Tuesday 25th June 2013

Lotus Elise Sport 135: PH Fleet

Danny's Lotus shows its displeasure at thoughts of selling it on, before rewarding with a dream drive

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Revenge, they say, is a dish best served cold. Well, in my case it turned out to be scalding hot, liquid in form, pink in hue and served to me one Friday evening on the M25. My Elise, it seems, doesn't take kindly to rejection, and last month's contemplation of relegating the Lotus a few of positions down the Pistonheads nav bar, from Fleet to Classifieds, didn't go down to well.

Danny's Lotus spills its guts on the M25

Ironically I was on my way to Wales, for the sole reason of stretching its legs, at the time it happened. The plan was to bunk down for the night at the in-laws near Carmarthen, then take a circuitous route home via the best A- and B-roads of South and Mid-Wales. In the end I didn't even get as far as Leatherhead, one junction down the M25, before the coolant system wet itself. Although, with the benefit of hindsight, it was just as well I didn't make it any further.

Delivered on a flatbed to the Back on Track workshop, a leaking coolant pipe was diagnosed. The problem was typically Lotus; an aftermarket bracket, bolted on to cure the excessive movement of the clutch slave cylinder, had been rubbing on an aluminium coolant pipe until it had worn straight through. Having fitted a new pipe, this time well-protected from chafing, and renewed the coolant, it was given the all clear.

Back up and running time to head north

Undeterred, I packed the Elise once again a few weeks later and readied her for a second chance. The chance had come to head north, deep into the Cairngorms, for a bike launch. What better way to blow the cobwebs away than a journey through Scotland's most regal landscape? For my Elise, having spent much of its life with a previous owner in Aberdeenshire, it would also mark a return to its former stomping grounds.

A small part of me was wondering whether the Elise would actually make it without the intervention of the fourth emergency service, but my lack of faith proved unfounded. In the event it was my own fortitude that was called into question. Never have I experienced so much discomfort on a long drive. It was a hot day, and dehydration in the cramped furnace of the aluminium cockpit was once again a problem. Fortunately, on hand to take my mind off the pounding headache was a numb posterior and ringing ears. Headphones and Radio 6 Music streamed through my phone offered some escape from the pain cave, but it wasn't until the turn off for Lockerbie, about six hours after setting off from Surrey, that the suffering began to subside.

Focused on scything through the Borders I soon forgot about the heat, the rattles, the lack of padding in the seats and the whine of the fuel pump behind my right ear. Soon, the bond between man and machine began to cure, immersed, as I was, in the Elise's pure mechanical joy. The motorway lows were more than made up for by the minor road highs.

Friends reunited as the Elise returns to Scotland

As evening fell, the A93 drew me deep into the magnificence of the Cairngorms. An alpine pass in miniature, it alone was worth the many hours of suffering. And by the end of the sweeping series of bends that extended out either side of Braemar I was in love with the little Lotus once again.

Returning home was no less brilliant. In fact, thanks to one particular road across the Borders, it was considerably better. I'll leave its numerical designation a secret for now, but in my eyes it was more then a match for the A93. Incredible loch-side flow turned to precision wiggles clinging to the side of a steep hill, and it finished with a magical rollercoaster of gravity-defying yumps. Driving, I thought as yet another selfless local pulled over to give me free rein on the road ahead, doesn't get better than this.

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Fact sheet
Car: 1998 Lotus Elise Sport 135
Run by: Danny Milner
Bought: October 2010
Purchase price: £9,500
This month at a glance: Bladder problem scuppers Wesh roadtrip, but replacement pipework holds strong for a relationship renewing journey north of the border.

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Previous reports
Is it time for the Elise to go?
A cry of alarm from the Lotus - just drive me!
To Goodwood in the Elise
Why is the Elise slower on its new suspension then?
Nitron suspension upgrade for Danny's Elise

[Itsallicanafford]

i've always wanted an Elise, but reading this article, compared with my Mk1 MX-5 i'm not so sure that the extra 10% you might experience on the twisty roads is worth the discomfort of getting there. Top-up on a long journey and the 5 is very comfortable.



and 5 times cheaper to buy, cheaper to insure, cheaper to maintain, better built...

[Andy75]

I want an S1 so much it hurts! Maybe next year I hope. Lovely roads too, thanks for the pics

[Crusoe]

I always go for the yumps rather than the A1 if you are heading south of the border, have to watch out for speed traps on that road though.

[Contigo]

Here's a pic of my S1. Was good fun but don't miss it one bit!

[Smitters]

Danny - having done Gloucestershire to Aberdeen in a Caterham, I can tell you that a Camelbak or similar system hung off the back of the drivers seat so there's a tube of refreshing drink to hand is a godsend.

I'll not deign to discuss the number of miles passed with a left foot on the accelerator simply to engineer a different position for my poor cramped bones. However, you have my sympathies.

[zebedee]

Itsallicanafford said:

i've always wanted an Elise, but reading this article, compared with my Mk1 MX-5 i'm not so sure that the extra 10% you might experience on the twisty roads is worth the discomfort of getting there. Top-up on a long journey and the 5 is very comfortable.



and 5 times cheaper to buy, cheaper to insure, cheaper to maintain, better built...

See if you get on with the seats. My s1 111s is one of the comfiest long distance (in terms of seat comfort as opposed to noise and refinement of course!) cars I have ever had, always step out fresh after many hours and it seems to lull my wife to sleep. Thin and unpadded yes, but for me they just work!

Maintenance costs are really not bad either, mine is 14 years old and the only thing needing replaced was a crank pulley and a clutch slave cylinder. I would have thought many mechanical parts are comparable if not cheaper than Mazda ones, if my experience of crashing a 323 was anything to go buy (the bodyshop didn't believe the quotes he was getting, but it was the fact the parts had to come from Japan). (I'm not saying crashing an Elise will ever be a cheap experience, I mean parts for service/if anything breaks).

