Poll: K Series

[Rich H]

How about this then, buy a k and throw £500 in Premium bonds and then either win or use it to cover HGF costs. And get AAP&L

[Gourlay83]

How about this then, buy a k and throw £500 in Premium bonds and then either win or use it to cover HGF costs. And get AAP&L

I like that

[PhilA]

tis abit like telling the future.
statistics are just that - stats.

just pick a car that u like driving, get warranty and be happy

i like the yota powered cars as i like the kick at the top. it *feels* a strong engine.
the first time i was out on track i used too low a gear and too high revs and used oil in the 111R... had me a lil bit paranoid i had buggared it! it was ok tho and i drove it properly and it never used another drop.

when ur out and the R is off cam and ur waiting for it to hit cam, it can be frustrating, which is often out of corners (one of the best times to have a nice feeling linear acceleration) - so if u like linear drive go for a K series.
Remember, the K won alot of awards. i think the k sounds sexy too!

I can sympathise with the worring about the potential "oh no, there goes the temp and my car needs fixed". whats the worst that can happen? with the P&L it wont cost u lots and then u can drive again
not sure how long u would be without the car tho - if it was 1 millisecond and cost u nothing, i dont think u would worry?
Anyone answer that - how long typically would u be without ur car if ur K did overheat?

remember theres more to the cars too - the yota powered cars have different brakes (servoed, but v nice) and the k powered cars have no servo (ur in complete control, v nice).

[thinfourth]

I'm not trying to upset anyone, there are some real fans of the K series and thats fine, I am merely trying to establish the likelyhood of having problems with a K.

Here we go again

Yes it happens

but i would rather stump up a few hundred to fix a K-series headgasket then a few grand to replace a jap engine

never owned an elise but the caterham has a 1.6K which is ragged silly by me and quite a few others and it has never had a headgasket fail

Which is hugely disappointing as i was going to use it as an excuse to fit a silly head with silly cams but the damn thing refuses to blow up

Even Dom hasn't killed it

[andyc]

Fit planet you on Clegg, i need to take you on a run again. I actually think the car is underpowered at the moment but thats another story.

Ha ha....knew you'd be there Alan! Underpowered eh! I don't think so

[Dave]

5K in my s1 elise and 11K in my S1 Exige, with quite a few miles spent being driven hard on the track and never had any problems of any sort

[andyc]

Anyone answer that - how long typically would u be without ur car if ur K did overheat?

I was without my car for 1 week. Ricky Gauld up Huntly way
My HG(F) happened at AMP3 last year....temp rising but no bang or anything. I think the worry could be more that you f*ck the engine with HGF and have more repairs?! My repair was totally straight forward and cost about £550. Would have cost way less if I had listened to peoples advice and got AA P&L when I was told to
(I now listen to my Lotus gurus....you know who you are..... )

[DDtB]

an elise/exige is not for you... seriously

You want a fast car with lots of power that handles well and can be used on road runs and the odd track day, but will also be very reliable and won't give you much hassle mechanically......

Have you considered a Porsche Boxster/Cayman...??

[vx220]

thanks guys, 60% no problem which is good, I suppose as long as you warm the engine up properly and catch any problems early then the chances of problems are much reduced.

Were any of the different tunes of K's better or worse than any of the others? I think if I went down the S1 K route I would look at the 111S variety as they have abit more power and there seems to be more for sale (apart from standard 118bhp ones).

My main worry is that I would have to rely on garages to fix the car, always used to work on them with my father (retired mechanic) so if any problems it was just parts cost, now it would be full blown garage costs. AA P&L would defo be on order.

You never know I might be in an S1 K series yet!

Yep I have considered the Boxster (Caymans are out of budget), but I am led to believe the running costs are very high.

[Rich H]

Any of the VHPDs need looking after, the VVC engines are supposed to be strong and the mechs don't seem to give much trouble in standard trim.

Of the original 118s the earlies are supposed to have better head castings (Less porosity problems) but the best bet S1 is still the 135R IMHO
S2s... I dunno I always get confused....

[VXJON]

Any of the VHPDs need looking after, the VVC engines are supposed to be strong and the mechs don't seem to give much trouble in standard trim.

Of the original 118s the earlies are supposed to have better head castings (Less porosity problems) but the best bet S1 is still the 135R IMHO
S2s... I dunno I always get confused....

Very confused, the 135r is a s2

The sport 135 is the best S1

[DDtB]

Every S1 is going to be 10 years old +... so is going to need stuff doing to it and an element of tinkering unless it's just been fully restored. Even then, it'll still need more tlc than your average car... it's an S1.

If you buy a K ... you might get a HGF type problem or you might not. No variant will be much better at avoiding it than any other really. Doesn't matter if it's a 1 in 1000000 chance, when you're the 1.

If I was to recommend a car to a 'worrier'... it wouldn't be an S1 or any K series Elise really. If it has to be the Elise, I'd stick to the 111R or the Toyota S.... but I'd be more inclined to recommend they bought a Boxster or similar tbh.

[vx220]

I did read somewhere that Lotus said the 135 Sport was the way they had intended the S1 to be from the start.

[vx220]

I think the Toyota engined Elises must be pretty bomb proof really, I dont mind tinkering just dont want to be pulling engines out to rebuild!

Never driven a Boxster, but that will all change as once I am back to health I plan on test driving quite a few different cars to see what suits. I think I am starting to get soft in my old age, gone from the hard core Westfield, then to a VX220 and now looking at a variety of softer cars, but hey life is all about variety!

[Edin430]

an elise/exige is not for you... seriously

I agree sorry - this is your third or fourth post/poll about what car to buy and options/opinions, not that there is anything wrong with that, but you seem far to unsure about the whole thing.

A K series S2 goes for £11k/£12k, if i'm reading into your budget properly that will leave you plenty cash to get any niggles sorted out, inlcuding HGF, should it ever happen. Trust everyone here who have had a few of these things (I've now had 4 Loti) and take the plunge if it's the car you really want.

The funny thing is I have an S2 Exige and it's cost me more to run in the 2 years i've had it than all 3 of the K series Loti' that I had before it - I also know of our very own Andy G on here who had to replace his toyota engine on his Elise due to problems with it - luck of the draw fella!

We can sit here and talk to you about the problems and joys all day, but the matter of fact is every Lotus is unique and we'll never know for sure what each one will bring, regardless of model.. You only ever read about the problems on these forums, never the years of hassle free driving the vast majority enjoy.