Why do fwd Elans cost more than early Elises ?
Discussion
gshughes said:
Why is this given that the Elise is better in every department than the Elan ?
OK as an Elise owner (from new) and Elan owner (again from new) i'll chip in.
The Elise has infinitely better steering, marginally better brakes (MMC only)in the dry, much better economy and you can hang the back end out. Beyond that there is no comparison as the Elan is light years ahead as a daily driver with masses of internal storage, with a proper sized boot, good comfort on long journeys, ease of entry, a very well balanced chassis - get your heads out of the sand and ignore the fact it is FWD! You have more grip than you should ever need - far too much in fact as narrower tyres transform the car to satisfy even the most cynical RWD nut. The ride quality is marginally better on the Elan but with far less crashes and bangs. Also despite being a newer design the styling is looking severely dated on the S1 whereas the 15+ year old Elan design still looks very fresh.
There are Elan drivetrains out there approaching 1/4 million miles albeit with a head gasket change. Some are at 150k with nothing much more than basic servicing. Find me an Elise that reliable and i'll eat my bobble hat ;-)
Warm and sunny and a few miles to travel on quiet roads? Give me the Elise.
Wet roads, real world traffic and a country to cross in a few hours? The Elan wins hands down.
But they are both Lotus's so the only choice is to have both ;-)
>> Edited by M100 on Wednesday 17th March 07:32
gshughes said:
Early Elises are now below £10 K and while you can get a fwd Elan for less, lots of them still seem to be well above this, with some stil up at around £14 K. Why is this given that the Elise is better in every department than the Elan ?
Elises below £10K are usually shagged, whereas M100 Elans above that figure are usually exceptional examples.
As has already been stated, the M100 Elan is a lot more practical and comfortable as a daily driver. At risk of upsetting the male M100 owners on this forum,this means that it appeals to women and hairdressers as well as genuine enthusiasts. Supply and demand therefore mean that prices hold well compared to the Elise - there are not many M100 Elans and lots of women and hairdressers, but there are now plenty of Elises and the market for such a relatvely 'hardcore' enthusiasts car is growing close to saturation.
cuzza said:
Why is this given that the Elise is better in every department than the Elan ?
You're gonna get it for that!I hope you can back a statement like that up and have driven them both??
I'm looking forward to Mustard reading this
Well, what a can of worms to open!
The two are very different cars, the Elan can chew through miles at a great rate of notts, without leaving the driver weary. but the Elise can out handle the Elan (in a skilled pair of hands!) and as also pointed out by someone has more powerful brakes (though those on the Elan can be easily sorted for around £500). Above all the Elise is a purer driving experience, but the Elan is a more practical car.
FWD Elans are rated by many to be the most reliable product Lotus have ever made, (thanks to Jap mechanics... so maybe the 111R may take this crown)I know personally of an Elan that has done over 220,000miles by its one careful owner who has had very little trouble with it. Elise's are prone to HGF, and the suspension takes alot of hammer.
Again as someone else mentions 10k Elises are around, but buy with extreme care or you'll end up spending 2k to get it fully licked in to shape.
Yes you can see Elans advertised for £14k but unless its a time warp example dont pay it! (owner of yellow S2 in classifieds take note!)
A good S2 (94-95)under 60k miles should be between £10-£12k and a SE (90-93) £7-£9k for a 60-90k car. the only things to worry about with them are FSH and to check the condition of the wishbones and the usual checks you'd make to any car.
Fast affordable pretty reliable fun... hence why I parted with me hard earned
If I come across a pearla of an Elise thats had all the jobs done for £9k I might swap
Something else that probably helps the Elan's popularity is the fact that it's very inexpensive to raise the Turbo boost to get 180bhp+ and with the right exhaust take them over 200bhp (which the robust little Isuzu engine easily takes). Apparently 0 to 150mph time is quite respectable! PS. Not exactly essential kit for standard M100's but Quaife have recently agreed to make a one-off batch of LSD's at a special price if any M100 owners here are interested.
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