Elise MK 2 - Talk in - out of it
Discussion
I loved my VX220 (essentially a mk2 Elise). Its downfall was being so low that no one else on the road could see it, in 8 years it got driven into 3 times, last time writing it off. I did 40 miles a day in all weathers in it, totally reliable but in the winter I did have to factor in time to scrape ice off all of the windows on the inside. Paintwork also suffered in the extreme cold.
In and ieal world your elise should be a good weather daily driver an trackday car that lives in a nice warm garage. You'd also then have something like a big comfy four wheel drive estate for when weathers crap an ays you need something practical.
In and ieal world your elise should be a good weather daily driver an trackday car that lives in a nice warm garage. You'd also then have something like a big comfy four wheel drive estate for when weathers crap an ays you need something practical.
Get one with a short tail roof, that rules out the earliest ones.
Short roof as fitted since about '02 is much easier and quicker to fit.
Seats despite being non-adjustable are surprisingly comfortable, even on a long journey. Get a well looked after one, don't be put off by track use, they are usually better maintained than 'garage queen' cars, and prepare for HGF, not a definite but better to be ready, not expensive to get fixed by a specialist.
When you get one don't worry about rattles and squeaks, the lack of sound insulation just amplifies what you don't hear on other cars. Also don't worry about the digital temp gauge changing especially in traffic etc, unless it is large changes. And if it rains and you are driving don't get a fright from smoke/steam coming from the bonnet, i.e the air vents over the radiator.
They are great fun and can carry a surprising amount of stuff if packed properly.
Short roof as fitted since about '02 is much easier and quicker to fit.
Seats despite being non-adjustable are surprisingly comfortable, even on a long journey. Get a well looked after one, don't be put off by track use, they are usually better maintained than 'garage queen' cars, and prepare for HGF, not a definite but better to be ready, not expensive to get fixed by a specialist.
When you get one don't worry about rattles and squeaks, the lack of sound insulation just amplifies what you don't hear on other cars. Also don't worry about the digital temp gauge changing especially in traffic etc, unless it is large changes. And if it rains and you are driving don't get a fright from smoke/steam coming from the bonnet, i.e the air vents over the radiator.
They are great fun and can carry a surprising amount of stuff if packed properly.
I went camping in mine a few times so space for me wasnt an issue day to day nor weekend camping trips.
Only caution I'd give is I picked up a car which had done 35k and in retrospect little maintenance other than the yearly service. What that meant was my 20k miles were filled with replacing bits to the point I gave up and bought a Z4MC. They are great cars if you can live with the noise and lack of space but make sure you buy on condition and not like me who thought a dealer car would be hassle free.....
Only caution I'd give is I picked up a car which had done 35k and in retrospect little maintenance other than the yearly service. What that meant was my 20k miles were filled with replacing bits to the point I gave up and bought a Z4MC. They are great cars if you can live with the noise and lack of space but make sure you buy on condition and not like me who thought a dealer car would be hassle free.....
Look over it properly and buy on condition. Age, mileage and even service history are secondary.Dampers last around 40k miles, bushes anything from 60k onwards. Cam belt is every four years. Head gaskets can go at anything from 2 up to 200k miles, depending on how well it's looked after and how lucky you are. Geometry needs setting up every year or two and no two Elises will drive the same unless the suspension has just been set to the same settings on the same machine.
They almost all squeak and rattle to some extent unless you're willing to constantly chase down the noises and some of them can be very hard to find. Anything up to MY04 will leak unless you keep the windows perfectly aligned so if you don't have a garage air conditioning is a good idea for dehumidifying the cabin. Ear plugs are well worth the investment if you intend to do many long trips.
I find the seats very comfortable for touring but the driving position lacks adjustment so if you're an usual shape you'll have to start modifying things to get comfortable.
The boot is bigger than you'd think, but access is rubbish - the opening is tiny. The boot also gets rather hot. There isn't actually much difference between the short and long tail roofs on the S2, just a couple of extra clips; neither is the tent-like affair of the S1. However, the short tail has the advantage that you can take it off (but not put it back up) from within the car.
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