lotus elise roof type help

[zippyprorider]

there are two diffrent types of roof on the elise s2 which is the onee to aim for? also can you have hard tops on either of them? oh and speed of getting the two up and down?

Anybody able to help?

Andy

[kambites]

There isn't a massive difference between the short and long roof S2s, both are much simpler than the S1 roof. The short-roof has the advantage that you can take it off from within the car, although there's no-where to put it except in the passenger foot-well. Both take under 30 seconds to remove and erect. I can get the (short roof) top off mine in less than ten from inside the car.

Lotus gradually improved the roof design over the years, fixing the last of the common leaks (around the top of the windscreen pillars) in MY04.

There are hard tops available for both, but they are different.

Edited by kambites on Sunday 13th December 19:07

[SeanyD]

Yep, early s2's had the long-tail top, replaced by the short tail, dont know the exact year but I'd have a guess at around 2003 or so. Long tail is slightly more fiddly and time consuming as you need to walk around the car to undo, whereas short tail can be undone from within the car. I think both are fine and my long tail takes probably only a minute or so to get on and off.

[Mobile Chicane]

zippyprorider said:

there are two diffrent types of roof on the elise s2 which is the onee to aim for? also can you have hard tops on either of them? oh and speed of getting the two up and down?

Anybody able to help?

Andy

You can get hard tops for both the 'long tail' and 'short tail' versions. 'Short tail' is the easiest to get on and off.

However, roof type ought to be the least of your considerations when buying an Elise: Pre MY04 cars have the Rover K-series engine (prone to head gasket failure); MY04/05 onwards the Toyota 2ZZ-GE (prone to oil starvation if hard used on track).

They're also very different in terms of power delivery. Best drive both and see which you prefer.

[zippyprorider]

hard top for long tail never seen one? how much aftermarket as the car will be sttored outside!

[kambites]

They turn up second hand quite often because many people buy a car with them and then realise that they are rather pointless. You should be able to get a second hand on for 500 quid off ebay if you're willing to wait. Add another hundred or so for painting, maybe?

[Mobile Chicane]

Get a decent cover for the car and you'll be fine. Mine lives outside all year round with the soft top and a bit of water ingress here and there in driving rain isn't a problem.

Storing a hard top when not in use is a PITA too.

[zippyprorider]

private car park but access to others and so i think it would get chavved and would like the security of the hardtop for going on holiday etc and leaving it for a week or so!

Andy

ps possible for the warmth aswell (ban?)

[Herman Toothrot]

I much prefer the hardtop on my vx220 in the winter than the soft top, makes it much more cosy. The short roof is essentially the same as the VX roof, apparently the vx and short elise hardtops are interchangabe but look stupid due to the styling differences.