Elise / Exige Questions?

Never mind, seller raised his price, and I did not want to pay the first asking price.

I'll look for another car.

Thanks.

 

There are plenty of good Elise's on Lotus Talk right now, look to pay in the 27-30K range for a well sorted car with touring package(comes with power windows and leather seats). I have a 2005 elise that I use for my track car. If you do track the car go to sector111.com and look up the track trilogy of terror, you need a new baffled oil pan, probably need fuel issues sorted and should get toe links upgraded at some point.

But all I have is an exhaust and high end street, not track pads and some decent tires and I can keep up with a 996 Turbo/Carrera S car on the track as long as there are not to many long straights.

 

Thanks, Ill go 30 on a nice car, but every single car i have looked at, called about has had "stories, " issues, and they never have a clean clear Title. Georgia runs you through the ringer now with inspections and fees if its a salvage, or rebuilt car, so i wont buy any of those cheap glued back together again beaters. Too much time and paperwork.

Winter is coming. Ill wait like a spider for the right car.

 

Stumbled across this one in case you haven't seen it...has a rebuilt title but looks clean. Maybe you could get a screaming deal on it and just drive it til the wheels fall off? I really like the color combo.
http://www.wirewheel.com/2006-Lotus-Elise-Graphite-Grey-for-sale.html

 

Georgia will not allow salvage, rebuilt cars to be driven and tagged on public roads without a major pain in the ass, expensive time consuming inspection process.

 

Fresno CA, one of my favorite colors.
http://www.lotustalk.com/forums/f94/fs-2005-chrome-orange-elise-119680/ 27K clean title
At that price that car should sell soon as many people like Chrome Orange.
http://www.lotustalk.com/forums/f94/yes-feeler-thread-fl-2006-polar-blue-elise-118519/
29K and its in florida in a very rare color.

There are a few more but the others seemed to have issues.

 

Billyman with the polar blue car is the guy that decided to raise his price from $29 obo to $32k. And he has 4 buyers lined up. ( his words). i wish him the best. I have cash, but was thinking $25k for a car with no title ( have to pay off lien)and a fiberglass? repair from damage to the added rear spoiler. Like i said, going to pass on that one.

The orange car looks great. Really like that one. $2k+ for shipping though, and I doubt he will take $25 for it.

 

Geeze why the hell is it so hard to find one of these that has not been wrecked?

 

Probably because people who have them, tend not to sell them at this point. When they originally came out, there was a lot of turnover when new buyers decided they could not stomach living with the car. However, by now, current owners are settled with the cars, and what you have in the market generally are basket cases. Try looking at www.lotustalk.com.

 

not sure if this is what youre looking for, but a friend is selling his 07 Exige in Colorado.

FS: 2007 Lotus Exige S
I have decided to put my 2007 Exige up for sale. I have only had the car a short time and decided that two cars is to much for me to handle in my current situation. Please email me or call me if you have any questions.

The Details:
Mileage: 8800
Color: Phantom Black
Packs: Touring Pack

Mods:
Clearshield on the windshield
Rear panel delete with Vision Function RS exhaust
Innovative mounts front and rear with street 60A mounts
Brand new tires Toyo R1R
HID upgrade with 8000k bulbs

I have all of the OEM parts should the buyer want them. I also have the OEM car soft car cover.

I am going to be asking $46k OBO


Email: [email protected]

 

Thanks. I am all over Lotustalk looking. Not really digging the Exige, i dont like the rear treatment, and for a streetcar, i think not seeing out the back would be a hassle.

Also trying to stay $25-29K. Been watching some west coast cars that have not sold, one a Lotus green the other is orange.

I still think Mag blue and Krypton green are my two preferred colors.


Winter is coming. That and the election tension in the air will affect this winters / spring market prices.

 

I am going to call fence-sitter on this. If you really wanted one you'd have one. There is always a better, cheaper car on the horizon. None will be perfect, at least not in your price range; the oldest are turning 8 years old.

Kind of like the guy looking for Heidi Klum with a PhD for a GF

 

I drive my Exige on some weekends to run errands. The no rear window thing is a drag. The ONLY non-emotional reason to have an Exige is for the enhanced performance (more room in back for a better intercooler).

 

no.

