Lotus Elise...

Shador

Shador

Shador

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Joined
28 Jun 2003
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After seeing a thread on here on the Elise the other day its re-sparked my passion to get one. I held off before winter as I didn't want to wait 3 months to actually be able to use the thing!

I am testing driving again at the weekend (hopefully - weather permitting) but I was hoping to get a few more user opinions on some aspects of the car.

The major concern I have is the safety of driving it....I hear a few horror stories of a bit of rain and the car is unusable on the roads? Or of the back just giving out for no reason and suddenly finding yourself facing oncoming traffic!! Videos such as these on youtube terrify me as well:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCQYm0MDpxo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgXieZTHqq8

But I presume these people are being dumb with the car and pushing it far beyond what it can do? I like to think I'm a sensible driver (on the whole) but we can all have that moment where we loose concentration and need to put the breaks on hard...but does that spell a write off in an Elise?

I plan to have the car probably for just over a year and it will be my only car. I am at a stage in my life where I don't need a practical car however I do still need to get to and from work if its raining!

So does anyone have any feedback on my concerns? hopefully lay them to rest so I can sleep easy! :P
 
I use mine in all weathers, including in ice & snow on Monday. To be honest it really isn't that bad if you treat it with respect. Standing water causes the most problems but drive to the conditions and you will be fine.

As long as you are smooth with the controls they really aren't that dangerous. That is the key.

They are remarkably good in the event of an accident too. The crash structure & chassis are designed to sacrifice themselves to prevent injury to the occupants.
 
Ezee84 said:
I use mine in all weathers, including in ice & snow on Monday. To be honest it really isn't that bad if you treat it with respect. Standing water causes the most problems but drive to the conditions and you will be fine.

As long as you are smooth with the controls they really aren't that dangerous. That is the key.

They are remarkably good in the event of an accident too. The crash structure & chassis are designed to sacrifice themselves to prevent injury to the occupants.
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Thats what I thought a bit of respect and it is ok....slow in times of lots of surface water and your ok?

I'm looking at a second hand one at the moment its an 04 plate but got 53k on the clock! its the perfect colour I want, a really good price but is that mileage too much an for an Elise - or do you think I have at least another 40k till things need replacing?
 
Yep I was worried about the back end going in the mr2 loads when pushing. The best thing is to get on a driver training day, I did a day with Andy Walsh at North Wield. I spent a day finding out what the car does & what it really feels like when the back end goes. You spend a lot of time learning how to counter and control the skidding.

Most of the time unless you are progressing in the motor it shouldn't step out. That's not saying that going around a roundabout that it won't step out on diesel or if it's wet. There are some that are used as commuters but where will you park it? You have to be careful everywhere, firstly they gain a lot of attention and secondly one little parking ding could crack the shell.

Having driven one in anger they are awesome little cars though.
 
First vid is it's pretty damned wet to be honest and standing water is probably a bigger problem on track than it is on the road. If he's running track tyres (Toyo R888 etc.) then they won't be much cop.

Second vid he's going over a sharp crest with a bend too fast with the rev high, easily done I suppose but a clear hazzard.

As ever with performance cars, if it don't feel right don't do it. It can happen to the best of us but if you respect the car and maybe take measures to learn its limits you won't have any problems. A car is only as good as the driver and they don't just decide to kill you when they feel like it. Test driving one in this weather will give you a big clue as to whether the car is lethal in the wet as you'll feel it straight away.
 
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Shador said:
Thats what I thought a bit of respect and it is ok....slow in times of lots of surface water and your ok?

I'm looking at a second hand one at the moment its an 04 plate but got 53k on the clock! its the perfect colour I want, a really good price but is that mileage too much an for an Elise - or do you think I have at least another 40k till things need replacing?
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I tend to drive like a granny in the rain just in case but as long as you are careful, they are no harder to drive than any other car.

Mileage isn't too much of an issue to be honest, the engine is not really stressed and are more than capable of going over 150k.

I'd say buy on condition rather than colour as it will end up costing you less in the long run. If you can buy from an enthusiast then most of the worn out parts are likely to have been replaced. General consensus is that bits start to wear out about 50k i.e suspension bushes, dampers etc. Totally depends on how the car has been used though. A track car is always going to have a harder life than a road car.
 
Zirax said:
The best thing is to get on a driver training day, I did a day with Andy Walsh at North Wield. I spent a day finding out what the car does & what it really feels like when the back end goes. You spend a lot of time learning how to counter and control the skidding.
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Andrew really knows his stuff & is pretty handy behind the wheel too. Very highly regarded amongst the Lotus community.

Must book myself onto one of his days at some point.
 
Ezee84 said:
Mileage isn't too much of an issue to be honest, the engine is not really stressed and are more than capable of going over 150k.

I'd say buy on condition rather than colour as it will end up costing you less in the long run. If you can buy from an enthusiast then most of the worn out parts are likely to have been replaced. General consensus is that bits start to wear out about 50k i.e suspension bushes, dampers etc. Totally depends on how the car has been used though. A track car is always going to have a harder life than a road car.
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Sorry at risk of sounding like a complete noob when I go to see the car how will I tell if the suspension bushes and dampers etc are worn out?
 
On that corner he is on the overun whilst entering the corner, combined with the weight transfer off the hill its made it spin.

As we any RWD you need power through - probably why the S2000 dabbed the brakes before the bend
 
Shador said:
Sorry at risk of sounding like a complete noob when I go to see the car how will I tell if the suspension bushes and dampers etc are worn out?
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The standard dampers on the S2 elise (yellow Bilsteins) are prone to leaking so you should be able to see this if that is the case. Also car will feel bouncy when they are worn out.

Bushes are unlikely to be completely worn out at 50k tbh (mine is on 39k & they seem ok) but most enthusiasts refresh all them around this time as the suspension is key to the car feeling right. No big deal if they haven't been changed though as they should be ok. Sign up to SELOC if you are serious about buying one as the advice on their is invaluable. Nice bunch of people too.

Best way is to drive as many as you can and that way you start getting a feeling for how a good example should feel.
 
Simon said:
On that corner he is on the overun whilst entering the corner, combined with the weight transfer off the hill its made it spin.

As we any RWD you need power through - probably why the S2000 dabbed the brakes before the bend
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Yup.

One thing I very quickly learnt with my Elise was that you NEVER lift off the throttle mid-bend when you're really pushing on (especially in the wet). I had a fair few butt-clenching moments.

Slow in, fast out.

But drive well within your (and the cars) limits, drive like an absolute granny in the wet, and get some driver training. You'll be fine. The limits on an Elise are sky high, you'd have to be driving like an absolute t*t to lose it in the dry.
 
It's a perfectly fine all weather car. My neighbour who was an S1 has driven 35 miles each way to work for the last couple of weeks no worries. He could get out of the car park where my car wouldn't and he's got similar sports tyres to me.
 
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