Picked up some useful background on these thanks to Dan and others and it's now far enough into winter to consider buying one.
The MK2 is supposed to have slightly "improved" handling by which they seem to mean less tendency to snap oversteer in the wet. Although there seems to be some debate as to whether the right choice of tyres cures this on the MK1 anyway.
As I primarily want the car for open top fun on dry days, and I prefer the look of the MK1, is there any other reason why the MK2 might still be the better choice?
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Haven't got a scooby, I'm afraid. Wish I had to make the choice though!!
Richard
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Steve, no problem. Get a VX220 instead. Much better car.
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"Get a VX220 instead. Much better car."
Thanks Alfafan, tried both and a Caterham on a track day, the others were fun but the Elise stirred my soul.
I know the old Lotus gag - Loads Of Trouble Usually Serious, but I've always wanted one (blame Jim Clark - who was the biz when I were a lad).
Trouble was I didn't like any of the road cars until they came up with the Elise.
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I think the MK2 has more room and a better roof mechanism, but I'm with you - the MK1 is the better looking car.
Not sure you'll lose either way, it's a choice I'd quite like to be making - hopefully SWMBO is making the decision now and trying to find a stocking large enough to accomodate it for my Christmas present... :-)
Lee.
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HJ,
Now you mention it I remember JC complaining about the MK2 then being shown how to drive it!
Also, doesn't JC's wife have one?
On the MK1, the story I read on enthusiast sites points the finger at the Pirelli P zero. Saying that they are better in cars with some weight. They seem to think that changing the tyres improved it in the wet by a lot.
Have you come across this in your dealings?
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All Lotus's are bargepole vehicles-ie. don't touch with!!!
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jc - is this a personal experience?
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Hi Steve S,
I have an S1 Elise. Much prettier than the S2,
and easier to modify. The S2 has a couple of
advantages --- less oversteer (if that's what
you want), better roof, easier access. But S1s
are already "classics" and are very cheap at
the moment.
Maintenance is not a problem. If you are in
the SE or Midlands, then both Lakeside Engineering
(east of the M25 I think) or Brooke Kensington
(in Bicester, Oxon) can take care of a car at
lower prices and with better effect than a Lotus
dealer.
Watch out, though, regarding "snap oversteer."
Although I have an S1, it is more accurate to
say that I have the remains of one, since
I suffered the snap oversteer yesterday morning
(black ice, put my foot down too hard, stupid)
and sent my car into a central reservation.
I can assure you that the car did a *very* good
job of protecting one.
So: (i) Buy one, they really are magical, (ii)
use an independent for maintenance, (iii) GET
SOME DRIVER TRAINING before playing around
with it, and drive safe.
All your questions can be answered at:
www.elises.co.uk
and
www.british-cars.co.uk --> Lotus Elise BBS
Hope this helps!
DPM
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Superb DPM, thanks a bunch.
Take your point about Driver Training, I'm lucky enough to have had a fair amount of experience of rear wheel drive (BMW & a 911 in the past) and I'm not a racer. The thing I liked about the Elise was that it was so much fun without getting silly.
Did you change the tyres on your S1? The guys corresponding to one of the sites seemed to think that the Pirelli's are a problem - they also recommend getting a sports exhaust which I can understand as that was the only disappointing thing about the one I was playing with.
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Hi. Re Steve S's tyres query. I switched from Pirelli to
Advan Neova LTS very recently. The Advans are the Lotus
recommended item now. They are supposed to be better in the
wet, etc, but I actually found them less predictable at
the limit --- but then again, don't trust me, since now
it looks like my S1 will be a write-off. Hey ho.
Re sports exhausts: On getting mine, I switched to a
stainless sports exhaust and a different air filter. Makes
the car feel and sounds just right. My system is an
in house job from Brooke Kensington and I think is a
bargain.
Let us know what you buy in the end!
Cheerio, DPM.
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