Brain Burn Help!
Discussion
I am setting up a hire car company in Spain, aiming for the "drivers car" market. I have been thinking up to now about using a Elise S2 111R, unfortunately there is only a very limited selection of used Elise about in Spain. As most of you are problably aware the VX220 is known as the Opel Speedster here, and not available in turbo guise. What has perked my interest in the VX is 1. There's a bigger selection of used cars here, and 2 from searchig the forums it would seem that the VX220 is better built and slithly more comfortable/practicle. But as Im selling a "holiday idea" perhaps the Elise Name may better from a marketing point of view, what your oppinion, dare I say it! VX220 or Elise S2 111R Cheers Ian
Purely for the brag factor down the pub, it has to be the Elise! (Especially as you can't get hold of a Turbo Roadster)
I love my VX and chose it over the Elise for a whole number of reasons, which people who are into their cars understand, but at the end of the day if you are marketing a luxury driving holiday with fantastic hotels etc I think your client base would want to say they've hired a Lotus for the week!
Oh, and don't forget to tell them to pack lightly if they are planning to stay in more than one hotel!!
Good luck with your venture, it sounds great.
I love my VX and chose it over the Elise for a whole number of reasons, which people who are into their cars understand, but at the end of the day if you are marketing a luxury driving holiday with fantastic hotels etc I think your client base would want to say they've hired a Lotus for the week!
Oh, and don't forget to tell them to pack lightly if they are planning to stay in more than one hotel!!
Good luck with your venture, it sounds great.
Edited by rosso rebel on Tuesday 3rd April 18:03
GPSS said:
the VX220 is known as the Opel Speedster here, and not available in turbo guise.
Opel Speedster Turbos were manufactured in reasonably large numbers (in fact the last "VX" built by Lotus was a Speedster Turbo) although I don't know whether they were sold in Spain. I'd agree that a Lotus would be more of a draw.
Depends completely on your market... if the people aren't likely to be proper petrolheads then the likelihood is that they'd never know what a VX220 is, whereas *everyone* has heard of Lotus.
Then again if I was offering a 'sports car' to non-petrolheads then the Elise / VX is the last car I'd choose simply because they are hardcore, difficult to get in and out of, and appeal only to the 'proper' petrolhead end of the market.
Yes the 'Lotus' brand will appeal but a raw S1 Elise really doesn't suit many people outside of enthusiasts.
If you include a big picture of the car then the VX can hold its own, it looks like a cool sports car all right, but again it's not really that comfy for non-enthusiasts.
The Lotus also requires a fair amount of TLC to keep running sweetly, so factor that in too. For mostly non-petrolheads, I'd be offering reliable sports cars like MX-5s, MR2s, etc. Best would be an early Boxster, you've got comfort, handling, nice noise, reliability and the Porsche badge.
Then again if I was offering a 'sports car' to non-petrolheads then the Elise / VX is the last car I'd choose simply because they are hardcore, difficult to get in and out of, and appeal only to the 'proper' petrolhead end of the market.
Yes the 'Lotus' brand will appeal but a raw S1 Elise really doesn't suit many people outside of enthusiasts.
If you include a big picture of the car then the VX can hold its own, it looks like a cool sports car all right, but again it's not really that comfy for non-enthusiasts.
The Lotus also requires a fair amount of TLC to keep running sweetly, so factor that in too. For mostly non-petrolheads, I'd be offering reliable sports cars like MX-5s, MR2s, etc. Best would be an early Boxster, you've got comfort, handling, nice noise, reliability and the Porsche badge.
Another reply - just re-read your initial post... I'm wondering whether either an Elise or a VX would be a great idea as a hire car in Spain... only the recent (expensive) Elises have air conditioning, and they get uncomfortable inside when it's sunny (and Spain is a lot better than the UK!!!!)
Also open tops give bad sunburn, so I'd imagine in Spain the roofs will be put on and off more regularly to avoid the worst of the sun? Or am I way out here?
If so, then teaching people who've never had an Elise or VX before to put the roof on / off will be fun. Also there's a real chance that someone will damage it when trying, it's not a simple roof like an MX-5.
Also open tops give bad sunburn, so I'd imagine in Spain the roofs will be put on and off more regularly to avoid the worst of the sun? Or am I way out here?
If so, then teaching people who've never had an Elise or VX before to put the roof on / off will be fun. Also there's a real chance that someone will damage it when trying, it's not a simple roof like an MX-5.
Depends on the location in spain I guess - marbella you're talking Boxsters (possibly a better bet due to the aircon and extra luggage space), but in any of the other resorts I'd seriously consider Beach Buggies. Don't laugh - they'd rent easily to people wanting a fun car. Can be bought ready made from the UK or possibly Spain. The chassis / engines were made in brazil up till a couple of years ago and are probably still availible new. Looking 5-6k each new but would be cheap to run. Of course you'd get the odd idiot trying to off road it, but this would be better than a tool wreaking a clam on an elise.
The used to be a a couple of places renting trikes out in Javea and alicante. Always seemed quite popular.
The used to be a a couple of places renting trikes out in Javea and alicante. Always seemed quite popular.
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