its unlikely the tree bent the chassis, but cars get written off simply because the mounting points get shagged.
p.s. Whats that replacement option thing? Not heard of that. Surely a car is only ever written off if its uneconomical to repair.
p.s. whats this ecu that claims to give you 155bhp? That sounds highly dubious too. If its a piggyback like an 'icon' it won't do shit. In fact none of that adds up. I was under the impression that s1 111ses could get to about 155 with freed up induction + exhaust, but could be wrong. An ecu isn't going to do bugger all by itself.
Apparently it improves the torque curve somewhat, to be honest I'm not that interested in the ECU as it adds £300+ to the insurance. I was going to use it on the track only.
Back to the Autolign discussion. I should have my own copy of the full Autolign report tomorrow. They have re-iterated that the chassis will be with the manufacturers specifications or it wouldn't have passed the test in the first place. Also, worth noting for others considering a CAT D cars, this is what came out of the conversation with Autolign's engineer.
i. The red bonding glue is not available from anywhere else, if the glue is green, its has been rebonded.
ii. Some on the chassis parts a bolt-on and can be replaced.
iii. Many Elises are categorised 'D' due to the fact that many insurance company engineers are not familiar with the finer points of these cars and air on the side or caution and write them off.
>> Edited by rudeboy on Tuesday 19th October 11:27
>> Edited by rudeboy on Tuesday 19th October 11:28
Back to the Autolign discussion. I should have my own copy of the full Autolign report tomorrow. They have re-iterated that the chassis will be with the manufacturers specifications or it wouldn't have passed the test in the first place. Also, worth noting for others considering a CAT D cars, this is what came out of the conversation with Autolign's engineer.
i. The red bonding glue is not available from anywhere else, if the glue is green, its has been rebonded.
ii. Some on the chassis parts a bolt-on and can be replaced.
iii. Many Elises are categorised 'D' due to the fact that many insurance company engineers are not familiar with the finer points of these cars and air on the side or caution and write them off.
>> Edited by rudeboy on Tuesday 19th October 11:27
>> Edited by rudeboy on Tuesday 19th October 11:28
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