Elise as a daily ?
Discussion
Going to change my car this year, waiting for a policy to mature so should have about ten grand, maybe a little more and don't really need a practical car as we have a Galaxy as well as mine, so I tried a go in a neighbours Westfield, was epically quick but would drive me mental, though I realise his was track oriented and there are more civilised options, even so, dont think it was for me. I only work seven miles away and cycle most days, car will be for fun, something to use when wife has the Galaxy and I need a car.
I am looking to put the money into a car and get reasonable running costs, decent resale but mainly fun.
S1 Elises seem to have hit about nine grand as a floor price, I am thinking that potentially if I put my money in one the depreciation will be very little if anything.
Any flaws in my logic, pitfalls (headgaskets I am aware of), what is the insurance like (im 40), it cant live in a garage as ours is full of washers and stuff.
I am looking to put the money into a car and get reasonable running costs, decent resale but mainly fun.
S1 Elises seem to have hit about nine grand as a floor price, I am thinking that potentially if I put my money in one the depreciation will be very little if anything.
Any flaws in my logic, pitfalls (headgaskets I am aware of), what is the insurance like (im 40), it cant live in a garage as ours is full of washers and stuff.
GPT said:
Considered a VX220?
Slightly easier to live with and cheaper to run, depreciation is the only thing that might be a worry for you.
Or an S2, which I think are just about within the budget. Slightly easier to live with and cheaper to run, depreciation is the only thing that might be a worry for you.
Look around in the Elise subsection. There have been plenty of threads on this in the past.
GPT said:
Considered a VX220?
Slightly easier to live with and cheaper to run, depreciation is the only thing that might be a worry for you.
They have levelled out as well at about the £8000 mark for a car thats not a registered write-off. Got mine 2 years ago for that amount and if I was to sell it would go up for the same price.Slightly easier to live with and cheaper to run, depreciation is the only thing that might be a worry for you.
I drive my Elise S1 as a daily, I just wear headphones as the speakers are useless.
Otherwise, it's very cheap to run (when I manage to keep away from DVA Power) and has been without doubt the most reliable car I've ever owned.
It's also a nice feeling watching equivalent cars go up in value...
Otherwise, it's very cheap to run (when I manage to keep away from DVA Power) and has been without doubt the most reliable car I've ever owned.
It's also a nice feeling watching equivalent cars go up in value...
I ran an Elise S1 as a DD for about 3 years, doing 70 or so miles a day. It was fine apart from the leaky roof in heavy rain that would drip onto my right leg.
They aren't 'cheap' to run, though it's all relative. I'd put away £1000-£1500 per year for maintenance / repairs, and you will mostly be pleasantly surprised, but not left short in case of a bigger problem. Keep an eye on the coolant level and the HGF worries shouldn't be an issue. I did think the car could have done with a bit more power, but that's achievable if you have a few £s spare.
Make sure you get good tyres, it makes ALL the difference to the car wanting to kill you at the first sign of anything but a perfect road surface.
Great cars, more practical than you might think. I seemed to get 35mpg out of mine no matter how hard I drove it, which is nice.
They aren't 'cheap' to run, though it's all relative. I'd put away £1000-£1500 per year for maintenance / repairs, and you will mostly be pleasantly surprised, but not left short in case of a bigger problem. Keep an eye on the coolant level and the HGF worries shouldn't be an issue. I did think the car could have done with a bit more power, but that's achievable if you have a few £s spare.
Make sure you get good tyres, it makes ALL the difference to the car wanting to kill you at the first sign of anything but a perfect road surface.
Great cars, more practical than you might think. I seemed to get 35mpg out of mine no matter how hard I drove it, which is nice.
J4CKO said:
Going to change my car this year, waiting for a policy to mature so should have about ten grand, maybe a little more and don't really need a practical car as we have a Galaxy as well as mine, so I tried a go in a neighbours Westfield, was epically quick but would drive me mental, though I realise his was track oriented and there are more civilised options, even so, dont think it was for me. I only work seven miles away and cycle most days, car will be for fun, something to use when wife has the Galaxy and I need a car.
I am looking to put the money into a car and get reasonable running costs, decent resale but mainly fun.
S1 Elises seem to have hit about nine grand as a floor price, I am thinking that potentially if I put my money in one the depreciation will be very little if anything.
Any flaws in my logic, pitfalls (headgaskets I am aware of), what is the insurance like (im 40), it cant live in a garage as ours is full of washers and stuff.
