GavinJ
Club Retro Rides Member
MGB 3.9 v8 Sebring
Posts: 927 
Club RR Member Number: 209
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May 20, 2006 22:25:11 GMT
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I 'think' the time has come where i need to look at buying a newer car for work, something that will prove reliable and will be also be fun to drive at the same time, as i average about 1200 miles a month. Now i've only ever had retro cars, nothing newer than '89 reg ;D But i'm looking at using my car allowance from work to cover a loan on a newer car, now i've been doing loads of thinking and i'm seriously considering a........................ Lotus Elise  Now i know what your thinking, how on earth is a Lotus Elise a sensible car? - Well the way i see it is, you can pick them up for around 8k which is my budget and they should hold there value quite well.
- They are very basic inside so in theory there should be less to go wrong?
- The economy is pretty good as the 1.8 Rover K series engine can give upto 40mpg due to the weight an elise being only around 650kg's - which will be a bit better than my V8 MGB
Most importantly it could be useful as back up if my MG lets me down on a trackday and i could use the Elise instead  Now am i going mad or do you think this is a fairly realistic choice of car to do 1200 miles a month, using daily for work whatever the weather? i do quite like the idea of tearing around in the elise during work hours and getting paid for  Or shall i just give in and get some crappy diesel euro box  thinking of an audi a4 or a3 diesel..... Anyone have any experience of a Lotus Elise? i've done some research and i think the only issue that seems to crop is the headgaskets going on the Rover Engine but this is something i could tackle myself if it did ever go.... |
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May 20, 2006 22:28:27 GMT
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what about going shopping? and when the roof leaks?
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May 20, 2006 22:30:43 GMT
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not really got any idea what modern you could go for.
but i do around 1500 miles per month in a 1984 mercedes w123 230e.
never let me down once, touch wood.
*puts hand briefly on head*
;D
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GavinJ
Club Retro Rides Member
MGB 3.9 v8 Sebring
Posts: 927
Club RR Member Number: 209
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May 20, 2006 22:34:03 GMT
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Well i have got a 1989 BMW e30 cabrio that is my sensible car but its curse word on fuel for work being a 320i auto, it seems to drink petrol  so i've stopped using that recently as the headgasket has gone and along with that the backbox has started blowing  ) I've got the mgb that is 95% through a v8 conversion so again this is going to be curse word on petrol so not ideal for work. In a bit of dilemma realy as i can't be doing with just a boring Audi, which is why i started looking at an Elise's as a fun car for work with the added bonus of fuel economy. The driving aspect of my job only requires me to take some paperwork and stuff out with me so storage space is not really an issue. Just trying to convince myself that its a go-er and not just a rediculous phase i'm going through!! I've tried looking for a decent elise forum but can't find one - one i have found you can't even look at without paying a years membership! so i'm hoping someone on here may have experienced one. |
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Last Edit: May 20, 2006 22:42:44 GMT by GavinJ
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May 20, 2006 22:37:44 GMT
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My neighbour, driving my 1500, irritated an Elise on some nice roads - then overtook it. I was quite amused. But he is a very good driver. Anyway, back on topic - I think you should. They're wicked cars and sound amazing with a decent exhaust, good daily drivers too - mate gets 40mpg crusing out of his sometimes! (maybe drafting a little ;D) I'd test drive one, see how comfortable you feel with using it daily - don't forget you can't take much with you  The engines are very, very tough - used to suffer with thermal shock problems due to the radiators being upfront - think it's been sorted. As long as you take care of it, should serve you well. Very tunable too. I say try it, and go for it if you enjoy www.elises.co.uk/problems/s1/index.htmlVery useful this www.elises.co.uk/problems/common.html |
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Last Edit: May 20, 2006 22:40:08 GMT by Lewis
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GavinJ
Club Retro Rides Member
MGB 3.9 v8 Sebring
Posts: 927
Club RR Member Number: 209
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May 20, 2006 22:41:41 GMT
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Cheers Lewis, my dads keep telling me to go for one as he keeps saying that eventually i'll settle down and get married and then it will be too late to have an unpractical car! so go for it now.
Then theres my mom saying that it will be stupid and i should go for a normal car!! aahhhh the joys of still living at home...
