Scottish Elises

Hi,

I have posted before regarding the respray of my Lotus Elise Type 23. This is a unique Lotus in as much as only 50 were made and only 36 still exist. With this in mind you'd think I would have learned to garage it but I haven't so 5 years or so of sitting in the Scottish climate has taken its toll on the body work. I have the dreaded bubbling in several spots. I had an incident with black ice that lead to some damage (mild) to the rear of the car and I have the usual stone chips all over the front. The drivers door has also split so needs put back together with bonding.

Sadly the time has come for me to part with the car. It is in getting an MOT as we speak and I am now weighing up the options/benefits of a respray. Overall the car is in great condition. The engine is sound and the interior spotless. With it being limited edition I think it will hold its value in the future if not even increase the more other Type 23s disappear. With this in mind do you think it will be worth the money to get it fully resprayed so I can sell it in top condition. Do you think I would likely recoup the cost of the respray in the sale? Or should I just sell it as it, be honest in my description and accept less in the way of sale value but save overall the cost of the respray?

Any thoughts/advice would be great.

For starters try contacting Will Blackham and Jon Searl and ask them what they think. Mention that you had spoken to me.

willblackham@yahoo.co.uk

info@lotushardtops.com

Cheers

tut

I personally don't think it'll be worth much of a premium as it's just a standard S2 with a colour scheme at the end of the day, Limited run stuff like a sport 160 or sport 190 will be desirable as they have additional spec that makes them 'different' to the rest of the range. I think a respray inc all the repairs will be north of £3K, that may well give you a mint example but it depends on what you're expecting to sell it for really, Comprehensive service history and mileage will play a part in this as will any previous damage. I think it will sell faster if it's mint but might not fetch a much bigger profit over your £3K spend if that makes sense.. That said if you do fix it it may have you poised at a better time to sell, i.e. next spring when prices are stronger. I've been watching the market for months now, in fact since about February when I was in the market and bought my Porsche, and a lot of the inflated priced stuff is still sitting there not selling months on. So I guess it come down to how much you expect to get for it and what the service history etc is like..

Either way good luck with your sale!

Thanks for the replies. Tut I shall certainly contact the guys who's details you have provided. Much appreciated.

With respect to the car and whether or not it may be seen as desirable I guess it will all depend on opinion at the time of sale. For me, I would like to think that a car that has been produced as a Limited Edition of 50, of which there only remains 36, would be seen as a good investment for someone. If not then so be it. I see standard Lotus Elise S2 online for sale at inflated prices for their age and mileage and they seem to sell. I don't have a crazy figure in mind. I would be confident of redeeming what I paid for it about 7 years ago and would just like to think if I pay for the respray I could at least recoup some of that on top. The plan would be to wait till the Spring/Summer to sell any way. Time will tell ha ha.

Thanks again.

Derek

Those two are straight up Derek, they have both bought cars from S_E, and I have given them details of your car.

I put Iain Thomas on to Jon a couple of weeks ago who travelled up to Inverness and bought his 135R.

tut