HGF was a pain for me, but it's not a hugely expensive fix when it does happen. I'd not commute 7 miles in an elise, it won't be warm by the end of the journey, but as long as you're cycling most of the time it won't be that bad of a deal.I am looking to put the money into a car and get reasonable running costs, decent resale but mainly fun.
S1 Elises seem to have hit about nine grand as a floor price, I am thinking that potentially if I put my money in one the depreciation will be very little if anything.
Any flaws in my logic, pitfalls (headgaskets I am aware of), what is the insurance like (im 40), it cant live in a garage as ours is full of washers and stuff.
Be careful of roofs on S1 elises. Some leak, some don't. If you can get one with a Lotus hardtop (as opposed to any of the pattern ones) that will be warmer in winter, albeit actually louder in some cases.
S1 suspension - avoid original koni shocks. A better bet are cars with Bilstein (ie. S2 elise) shocks, although they will often have required brackets and things to be manufactured to make that work (mine had this at one point). Best suspension is Nitron, I'd pay a premium for that.
Brakes - avoid MMCs unless you've got the pockets and contacts to source bits for them. They feel great on the road but aren't quite up to track work.
Exhausts - as you see fit. The original Lotus ones are very heavy and made of a material which is like mild steel, only more prone to rust (that is, they rust really fast).
Gearshift - eliseparts quickshift/linkage kits are worthwhile, in my opinion. The old rover PG1 box is a bit truculent sometimes. (Yota elises have rod-operated shifts, all S1s are cable operated).
Clutch hose - this is plastic as orifinal fit, and tends to swell up when the engine gets really hot - resulting in difficult/missed shifts. There are braided items available but fitment is a real pig (it's routed through the chassis on the drivers' side, and is located by big polysytrene blocks).
Head issues - if you can stretch to a VVC car, I'd recommend that as a starting point. The standard 118bhp car is really asthmatic (doesn't like revving past 5500 or so) - whereas cars with VVC or re-cammed cars typically rev straight into the 7000's with no problems, and actually feel sporty.
Garage - the natural home of an S1 elise. If it really has to live outdoors, I'd suggest getting an S2or VX220 (both of which have a proper roof.). The S1 elise was originally going to be sold without a roof of any sort. It gained a fabric one at the last minute, and for basically no development cost, and is consequently quite a flawed design.
Motorways - elises are slow on these. Being able to outcorner/outbrake/out-traction most cars doesn't help in a straight line. the only things that help are aerodynamics (the elise has a small frontal area, but not a very drag-free shape) and power. You will struggle to keep up with modern hot hatches from 0.7 leptons upward.
Servicing is of the AAbAAbAAc... pattern. Tuppence ha'penny for servicing, but the C job (and attendant cambelt job) is horrible - there's no space and you sometimes need to make custom tools to loosen/tighten the cam pulley.
Cost - the "floor" for the S1 elise was probabyl more like about £7500. I've been watching prices for a little while, since I want another. My Rover K-series fun (HGFs) has led me toward wanting another engine in the back though. The Honda K20 seems the most suited to the car (revs to infinity and beyond, sounds right, feels right) - but I'm also considering Audi turbo conversions (330bhp in something weighing 750Kg is Mclaren-F1 levels of power to weight).
Insurance - depends on your history, where you live, etc etc.
C
Cock Womble 7 said:
An impractical two-seater sports car as a daily drive?
You must be mental.
I did it for 2 years. Never had any problems.You must be mental.
I even managed to get 4 tyres from home to the fitting place in the car so they could be fit to it (this, I admit, wasn't easy).
Loads of folk run elises as a daily drive.
C
CraigyMc said:
Cock Womble 7 said:
An impractical two-seater sports car as a daily drive?
You must be mental.
I did it for 2 years. Never had any problems.You must be mental.
I even managed to get 4 tyres from home to the fitting place in the car so they could be fit to it (this, I admit, wasn't easy).
Loads of folk run elises as a daily drive.
C
kambites said:
CraigyMc said:
Cock Womble 7 said:
An impractical two-seater sports car as a daily drive?
You must be mental.
I did it for 2 years. Never had any problems.You must be mental.
I even managed to get 4 tyres from home to the fitting place in the car so they could be fit to it (this, I admit, wasn't easy).
Loads of folk run elises as a daily drive.
C
[/quote]
HGF was a pain for me, but it's not a hugely expensive fix when it does happen. I'd not commute 7 miles in an elise, it won't be warm by the end of the journey, but as long as you're cycling most of the time it won't be that bad of a deal.
Be careful of roofs on S1 elises. Some leak, some don't. If you can get one with a Lotus hardtop (as opposed to any of the pattern ones) that will be warmer in winter, albeit actually louder in some cases.
