12,000 miles per year

[Hairsy16]

I've loved the Nobles for many years and am seriously considering taking the plunge. It would replace my current modified Elise 111R and I would use it daily, travelling around 12,000 miles per year. I do a few track days per year but also just love the pleasure of driving a fun car on the road. I'd love to have it as a second car but that's just not an option for me due to space.

I would really appreciate advice on whether this kind of mileage is going to lead to longer term problems and major depreciation. My price range means I'd probably be looking at buying a car with around 30,000 miles before I got my hands on it.

How many cars have gone up to the 60,000+ mile level and does this lead to any significant issues?

I love to have a play with a spanner and, being used to Lotus build quality, am regularly sorting out minor issues. I'm not worried about day to day issues but just wondered what I might have to realistically face in terms of more major things. Turbos? Gearbox? Other big expense?

I'd probably resist any serious power upgrades but would likely upgrade brakes and suspension over time.

I've been through the last year's forum posts and have a good idea of the obvious things to look for (including TDS & LSD).

All advice very gratefully received.

Regards

Dave

[Adrian W]

Mine has averaged 500 miles per year since new:-)

[sjc]

I did 8000 miles per year in my M400 using it nigh on every day for the first three years.The more I used it, the better it got, it's now on circa 38K miles,and is a much better car than when i bought it with 8K miles on.Although due to the snow a few years back I bought a barge for everyday duties,you should have no qualms in using it every day.
Go for it.

Edited by sjc on Friday 6th June 08:13

[andygtt]

the first 2 years of my ownership my noble was my company car... I used it everyday and did around 30k in it without issue, it was completely stock. I however never use my everyday car on track.

Some nobles can be used on track stock, others must have modifications. its not entirely model dependant its just optional extra's that are must have if you want the car to survive it.

[mr.man]

Jools was an original owner with a 2.5 litre car and he had clocked up 105,000 miles in 2009 !!!

[SwankBaton]

Hairsy16 said:

How many cars have gone up to the 60,000+ mile level and does this lead to any significant issues?

Bought on 37K (considered quite high 4 years ago), now on 57K - Its a far better car now than it was when I bought it !

Issues occur if you dont 'keep on top of it' in my opinion, issues that stop you driving the car (clutch ) will be done early, issues that you try and live with can cause $$$$$ bills later on , im thinking worn wheel bearings trashing uprights, turbo bearings that require housings + turbine rebuilds later as you ran it when it was worn etc.

To be honest I think the 30K - 60K mile bracket is that of 'buy on condition' . A 30K mile with chocolate manifolds, exhaust hangers, original turbos + clutch , coolant lines etc etc or a 60K mile car with all upgrades done and bills to go with?

Anyway - those first 12,000 miles were my favorite! Buy it, drive it, enjoy it.

[mgbond]

Brought mine with 12k and now has 60k, do about 5k per year. I've spent thousands but that's because I brought wrong one and was modifying it. Since rebuild it's been great.

If doing that mileage I would consider service every 6months mainly for mech parts like ball joints etc.

[Hairsy16]

Thank you all - great advice and making me feel more confident.

[Chapppers]

It's possible if you get a good one, but I'd always have a second car for practicality and what-ifs. I'd get in mine and drive to Europe tomorrow, but I'm not sure I'd want to use it for the daily commute, it'd probably wear on me and start to lose its specialness a bit.

[SwankBaton]

Chapppers said:

I'd always have a second car for Induction Noise and M-Diff

Fixed that for you ;-)

[Chapppers]

I've already deflapped, I kept finding myself accelerating to 50 in 30 and 40 limits just to hear the thing...

[Hairsy16]

Rather than do the standard newbie thing of posting loads of new threads, can I please ask another question.

I've seen a number of posts that say that you should only do 3 or 4 laps at a time on a track day due to heat build up.

Is this really the case? I'd find that quite frustrating. If so, what are the solutions to improve cooling and are they very expensive (assuming a relatively standard engine - possibly with exhaust and remap).

Thanks

Dave

[Blu3R]

Make the rear clam resemble a slice of swiss cheese and fit an engine oil cooler. Some clever ducting and tunnel mod and you're probably all set on a standard powered car.

[TuxMan]

Nothing is Rocket science , wrapp exhaust move number plate , bigger rear mesh can make a big difference !!!! Front mounted engine oil cooler as suggested is a good idea !!

Tux

[andygtt]

I can do 25-30min stints on full power without issue... but Ive spent a genuine fortune on modding my car so that it can.

The issue is there is little air flow in the engine bay and yet very hot turbos, shedding the heat on track for prolonged lengths of time is a massive undertaking.

Saying that if you can do the work yourself and don't mind getting your hands dirty you can sort it for sub 1k even on modded cars... I got mine totally sorted with a lot of small cheap changes rather than a single huge expensive one... i am running double the stock power so if you made the same mods to a stock car it should cope very well

You also need to consider gearbox temps, air temps as well as the normal engine oil and water temps as all creap up on track in the noble.

[Hairsy16]

I'm very happy to get a spanner out and would enjoy doing the work myself. Can you let me know what you've done? Or do you have a link if you've discussed it previously?

Thanks for sharing the info - much appreciated.

[951]

Trust me - you don't want to know what Andy has done

Tux's "Not rocket science" post is a good start though - then a bit more venting if needed.

Mine is a 600+ car and I don't have any significant temp problems with just those mods.

(I will do 20-25 mins on track at a time, albeit driving like a pussy )

Edited by 951 on Wednesday 11th June 10:44

[andygtt]

Here is a quick list of headline things I did to get all my temps under control:

Larger radiator from pro alloy
Stood rad more upright
made sure all air from front goes through the rad
cut back the rad intake on front clam to promote airflow over entire rad area.
lower temp thermostat (hard to get hold of but made a huge difference as moved the starting temps lower)
Gearbox cooler to front of car
Engine oil cooler to front of car
Higher pressure header cap

This isn't an exclusive list and I am running 700bhp so my car is slightly more prone to heat issues than others.. Like Tuxman I have spent a considerable amount of time to heat wrap certain items and manage the heat in the engine bay, but my engine and body package is very different to others so you can't cheaply replicate my mods here.

it was the cheapest / free mods that made all the difference on my car.... I also monitored/logged the temps from multiple locations at the same time to locate the issue areas (particularly the water temps) and make sure I was actually solving them rather than just transferring the issue.

[wole0911]

ive been doing around 5000 miles a year since i bought my car just over 2 years ago , its been slightly uprated. I did budget on about 5k a year on bits and pieces and keeping it on the ball, servicing ect and so far fingers crossed its been slightly less than that..
But i drive a 964 as my every day car (captin sensable) because as soon as i get into my Noble i turn into a bloody CHIMP!
Cant help it the sound, the more precicise steering, the sheer adrenalin rush, its like a drug ... and i like being a CHIMP!
Good luck as an every day car especially with speeding fines at 10k

[Hairsy16]

andygtt said:

Here is a quick list of headline things I did to get all my temps under

That's really helpful - thank you.