Buying an Elise S3 - pro's and con's...aircon? Midlands local events

[Fred D]

All,

Please bear with me, I've recently had a life change and now have the opportunity to own an Elise which I've dreamed of for years but could never justify one. I've followed the Elise since it was first conceived and was lucky enough to visit the factory as part of the Lotus 50th anniversary. Question is.......what are the pro's and con's of owning one (I've driven one on a track day so know the handling capability and if I wanted comfort I'd be buying a Porsche Cayman), I would be using this as a weekend car (I commute by train) and it would have to sit on my drive (don't have a garage). I'd be considering the S3, 220 bhp Toyota SC, with hard top for the winter and a cover to protect it generally when not in use. I am totally bought into the Colin Chapman ethos of light weight but is aircon worth it for usability?

I live north Birmingham, any local events that I can meet owners to talk shop before I buy one? 

Thanks all.

[MG4Lotus]

About 4 or 5 years ago I think I downloaded some tips for buying an Elise from the Allon White website. It was before I bought the Evora. It looks like they will now e-mail the tips when you fill in a request.

Lotus Elise Buyer's Guide | Allon White Sports Cars

I think I may have also found some useful tips when searching the SELOC forums but it's not the midlands and it was a while ago when I looked.

Others on here will be better qualified than me to give you actual advice.

[keo]

I haven’t had a sc Elise. I had a VX220T years ago, a 111R and Currently a 410 Exige. But I think the pro’s and cons are very similar for most Lotus’s.

Nothing drives like them. Very involving (this can be a pro or a con depending on your view, from your post I think it’s a pro!)

subjective but I think they look great.

Cheap running costs, light on consumables and can be economical.

Cons (this is hard because I am a Lorus fan boy! Haha)

Can be hard to get in/ out of. Definitely not built for fat people.

Not many toys (but why would you want them in a drivers car anyway!?)

In my experience the dealers aren’t very good. Could just be me.

 

Just get one! In some ways I regret not getting another Elise. They are just so good.

 

 

 

 

 

[hartleyj]

Hi and Welcome to MLOC. You will be made to feel very welcome.

In answer to your specific question re aircon, I am on my second Elise. The first was a 111R, 06 MY, no aircon. I believed at the time that the added weight (of aircon) was against the Lotus philosophy of 'lighter is better' And so, at the limit, this is of course the case. In 2021 I swopped to a 220 Sport Heritage edition which has all the toys, including aircon. The Supercharger more than makes up for the weight/power loss. But here's the thing. In the 111R I always had to drive with the driver's window open a touch, because otherwise the cabin lacked fresh air, and if it rained, the windows misted up. Also, water would enter through the open window, and there was some noise from the window being open.

With aircon, I leave the window closed, the car is well ventilated, and the noise is less.

As for comfort, we drove the 111R to Italy and also on a separate occasion to norther Spain (twice). Personally I never had a problem with lack of comfort. In fact I think the Elise is a very comfortable place to be.

I hope this helps, and that you find a suitable car soon.

For Servicing, PJS in Burton on Trent are excellent (I don't have any connection to them other than as a customer), and Oakmere/Silverstone Lotus are probably both worth sounding out in your car search. 

Happy Hunting! 

 

[Eric]

Hi Fred, welcome!

My advice is beware.  Sounds rather dire but I was bitten recently when I purchased a "Lotus Approved" Elise 220 Sport in Solid Yellow from JCT600 up in Bradford.

It was (and now is again) advertised as a 2019 model year car, and at the time I bought it, had just 1900 miles on the clock.  I even traveled up to dealer, had a test drive, and yes, all seemed good, so I signed up and bought it.  However... after having it delivered, some concerns started to surface after delving under the car, removing wheels, giving it a detailed mechanical inspection.

To cut a long story short, this car turned to be a bad one, a very bad one; actually it's a 2017 car with severe corrosion underneath, suspension wishbones, suspension mounts, in the engine compartment - everywhere.  It also has a very dodgy service history, damage to tyres, tiny black specs embedded in the paintwork - the list goes on.

However, after I presented all my evidence to JCT600 (in writing), they agreed to buy it back again.  Massive relief on my part, and that then gave me the opportunity to have another look for a decent Elise.

And, I'm very pleased to say that this time I found it, down at Caffyns Lotus in the deepest South East Kent!  It is a gorgeous "Lotus Approved" 2015 Elise S in Aspen White (supercharged, of course) with a full Lotus service history carried out bang on time every year, perfect MOT history, and has had some very fastidious owners (I can tell by the many little enthusiast's maintenance jobs that have been done that I would do myself as a matter of course).  It has Sport Pack, Touring Pack, Aircon, PPF already installed on the front-end, and the paintwork has come up like brand new after a trip to Eric's Detailers (my garage - ha!).  I love it already!!

