Been to see an early S2 - expectations?
Discussion
Well the plan changed a little - the car i wanted, but had sold - came back into stock as the original buyer had ACTUALLY wanted a later Toyota engined car and had a bit of buyers remorse.
So I ended up with the Red one, and I'm really happy - used but not worn out at 56k, its got short roof, probax seats, just had a full suspension rebuild with bushes/bolts/hardware/Bilsteins etc, full Stainless exhaust from head to tips.
It was advertised as Calypso Red but according to the code its Ardent Red - an early one I think. And I love Red cars!
A few jobs to do such as changing out the horrendous rock hard engine mount, but i'm chuffed to bits!
So I ended up with the Red one, and I'm really happy - used but not worn out at 56k, its got short roof, probax seats, just had a full suspension rebuild with bushes/bolts/hardware/Bilsteins etc, full Stainless exhaust from head to tips.
It was advertised as Calypso Red but according to the code its Ardent Red - an early one I think. And I love Red cars!
A few jobs to do such as changing out the horrendous rock hard engine mount, but i'm chuffed to bits!
Congrats. Short roof design is so much better than the tent in the S1/Early S2 if you ask me. Congrats (again).
I am on the hunt for an S3 Exige but in all honesty these S2s offer the purity still with their steering and handling they aren't a million miles away from the Exiges that are £100k cars now. Not as fast for sure, but then Lotus were never about straight line speed. For grins, steering, handling, feel back, they are almost identical.
Superb car and well done. Beautiful.
I am on the hunt for an S3 Exige but in all honesty these S2s offer the purity still with their steering and handling they aren't a million miles away from the Exiges that are £100k cars now. Not as fast for sure, but then Lotus were never about straight line speed. For grins, steering, handling, feel back, they are almost identical.
Superb car and well done. Beautiful.
Shnozz said:
Congrats. Short roof design is so much better than the tent in the S1/Early S2 if you ask me. Congrats (again).
Than the S1 definitely, but the long-tail S2 roof is almost identical to the short-tail one; just without the tails. The only real advantage in the short-tail is that you can take it off from inside the car. Thanks all! A few people have said the same about the spec and I know that 'Elise' covers a real broad range of cars but it really does seem right.
I've not driven it much yet (picked it up in the pouring rain!) but you can definitely tell there is a point once youve got it rolling and it seems to just pick itself up, and what felt like quite a basic, rigid suspension setup all of a sudden starts to glide - its supple, the damping feels brilliant, it doesnt roll much yet it doesnt bang or crash at all. Its also even smaller than my MX-5s so you have more road to play with!
K series is lovely - I like the engine from experience before in MGs etc, but in the Elise it really does feel particularly rorty, and I am so far really pleased with how tractable and torquey it seems low down and through the usable middle range - obviously helped by low mass and short gears!
There are faint beginnings of that lovely induction noise over my left shoulder (reminds me of how they sound in a Caterham), its currently got the original (rover?) black plastic intake box but a full exhaust system, I suspect in the future I'll go for more induction noise and less exhaust.
I've not driven it much yet (picked it up in the pouring rain!) but you can definitely tell there is a point once youve got it rolling and it seems to just pick itself up, and what felt like quite a basic, rigid suspension setup all of a sudden starts to glide - its supple, the damping feels brilliant, it doesnt roll much yet it doesnt bang or crash at all. Its also even smaller than my MX-5s so you have more road to play with!
K series is lovely - I like the engine from experience before in MGs etc, but in the Elise it really does feel particularly rorty, and I am so far really pleased with how tractable and torquey it seems low down and through the usable middle range - obviously helped by low mass and short gears!
There are faint beginnings of that lovely induction noise over my left shoulder (reminds me of how they sound in a Caterham), its currently got the original (rover?) black plastic intake box but a full exhaust system, I suspect in the future I'll go for more induction noise and less exhaust.
Zarco said:
giveitfish said:
That's great! Many would say that was peak Elise - rorty K-Series, non-servo non-ABS brakes, really lightweight still but with the best roof and seats.
I'm in that bracket. Non-servo brakes being the thing.
Although personally I prefer the VVC, which is why I own one. 
Absolutely - 111s (VVC) out of budget these days though, but of course the bonus of the K is that it is so easily and cheaply tunable (unlike the Toyota).
In a year or so its highly likely mine will get some DIY engine work, cams etc. For now though, it goes pretty well, certainly in the mid-range.
In a year or so its highly likely mine will get some DIY engine work, cams etc. For now though, it goes pretty well, certainly in the mid-range.
