A&Q about Lotus
Q:
Lotus Elise *First Drive* Long Read
Hey all, I was in Las Vegas last week and rented a Lotus Elise for 24-hours. This is my first post and hopefully I'll be in a elise soon =) I first posted this on Honda-tech.com (my first home) because I was kinda comparing it to the ITR I used to have. Well here goes.
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Date: September 11, 2006 through September 12, 2006
Time: 24 hours started at 1pm
Temp: 98-100 degrees = hot as balls
Car: 2005 Lotus Elise (yellow)
Rented from: Rent-A-Vette
First Impressions:
Ok I’m sure you’ve all seen Elise’s in magazines or in person but no matter how many times I see one I just can’t get over how beautiful they look. The particular car I took a hold of was a 2005 so that meant that it didn’t have power steering, LSD, or traction control, woot! The car had 25,102 miles on the clock and I bet that was a pretty damn hard 25k so I was impressed that the thing was still working. I actually expected only about 11k but whatever.
So I sign the paperwork, get the run down and hop in. First thing I notice is how freaking hard it is to get into it. I mean I personally didn’t really mind, but damn it was hard. Anyone with a back problem, bad knees, or any other condition that would affect them in bending over, this car is defiantly not for you!! They actually told me that they partially remove the soft top on one side to get in easier (crazy). Ok so the car was already running when I hop it and I’m like “umm is the A/C on?” the guy is like “yes it is, at full blast!” It felt like it was just the fan on, but low and behold it was A/C and on full blast!! This was by far one of the worst things about the car. The A/C was the WORST I’ve ever felt in any car. It just plain sucked; I can’t believe Lotus would even release it with the A/C that bad. Ok so I thought “I didn’t get this for the amenities” so I was off.
The Drive:
So I engage first and roll away. The clutch engagement felt kind of high but I attribute that to the hard miles the car already had. I get to the street and hit the brakes for the first time and was STUNNED by the break pedal travel. It traveled so far down before anything happened, it was disgusting!! I thought “how could such a performance oriented car had such a ****ty brake feel?” Compared with the ITR, EVO, M3, and hell Mazda 3 it was by far the worst. “Ok whatever” I said, time to rip this biotch!
I get out to the open road and all torque less type-R memories come streaming back into my head. Not that they bothered me but hey this baby had none too. But all the brake, A/C, and getting in issues were erased when I hit the cam change over. Boy o boy did this thing boogey!! I instantly fell in love with the car at that second. It was all motor nirvana all over again. Screw turbos and centrifuge superchargers, the scream at 8500 rpms from an engine sitting right behind your head is PRICELESS. I just couldn’t get enough of it. The car was defiantly quick enough and people trying to add all sorts of power mods need to serious rethink that. It was fun on a whole new level. Oh and this car gets attention like no other. People were taking pictures from there cars, breaking necks, kids freaking out, its was all so cool. I felt like a celebrity or something!
Ok so this is a Lotus right? So lets go take some turns (evil laugh)! I take the interstate to Red Rock Canyon (about 20 miles out) to find some twisties. While on the interstate I must have went 120 about 7 times and 130-140 about 3. It effortlessly got to those speeds and was stable as hell even above 130!! Now lets talk about steering feel... It was damn near perfect. The no power steering mixed with the seating positive (middle of car), mixed with the weight balance made it one most confidence inspiring cars I’ve ever been in. So I find the roads I was looking for and then the fun began. I drop her into second and let it rip. The turn-in was VERY precise with almost zero body roll. Even with off chamber turns the car seemed very focused and hard to unsettle. If too much power was applied the back end would get fidgety but it was easily corrected with some counter steer and throttle modulation. Overall it was a very good experience sans the brakes which did NOT give me much confidence to brake later into a turn. The shifter could have been shorter but a short shift kits could fix that easily.
Problems:
After my first 20 miles the brakes started making a weird squealing noise when going slow (think ceramic pads). I brought it back to the rental place and they said the brake pads were glazed over and that it would need to go to dealership. I said as long as it stops its all good, so they reset my mileage (I got the first 100 for free) and I was off.
