Thinking of making a Lotus return, advise please.

[Wacky Racer]

Having been away from the Lotus brand for a few years now dabbling with caterhams and porsches I'm considering making a comeback. I'm thinking of getting an S1 elise with a view to doing a bit of track work and possible hillclimbs while still retaining road legality.
I'm looking for some advice in what to look out for in terms of common faults etc and in particular I'm looking for some real life owner feedback on the 111s and 160 sport variants. Also some info on track mods would be appreciated.

Many Thanks

Richard

[Wacky Racer]

Nobody?

[haggis catcher]

Nobody?

Everyone will be out in their cars today. Im sure you will get a reply very soon.

[ed]

http://elise-faq.info/index.php?title=B ... ntable=yes

160 SVA are cheaper as you can't export them.
Always check the floor recall has been done as they rot under the standard plastic mats.

Nitrons are excellent and popular. Decent pads (pagids or carbone Lorraine's) are essential along with fresh fluid. Sticky tyres are good but expensive. Full dealer history is not essential but good for retaining value.

HTH cheers ed

[Fluoxetine]

There's a plethora of buyers guides out there - The one which Ed posted a link to is pretty handy.

I think the thing to bear in mind is that the earliest S1's are knocking on 15-16 years old now; components obviously wear out, so look for a car which has had recent suspension / tyre / brake replacement. A ported / flowed head with lumpy cams is worth seeking out too, imho.

If you're looking at doing a number of trackdays / hillclimbs / sprints, I'd keep my eye open for an ex-LoTRDC car...They should be road legal (or easily made so), run 156bhp (with the PRT mod done), have the CR box, decent suspension & brakes etc.

[s29ttc]

Drop me a PM with your email and I'll send you a buyers guide I have when I bought mine. I have the 111s and it's epic, however before hand I did have a Clio and a 206 so not really any experience for comparison.

[Wacky Racer]

Thanks guys I'll have a look into your pointers. I didn't really think about a 111S, I remember looking at one 10 years ago but ended up opting for an early S2 sports tourer which I always regreted, just not enough power mixed with bits falling off on a regular basis .

I'm trying to keep under the £10K mark which lends to the high milers, am I being a complete fool for even thinking of one of these?

[s29ttc]

Sorry but your post above suggests you are looking for a s1 Elise and are interested in feedback from 111s owners hence my reply. Higher mileage, used and well looked after doesn't mean a bad thing. You would need to look on an item to item basis, but a car with 30k on the clock isn't necessary better or worse than a 70k car.

[woody]

No, but you'll not get a sport 160 for that and really struggle for a 111s. Shame you've just missed the shuggymobile, high miles but a160 vvc engine on TBs, nitrons and many other nice bits for a Chun less than your budget.

I'd be lookin fo a modified standard car for your criteria.

[s29ttc]

Remember Ross's is up for sale at the moment

http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3934238.htm

[Wacky Racer]

Sorry but your post above suggests you are looking for a s1 Elise and are interested in feedback from 111s owners hence my reply. Higher mileage, used and well looked after doesn't mean a bad thing. You would need to look on an item to item basis, but a car with 30k on the clock isn't necessary better or worse than a 70k car.

I'm maybe being a bit vague really, fundamentally any S1 model pointers are good because I'm looking for something ideally with a bit of "go" about it irrespective of whether it's a 111S, 160 sport or a tuned base spec, however a base spec at the right price maybe an option with a view to doing some tuning work.

I found a company under the auspices of www.lotusracing.co.uk, has anyone had any dealings with them? The seem to have a number of S1's.

I did spot the red 111S in the classified add, hence the high miler post.

Thanks

[s29ttc]

Not knowing anything about your driving skills I'll make the following comments for thought. You will find that on track the power of the car will not be as huge a factor as you may think. In my opinion it is about the fun that can be had. There is much to learn with these little plastic cars and you will find that driver improvement provides much better value for money than most upgrades, afterall the fun happens on the corners.

With me it will all about developing me as a driver and i dont think you can stop learning or improving your skills. You will see examples on here of skilful drivers that could put a standard S1 with 120 brake round knockhill faster than most things on the track, it's not necessarily to do with power. If I where you I'd be looking for a well sorted car, decent brakes, decent suspension, decent tyres and looked after mechanically and develop yourself as a driver through further driver training and experience on track days and i believe you will find that you will have as much a hoot as buying one with more power, however I am not you and it's your decision on how you proceed with your cash. Hope this gives some food for thought. My advise get along to track day, get in some cars as a passenger and see how they feel and make a more informed decision based on your experiences.

[Wacky Racer]

Not knowing anything about your driving skills I'll make the following comments for thought. You will find that on track the power of the car will not be as huge a factor as you may think. In my opinion it is about the fun that can be had. There is much to learn with these little plastic cars and you will find that driver improvement provides much better value for money than most upgrades, afterall the fun happens on the corners.

With me it will all about developing me as a driver and i dont think you can stop learning or improving your skills. You will see examples on here of skilful drivers that could put a standard S1 with 120 brake round knockhill faster than most things on the track, it's not necessarily to do with power. If I where you I'd be looking for a well sorted car, decent brakes, decent suspension, decent tyres and looked after mechanically and develop yourself as a driver through further driver training and experience on track days and i believe you will find that you will have as much a hoot as buying one with more power, however I am not you and it's your decision on how you proceed with your cash. Hope this gives some food for thought. My advise get along to track day, get in some cars as a passenger and see how they feel and make a more informed decision based on your experiences.

,


Thanks for your comments, I can't agree more with your point on driver training and basically learning how to get the best out of what you have. To be honest I would probably find a 120bhp car a bit frustrating, I'm looking to get a car that has enough excitement to get the pulse running but slow enough as to not lead to trouble with the federals.
As a bit of background, in a previous life time I have competed with a number of single seater race cars, westfields and porsches but have had to grow up and essentially buy grown up this like houses etc. However I would like to have something quick and fun without the 911 price tag

[r055]

Thanks for your comments, I can't agree more with your point on driver training and basically learning how to get the best out of what you have. To be honest I would probably find a 120bhp car a bit frustrating, I'm looking to get a car that has enough excitement to get the pulse running but slow enough as to not lead to trouble with the federals.
As a bit of background, in a previous life time I have competed with a number of single seater race cars, westfields and porsches but have had to grow up and essentially buy grown up this like houses etc. However I would like to have something quick and fun without the 911 price tag

You say you have already owned a sports tourer though and didnt enjoy it..? Was that just over the lack of power? I cannot see 143bhp (S1 111s) over 120bhp making a huge difference to you, although I think the CR box helps with the feel of it.

My car has stirred up a bit of interest so if you fancy a look around it, let me know.
I am back up north on Wednesday evening and can either meet you somewhere on Thursday onwards, or you can head through to Cumbernauld...

[Peter76]

Sounds to me that with your budget and wanting something with some oomph, you might want to consider VX220s? Have to agree with Scott that someone with a lot of skill could put a 120bhp Elise round a track quicker that someone with a 220BHP Exige. I'm currently looking at options like you too and am not too concerned about having something with loads of power, more something I can learn to put through corners quickly.

Not that I'd try and put you off Ross's car of course!