S2 Special editions plus a few other questions ;)

[miro]

Are they just fancy colour combos or should they actualy command a premium when selling? are they also more to insure?

Hardtops. are they worth having when it will be your only car?

Moving from a 190bhp toyota hatchback to an elise would i realy feel like i have made a mistake with the standard S2 and wish i had bought a 135R or something with a few more horses.

when I got a testdrive in a type 72 02 plate 40k miles Elise the dealer suggested that changing the breaks would make it more fun to drive what would be the reccomended upgrade(and cost) and what benefit would it make?

I find it realy hard to decide as there are so many variables and without getting to drive these for an extended period I simply cant get to grips with the subtle differences. Some advice from people who have owned these cars or gone through what i am at the moment would be priceless.

so far I have whittled down from 4 cars to one then found that that one car has dosens of different flavours

[S Works]

miro said:

Are they just fancy colour combos or should they actualy command a premium when selling? are they also more to insure?

Most are just colour and trim options, some are worth the premium for better suspension, lighter wheels, or different engine etc. Check info on www.elises.co.uk for specifics, search/ask here if you're not sure.

Price depends on the spec, any other upgrades and a bunch of other factors. The premium over a similar 'standard' car for an unmodded colour/trim option will be on preference and at most a few hundred quid.

Insurance is a guessing game. Colour/trim option models should be no different, different engine outputs and other upgrades may affect premium. Until you get a quote, you'll never know.

miro said:

Hardtops. are they worth having when it will be your only car?

Yes but work out the premium vs. buying one at a later date (£6-800 depending on spec, colour etc.).

miro said:

Moving from a 190bhp toyota hatchback to an elise would i realy feel like i have made a mistake with the standard S2 and wish i had bought a 135R or something with a few more horses.

You'll only know when you've driven one. A standard car will feel fast compared to yours, because of the difference in dynamics as much as accelleration. Upto 70-80 it'll feel quicker, above that, maybe not... even less so. Were it me I'd go for something like a Sport 135 engine at minimum.

miro said:

when I got a testdrive in a type 72 02 plate 40k miles Elise the dealer suggested that changing the breaks would make it more fun to drive what would be the reccomended upgrade(and cost) and what benefit would it make?

First question you should ask is "when were the pads, discs & fluid last changed?" If they don't know then you might suggest that they check the state of them before you even consider 'upgrades'. Best two braking upgrades for least amount of cash are a) driver training and b) better pads. £200+ VAT plus fitting max for top-drawer Pagids, less for something like Mintex 1144's. Braided hoses are a worthwhile investment too, they improve brake feel. A couple of hundred quid fitted.

miro said:

I find it realy hard to decide as there are so many variables and without getting to drive these for an extended period I simply cant get to grips with the subtle differences. Some advice from people who have owned these cars or gone through what i am at the moment would be priceless.

so far I have whittled down from 4 cars to one then found that that one car has dosens of different flavours

What will you be using the car for? If it's your only car, and you're not going to be doing loads of trackdays go for a Sport 135 or a 111S.

[miro]

Its going to be an only car however i do like the idea of trackdays.. after i have spend some money learning to drive properly i have driven the standard car and the 07 111s and tbh the drive i had was not enough to realy get a feel for the cars, its pot luck on a test drive whether youre going to get a proper run at any point what you have said tho speaks volumes i dont think i will be dissapointed with either engine but im sure the 135 would be more fun once I find an open strech of road .... getting closer to being a lotus owner

[kambites]

The special editions do seem to command a higher price, type-25s seem to fetch about 5% more than a standard car. Or to put it another way, you'd pay about the same for a special edition from a private seller, as a standard car from a dealer.

The only differences with a Type-25 (like mine) are cosmetic...

