Locust lands in garage

[Ewan]

Picked up my new toy today :D
Not sure what to get next but this will keep me entertained in the meantime and won't cost a fortune...

11265

[Papalazarou]

Looks like a lot of fun. I'd thought about those a lot, but keep getting sidetracked;)
So which model is that?

Cheers,

James.

[Ewan]

It's an Elise S (134bhp, 1.8L Toyota 4-pot) with touring pack & A/C. It's comically small in the garage - the NSX used to fill the space quite nicely (the S5 filled it to bursting) and with the Elise you can walk all the way round the car :)

[Dragonlady]

Nice motor, beautiful colour. How are you coping with getting in and out with the roof on?

Ian

[Ewan]

Ian; it's like folding yourself in half and posting through a small letterbox. And getting out is best not witnessed save any loss of dignity.

Fortunately, I'm choosing to avoid all this by not having the roof on :)

[Senninha]

Well Done you ... a fantastic little car ... did 20k miles in mine as a daily (and only) driver. Do keep an eye on cooling fluids.

If you think its comical for others seeing you get in and out, you should see thier faces as you pull out a set of golf clubs.

Hopefully yours has the wonderful AP system ... and as for the roof - leave it off!

See you soon Ewan

regards, Paul

[nobby]

great little cars ... health to enjoy!!!

love the colour too ... nice choice :)

[AR]

Great looking car!

[Nytram]

Brilliant choice I sold mine 4 years ago to buy the NSX ( regrets I have a few )
Yes small on the outside but felt much bigger once inside, the driving position for me was perfect so I could enjoy it for hours and hours.
You must do a track day as well.

Have fun.

[Ewan]

Thanks everyone. I'm enjoying the Elise so far but I doubt it's a keeper - might hang onto it for the summer then see if I can't shift it elsewhere. I test drove a Europa last weekend, and that's an interesting prospect - similar interior to the Elise but a coupe and with the right options, all covered in leather & therefore a little more lux. There's a little bit of turbo lag, but with the FI whistling away in your ear it's quite beguiling... and it's also unusual (they only made about 450 of the last generation Europa, and they're getting to the point now where the values are on the up as there are more people wanting to buy than are selling, and a good few of those that are selling are basically in no hurry and will punt their cars on the market to see if someone wants to pay a premium).

Externally, the Europa is a little narrower, a little shorter and a little lower than the NSX... but at <1000kgs, its power to weight ratio is usefully 10% better than the NSX. So maybe I'm going to keep an eye out for a good one and swoop when I can, then sell the Elise off …

[NoelWatson]

You must do a track day as well.

Have fun.


Are the Elises any good on track?

[Nick Graves]

Are bears catholics?

Great fun car and the perfect example of 'less is more'. Many of the S2000 track demons have progressed to Elises/Exiges.

Interesting how the ignored Europa is almost a collectable. Sounds familiar.

[NoelWatson]

Are bears catholics?

Great fun car and the perfect example of 'less is more'. Many of the S2000 track demons have progressed to Elises/Exiges.

Interesting how the ignored Europa is almost a collectable. Sounds familiar.


It was just that they seemed pretty slow and rolled a lot when I was last on track behind one (standard ones that is - my friend has one with the ~400bhp Audi conversion)

[scottg]

Are bears catholics?

Great fun car and the perfect example of 'less is more'. Many of the S2000 track demons have progressed to Elises/Exiges.

Interesting how the ignored Europa is almost a collectable. Sounds familiar.

Probably more to do with the drivers capability than the elise. I was a passenger in a standard early elise on a track day a couple of years ago. With the right entry speed the car was well balanced entering corners and the pace was impressive. The car did of course roll but it was a standard road car and not much (that was a road car) would keep with it in the corners. If I wanted a good value track day car it would be very high on my list.

[NoelWatson]

Probably more to do with the drivers capability than the elise. I was a passenger in a standard early elise on a track day a couple of years ago. With the right entry speed the car was well balanced entering corners and the pace was impressive. The car did of course roll but it was a standard road car and not much (that was a road car) would keep with it in the corners. If I wanted a good value track day car it would be very high on my list.


Maybe you need to be a very good track driver (as you do with most mid engined cars) to get the most out of it and not hold act as a moving road block for the modern breed of hot hatcches

[Senninha]

Put the same drvier in a 135 or higher output S2 Elise and a modern hatch and he wont beat the Elise lap times ... simples

[Nick Graves]

Any fool can go fast in a modern poxbox; I think with the Elise (like the NSX), you do need a basic degree of skill and then it's bloody quick.

Also, unlike say, the S2000, it doesn't have the reputation that it wants to kill you out of the box. Obviously, that's subject to alignment and the proviso that anything mid-engined goes a loooong way sideways. I drove an S1 many years ago and although I bought the S2000, I think Eliseses are great.

[Nick Graves]

Actually, when I first read the thread, I thought you'd mis-spelled "Locost"!

[markc]

Looks very nice Ewan :)


It was just that they seemed pretty slow and rolled a lot when I was last on track behind one (standard ones that is - my friend has one with the ~400bhp Audi conversion)

Lots of them, mostly K-Series cars, are being "upgraded" with different engines whether it's Honda K20A, VAG 2.0 TFSI or even bike engine conversions. I think they make a better fun road car than dedicated track weapon as they are expensive to maintain and repair. Personally I'd go with a Caterfield 7-alike if it were for regular track work.

As for fwd hot hatches, they might be safer and easier for a novice to exploit but don't underestimate a) the fun you can have and b) the lap time they can deliver. An example from evo's (magazine) Bedford tests...

Elise SC (217hp, 900kg) 1min 27.7secs
R26R (227hp, 1230kg) 1min 27.8secs

Cheers

Mark

[havoc]

That's a stunning time from the Megane, esp. as the Elise is likely to have been on similar near-trackday rubber...

Elise would be in it's element on track - light weight, no PAS, mid-engine'd. Get the fluids changed, give the tyres and brakes a good visual and then go for it, at least once...

[NoelWatson]

Put the same drvier in a 135 or higher output S2 Elise and a modern hatch and he wont beat the Elise lap times ... simples

But he will, by some margin. Take Anglesey - the Elise 1.6 does it in 1.08.5, whereas the Megane 265 does it in the same time as the Elise SC - 1:05.3 - and that is with a very good driver setting the times.

http://www.fastestlaps.com/tracks/anglesey_national.html

[Senninha]

.....and that is with a very good driver setting the times......

Ok, should have made it clear ... I meant an enthusiast, not a 'professional' driver.

I grew up with FWD, from Minis to Vtec Civics and with the exception of the DC2, over favourite roads I was quicker in the my Elise. I had one fo the first 135's and that thing flew when you hussled it. Chirping under braking, charging under acceleration, it really is a great car for your favourite B road and difficult to get into too much trouble with as it's far more forgiving than the NSX.

Each to thier own, and you love your flexible hot hatch, but given the space I'd have another 135 anyday ...

regards, Paul

[Nytram]

For me as a first timer, the elise on the track gave real confidence and I felt that I knew exactly what was happening at each corner so never felt in any danger of losing it at all.
The model I had was just the K series 120 hp but it performed brilliantly around Donington and always seemed to catch the other stuff in the bendy bits.
Yep I still miss that car.

[simonprelude]

Played with a couple of these at Ascari as familiarisation cars, great fun until someone buzzes past you at over 200mph.