Squeaky gear lever: The shifter was really damn squeaky and if it were my car that would piss me off to no end. I attribute it to the BEATINGS that the car probably received but since it was under warranty the dealership probably would have fixed that.
Outcome:
The drive was fantastic and yes I would buy one (used of coarse). BUT the difference between it and a 200whp ITR is not a great as one might think. The ITR is defiantly as fun to drive but just doesn’t pull the attention that this car does. The ITR takes turns just as well and the brakes feel far superior. Oh and the Elise would be a biotch as a daily driver where as the ITR could be used without much trouble. All in all I feel it’s the next step up for an ITR owner due to the mid engine RWD platform, N/A Honda like engine, performance focus, and “fun” factor.
If I bought one the first things to be changed would be SS brake lines, short shifter, intake (for sound purposes), maybe an exhaust (just for sound again), and a different radio (blaupukt could blow me).
Sorry for the long read but if you have any questions or comments just ask
Cliffs:
Rented a Lotus
A/C SUCKED
Fun Car, would buy one.
Previous Cars:
Type-R #1157 is gone -SOLD-
Weightless white Evo 8 -SOLD-
(366.5awhp & 358.7lbs tq stock turbo,pump gas, daily driver)
1995 Dinan Supercharged M3 (324 rwhp) -SOLD-
2004 Mazda3 Sport (est. 143fwgp - front wheel gerbil power) da beater
A:
Welcome to the gang and our legal 'crack' habit. BTW, the 06 doesn't have power steering either
A:
The AC is pretty much an afterthought since this is a high performance vehicle. It is a very small light weight compressor. To really get any kind of comfort out of it on a hot day you must have the top on and the windows rolled up. And the key is to activate the recirculation button. After about 5 minutes the interior will cool to a comforatable range but no it never gets what you would call chilly cold, just cool.
A:
I was in Vegas in May of '05 and got one from Rent-a-Vette . I fell in love and ended up getting one in December. When I drove it there were less than 10k miles on it and I think it was between 6k and 8k.
I'm glad you had a great time. I still smile every time I get into it.
A:
The brake pedal on the '05s can be adjusted slightly to greatly improve the feel of the brakes. Even if there is a lot of pedal travel, nothing out there actually out performs the braking of the Elise. If you didn't trigger the ABS, you didn't experience how well the car can stop, even before tripping the ABS.
The pedal feel is supposed to be better on the revised '06s.
SS brake lines do not change anything one the car. People that have installed them have noticed absolutely not difference.
There really isn't a short shifter available. The B&M shifter changes it a little, but people have experienced interference with the console. A couple of people have had the stock shift lever cut/machined down a bit. Most people like the shifter just fine...
Wait until you actually own one and really learn the car.
By the way, since it's being discussed in another thread (or two) about rental Elises, how was the condition of the car overall? Any body damage? Wear and tear?
A:
Originally Posted by greatshamer
I was in Vegas in May of '05 and got one from Rent-a-Vette . I fell in love and ended up getting one in December. When I drove it there were less than 10k miles on it and I think it was between 6k and 8k.
I'm glad you had a great time. I still smile every time I get into it.
Nice I got mine from the same exact place Hey all is the brake travel that I experienced normal? (whoops someone answered my question right above me while I was posting)
A:
The Brakes should not have near the travel you experienced, they should be shockingly accurate and stiff, but it sounds like that car was very used and probably not maintained to the Lotus service schedule. The slow stop wail comes from dust and allignment after a long drive, I have been told that it is a common thing on high performance cars including Ferrari and such. To get rid of it, come to an abrupt stop from a fair clip. This resets them and the sound goes away.
Was this Rent A Vette by the way? I did the same thing before I bought my car only I did it out of their San Diego office.
Also the car is not too hard to get in and out of really if you do it right. Search in the videos section here and you will find a video of an English chap popping in and out of one easily and demonstrating his technique.
