2009 Elise SC v.s 2008 S2000 CR
09-04-2010, 04:05 AM
#21
Originally Posted by UmarS2K,Sep 4 2010, 01:09 AM
That's actually a concern of mine. I do daily drive my S2000 CR. In 11 months of ownership, I've put over 20,000 miles on the S. All 20,000 have been trouble free. Recently, I've been lurking the Lotus forum and reading about horror stories from current/past Lotus owners about various problems, such as the aforementioned cost of repair.
I don't drive recklessly, but that doesn't mean someone else on the road is under the same mind set as myself.
With that said, I seriously still want a Lotus Exige, but the likelihood that I will actually purchase one by trading in my CR is very low. My fiance and I considered trading in her Cobalt for the Elise, but we decided against it since her other car, a Mercedes-Benz E320, isn't very reliable, so she'd be out of luck.
After only a day now, I've convinced myself not to purchase the Elise/Exige and to just wait it out until prices either drop so low that buying one won't mean trading in the CR or by simply paying off the CR first and then grabbing a Lotus.
I don't drive recklessly, but that doesn't mean someone else on the road is under the same mind set as myself.
With that said, I seriously still want a Lotus Exige, but the likelihood that I will actually purchase one by trading in my CR is very low. My fiance and I considered trading in her Cobalt for the Elise, but we decided against it since her other car, a Mercedes-Benz E320, isn't very reliable, so she'd be out of luck.After only a day now, I've convinced myself not to purchase the Elise/Exige and to just wait it out until prices either drop so low that buying one won't mean trading in the CR or by simply paying off the CR first and then grabbing a Lotus.
09-04-2010, 07:23 AM
#22
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^^^ She owes more on the E320 than it is actually worth. Another reason not to buy a used Benz, imo, unless you plan to keep it for a long time.
Her Cobalt is paid off but we don't want to trade it in.
Her Cobalt is paid off but we don't want to trade it in.
09-04-2010, 07:46 AM
#23
If i was lucky enough to afford an Elise SC and a daily, I'd get one in a heartbeat. I've been DDing my S for three years but I couldn't possibly imagine DDing an Else.
09-04-2010, 04:11 PM
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Can you elborate more on the sc elise gearbox. Is it really that bad? I notice the shifter is at an angle when at neutral, does that angle make it akward to shift or make it potentially shift into a different gear?
09-04-2010, 04:28 PM
#27
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Okay, I know my 5 minute drive around a few blocks isn't really a long period of time to judge a gearbox, but the Elise's gearbox felt pretty awkward.
Sentravq, I'm glad you mentioned that when it is in neutral, it appears to be at an angle. It's something I noticed as soon as I looked at the interior, but I didn't make a big deal about it because I haven't driven too many manual transmission cars in my lifetime (yet), so I didn't know if it was abnormal or not.
Anyway, the reason the Elise's gearbox feels bad is because it engages into each gear strangely. Idk if that makes sense, but I'll explain my experience more in a bit. I guess that's a compromise of driving such an extraordinary vehicle. I was driving the car briskly and shifting gears rapidly, so maybe it was my driving that made the gearbox feel awkward, but I have read on the Lotus forum, as well the salesman telling me so, that many Elise/Exige owners prefer installing an aftermarket gearbox to make the gears feel better.
When downshifting, I could have sworn I went from 3rd to 2nd, but the gear would be sitting in 4th. It was peculiar to say the least. The Elise shifts decently smooth, but it just feels awkward. I went from 2nd gear to 5th gear at one point without realizing it.
I think the gearbox would take some getting used to, and I'm positive anyone can get used to it after driving the car around for more than 5 minutes, but from my first impression, all I can say is that the gearbox isn't as good as you'd expect.
I hope that somewhat explains my disdain of the Elise's gearbox. Now to be honest, the lack of an incredibly smooth shifter is a compromise I'm willing to make in order to own an Elise.
Sentravq, I'm glad you mentioned that when it is in neutral, it appears to be at an angle. It's something I noticed as soon as I looked at the interior, but I didn't make a big deal about it because I haven't driven too many manual transmission cars in my lifetime (yet), so I didn't know if it was abnormal or not.