I dont want white, black red or silver. I want a krypton green or perhaps a Mag blue car. There have been NO Krypton cars come up for sale recently, and the few that did were low miles cars with $40k asking prices. The majority of the cars on Lotus talk are for sale by dealers, or have accident history. if i buy from a dealer i pay + 8% GA sales taxes. Buy from a person= no GA sales tax.

Re-read this thread before calling BS on me.

I have had a ton of cars. There are none that fit what "I" want right now.

 

Agree, i dont want an Exige. Want a 2005 or 2006 Elise, K. green or mag blue. If i impulse buy, the car will be for sale in 90 days as i wont be happy.
i want to buy one and try to keep it for a change.

 

The Elise comes in loads of colours and as a consequence there are few of each specific colour. I don't think there were that many krypton green cars sold (Abe could give you the exact figures)... as such you are looking for a very rare car so its a good thing you are patient!!

All the best with finding "your" car!!

 

I'm just starting to track prices and availability on these cars, building towards a future purchase. Looking for a rare color looks like it'll be a pain. Laser Blue is the only color for me, but it looks like it was 05-07 only. (nope, wrong on that, you can build one in LB right now.) If I bought an Ardent Red or some other highly available color would the value plummet if I had it resprayed LB?

Also, the number of cars available in general seems to be falling. Ebay only has 2 right now, and the Cars.com numbers are in the 30's nationwide. If the supply dries up, it may stop being the awesome bang/buck purchase that it's been for the past few years.

 

As a car guy i dont think these are done depreciating. I have owned alot of exotics, and Hagerty, Grundy and State Farm all flinched when I said "Elise".

Another 2 years or so and most will not be able to finance the 05-06 cars, so they will be cash sales cars only. That is when the supply / demand paradigm will settle.


The pros for the car are the low numbers made and imported. The cons are how many have been wrecked, repainted, somewhat modified, or supercharged / heavily modified. Clean low miles cars with no damage or track time will be worth more I think. Everybody i have spoken to local to me that has been in one is ecstatic i want one, but they have warned me they are easy to spin, and very expensive to fix. If i do get one, i may buy a used front and rear clam, just for the hell of it.

Two recent new owners on Lotus-Talk have had accidents with their cars, hitting stuff in the road, getting backed over while the car was parked, ect. its like these damn cars are a magnet for damage or something.



Far as your car, hell buy a nice one and paint it if you plan to keep it, and dont care about resale. There is a repainted green car now on Lotus-Talk with a supercharger and mods, but he is firm at $35k. I am really on the fence about buying a non stock car. Seems like a headache waiting to happen, as these cars are hard enough to figure out, even with Toyota drive-trains.

People dont watch for motorcycles or small cars.

 

Don't think you'll find a Krypton green one without issues in your range. Mag Blue is a great color. As a data point, I sold my 2 owner no stories car early in the summer (~6,000 miles) for $34K.

Are you sure you really want one of these? I know you've had a bunch of cars, and we've had a few in common (euro QV GTB), but the Elise is a whole different animal. For me, the QV is far and away the better car to have. I think the Elise is only truly worth while if you plan on tracking it extensively. It is also fantastic on hard charging twisty back roads drives. The big downside is that it sucks for any kind of regular driving.

I found that my use was too mixed (a fair amount of driving on regular roads) to really enjoy the car. The interior is cheap, the ride is hard, the cabin is noisy, the shifter feel is poor, and the engine sounds like crap unless you are really flogging it. Then again, when used as intended, God what a fantastic drive! I do miss it on occasion, but for me it's a little too specialized. Good luck in your search.

Photo credit - Bob Craig
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OK. You let us know when you get one

 

Great post. You may be right, as I dont go to the tracks or car shows, as i just dont care anymore. But 8 308's and 8 911's leaves me wanting for something different. Maybe i need to let go of my "shall nots" a bit, and try say an NSX or Jap car of some type. Owned 4 of the MR2's when i was in high school / younger, they were fun too. The new retro muscle cars dont do anything for me, dont care about Vettes, no matter how nice they try to make them. I should find an Elise to drive, as the one local one to me that sits out by the beach the owner has for sale, but will not give rides or allow a test drive. Ac does not work, car has sun damage and tons of white frost surface corrosion all over it. 10k miles, saffron yellow, he wants $32k firm. Had it for sale for 2 years locally at that price. Car has no maintenance or even oil change records, it just sits and looks pretty. Maybe I am fence sitting but someone else can spend thier money on those cars. Not me. Not knee jerking and buying whats close and easy when its clearly not what i want.



