I don't post here much, but I have been reading and slowly learning. So I am looking into buying an Elise or Exige but I am not sure what years, options..... to look for to ensure I get what I want.

Some background on myself. I started my car history with Camaro's, Mustangs, Vettes..... then moved to Subaru, Honda and several Z06's. Eventually I got into road racing and started running my S2000, STI and Z06. Eventually the STI went away and now I am selling the Z06 but I love my S2000. We have owned (3) S2000's now and I just can't get away they are just a blast to drive. My current S2K is used on the track as much as the street. I am wanting to start racing it competitively so I am looking for another street car.

Okay now that I bored you to death, now for the good bit. As soon as the Vette is gone I am going to official start my search for a new ride. My options as of today are down to just a few. At the top of the list is a Lotus but I don't know were to start.

I would say that I don't want to spend much over $50K with the car and parts for the track, brakes....... Knowing the low power to weight ration I would think 200-250WHP would be desirable. I will drive the car on the street so some AC, stereo, a comfortable seat and a removable top would be great. I LOVE the looks of an Exige S but then again with a set of wheels an Elise is beautiful too.

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Here is a quick Video of me in my S2000 chasing down an Elise, hopefully the next one I post is my Elise chasing an S2K ;-)

 

I've owned 4 Loti and Lotus is my first passion - even above my Ferrari. I race in LotusCupUSA in an NA Elise, and daily drive a Lotus Exige S260 Final Edition.

I would recommend you pick up a 2005 Elise and put a Rev400 blower on it if you want speed - it will take that 160rwhp up to 270-300rwhp. But even an NA Elise is very capable on track. Problem with 300rwhp is the tranny becomes a weak link.

 

Thanks for the heads up, I stopped in at EuroMotorCars in the Baltimore area the other day and have to say they were great. I think that the Evora S is the best fit for the current car but.........

That being said I would really like to have an Elise/Exige, just have to figure out how to talk the wife into (3) toys ;-)

 

Depends in what you use it for.
I've driven the Evora on track and it doesn't carry the Colin Chapman theory of "add lightness." It has good steering but a much heavier feel than the Elise. The Elise or Exige is so light that you can toss it around with precision. Very different cars.
The Elise or Exige would be a great track toy and I suspect you'd be faster in it than your S2000.

Another car I have my eyes set on is the Alfa 4C

 

ive had my 06 elise for 5 months now and put over 1000 street miles on it so far. original owner had it for over 7 yrs and didnt even put 2000 miles on it so its like a brand new car to me.

i absolutely love it. the handling, steering, brakes, seating, vision out, are all perfect for me (5'9'', 165lbs). roof off on sunny day is most fun you can have on street. my other car is a new gtr and it sits in garage unless raining out. get thumbs up everywhere i drive. no issues what so ever mechanical. just start and drive.

negatives are getting in and out over the door sills. very awkward with roof off and impossible with roof on. i am very fit and flexible too. ride comfort is acceptable but no padding in seats means no long drives either. worst aspect is sound it makes when hit even small pothole/bump in road. sounds like chassis is about to split in half. now that im used to it i ignore it.

havent taken elise to track yet. use the gtr for that but would like to try elise. maybe autocross it next month and track day next season. ive instructed intermediate driver in stock elise and felt fantastic. im still a little concerned about how lotus chassis holds up to track abuse. it just seems so fragile. dont think would offer much protection in case s*#t hits fan either.

overall i love elise and recommend it absolutely for second street car to be used when spirit hits you. not great as only car ie. only enthusiasts will ever want to be passenger. not sure about track use yet even though many do it. good luck

 

Just a comment about the chassis.
The chassis on these cars has no issues in my 4 years of racing Elise's and a 211. I've had incidents on track and the main weakness on contact will obviously be damaging the fiberglass clam. Even if you hit a corner and bend a control arm, the main chassis won't bend (within reason)

Under race conditions, the Toyota engine is fairly durable on an NA car. On higher HP cars the weak link becomes the tranny.