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May 20, 2006 22:44:31 GMT
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Mate has an elise..... Lives in Doncaster........ works in Essex and stays down with me during the week, has used it for 30,000 miles/year but maintainance does go up alarmingly He has just bought a Ford Orion TD for the commute ;D Which says it all really..... he loves the Elise, trackdays it loads, loves driving it daily but it is not as practical as you would think. If you buy one you will do £2000 on it getting it sorted...regardless of whether you spend 7 or 12k on it in the first place ;D Buy a cheap one and sort it as the expensive one will still need sorting as well...... Original Konis are Fubarred by 10,000 miles, £1000 get you a decent rebuildable set of replacements, wheel bearings go, as do suspension bushes, etc Loads more, I can ask him next week if you need more info HTH Dom |
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May 20, 2006 22:53:33 GMT
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Ha. Useful stuff ;D
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Nick
Posted a lot
Posts: 2,483
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go for it, only live once, why condemn yourself to a boring car whilst you still have life left in you. if it was me, the elise already would have been bought and sitting on the drive.. no time for thinking.
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idea stolen from rattely eddie.
this weeks car count "5"
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gavin, serch for celicav8s thread "a sobering day", read it then make your decision.
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i agree that you should buy it. i was being a bit negative/funny in my last post.
only live once, and it'll be a cool car to use daily. it wont be as easy to live with as other cars, but you'll enjoy every minute of it, and that is what matters.
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May 21, 2006 10:23:02 GMT
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Bland diseasel euro box, or K-series powered rollerskate... I know which one I'd choose! Do it, to hell with luggage space! You're only here once. |
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GavinJ
Club Retro Rides Member
MGB 3.9 v8 Sebring
Posts: 927
Club RR Member Number: 209
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May 21, 2006 11:48:03 GMT
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I knew i could rely on you guys to help me make the right decision ;D Tonycocacola - i've just read that post by 'celicav8' and my god it makes you think don't it? cheers for pointing that as i had missed that thread. The link for anyone who else who missed it, retrorides.proboards29.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=general&thread=1147559034&page=1Just need to sort out the insurance  but it shouldn't be to bad i hope. I'm going to a garage that i know has one for sale on the forecourt this afternoon to have a good look round it, i want to have look at what sort of ground clearance there is, as there is a fair few speed bumps round by me - but then again i see quite a few about where i live and i can only assume they have no porblems. |
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LowStandards
Club Retro Rides Member
Bigging Up The Sum Sum Man Since '99
Posts: 2,650
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May 21, 2006 11:59:55 GMT
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I'd go for an Exige, then you'll get pretty much the same car without the gay roof, plus you wont have to put up with Men who don't put there little fellas in other men taking the p*ss out of you...
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LowStandards
Club Retro Rides Member
Bigging Up The Sum Sum Man Since '99
Posts: 2,650
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May 21, 2006 12:00:58 GMT
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Sorry, thats prob a bit harsh, me Mates got one you see and he gets loads of stick from random Public...
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May 21, 2006 12:44:55 GMT
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From what i've seen, i have always fancied one, like a modern buggy or summat. A cheaper alternative; you could consider an MR2 (all varieties), they are always getting compared in the mr2 club (and elises praised), although some are biased and prefer the mr2. They tick a lot of boxes but minimal luggage and passengers can be a drag, or liberation depending how you look at it. In a similar position to you i'll have 2 cars doing same thing, except one sounds better and costs more to fill up... |
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 it doesn't matter if it's a Morris Marina or a Toyota Celica - it's what you do with it that counts |
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GavinJ
Club Retro Rides Member
MGB 3.9 v8 Sebring
Posts: 927
Club RR Member Number: 209
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May 21, 2006 12:49:28 GMT
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No probs, 2002gimp, i'd love an exige but have you seen the price of them still? not cheap at all. Plus i don't care whatt other people think to be honest as long as i enjoy it |
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May 21, 2006 12:58:01 GMT
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8k would get you a lot of car tho. think about it but get the elise over something normal and boring anyday |
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May 21, 2006 13:13:17 GMT
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Do you know if you'll be hit with a big tax bill for a company car?
You may be better off going boring for the commute and having more cash for your fun car.
Or maybe not...
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racer86
Posted a lot
'76 Toyota KP30 / '73 BMW 2002 / '93 Mini
Posts: 2,183
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May 21, 2006 14:57:07 GMT
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thinking of an audi a4 or a3 diesel.....
so i've stopped using that recently as the headgasket has gone and along with that the backbox has started blowing 
)
but it shouldn't be to bad i hope.