QV's are getting old. i am hearing tales and seeing cars with seeping, leaking head gaskets.


We'll see.

 

In chiming in a bit late but wanted in on this...

I am in the process of trading my 2005 Lotus Elise for a Ferrari 360, but if I had the choice I'd keep the car (My wife does not want any more cars in the garages than we already have). It is one of the most fun cars I've ever had so I'll give you some info that may already have been said:

1) Its a british sports car, but its not an Aston Martin... expect a VERY minimalist feel. This is WHY I bought the car though. I didnt want luxury, I wanted a pure sportscar not diluted with options.
2) Its fast. VERY fast. Autocross was never the same than driving my friends (never autocrossed mine, but that was an issue of timing).
3) Anyone who says it is underpowered has no idea about HP/Weight importance. It picks up like a motorcycle, get into the higher RPMs and the car will take off on you!
4) You do not need a forced induction car... It has more than enough power for sports driving.
5) You will get a million looks. Thats just how it is with such an unusual car.
6) Its small as all hell. Getting in requires a shoe-horn and/or lubrication. You won't look cool getting in or out. But you will look sweeeeeet inside it
7) The stock radio sucks, I changed mine.
8) everything rattles. Dont even bother trying to track them down. Its considered a badge of ownership

Oh, and when you get your purchase ready, have them look at the camshaft wear. Some cars are plagued with problems regarding premature wear.

Budget about 50 cents to $1 per mile driven... you go through a LOT of tyres. I was getting about 7.5k on fronts and 15k miles on the rear. Its a lot of tyres

Now, the Lotus cars are not "straight line rockets". They wont hit 180+ MPH like some cars, but if you get into the twisties it will make you giddy. There is NO car out there that can keep up with an Elise/Exige in the hands of a good driver when cornering is involved.

I usually think of cars as just "things I drive", but my Lotus Elise was an EXPERIENCE that I will dearly miss...

 

Wonderful, informative post. Thank you.

 

Great summary. Thanks/. I am looking to buy one soon.

 

I have owned my 2005 since February of that year and agree with much of this, but disagree with some. I have a race Elise as well and have wrenched on a few.

The light weight and unassisted steering are truly unique and a huge part of what makes the car special. It is literally 1000 lbs or more lighter than any other car on the road, more like 1500 lbs if you are looking at anything but a Z06 or MP4-12C. The steering rack provides a direct mechanical connection from the wheel to the tire contact patch. Literally no modern car provides that tactile sensation. Actually I think the new BRZ and FRS are within 1000 lbs and that is probably part of their allure.

The negatives above are well said. Noisy, cramped, tiny, and crappy hard plastic in the interior with hard shell seats. Fine by me, keeps the poseurs and fatasses away from the car.

Now don't get too carried away with the superlatives. The C6 Z06 deserves those. Unless it is an A-X course the Z will crush the Elise in every performance category. I have both and can promise you that. The Z is also positively luxurious and practical in terms of interior, noise and cargo.

That said, the Eise can go on track with no mods at all and run at race pace without worry about overheating or brake fade of any kind. The Z has brake fade after a handful of laps. The Elise is easier to drive at the limit as the limited power helps keep you from a big mistake with your right foot or at a really high speed, as it wont as a practical matter go over about 120 or so. As for tire wear, I have found the Elise to be very gentle, actually. The Z will use some tires and they are about 2x on price to boot.

I turbo charged my Elise as it is too weak in the power department for my tastes. it's fast if you drive a SUV or Camry or even a 355, but get in the Z or a modern Viper and the Elise is pretty anemic in comparison. It just feels fast when the second cam hits, but it really is not that fast.

All that said I'll go on record predicting the OP won't get one. The car defines impractical, must be driven on track for a complete ownership experience, and has too much focus for a guy that seems to have some CADD (car attention deficit disorder). Prove me wrong. Buy one and keep it more than 2 years. I just don't think the car really fits what you want in the long run. No insult intended, you have to be a bit stupid and crazy to have one.