Another new "Eliser" with questions
Discussion
Hi there
Im looking at getting a second hand elsie. The one i have seen is a 97' P with 43k on the clock. Is there anything is hould look out for?
This will be my only car, summer and winter - will this be an issue?
* I also need to know more about running costs - how expensive are repairs? what can i look forward to?
* Second of all, it has alcantara seats - how well do these wear and is it expensive to get the leathered up?
* Last of all how much is a hard top and can the interior pannels be cheaply replaced - i noticed a numbeer of elises have the side pannels badly worn.
Thnakns for any help
Mark
Im looking at getting a second hand elsie. The one i have seen is a 97' P with 43k on the clock. Is there anything is hould look out for?
This will be my only car, summer and winter - will this be an issue?
* I also need to know more about running costs - how expensive are repairs? what can i look forward to?
* Second of all, it has alcantara seats - how well do these wear and is it expensive to get the leathered up?
* Last of all how much is a hard top and can the interior pannels be cheaply replaced - i noticed a numbeer of elises have the side pannels badly worn.
Thnakns for any help
Mark
Cheap to run (40mpg!), Cheap to insure, Easy to work on.
Find yourself a local specialist and go from there - they'll know of good cars for sale etc.
Getting "leathered" is a bit costly unless you can find someone who has upgraded their seats from leather to 111s seats of Exige seats.
I use mine everyday for about 18K miles per year with no problems.
Find yourself a local specialist and go from there - they'll know of good cars for sale etc.
Getting "leathered" is a bit costly unless you can find someone who has upgraded their seats from leather to 111s seats of Exige seats.
I use mine everyday for about 18K miles per year with no problems.
Markizok, a good starting point for you would be to look under www.elises.co.uk, or www.elise-faq.info
Elise is amazing in the dry. In the wet you have to be very careful or have huge skill (I'm careful!). Heater is also good - can heat up cockpit with roof off. Worth finding one where hood fits very well - all S1s leak, some hardly at all, some leak buckets. You're really putting up with the bad weather to get the thrills in the dry.
Running costs more than e.g. Mondeo but not high, especially if you can find good local specialist with sub-dealer labour rate or DIY. Advice is to get the best maintained car you can afford - cheaper neglected ones will more likely hurt the wallet in the long run.
Interior 'soft' panels aren't too expensive to have recovered - Lotus themselves are pretty good value. Hard tops are mostly £1000+ but I've never felt the need. I've had some foam cushions made to fit in the OEM seats to make long journeys comfy and fitted Lotus full carpets which makes motorways bearably quiet on motorways.
If you're interested in a '98S I'm selling mine (I think it's a well sorted bargain but I would wouldn't I...) - email me offline (click on my name on left of this post) otherwise good luck you won't regret it (unless you have to sell it and then you'll be gutted - from personal experience... )
Running costs more than e.g. Mondeo but not high, especially if you can find good local specialist with sub-dealer labour rate or DIY. Advice is to get the best maintained car you can afford - cheaper neglected ones will more likely hurt the wallet in the long run.
Interior 'soft' panels aren't too expensive to have recovered - Lotus themselves are pretty good value. Hard tops are mostly £1000+ but I've never felt the need. I've had some foam cushions made to fit in the OEM seats to make long journeys comfy and fitted Lotus full carpets which makes motorways bearably quiet on motorways.
If you're interested in a '98S I'm selling mine (I think it's a well sorted bargain but I would wouldn't I...) - email me offline (click on my name on left of this post) otherwise good luck you won't regret it (unless you have to sell it and then you'll be gutted - from personal experience... )
richn said:
I've had some foam cushions made to fit in the OEM seats to make long journeys comfy and fitted Lotus full carpets which makes motorways bearably quiet on motorways.
I hope they look better than the hideous pink flowery cushion my girlfriend insists on sitting on when we go on long journeys
richn said:
Elise is amazing in the dry. In the wet you have to be very careful or have huge skill (I'm careful!). Heater is also good - can heat up cockpit with roof off. Worth finding one where hood fits very well - all S1s leak, some hardly at all, some leak buckets. You're really putting up with the bad weather to get the thrills in the dry.
Amazing in the dry and not a major problem in the wet for day to day driving.
Hood doesnt have to leak - I used to have a big problem with water ingress but redid the roof with Autoglym softtop restorer and made sure I refitted it properly and since that NO leaks! Main problem for leaks is the windscreen/sidewindow/roof join - I had good results by putting Rain Wizard on the side windows so the water just peels off rather than sitting in the top corner. But once that area gets wet it will wick the water through.
My roof is also completely watertight (since window adjustment) - only issue is small dribbles from half way up the front of the windows where the door seals don't quite seal properly (a Lotus design 'feature') and only when the car is sitting still for long periods in huge downpours. Totally dry when driving.
The Alcantara wears fine I have 50K on mine and they look like new, and nice and cool in the summer. The only obvious wear in the cabin is on the fabric sill panel. I have boon warned to look out for sloppy pedal action as the bushes in the pedals can wear and replacing them is a clam off job.
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