Elise, VX220 or S2000?
Discussion
Rawwr said:
Hmm, I reckon an Elise would have the edge over an S2000 up to about 90mph.
/voe
You have to be kidding - I have been all over the tail of S1's in my old 'teg, on-road from 40 upwards, and on-track along every straight...and the S2k is marginally more accelerative than the 'teg.
Up to 30, yeah - I'll give you that. Beyond 30 - forget it...just look at the bhp/tonne comparison.
Seriously - out of these three the Elise will walk into the pub about halfway through the second pint of the other two...I'd say VX220 edges it up to at least 60 and definitely for in-gear performance, S2000 quickest at silly-speeds and once on-the-boil.
Depends what you're after - S2000 will give you the biggest accelerative 'hit', VX will be the one to carry pace in cross-country.
angrys3owner said:
I've just had an idea... (doesn't happen very often)
why not walk to work as others have suggested, and then get a TVR for weekend fun? makes sense to me...
why would you need to walk to work if you bought a TVR? (aside from the obvious pun...)
The Chimaera was far more practical than the Elise. But if Rawr and Mucher mention servicing costs of a Lotus being that much more than the VX220, the TVR is on another planet. After my last 2 TVRs I am finding the Elise almost amusing at how cheap it is to service and run generally. If the Vauxhall is less, then its almost pocket money running costs.
Just been through a similar process and bought a 2004 S2000. One deciding point was that my wife has to go to work in it and didn't really think she'd get on with the Elise.
Elise (S2 111S) was actually more expensive to insure than S2000.
My only view is the Honda is the better car 95% of the time and not that much worse for the other 5%! It is cheap as chips to service (though I am coming from an M3!) and other than tyres I can't see any particularly large bills on the horizon.
You seem to get an awful lot more car for your money than with an Elise/VX!
Elise (S2 111S) was actually more expensive to insure than S2000.
My only view is the Honda is the better car 95% of the time and not that much worse for the other 5%! It is cheap as chips to service (though I am coming from an M3!) and other than tyres I can't see any particularly large bills on the horizon.
You seem to get an awful lot more car for your money than with an Elise/VX!
smartie said:
My only view is the Honda is the better car 95% of the time and not that much worse for the other 5%!
exactly my view. only a mirror image.
Sums it up though, its whats right for you. Hence the thread is pretty pointless to me. If I had wanted one car to do the daily grind and give me my thrills I would have bought a Honda S2000. Actually, thats a lie, I would have bought a Boxster, but the S2000 would have come a close second.
For a weekend toy, I wouldnt have wanted an S2000 as it didnt excite me. Plus I didnt fancy tracking one on a regular basis.
It really is this simple - go and drive all 4. Everyone else's opinion is irrelevant.
shnozz said:
My only view is the Honda is the better car 95% of the time and not that much worse for the other 5%!
exactly my view. only a mirror image.
Sums it up though, its whats right for you. Hence the thread is pretty pointless to me. If I had wanted one car to do the daily grind and give me my thrills I would have bought a Honda S2000. Actually, thats a lie, I would have bought a Boxster, but the S2000 would have come a close second.
For a weekend toy, I wouldnt have wanted an S2000 as it didnt excite me. Plus I didnt fancy tracking one on a regular basis.
It really is this simple - go and drive all 4. Everyone else's opinion is irrelevant.
Lots of good advice- thanks for it.
Re TVR: Would love one (I actually convinced myself I'd buy an Integrale) but I can't justify the ownership expense and I find owning unreliable cars has become stressfull.
I probably won't drive all four because a) I would hate to feel like a 'test pilot' and b) as soon as the money clears I will be far too impatient!!
Practicality isn't too much an issue as we are buying a family toyota for the wife/kids type situation so it sounds like its between VX and elise!!
You aren't a test pilot when you will subsequently be parting with your hard earned in exchange for 1 of the 4.
As things stand, there has been support from PHers for each one of the 4 cars. You know why. Because they are all fecking top notch and you have excluded a whole heap of cars that are frankly turd in comparison. When you get to that level, its few and far between. Any of those cars would make you very happy IMO.
As things stand, there has been support from PHers for each one of the 4 cars. You know why. Because they are all fecking top notch and you have excluded a whole heap of cars that are frankly turd in comparison. When you get to that level, its few and far between. Any of those cars would make you very happy IMO.
Harry Flashman said:
Why would anyone want an S1 Elise over a VX220? 
Because it isn't badged 'Opel' in the Netherlands.
And because the VX220 isn't as pleasing to the eye.
Haven't driven a VX220, but did drive a couple of Elises (all series 1, from 120 to 179 bhp) and I love them...
I'm not the kind of person for high-revving cars like the S2000, and I don't like the looks of it very much.
havoc said:
Hmm, I reckon an Elise would have the edge over an S2000 up to about 90mph.
/voe
You have to be kidding - I have been all over the tail of S1's in my old 'teg, on-road from 40 upwards, and on-track along every straight...and the S2k is marginally more accelerative than the 'teg.
Up to 30, yeah - I'll give you that. Beyond 30 - forget it...just look at the bhp/tonne comparison.
Seriously - out of these three the Elise will walk into the pub about halfway through the second pint of the other two...I'd say VX220 edges it up to at least 60 and definitely for in-gear performance, S2000 quickest at silly-speeds and once on-the-boil.
