Syn

Yesterday I rented an Elise for the afternoon while I was in Las Vegas on vacation. I took it out to this place called Red Rock Canyon west of the city at the recommendation of the person who delivered the car. It was about a 12-mile one-way only scenic drive and the route was a blast to drive. I also drove it around the outskirts of town and found some nice twisty roads/roundabouts to really toss the car around.

Overall, I was rather underwhelmed. I know that I can't use this particular car as a direct comparison to my S2000 because this Elise has obviously had a rough history being a rental sports car, and also the tire setup on the car was far from ideal: Falken something-or-others up front that looked sort of decent and then some crap Kumho M+S on the rear. I really wish it had four Star Specs or RE-11s etc.

I could not push the car nearly as far as my S2000 before it started to break loose. Again, this is probably all in the tires. It was definitely a different feeling having 800 less lbs of car around me and I could see how it would be a great track car. The interior was just garbage but I suppose that's what you get with a purpose-built Lotus. There was hardly any room to move around at all inside the car.

Clutch engagement and braking were the best parts about the car. These two bits really had me impressed. The shifter was, well, not an S2000 shifter. It had really long throws and did not feel nearly as precise. Still it got the job done and I've definitely driven cars with worse shifters.

All-in-all I think I need to find an unmolested Elise to drive around sometime to do a more fair comparison. Given the few hours of seat time in this one though, there's not a chance in hell I'd pick one over my S2000.

dombey

lol on the tires. I wonder what they put on the lambos...?

Syn

Yeah, who knows. The very first thing I did when I got the keys was check the rubber and I was very disappointed not only at the horrible rear tires but the fact that it wasn't even a matching set. They obviously picked the cheapest replacement set they could slap on the car knowing that most people who rent something like that in Vegas are doing it only for the attention and not to actually drive at the limit.

I will say the Tesla (same chassis) I drove last summer was far and away a better machine. The interior was far superior and of course the 3.9 second 0-60 time absolutely clowned anything else I've had the chance to personally drive.

ThatSlowKid

wait what color was the Elise? Lol because I was in vegas too, walking down the strip. I was crossing the street and somone in an Elise stopped for me to let me pass. I gave him a thumbs up for his car, I might have been you. It was a greyish elise.

EMIRDTM

How much was it to rent one and for how long?

Triple-H

Having wailed one around Watkins Glen let me just say your above statement is 100% correct
The Elise is awesome, it is much more alive on the track than the S2000

CosmosMpower

Probably the tires, the car has way higher limits than the S2000 on equal tires. Also I'm surprised you liked brakes, to me the S2000 brakes have way more initial bite even if the Elise might stop in less distance overall.

Also, I'm surprised you thought the interior was cramped. It's difficult to get in and out but once you're in I think there's more space than a S2000 as far as leg/shoulder room as there's not a big transmission tunnel in the middle just a small console. It could be cramped if you had a passenger with you or if you're a big guy the seats don't fit very well. I honestly slide around too much in my seats but I have a size 31 waist.

The stock shifter does suck but with a few small mods (shift reinforcement kit etc) it's much better although still no S2000.

hirev

My good friend has a 05 sport....this is a matter of personal taste....he is much more hard core than i am, makes my S2000 look like a luxo cruiser almost. I love the way it sounds, drives, corners, and the view is soo cool...what i don't like and is a deal breaker is the even more spartan interior, bulky shifter (he has a quick shift kit, nothing compares to The S2000), entry/exit hurdles, harsh ride, lack of truck space, silly top removal experience, no door handles(man pocket change weighs more)spartan dash with vague tack, you shift the lotus on instinct, and awful expensive for repair/body work, and lousy seats...need i go on...this is great for a dedicated track car , period. or for a one day or weekend rental...

luder_5555

^ I feel the same way about most of what you have said. To me, if you are going to get a Lotus an use it as an occasional toy, why not go all the way and get an Atom?

You are probably not going to drive either in the rain, both will be equally uncomfortable, the atom is lighter, faster, will get more looks (possible draw-back), and in my eyes (having ridden in both, driven a lotus) the atom is even more exciting and more visceral.

Syn

To answer above questions: it was red so you didn't see me although that would be pretty freaky. It cost like $350 to rent for 9 hours...I do not remember the exact amount. A Ferrari would have been something like $1300 for the same amount of time

I know the tires were the worst part about drawing conclusions on how the car handles. I still remember going from some similar crappy Kumhos to my Star Specs on my S2000 and it was night and day. I'm sure the same would be the case with the Elise.

I may have liked the brakes because I just replaced my pads right before vacation and I was previously driving on a very worn set for about 6 weeks. Driving around in my car again today I will agree the initial bite on the S2000 is better. I'm sure total stopping distance is shorter in the sub-2000 lb car though.

Maybe it felt more cramped just because of how much of a hassle it was to get in and out of the car. I did have a passenger with me for a portion of the ride though and the lack of space between the two seats was very noticeable. I think the S still has better leg room but again that could just be me remembering the ridiculous entry/exit in the Elise rather than thinking about when I was actually sitting in it.

Regarding the Atom comment: I'd have to agree. I would love to own an Atom as a toy car and I just don't think I could live with an Elise day-to-day the way I can with my S2000.