Anyone gone from an Elise to a Cerbie?

Anyone gone from an Elise to a Cerbie?

Author
Discussion

NeilB

Original Poster:

3 posts

289 months

Friday 1st February 2002
quotequote all
Fatherhood is imminent and my mind is wandering to the land of child seats ...

I'm thinking of trading in my Elise for a secondhand Cerbera so that Mum and Junior can share in the fun.

Apart from the annual Le Mans pilgrimage, most of my 10,000 miles each year are spent commuting on motorways, so a big softie Speed Six seems most appropriate.

What are the running costs going to be like compared to the Elise? Worst service bill I had on that was £1300 although that did include new discs, pads, and track rods.

Cheers,

Neil

gazzab

21,232 posts

289 months

Friday 1st February 2002
quotequote all
If you are chilled and have deep pockets then get a cerb. I dont think many would advise a SP6 (duck). Running costs will (could be) vastly higher than that of an elise on any Cerb. It isnt a particularly good car for ferrying kids and wife but it is better than a 2 seater (just). As long as you DONT want to drive short journeys and you treat it with care (eg low revs when cold) then it will treat you well in return. £1200 for a cerb service would be a cheapish one. If you want to use it everyday then you might be better to play safe and have another car as back up just in case.

hazy

1,173 posts

275 months

Saturday 2nd February 2002
quotequote all
Neil, I've never owned a Elise but I was dead set on one (performance/handling/cheap to run)about a couple of months ago. Made the mistake of test driving a couple of Cerbies.....oh dear, no comparison. Noise, earth shattering performance, looks, awesome interior, poor Elise never stood a chance. I chose a S6 over a 4.5 because I thought it rode better/ superior throttle response/smoother engine. That said I have had problems with it but the dealer has been very good, collecting the car, leaving a courtesy car etc, so ownership experience has not been soured....yet!

My advice would be buy from a good dealer,get a good warranty, ensure they supply a courtesy car if yours breaks etc. The S6's WILL be sorted eventually....they would not be going into Tamora's, Tuscan's and Cerbies if that were not the case.

If you are in any doubts at all do not test drive a Cerbera. It is virtually impossible to walk away having sampled one IMHO, of course!

YellowCerbie

159 posts

277 months

Saturday 2nd February 2002
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My brother had an Elise before he traded it in for the S2000.

Although it was great fun to drive, the Cerbie is in it's own league....the looks, speed, noise say it all.

Personally, the Elise felt like a 'toy' car - small engine, tiny rubbers and quiet. I have no problems in the Cerbie with my wife, a toddler and a baby ! Go for it, albeit the service can be expensive !

scott simpson

52 posts

274 months

Sunday 3rd February 2002
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Just following on from what the others have said. I was looking at getting a elise but fell in love with the cerbra the day i test drove it. There is nothing like it for an all round drop dead sexy beast. Oh and it might have something to do with the elise that try it on at the lights yesturday..........hee hee. Go and get it, you know its for the best.

octave

17 posts

290 months

Sunday 3rd February 2002
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Well I went from a Elan to a Cerbie 4.5 and all I can say is that after driving the Elan for ten years and then jumping into a Cerbie...I'm learning to drive all over again.

Scary

Phil O

oliverkelly

116 posts

277 months

Monday 4th February 2002
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I went from an Elise to a Cerbera.

There is no comparison. I always found the elise lacking after about 70mph, the Cerbera just keeps on going and going and going.

I never had any serious problems with the elise until I drove it into a wall at about 10mph and wrote it off!

However it had a similar number of niggles to the Cerbera, leaking hood, dodgy boot release, numb bum after 60 minutes driving.

I agree with the "toy car" description of the elise. The Cerbera has a fantastic interior and is very comfortable. I have taken it on several long trips, and the boot space is huge, so it is a much more practical car, albeit much more expensive to keep on the road.

I have had mine 7 months, of which 3 months it has been in the garage having about £6000 spent on it in various repairs etc. See my profile. Most of this is ordinairy things like brakes, tyres etc, but the latest purchases are new cam shafts and gearbox input shaft after 20,000 miles !

I did find the Elise far more forgiving if you get out of shape, just point it in the right direction and it tended to sort itself out. The Cerbera I find a bit more unweildy, but haven't yet regretted the "upgrade".

Oliver

NeilB

Original Poster:

3 posts

289 months

Monday 4th February 2002
quotequote all
Thanks for the advice, guys. Pretty much as expected, especially the likely bills!, but I'm tempted. Just need to do the numbers and then go and have a look at some cars.

Cheers

Neil

plotloss

67,280 posts

277 months

Monday 4th February 2002
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quote:

Just need to do the numbers and then go and have a look at some cars.



Wise man, if you see the car first (and hear it for that matter) all accepted accounting principals will be out of the window quicker than a rat out of an aquaduct.

Matt.

dyb

120 posts

290 months

Thursday 7th February 2002
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Don't 100% agree, there not all the same
--(eg low revs when cold) then it will treat you well in return. -- I've thrashed mine for 5 years it's better than ever. (I'm not going to advertise the reg. no.)

-- £1200 for a cerb service would be a cheapish one.
most services are about 600 + vat, just the tappit job costs more.
-- If you want to use it everyday then you might be better to play safe and have another car as back up just in case. -- the more you use it the more reliable it will probably be.