Depends what you're after - S2000 will give you the biggest accelerative 'hit', VX will be the one to carry pace in cross-country.
Guess you learn something new everyday:
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/martin.leach1/elises200
>> Edited by Rawwr on Thursday 5th January 18:07
shnozz said:
why would you need to walk to work if you bought a TVR? (aside from the obvious pun...)
I wouldn't fancy a TVR being much fun if used for constant 2 mile journeys during the week that's all, and it'd be more special at weekend that either and elise or vx220 in my opinion. I'd be looking at super nutty cars if I only worked 2 miles from home!
Why is it i here about the K series being such a load of shite when most kit cars makers sware by it, yet nobody ever mentions vauxhalls 2l engine that loved to mix its water and oil by being abit porous? rover had their faults but no more than anyone else back on topic i would say get the Honda they sound so nice 
Lotus is a great car too depends how much comfort you want also the honda would propably be faster after you got over 80mph 
Lotus is a great car too depends how much comfort you want also the honda would propably be faster after you got over 80mph ninjaboy said:
Why is it i here about the K series being such a load of shite when most kit cars makers sware by it, yet nobody ever mentions vauxhalls 2l engine that loved to mix its water and oil by being abit porous? rover had their faults but no more than anyone else back on topic i would say get the Honda they sound so nice
Don't get me wrong, I *prefer* the K Series Elise over the Toyota.
shnozz said:
You aren't a test pilot when you will subsequently be parting with your hard earned in exchange for 1 of the 4.
As things stand, there has been support from PHers for each one of the 4 cars. You know why. Because they are all fecking top notch and you have excluded a whole heap of cars that are frankly turd in comparison. When you get to that level, its few and far between. Any of those cars would make you very happy IMO.
That heap big man shnozz. He talk sense.
Have used my TVR to get me to and from work for the past 2 years, never let me down yet!
Back to the subject, I think a VX220T is a complete bargain for its pace and handling, as fast as a TVR (in the real world), and cheaper than an equivalent Elise. I have heard (so not gospel) that the S2000’s power comes in only at lunatic revs, making the full 240bhp redundant most of the time, plus I couldn’t get insurance for less than £700 (clean licence, full NC etc) for the S2000, when we were looking late last year for another car for the wife!
Back to the subject, I think a VX220T is a complete bargain for its pace and handling, as fast as a TVR (in the real world), and cheaper than an equivalent Elise. I have heard (so not gospel) that the S2000’s power comes in only at lunatic revs, making the full 240bhp redundant most of the time, plus I couldn’t get insurance for less than £700 (clean licence, full NC etc) for the S2000, when we were looking late last year for another car for the wife!
chris watton said:
Have used my TVR to get me to and from work for the past 2 years, never let me down yet!
Back to the subject, I think a VX220T is a complete bargain for its pace and handling, as fast as a TVR (in the real world)
Unless you increase the budget, an £11k Elise will be faster than an £11k TVR in the real world as well. Not only is mine faster point to point, it was faster down the 1/4 mile strip this year, hardly the right environment to see the Elise excel.
However, going back to the point about running TVRs over 2 mile distance....I'd be happier running my Chimaera on a 2 mile run to work and back than the Elise. Not only was it more comfortable, better sound proofed, bigger boot and generally more refined, it was also so torquey that if you kept it under 3k revs you would still be going a good pace and not stressing the engine when cold. Under 3k the Elise is lethargic at best. Remember that the old RV8 4 litres are 240bhp from 4000cc, hardly a stressed engine so for lazy commuting, probably far better than a K series. It may be designed for a metro, but not a metro with the engine in the back...
Harry Flashman said:
You aren't a test pilot when you will subsequently be parting with your hard earned in exchange for 1 of the 4.
As things stand, there has been support from PHers for each one of the 4 cars. You know why. Because they are all fecking top notch and you have excluded a whole heap of cars that are frankly turd in comparison. When you get to that level, its few and far between. Any of those cars would make you very happy IMO.
That heap big man shnozz. He talk sense.
so ditch the cushions then big lad.
shnozz said:
Valid points...
I agree, but I was talking about straight line speed (I didn’t make that clear, my fault)
Because they are so light and perfectly set up, both the VX and Elise are as fast as most other cars on the twisties – I just feel that with the VX220T, you have the best of both worlds, riotously fast both on the B-roads and equally ballistic on the straights (the turbo gives it more torque, I have been told)
I tried to talk Chan into getting either one of those cars, but she didn’t like the ‘fiddly’ roof, so she had an MGF Trophy instead!
chris watton said:
Valid points...
I agree, but I was talking about straight line speed (I didn’t make that clear, my fault)
Because they are so light and perfectly set up, both the VX and Elise are as fast as most other cars on the twisties – I just feel that with the VX220T, you have the best of both worlds, riotously fast both on the B-roads and equally ballistic on the straights (the turbo gives it more torque, I have been told)
I tried to talk Chan into getting either one of those cars, but she didn’t like the ‘fiddly’ roof, so she had an MGF Trophy instead!
see my comment re the 1/4 mile though mate
But I do agree, the VX220T seems to be the best of both worlds, as do the more specialised converted Honda/Audi/duratec Elises. Whilst the Elise is a revelation after the TVRs, there are times on those long straights that you do feel underpowered. To be fair, I would expect the S2000 to bridge that gap, but then you get on the circuit and....
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