Grassroots Motorsports...Elise Ad

[berettafan]

Love this magazine. Great articles about normal guys doing stuff to normal cars that actually makes them faster!!! We have enough mags with carbon fiber dash inserts and crap like that.

Anyways, the latest edition (free Grand Am schedule poster included...now on my fridge until the wife notices it!) had an ad for the Lotus Elise. Red car and it said something like 'fastest to 60, through the curves and lightest....'

I thought to myself 'this is exactly what i want to read in a car ad' .

Would love to drive one for a week including an autocross just to see what they are like. I think i'd like it.

If i ever spot one for sale locally in the 20's i'm going for a test ride. Sure hope i don't fall in love.

[nostatic]

It is a go kart. I haven't driven one but instructed in a couple. You can rotate them easily and they are brutally quick. No creature comforts - just what you need to go fast. Would be a miserable DD, but excellent track beast.

[berettafan]

rotate easy like scary easy or only when you want to easy?

[Racerbvd]

And hope you aren't too big, there is one for sale in TN for $16K, but it is the early stripped one. My business partner has a 2007 and loves it. To give you an idea of the size, here is one with me in it.

[nostatic]

Originally Posted by berettafan

rotate easy like scary easy or only when you want to easy?

It is somewhat like a 914. It actually will stick well, but once it rotates it rotates. Not scary easy, but different than a 911. I had one student who couldn't get the thing to come around and another one that spun it with ease. Felt to me like it gets up to the edge then lets go. Hard to tell though because I wasn't driving it.

[Schumi]

I've been in one, I'm 6 foot tall, 180 lbs and I felt comfortable.

I really think I could use one for my D.D. Right now I drive an 89 Corolla Coupe... not that much bigger and not any better of a ride quality.

Problem is You can get a nice used 996 or Boxster for the same price.

[aschen]

I've put 12k miles on mine in the last year. They are insanely fun to drive. For the right kind of person a lotus is the absolute greatest car in the world. For the other 99.999% of the population they are terrible.

You can find a nice one for 26k. If you are in that .001% group I don't recomend test driving, because you will buy

[Z-man]

I instructed in one a couple of years ago, and had the chance to drive a couple of laps in it at Summit Point. Absolute BLAST to drive.

The only drawback - they are completely a one-dimensional car. They were built for one single purpose - to turn. And turn well. But like ashen said - if you are in that 0.001% of the population that puts turning above all other aspects of driving, then the Elise is for you.

I believe the folks at Lotus made a deal with the devil on that car - all you need to do is think about turning, and the car is turning.

Personally, I would love one as a daily driver. Then again, I don't consider myself to be part of the 99.999% of the population....

-Z-man.

[the]

I think an Elise will be my next car.

[aschen]

You definatley sound like a candidate for somebody who "gets" the idea of a lotus Z-man.

I daily drive mine (I am 5'11" and 220 Lbs).

Autocrossing an elise will leave you with a giant crap eating grin as well, the car loves to get out of the way of cones...