jealous people

[james24]

sorry to post another topic but im wondering if any elise owners get worried about leaving there car anywhere?! my girlfriend keeps saying to me 'why are you getting an elise, u wont want to leave it anywhere incase it gets scratched!' do u think this is true? anyone had any troubles? as i will be using the car everyday i need to be convinced it can be left!

[NJS25]

Hello James,

I had the same doubts about security when buying my S2.

I have left my car in a number of undesirable locations and to date have had no problems. Yes I would be seriously pissed off if someone decides to slash or scratch , but the bottom line is I bought the car to drive so when driving I wouldn't care less

I have noticed your other posts about what to buy and how much, does the difficulty in obtaining a loan mean you need to buy new?

I was looking for an S1 and ended up with an nearly new S2 (ex Lotus mangement car)

The S2 is more refined and I love it, but an S1 is a superb car that's available for very reasonable money. Shop around, find the right one (looking for it can be fun too!), be prepared to travel. You won't lose as much on an S1 and I doubt your smiles per mile will be any less

After a couple of years you could sell it for little less than you paid for it and buy an S2 or S3?, or keep it and nurture it as the classic original it is!

It always breaks my heart to here of people who taken the plunge only to find finances stretched and their beloved possession sold within a year or so

Basically, take your time, buy something at a price that gives you the best chance of hanging on to it, 'cos once you've got it you'll wanna' keep it. Whatever you decide you will not be disappointed.

Best of luck

[bogie]

I use mine daily for work and do around 25K miles a year - never had a problem leaving it anywhere...it dosent seem to have the image of porsche/Ferrari (loads of money!)

dont leave anything in it at all when parked and leave the roof off, doors unlocked and alarm on most of the time unless its raining or leaving it overnight

buy one - you wont regret it

[james24]

thanks for taking the time to reply guys hopefully i wont have any problems either when i eventually get one!

i dont want to buy a new one (looking for a Y reg) but they wont give me a loan for that much because its over 3quarters of my annual wage! i can easily afford the payments from the dealer for the full four years but its just the final payment i'll have troubles with so i'll have to sell it back to pay it off!

i cant really wait a few years because i think after the four years i'll be ready to put my money into other things, (mortgage, kids, bills, etc) im only 22 and want the car before i decide to settle down which my girlfriend keeps on talking about!

i like the s1 but think i'd regret getting one over the s2 which i love! i keep telling myself 'you only live once so just do it!'

[clanger]

James just remember buying is not the whole story.. You've got to run the lil' monster too, insurance, service, tyres, contingency pot - don't overstretch yourself and then find you can't afford to enjoy it - be v cautious its so easy to get swept along by the thing of your dreams and then everything goes pear shaped.

Have you tried both an S1 and an S2? - get to the dealers and test 'em, they are quite different in feel (both absolutely fantastic tho'!!)

I'd recommend that you go for a low mileage S/T reg standard S1 - you're not goin' too loose out on heavy depreciation..

On the subject of leaving the car - as stated above most people have a very benign attitude to my Elises - I've left mine in some v iffy districts - only ever had kids grubby little finger marks when I've returned - Ferrari/Porsche/Scoob brigade - public seem to have a v malignant attitude to these cars - associate them with rich barstewards/poseurs/ pimps/drug dealers/maxpower, etc, etc