Anyway, the reason the Elise's gearbox feels bad is because it engages into each gear strangely. Idk if that makes sense, but I'll explain my experience more in a bit. I guess that's a compromise of driving such an extraordinary vehicle. I was driving the car briskly and shifting gears rapidly, so maybe it was my driving that made the gearbox feel awkward, but I have read on the Lotus forum, as well the salesman telling me so, that many Elise/Exige owners prefer installing an aftermarket gearbox to make the gears feel better.
When downshifting, I could have sworn I went from 3rd to 2nd, but the gear would be sitting in 4th. It was peculiar to say the least. The Elise shifts decently smooth, but it just feels awkward. I went from 2nd gear to 5th gear at one point without realizing it.
I think the gearbox would take some getting used to, and I'm positive anyone can get used to it after driving the car around for more than 5 minutes, but from my first impression, all I can say is that the gearbox isn't as good as you'd expect.
I hope that somewhat explains my disdain of the Elise's gearbox. Now to be honest, the lack of an incredibly smooth shifter is a compromise I'm willing to make in order to own an Elise.
09-05-2010, 05:02 AM
#28
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For one, its a mid engine drive train, with the transmission and shifter linked by a series of cables, where as the the s2000 has direct linkage. Because of this, you will never have the direct feel and crispness of the s2000. However, like most other manual transmissions, each one is different, and you'll get used to the gear placement. While I did not think the tranny was as smooth as the s2000, the exige I drove did not experience difficulty in gear placement. Only issue I had was with the closeness of the clutch, brake, gas. I don't remember now which I was having issues with, but I do remember hitting two pedals at once, unless I really angled my foot and ankle.
There are mods out there for the elise transmissions, specifically reinforcing (stiffening) the contact point between the shifter and the floor mount
great video showing the cables and the shifter mod, however not much of an explanation of why it was done, or the results [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7U_R8CxRBDI [/media]
There are mods out there for the elise transmissions, specifically reinforcing (stiffening) the contact point between the shifter and the floor mount
great video showing the cables and the shifter mod, however not much of an explanation of why it was done, or the results [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7U_R8CxRBDI [/media]
09-05-2010, 10:48 AM
#29
Originally Posted by UmarS2K,Sep 4 2010, 08:28 PM
Anyway, the reason the Elise's gearbox feels bad is because it engages into each gear strangely. Idk if that makes sense, but I'll explain my experience more in a bit. I guess that's a compromise of driving such an extraordinary vehicle. I was driving the car briskly and shifting gears rapidly, so maybe it was my driving that made the gearbox feel awkward, but I have read on the Lotus forum, as well the salesman telling me so, that many Elise/Exige owners prefer installing an aftermarket gearbox to make the gears feel better.
When downshifting, I could have sworn I went from 3rd to 2nd, but the gear would be sitting in 4th. It was peculiar to say the least. The Elise shifts decently smooth, but it just feels awkward. I went from 2nd gear to 5th gear at one point without realizing it.
I think the gearbox would take some getting used to, and I'm positive anyone can get used to it after driving the car around for more than 5 minutes, but from my first impression, all I can say is that the gearbox isn't as good as you'd expect.
When downshifting, I could have sworn I went from 3rd to 2nd, but the gear would be sitting in 4th. It was peculiar to say the least. The Elise shifts decently smooth, but it just feels awkward. I went from 2nd gear to 5th gear at one point without realizing it.
I think the gearbox would take some getting used to, and I'm positive anyone can get used to it after driving the car around for more than 5 minutes, but from my first impression, all I can say is that the gearbox isn't as good as you'd expect.
I was used to the TL gearbox and the S's felt like what you describe. The I got used to it and now I love it.
09-05-2010, 10:25 PM
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Originally Posted by Chris S,Sep 4 2010, 03:52 PM
Unless you're a track junkie, I wouldn't bother. It's a great car, but very compromised for the real world. They're awesome on the track, though.
It's a car that's also fun to drive at low speeds because the chassis is so communicative that you always feel you're in a go-kart.
Makes me feel like I'm a kid at a local go-kart track.
My only problem is the stupid top...I put mine up and down 2-3 times a day. I couldn't imagine wasting 30 mins a day on placing the top correctly.