Bottom line then is: take your time, beware even of dealer claims, and do your homework.  Fabulous Elises are out there but becoming increasing rare.

PS Definitely go for aircon - vital in summer when open windows just let more hot air in.

[Lithopsian]

I can't say I've ever wished I had A/C in my Elise.  It's an S1 though, whole different breed of tough

[duncx]

47 minutes ago, Lithopsian said:

I can't say I've ever wished I had A/C in my Elise.  It's an S1 though, whole different breed of tough

Not only the S1, I have an S3 250 Cup without aircon and I see it as a big positive - I'm not dragging around 15kg of kit that I never use and would ultimately fail anyway 😄

OP, take you time to look around and maybe try to buy from an enthusiast on here or SELOC or TLF. When you go to look at a potential purchase take someone with you who knows what to look for, there are some simple checks that can be made that could save you a lot of money in the long run. Buying from a dealer is ok and gives you some powerful consumer rights BUT expect to pay more for the same cars, they don't have anything special*

*I once traded in a Sports Racer 111R for a brand new Exige V6. When I arrived in my car at the dealership they didn't check it over, didn't even look at it! It could have been an absolute dog and they would have passed it off to the next buyer. It wasn't a dog, it was lovely, but they didn't take a second to check!

EDIT: A couple of specialist dealers worth a mention are Jon Seal (Wakefield) and Will Blackham (Chalfont) - they are both well know in Lotus circles and have both earned a very good reputation. They also work on much smaller margins so are cheaper (usually) than main dealers etc.

[Trebor_UK]

There is a Lotus Drivers Club breakfast meet at Hilltop Farm (Fosse Way, Hunningham Hill ,Leamington Spa, CV33 9EL) from 9am on the second Sunday of the month.  

They do a great breakfast and usually anywhere up to 20+ cars although can be lower in the colder weather.

A great way to meet up with some Lotus owners, have a chat and look at a variety of cars. 

[Jonathan E]

All of mine have had to live outside on the driveway, in my experience lack of a hardtop wouldn’t be a deal breaker, a few of my previous Elise’s have come with a hardtop and I’ve ended up selling them as they just sit around taking up space, the roof on the S3 is pretty good if everything is adjusted correctly and if your looking for a good cover visit Specialised Car Covers. 
A/C isn’t needed other than to clear a misty windscreen but lots get specced with it and although people will bang on about extra weight etc a 220 has more than enough power to compensate, I shed 25kg in weight a few years ago after a bollocking from my GP, so a cubby chap in an Elise soon negates the A/C, much like the hard top, if it’s got it fine, if it hasn’t it’s no big deal.
In respect of pros and cons, you’ve had the chance to drive one on track which gives a great insight as to the pros, there really isn’t anything else out there that comes close to the drivability the Elise has to offer without further compromising usability, I don’t know where people get the lack of comfort thing from, granted getting in and out takes a little practice but I have never found the Elise uncomfortable in any guise, an S3 is the height of luxury compared to other models. Probably the best thing about ownership is fellow owners, I’ve made some great friends due to owning a Lotus and the online support is outstanding, whatever the problem(there will be some along the way) there will always be someone who has experienced it, or knows how to sort it and will be more than willing to help you get it sorted. 

Cons:, they’re not so much fun in winter as you tend to end up driving like miss daisy, but as it’s a weekend car you will get the full sense of occasion every time you drive it. Insurance can be cheap but you don’t need me to point out they’re not made anymore, insurance underwriters don’t understand them so although not essential a more expensive agreed value policy might be worth considering to protect that long sort after perfect example.
Dealers are few and far between and can be flakey to say the least, although we’re pretty lucky with the independent guys in the area who could teach the main dealers a trick or two when it comes to customer service. 
I bought my first in 1998, I’m now on my tenth so they can get under your skin, there will always be something to spend your spare cash on because there will always be something you want to add/replace/remove/upgrade etc

On the whole a well cared for Elise will give you far more smiles than tears, I think the most important thing about owning one is the right mindset, they’re not a Honda Civic so expect to have to occasionally get out a spanner or a screwdriver and be prepared to tighten/grease/adjust/clean/glue something yourself because at the end of the day they are screwed together by Norfolks finest.

Finally, as I think I’ve stated on here before, if your happy to accept that ladies will think you are lacking something in the trouser department, and that every young boy for miles around will want to be your best friend then you won’t have any problems at all👍
Good luck with the search.

 

 

 

 

[Fred D]

Thanks all, I've now put a deposit on an S3 which I pick up next week! Excited is an understatement, 

[Trebor_UK]

The monthly meet (2nd Sunday) has moved from Hilltop Farm to Farmers Fayre, National Agricultural Centre, Stoneleigh, Kenilworth CV8 2LG

Details, pics, we need to see your S3