[sato]

Itsallicanafford said:

i've always wanted an Elise, but reading this article, compared with my Mk1 MX-5 i'm not so sure that the extra 10% you might experience on the twisty roads is worth the discomfort of getting there. Top-up on a long journey and the 5 is very comfortable.



and 5 times cheaper to buy, cheaper to insure, cheaper to maintain, better built...

If you insist on using logic to decide whether or not to buy a sports car, you are absolutely right.

Edited by sato on Tuesday 25th June 15:54

[zebedee]

By the way, I've driven a mk 1 mx5 and whilst it was fun, an S1 Elise is way more than 10% more fun and involving on the twisties. It is a lot, lot faster point to point too.

[Scott_Mac]

As zebedee says, an Elise is a lot more than 10% more fun than an MX-5!

That said, my main issue was with 'numb posterior', to this day I have still found the Sport 135 Corbeau seats to be amongst the most comfortable i've ever sat in, padding in all the right places, perfect seat angle and position… i miss it! I think harnesses helped to keep me in the right place in the seat too, but i regularly did silly long drives in mine and arrived the other deaf (my fault for the choice of exhaust and decat) but comfy!

[zebedee]

Contigo said:

Here's a pic of my S1. Was good fun but don't miss it one bit!

the best colour combination in my opinion, but the 111s just finishes it off perfectly with the extra spoiler, lense covers and 6 spoke wheels.

[aww999]

Is the PH correspondent a wuss or are they really that bad on a long run? I had a Fisher Fury for a while, which is about as luxurious as a plastic canoe melted over a climbing frame - no roof, doors or windscreen. I never did huge distances in it, but nor did I experience anything like the travails described by our correspondent, even after a full day of driving.

[b14]

I used to drive my (admittedly Series II) Exige from London to Glasgow on a regular basis (425 miles) and, once I'd ditched the boomy Stage 2 exhaust, it was very comfortable and easy to cruise in. The Probax seats in the later cars are very comfy and my wife would sleep for hours in the car.

[Frimley111R]

aww999 said:

Is the PH correspondent a wuss?

Yes, no self respecting Elise driver would have a hard top on in the middle of 'summer'. He definitely needs to hand his man card in.

[herebebeasties]

Just got back from a 2,500 mile road trip around the Alps in mine (albeit an S2).

Spent most of one afternoon sitting in moderately ridiculous 36 deg C heat in traffic around Lugano/Lake Como in Italy gradually melting. Probably 45 deg C in the car. Couldn't really touch the aluminium bits of the dashboard, they were so uncomfortably hot.

Worth it for the scenery and the drive up to Davos, where we absolutely spanked it.

Correspondent needs to man up. :-)

[Itsallicanafford]

zebedee said:

By the way, I've driven a mk 1 mx5 and whilst it was fun, an S1 Elise is way more than 10% more fun and involving on the twisties. It is a lot, lot faster point to point too.

Not too sure, on a therotical lap of a track of say 2minutes, would an Elise pulled a 10% lead I.e 12 seconds a lap...would it lap the Mx5 after 10 laps

[ikarl]

Itsallicanafford said:

i've always wanted an Elise, but reading this article, compared with my Mk1 MX-5 i'm not so sure that the extra 10% you might experience on the twisty roads is worth the discomfort of getting there. Top-up on a long journey and the 5 is very comfortable.



and 5 times cheaper to buy, cheaper to insure, cheaper to maintain, better built...

Sorry, but in my opinion, an MX5 is not 90% of an Elise.

[zebedee]

Itsallicanafford said:

zebedee said:

By the way, I've driven a mk 1 mx5 and whilst it was fun, an S1 Elise is way more than 10% more fun and involving on the twisties. It is a lot, lot faster point to point too.

Not too sure, on a therotical lap of a track of say 2minutes, would an Elise pulled a 10% lead I.e 12 seconds a lap...would it lap the Mx5 after 10 laps

I was talking more than 10% more fun, not 10% faster, but it wouldn't surprise me on the right circuit and given the right variant.

[cliffie]

Jez at Back on Track is a good lad, he has done work with my race car and currently running a VX220 in the MSV championship.

[Itsallicanafford]

zebedee said:

I was talking more than 10% more fun, not 10% faster, but it wouldn't surprise me on the right circuit and given the right variant.

again, im not so sure...my experience at Snetterton was there was nothing in it between a Stock 1.8 Elise and a stock 1800 Mk1 Mx-5. The 5 had a big advantage in tyre choice (brand new AD08 vs tired T1r's on the Elise), so factor in maybe 3-4 seconds a lap for that.

Maybe the point i am making is that if a very good MX-5 is £2K, a £10K Elise looks expensive, especially considering the metal you could buy for that in the secondhand market.

[LewisR]

Itsallicanafford said:

i've always wanted an Elise, but reading this article, compared with my Mk1 MX-5 i'm not so sure that the extra 10% you might experience on the twisty roads is worth the discomfort of getting there. Top-up on a long journey and the 5 is very comfortable.


and 5 times cheaper to buy, cheaper to insure, cheaper to maintain, better built...

I've both; a Mk1 MX5 and a S2 Elise. I think that the MX5 is a better handling car; the Elise seems to be set up for under steer on those skinny 175-section front tyres and when they do let go, they snap. The MX5 is far more progressive on the limit.

The ride quality and interior noise was also far better in the MX5 too. I don't think you're missing much by not having an Elise. I had mine for 1 1/2 years, the novelty wore off after about 9 months.