A:
Originally Posted by TimMullen
By the way, since it's being discussed in another thread (or two) about rental Elises, how was the condition of the car overall? Any body damage? Wear and tear?
I was actually quite impressed with the condition being that I KNOW it was beat on and beat on well for 25k by various drivers. Other then the squeaky shifter and what I call normal rattles everything was solid. The paint still felt 'soft' and smooth to the touch and the only cosmetic damage was from someone hitting a curb. The seats did not show any type of wear and the paint was not chipping from the A/C controls or anything.
I would most definatly buy one used after that experience.
Edit: Just remembered that the car did have star shield and it definatly works. Thats a good investment right there.
A:
Originally Posted by dj00rt
The AC is pretty much an afterthought since this is a high performance vehicle. It is a very small light weight compressor. To really get any kind of comfort out of it on a hot day you must have the top on and the windows rolled up. And the key is to activate the recirculation button. After about 5 minutes the interior will cool to a comforatable range but no it never gets what you would call chilly cold, just cool.
NEVER cools to a comfortable level unless outside temp is 85 or below. and i HAD the "fix". maybe I need to check the refrigerant load. seems i read reduction by about a half pound reduces freeze over
unless of course, the "fix" was not done at last service. would not be the first time they did something like that to me
A:
Originally Posted by hooptie157
Squeaky gear lever: The shifter was really damn squeaky and if it were my car that would piss me off to no end. I attribute it to the BEATINGS that the car probably received but since it was under warranty the dealership probably would have fixed that.
Ah, the Bloody Metallic Rattle. There is no fix.
A:
Hooptie,
You might want to go to this thread and add some of your experience to people discussing the pros and cons of Elises as rental cars:
Your insight might be helpful...
A:
Originally Posted by dj00rt
The AC is pretty much an afterthought since this is a high performance vehicle. It is a very small light weight compressor. To really get any kind of comfort out of it on a hot day you must have the top on and the windows rolled up. And the key is to activate the recirculation button. After about 5 minutes the interior will cool to a comforatable range but no it never gets what you would call chilly cold, just cool.
It's funny...my AC works fine. It's definitely not the coolest AC I have experienced, but it was worked well at keeping me cool in 100 degree weather.
A:
My AC has always worked fine, too - it was mainly the earlier '05 cars that had problems, and a good part of that was fixable by moving a sensor as part of a TSB.
As for brake pedal travel, it can be adjusted to be easier to operate, but the '06 pedal box is much easier to operate stock (although the pretty extruded pedals are gone).
Seats in the '06 cars are a fair bit more comfortable too, due to changes in padding,a nd the change to drive-by-wire throttle improves perceived throttle response slightly if you have the recent ECU code flashed in (again covered in a TSB). Those are the highlights,
John
A:
Originally Posted by joe13531
It's funny...my AC works fine. It's definitely not the coolest AC I have experienced, but it was worked well at keeping me cool in 100 degree weather.
Yeah mine is totally fine for me, I got stuck in traffic in the San Fernando valley this summer and it was around 102 out. Had the soft top on , rolled up the windows and me and my passenger were totally comfortable the rest of the trip, not chilled mind you like some more luxurious cars will do but we were not sweating.
A:
I know its been discussed but my brakes on an 05' miles elise w/7200 are one of the most solid I ever felt. I travel alot for work and have rented many a car. Sounds like the rental thing can be good but service needs to be kept up to a standard that I would think most rental places take for granted. I know first hand what people have done with rental cars, (Burnouts, bumper tag, jumping railroad tracks). My company has broke many a rental.
A:
Mine AC is fine also - I believe there is a change dealers can make to move a sensor around to possibly make the AC a little cooler?
When I drove the elise home from lotus of south bay (5 hour drive), the first 20 minutes I was like "this AC is blowing hot... but it was blowing cold 2 days ago on the test drive". Then I realized the AC button wasn't pushed... duh
A:
Larry, Larry, ah paging Larry? Larry please come to the rental counter!