S1 suspension - avoid original koni shocks. A better bet are cars with Bilstein (ie. S2 elise) shocks, although they will often have required brackets and things to be manufactured to make that work (mine had this at one point). Best suspension is Nitron, I'd pay a premium for that.
Garage - the natural home of an S1 elise. If it really has to live outdoors, I'd suggest getting an S2or VX220 (both of which have a proper roof.). The S1 elise was originally going to be sold without a roof of any sort. It gained a fabric one at the last minute, and for basically no development cost, and is consequently quite a flawed design.
Motorways - elises are slow on these. Being able to outcorner/outbrake/out-traction most cars doesn't help in a straight line. the only things that help are aerodynamics (the elise has a small frontal area, but not a very drag-free shape) and power. You will struggle to keep up with modern hot hatches from 0.7 leptons upward.
C
[/quote]
I agree with most of what you have written other than the above points, of which I have not experienced.
I do 60 M/Way miles a day in mine and it lives outside during all weathers. Not once has the roof leaked and the heater (once warm) is excellent, it certainly has had to be of late. I would budget around £1,500 per year as others have suggested and considering a 0-60 time that is just over 5 seconds (VVC powered 111s), I see that as very reasonable.
I have lost 3 weeks of my life due to researching suspension and despite Nitron being the most common upgrade it's not necessarily the best, if I had a limitless budget I would be using Ohlins. I am using S2 Bilsteins of which are great for very occasional track work and were only £500 on a group buy on SELOC.
I would definitely get yourself over to SELOC for far more detailed advice than I could give.
RatLad said:
I agree with most of what you have written other than the above points, of which I have not experienced.
I do 60 M/Way miles a day in mine and it lives outside during all weathers. Not once has the roof leaked and the heater (once warm) is excellent, it certainly has had to be of late. I would budget around £1,500 per year as others have suggested and considering a 0-60 time that is just over 5 seconds (VVC powered 111s), I see that as very reasonable.
I have lost 3 weeks of my life due to researching suspension and despite Nitron being the most common upgrade it's not necessarily the best, if I had a limitless budget I would be using Ohlins. I am using S2 Bilsteins of which are great for very occasional track work and were only £500 on a group buy on SELOC.
I would definitely get yourself over to SELOC for far more detailed advice than I could give.
On the all-weather point, yes the car can live outside, but most S1s leak. I actually had mine garaged despite it having a decent roof (fabsil is your friend when waterproofing them), but I'd still recommend an S2 for that situation. I certainly wouldn't want to leave my S1 out in frost or snow.I do 60 M/Way miles a day in mine and it lives outside during all weathers. Not once has the roof leaked and the heater (once warm) is excellent, it certainly has had to be of late. I would budget around £1,500 per year as others have suggested and considering a 0-60 time that is just over 5 seconds (VVC powered 111s), I see that as very reasonable.
I have lost 3 weeks of my life due to researching suspension and despite Nitron being the most common upgrade it's not necessarily the best, if I had a limitless budget I would be using Ohlins. I am using S2 Bilsteins of which are great for very occasional track work and were only £500 on a group buy on SELOC.
I would definitely get yourself over to SELOC for far more detailed advice than I could give.
I actually had all of the suspension I mentioned on my car ad one time or another. The Avos were the first to go (one of them leaked and the car tried to spit me off the road when it hit the bumpstop on a lefthander). The damping wasn't all that good even before the shock went (it's quite loud, like someone knocking snooker balls together). I really cannot recommend that the original suspension stays on the car (I think we all agree on that).
The Binsteins (from the S2) I had on the car after that were from a seloc chappie (well, from a chappie who is on lots of boards, and races his elise). They were a revelation. Certainly, you could stop there and have a lovely handling car.
The Nitrons are better still, in my opinion. I've not tried the ohlins - they became popular after I sold my elise.
Each to their own, I guess. The above were my experiences.
C
Gaz. said:
Can you get a decent S2 for £9k?
I've certainly seen highish mileage ones for around 10k and you can always haggle: http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/2368208.htmGaz. said:
kambites said:
GPT said:
Considered a VX220?
Slightly easier to live with and cheaper to run, depreciation is the only thing that might be a worry for you.
Or an S2, which I think are just about within the budget. Slightly easier to live with and cheaper to run, depreciation is the only thing that might be a worry for you.
Look around in the Elise subsection. There have been plenty of threads on this in the past.
Edited by CraigyMc on Monday 10th January 14:02
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