Anyone else considering adding the new Lotus Ellise to their portfolio? I think it would be a fun contrast to the 996tt; a fun car for the twisties and maybe a little experimentation on the track.

I just put a deposit on one...

 

MJC,

I may not be a 996 owner, but I do think the elise is a very tempting option, my father has a C2 Turbo, and I was hoping he would go into a used 993 Twin to replace it with (when the C2 comes to be part of my garage), but the elise is a very interesting option. I can't wait to drive one, they are said to be the best handling car on the road, and with a curb wieght of sub 2000 lbs it would be a very interesting driving experience.

I hope yours is everything they are cracked up to be, and it will be most assuredly a stark comparison with the 996TT......

 

mjc123

As a fellow TT owner, I'm going to be very interested in how the Elise takes-on here in the States. I'm an ex-pat Brit and obviously they're every boy racers' dream over in the UK and Europe. Affordable, great looking, very handy in the corners but pretty minimal on interior styling or features.

A bunch of my buddies in Germany all have them and have an absolute blast thundering across Europe in them for Le Mans every year. Usually hook-up with about 50-100 other Elises and find some very twisty stuff.

There are some good Elise owners clubs in the UK - do a search for Elise and Le Mans and you'll find some great sites. Come over for Le Mans and you'll see a ton of them.

It would be an experience to jump out of your Porker and into the Elise on the same roads. Let us know what the comparison feels like. I think you'll find a relative numbness in the power department but delight in the chassis.

And for off-topic criticism - bollocks to that. It's a lot more interesting than waffling on about crappo Minis.

 

I have driven the new "Fed" Elise and it is quite nice. The motor has a variable cam timing and you feel a noticeable jump about 6K. Below that you can just motor around and it's a nice car. Above 6K it's a wild animal!

I have a Lotus Exige for track use and it's a blast to drive. For comparison purposes I run 1.42 at Road Atlanta with a passenger, David Murry did a 1.39 in a TT and a 1.38 in a GT2. I expect to be in the high 1.30s after the mods I just did (bigger brakes, motorsport suspension, 40+ more hp, close ratio gearset and Quaife ATB).

I think the new car, stock, will be good for mid to high 1.40s. Some suspension work and take out some weight and you'll be running with the Turbos...

Roy

 

i've been on the list since february...

 

I have an Elise 190R (series1) and a ttX50, and have had both at the track. It's hard to say enough about the Elise. The major limiting factor is the available Yoko's which don't have great grip. There is concern that high-grip race tires may excessively wear some suspension components. I'm 2 seconds per lap slower in the Elise than in my X50 (Gingerman). But, my son undercuts me by 1 second, and a Bondurant instructor (Chris Cook) equalled the tt time in my Elise. Like most of the 190R owners around here (a group of only a few) I do get in some street miles (with plates ascribed to a "homebuilt") It's a blast on the street. By the way, I had the Elise at a Ferrari event where it absolutely ate every 360, a 575 Maranello, and a 456 in the fast run group. The new model seems to be at least 350 pounds heavier, but the new Yokos may help even the score. Still, I think the weight will be noticable. AS

 

Just curious I know we are talking about the Elise but has anyone driven the Opel Speedster which is based on the Lotus platform? The Speedster is equally as fun I imagine and I can't wait to get my hands on the new Turbo Speedster. Only problem I had was getting caught in the rain a few times, I had a sense of slowing down quite a bit since the car is so light. But on sunny days I didn't leave no road untouched as i wanted to blast through and past everything!

 

A friend of mine has a deposit on one. There won't be any numbness in the power department because it's supposed to have the 180 hp engine from the Toyota Celica. It's basically Toyota's version of the Integra Type R screamer, 8000 rpm, etc.

 

I thought it was a vTEC 220-hp engine, the same used in the Honda S2000.

 

It is the Toyota motor that is built by Yamaha. It uses the Toyota 6-speed and with a Lotus ECU and programming. It actually has a better powerband and torque than the Toyota box; at least in tested it has...

Roy

 

Isn't the Elise basically a more expensive version of a MR2 Spyder?(not meant as a flame)

 

I saw the chassie development work before the cars went on sale - must have been about 1990. Very unique - basically, frame members are GLUED together. Apparently very ridgid and also contributed to the light weight.

And a great looking car as well; if any of my children had been born girls, we would have named her "Elise."

- now - that qualifies me as a car nut!

 

Mini-are-slow- If the question was serious, the answer is no. The Elise has a unique extruded aluminum chassis that is bonded. Unlike the MR2, it is oriented to oversteer, and is essentially track-worthy right out of the box. The Toyota engine is extremely "peaky" and requires lots of revs (like the Honda S2000). It's lack of torque will be hidden by the low weight of the Elise. With the 190R plus powerkit (similar hp to the Toyota but fatter torque) the Elise burns rubber easily and will accelerate with a Ferrari 355 up to about 80 where aerodynamics and engine capacity start to show. AS

 

No. You're thinking of the Carrera GT.

 

Have had quite some experience driving both the Elise road version and Cup car. Very nice and friendly cars, VERY cheap to run as a track car but... and it is a big but for me, absolute lack of torque. The Opel Speedster Turbo is the better car and is actually known to insiders as the MUCH faster and fun car due to its Turbo engine and the noticeable torque that it generates.

gerard