I know we all have our tales of woe on where prices are gone, but I remember really struggling to sell my old S2 111S at around £13k that was mint, complete with nitrons, OZ wheels, 2bular, sparco wheel and god knows how many thousands worth of upgrades. Low owners and low miles too. And then my B&C160 S1 Elise with 30k miles for £10k. Think the guy gave me £9.5k 
snotrag said:
Been wondering about an Elise for ages and finally in a position to buy - at the cheap end of the market. I'm looking for an early K series S2 (having originally thinking I wanted an S1, but the later car actually makes more sense for me as one to regularly use).
I viewed my first car this weekend - bear in mind I am perfectly savvy mechanically etc however have zero experience with Lotus (never even sat in one before). It was private sale, up for £15k, probably room for a bit of a deal.
Spec wise the car was what I think will work for me - early long roof S2, few mild mods (Nitrons, induction etc). I specifically want a car for regular road use and the odd trackday - so not an ultra raw or heavily modded car with harnesses, very low etc.
Now I think having viewed one car its made me decide I really want one, but perhaps not that one. The car was on 90k, mechanically sound, knowledgeable owner and lots of maintenance and love. But the bodywork was poor, which I didnt expect. There were bits of damage all over, chips, cracks etc, the front moulding lines around the headlights were all bubbling up, sills had bits of damage etc. The gearshift in particular felt very, very loose.
(Which concerned me as a poor cable actuated gearshfit is a real no-no having been extremely disappointed with my Boxster after owning lots of MX-5s, which other Boxster owners thought was a good shift!)
I am not daft, i've owned many, many older cars, always buy cheaper/older, however spending this much on an Elise will be comforably the most expensive car I've ever bought, I'm looking for a potential forever car and if I'm not going to find one that is going to look as good as I want, I'm perhaps barking up the wrong tree.
There are a number of other cars that have sold recently in the 16-17k market VERY quickly and this is top budget for me so I'm a bit conflicted as to what to do - Are my expectations too high? The prices are climbing all over (some cars listed in February/March are now advertised at £2000 more in May!) and I worry I'm going to be priced out and miss the boat to ever own a Lotus. I understand the seasonal variation but overall its all going one way. I'm not looking for an investment or jumping on a bandwagon either - I'm in it for the driving.
The car I saw would be great for someone for whom its a cheap purchase and wants to track it etc, for me, I dont think it was right.
Not sure what to do!
Out of interest, was it the black one, near Leeds?I viewed my first car this weekend - bear in mind I am perfectly savvy mechanically etc however have zero experience with Lotus (never even sat in one before). It was private sale, up for £15k, probably room for a bit of a deal.
Spec wise the car was what I think will work for me - early long roof S2, few mild mods (Nitrons, induction etc). I specifically want a car for regular road use and the odd trackday - so not an ultra raw or heavily modded car with harnesses, very low etc.
Now I think having viewed one car its made me decide I really want one, but perhaps not that one. The car was on 90k, mechanically sound, knowledgeable owner and lots of maintenance and love. But the bodywork was poor, which I didnt expect. There were bits of damage all over, chips, cracks etc, the front moulding lines around the headlights were all bubbling up, sills had bits of damage etc. The gearshift in particular felt very, very loose.
(Which concerned me as a poor cable actuated gearshfit is a real no-no having been extremely disappointed with my Boxster after owning lots of MX-5s, which other Boxster owners thought was a good shift!)
I am not daft, i've owned many, many older cars, always buy cheaper/older, however spending this much on an Elise will be comforably the most expensive car I've ever bought, I'm looking for a potential forever car and if I'm not going to find one that is going to look as good as I want, I'm perhaps barking up the wrong tree.
There are a number of other cars that have sold recently in the 16-17k market VERY quickly and this is top budget for me so I'm a bit conflicted as to what to do - Are my expectations too high? The prices are climbing all over (some cars listed in February/March are now advertised at £2000 more in May!) and I worry I'm going to be priced out and miss the boat to ever own a Lotus. I understand the seasonal variation but overall its all going one way. I'm not looking for an investment or jumping on a bandwagon either - I'm in it for the driving.
The car I saw would be great for someone for whom its a cheap purchase and wants to track it etc, for me, I dont think it was right.
Not sure what to do!
The first one was yes, I saw it later appeared on ebay. As I said, seemed to be in good mechanical fettle but body a bit tatty for me - a little more money got me in one with much lower miles and better body. It would make a good track car for someone who knows them I bet, and maybe it would depend on how hard you can hallge with the seller.
snotrag said:
Absolutely - 111s (VVC) out of budget these days though, but of course the bonus of the K is that it is so easily and cheaply tunable (unlike the Toyota).
To be fair, the Toyota is already at a reliable and tractable 105bhp/l as standard, you'd have to spend a few quid on a K to get it up to 190bhp without it having the reliability and manners of a VHPD .Gassing Station | Elise/Exige/Europa/340R | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff