Test drove a lotus elise today
Discussion
Ok I'm still looking for something to replace the TT. I've spent more time in the auto trader and pistonheads classifieds than I usually waste on the forum to be honest. lol That's not to mention the reviews and forums I've trawled through.
Anyway first testdrive today was in a S2 lotus Elise 111s. 160bhp version.
Being totally honest I was really disappointed. It handled really well, the steeing feedback to the tiny wheel and the speed the wheels reacted to the turns you made was something my TT, even with all the suspension mods, just doesn't have.
I think I would struggle to run the car everyday, the boot is tiny (laptop bag maybe ) it rattles, roof leaked very slightly and it misted up. I would have forgiven all these things if it had been quick...but it wasn't.
We went up a dual carriage way on a hill ,and although it pulled past people it had no urgency, no thud in the back at all. They do a 111r (190bhp) and a supercharged version (220bhp) apparently, but it's then getting in to money where I could buy other things. It wasn't anywhere near as quick as I thought it would be.
Maybe on track they are better as you can use the handling, but I was under the impression they were fairly nippy.
Anyway first testdrive today was in a S2 lotus Elise 111s. 160bhp version.
Being totally honest I was really disappointed. It handled really well, the steeing feedback to the tiny wheel and the speed the wheels reacted to the turns you made was something my TT, even with all the suspension mods, just doesn't have.
I think I would struggle to run the car everyday, the boot is tiny (laptop bag maybe ) it rattles, roof leaked very slightly and it misted up. I would have forgiven all these things if it had been quick...but it wasn't.
We went up a dual carriage way on a hill ,and although it pulled past people it had no urgency, no thud in the back at all. They do a 111r (190bhp) and a supercharged version (220bhp) apparently, but it's then getting in to money where I could buy other things. It wasn't anywhere near as quick as I thought it would be.
Maybe on track they are better as you can use the handling, but I was under the impression they were fairly nippy.
They are quick, but they have quite a progressive power delivery. Your TT feels quick because it's turbocharged, so you get that sudden shove in the back as the turbo spools up (which is why people think their diesels are quick), but I doubt it would be as quick as the Elise on most dry roads.
Hark said:
Yer I've been out in a VX220 about 3 weeks ago. Much quicker and handled well. Prefer the looks of the elise. Front/side of the VX is great, just not surewhat happened with the rear end.
A standard VX220t isn't actually that much quicker than 111S. it just feels it because of the power delivery. The 111S does 0-60 in five seconds and 0-100 in 14.something, so it's not exactly slow.
Edited by kambites on Thursday 5th August 18:01
I did wonder if some of it is down to the power delivery, but it felt really lacking.
Trying a 3.2 TT mk2 tomorrow, which should be slower than the elise, but with the same kind of power delivery.
Hopefully want to see a Z4 3.0l next week. Keep cmingback to look at this though:
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1916221.htm
Trying a 3.2 TT mk2 tomorrow, which should be slower than the elise, but with the same kind of power delivery.
Hopefully want to see a Z4 3.0l next week. Keep cmingback to look at this though:
http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/1916221.htm
I'd imagine a 3.2TT will feel much more... muscular than a 111S - it's a much more torquey engine. Same with the BMW unit. They're big engines, for the size of the cars they're in.
The VVC unit in the 111S doesn't really come alive until over 5000rpm.
The VVC unit in the 111S doesn't really come alive until over 5000rpm.
Edited by kambites on Thursday 5th August 18:06
As others have said, the Elise obviously isn't your sort of car, which is fair enough 
.
Personally, I've driven all sorts of cars and the Elise S2 111S is the best road car that I've ever driven, full stop (or "period" as the Americans say). That's my own personal criteria though, which are based around ride, handling, and control feel, linearity and response. In those areas the Elise excels. I've driven various performance road cars including various Caterhams including an R300, Noble M400, Honda NSX, Porsche Cayman and Boxster, BMW M3, 330i, 135i, SLK55 AMG, MR2, 200SX, Clio V6 and I could probably go on if my memory was good enough! Over 9 years of competitive motorsport I've also raced and tested everything from a hot hatch to a slicks and wings single seater. The Elise is the nicest car to actually drive that I've ever experienced, and even after four years that still occurs to me every time I get in it to go for a drive. I'm pretty open minded, and maybe one day a car will impress me more, but so far to date, the S2 111S is the best I've driven.
I should add though that my Elise S2 111S has done 30,000 miles and it's never rattled or leaked, so you obviously didn't drive a very good example. The misting up is pretty chronic, but mine's specced with air con so you can clear it within seconds 90% of the time. Also, I've driven a few Elises that have been numb, with no steering feel, rubbish brakes and no balance in the corners. Out of alignment wheels, nackered tyres and poor brake pad choice can do all that (respectively), so it's quite possible that you drove a bad Elise.
Needless to say though, even if you got into my rattle and leak free Elise with perfect geometry, brand new tyres and tweaked brakes you may still not like it, which as I said before, is fair enough
Oh, and regarding the performance, the Elise S2 111S doesn't feel very fast, but when you put it on the stopwatch you realise it actually is It would eat a TT alive on a twisty road, and probably have the edge in acceleration too. That's such a small part of the experience though that it doesn't concern me - power upgrades are the last thing I'd consider on my Elise (BMW yes, Elise no).
.Personally, I've driven all sorts of cars and the Elise S2 111S is the best road car that I've ever driven, full stop (or "period" as the Americans say). That's my own personal criteria though, which are based around ride, handling, and control feel, linearity and response. In those areas the Elise excels. I've driven various performance road cars including various Caterhams including an R300, Noble M400, Honda NSX, Porsche Cayman and Boxster, BMW M3, 330i, 135i, SLK55 AMG, MR2, 200SX, Clio V6 and I could probably go on if my memory was good enough! Over 9 years of competitive motorsport I've also raced and tested everything from a hot hatch to a slicks and wings single seater. The Elise is the nicest car to actually drive that I've ever experienced, and even after four years that still occurs to me every time I get in it to go for a drive. I'm pretty open minded, and maybe one day a car will impress me more, but so far to date, the S2 111S is the best I've driven.
I should add though that my Elise S2 111S has done 30,000 miles and it's never rattled or leaked, so you obviously didn't drive a very good example. The misting up is pretty chronic, but mine's specced with air con so you can clear it within seconds 90% of the time. Also, I've driven a few Elises that have been numb, with no steering feel, rubbish brakes and no balance in the corners. Out of alignment wheels, nackered tyres and poor brake pad choice can do all that (respectively), so it's quite possible that you drove a bad Elise.
Needless to say though, even if you got into my rattle and leak free Elise with perfect geometry, brand new tyres and tweaked brakes you may still not like it, which as I said before, is fair enough
Oh, and regarding the performance, the Elise S2 111S doesn't feel very fast, but when you put it on the stopwatch you realise it actually is
It would eat a TT alive on a twisty road, and probably have the edge in acceleration too. That's such a small part of the experience though that it doesn't concern me - power upgrades are the last thing I'd consider on my Elise (BMW yes, Elise no).Edited by RobM77 on Thursday 5th August 18:10
IMO you need the "r" version if you want to feel some push albeit the engine is cammy. Which translates as a bit flat low down but sparkles on the cam.
Elise is really a purists car. If you want the feel of a nimble chassis and a car which is virtually telepathic to your inputs it's pretty much unparalleled. Certainly unbeatable at the price. However, if you're looking for big overtaking grunt on the motorway and significant practicality it's unlikely to be the car for you.
Elise is really a purists car. If you want the feel of a nimble chassis and a car which is virtually telepathic to your inputs it's pretty much unparalleled. Certainly unbeatable at the price. However, if you're looking for big overtaking grunt on the motorway and significant practicality it's unlikely to be the car for you.
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