Black wheels
Black diffuser
Yellow stripes
Interior (red and gray, alcantara/leather)
Logos on seats
Bloody annoying plaque on the dashboard which reflects the sun

[kambites]

With regard to moving from your hatchback...

any Elise will be quicker below the legal limit than just about anything front wheel drive but the K-series engined models never feel like particularly fast cars because the power delivery is so smooth and there is so much rear end grip under acceleration. I went from a 138bhp Corrado to a 158bhp Elise (8ish vs 5.1 seconds to 60, so a fair difference) and the Elise didn't blow me away in performance terms.

The bottom line is, you don't buy an Elise for straight line thrills because the chassis/weight balance is too good for there to be any drama in acceleration (except 111R/Honda conversions/etc. perhaps).


Oh and there's generally nothing wrong with the standard cars' brakes. I personally don't like the servo assisted brakes of the later cars but that's down to personal preference. You might find it worth fitting a good set of pads but anything else is unnecessary for road driving.

Edited by kambites on Tuesday 28th August 09:44

[miro]

I have driven a couple of 02/03 Elises and can see what you mean about the breaks. the first car I drove had REALY hard breaks, the other two had a little more feel and I can honnestly say that it doesnt bother me any more Im looking at 14-15k for an 02/03 Short roof Elise that isnt black with black leather , am tempted by a yellow 135 and a type-25 at the moment but they are a bit out of my range Im not one of these people that love haggling, Its a nessacery evil i suppose.

What do people do when they have to travel a long way to view a car. do you haggle on the phone then turn up to see if you like it? or just turn up with cash and hope .... can you tell that I have bought all my cars to date from dealers

[kambites]

For what it's worth, I got a 2004 (53 plate) S2 Type-25 111S for 16100 about 6 months ago (see the picture on my profile). Mileage is quite high (was 27500 miles when I got it) and it has no air-con (I specifically didn't want air con). It has just about everything else - lumber support, a hardtop, leather/alcantara interior, armour fend, upgraded stereo, etc. and is pretty much perfect (a few odd stone chips).

You should be able to get a good 111S for your budget but probably not a Toyota engined car. I would say that the 111S is worth the premium over the 120bhp car if you'll be using it every day (obviously - I wouldn't have got one otherwise).

[miro]

certainly a nice car does put into perspective some of the prices that are about at the moment.

I guess my wishlist would be 53/04 111S/135, Lively colour combination i.e. not dull outside and dull inside ( Yellow, Type 25, Red, Gunmetal with Red interior would be ok) Aircon would be nice (demister)but not essential, Mileage <25000. Dealer would be nice but im not paying thousands more for the privilege

[WWESTY]

miro said:

What do people do when they have to travel a long way to view a car. do you haggle on the phone then turn up to see if you like it? or just turn up with cash and hope .... can you tell that I have bought all my cars to date from dealers

Make contact with the seller (phone or email if you prefer) and make it clear that you are very interested in the car, have the cash waiting, and are planning to visit them. However, before buying your train ticket you want to know what their bottom line is on price....assuming car is as described....

hth

ps 135 engine is well worth having

Edited by WWESTY on Tuesday 28th August 14:59

[miro]

Thanks for that. I did wonder and wouldnt want to waste anyones time least of all my own

[kambites]

I bought mine in an ebay auction so haggling wasn't an option. Did have to do some fairly careful homework (phoning around the dealers that had previously serviced it, etc).

[miro]

Dont think id have the nerve to delve into E-bay for a car looks like you got a good deal though. Best colour combo imho

[kambites]

A lot of people are scared of ebay (with some justification) which is precisely why you can get bargains on there if you're willing to try. You can mitigate the risk to some extent by carefully checking the history of the car, contacting previous owners and garages that have serviced the car, etc.

I suppose it's a question of balancing the risk against the gains. I got the car about 10% cheaper than I otherwise would have done (plus they only made 25 Type25 111S and I had my heart set on one) so if there was a 1/10 chance of me losing all the money I thought I was doing the right thing. As it happened everything checked out fine - I went to see the car at the owner's home and all the documentation checked out so I didn't think I had much to lose.