 

Elise gives you better rear visibility with the rear window and comes ready to remove the top for top down motoring

Exige has a nicer looking front end, can be modded to take the roof off, but a little to aggressive (wing) looking for me for a street driven car

I sold my 06 Elise b/c some lotus have better AC's than others. Even after all the AC mods, my Elise still couldn't keep me cool enough in the FL heat so I sold it. I do miss the raw nature of the car and looks and attention it got. At the time, i got an 06 over 05 for the LED tails and probax seats

Used it as a weekend/2nd car

 

+1 on your S2000, one of my favorite all time cars.

If you are looking to do track events get an Exige S. I just bought one, awesome car, couldn't be happier.

 

I would look at 2006 and newer.....

There are a number of changes from the 2005 to 2006...

The 2006 got new lighter weight pedal box with forged steel pedal arms and extruded aluminium pads. This new unit, which is lighter then the previous extruded aluminium unit, has an electronic throttle for quicker and smoother engine response.

Reduced brake pedal ratio, braking effort have be reduced by 30 percent and improved pedal feel for the brake and throttle. All three pedals are better positioned for improved "heel and toe" brake and throttle control on downshifts. The cable-less throttle also ensures that emissions are managed more effectively and kept as low as possible under all operating conditions.

LED side and rear lights with integrated reflectors are fitted which are lighter and brighter. The brake lights illuminate 2 tenths of a second (0.2 seconds) quicker (or one Elise car length at 70km/h / 43 mph) and are 36% lighter (around 0.6 kg) than conventional filament bulbs

2006 models do not have reflectors build into the rear panel, since the LED are brighter.

Updated ECU on 2006

Drive by Wire, throttle body in place of last year's mechanical one.


Daytime running lights

ProBax seat padding was upgraded for increased comfort.

The instruments are more clear and easy to read than in the 2005 model. the Tach has 0 to 3000 RPM's grouped tighter.

2006 has a revised fuel tank and evap. loss system.



Eight new colors join the list of 20 available hues for the composite body panels

Base price was raised $3000

2006 option - switchable engine-managed Lotus Traction Control System (LTC)

2006 Option - Torsen-type limited slip differential (LSD) is available as an option for tight low speed, high acceleration driving.

 

http://www.motorcarsusa.com They have couple, good guys.

 

In this case, you are probably are better off with something other than an Elise or Exige. The AC is OK, when it works, the stereo is drowned out by the exhaust and road noise, and the seats are fine, but not GT comfortable by any means.


What you do get is a machine designed to provide it's driver with the most visceral experience available in a modern sports car. It's a crotch rocket on four wheels. Suddenly every other "sports car" is a GT car.


I tell people to compare driving their current car with and without a snow suit and thick gloves on. This is the difference in feel of the Elise compared to anything else.

 

I absolutely love every second of driving my Elise but it needs a lot more power! You will be disappointed coming from vetted and STis(what I had prior) but the feel of the Elise is so much better. The car you want all depends on your budget, DD I would get an Elise, the Exige is hard to see out of. Track vehicle and fun weekend car, an Exige 240 is better suited if you have 45k to spend.

I went through three levels of Lotus.
1. I want an Elise, wow what a value and it looks so awesome!
2. I want to trade and get an Exige it's so much better, more downforce and most are supercharged with higher hp than an Elise but they cost 15k more
3. I am going to keep my Elise, put 10k into it and have the perfect car rather than an Exige and still needing 5k into it and I save 10k.

 

FYI, the Exige roof comes off just like the Elise - four bolts. Its a fairly easy "conversion" to fit a soft top to it also. My '06 Exige has had this done and I run without the hardtop on frequently, just keep the soft top in the trunk incase you get caught out in a storm.

 

350whp is ok on a street car. Anything over that and its time for a e153 swap.