111R six months on
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111R six months on
I've had PM's from quite a few S2K'ers who fancy moving to the 111R, and I did say a while back to one of them that I'd do a 6 months on thread. It's been a great car to own, which should come as no surprise to the people who know how excited I was when I bought it. It's given me not a days hassle since June, and so much joy driving it.
Pros
Initially, the car didn't seem that much different on the road to the S2K because I was driving within the S2K's limits. Once I learned to push the car further into bends, trained myself to brake later and turn later/harder it began to reward me a huge amount. The cornering is nothing short of staggering, in any weather. Granted if the tyres are cold it's going to understeer and then snap into oversteer if you drive like a prick, but if you heat the tyres and brakes up first the results are awesome. I find myself speeding up at roundabouts where in the S I would hit the brakes. People seem to think I'm always racing by the supernatural way I take roundabouts and sharp bends. I'm not, I'm just driving in a way that feels natural to the car.
The car can plow through stretches of standing water where in the S2K I couldn't go through at anything faster than 60mph. This was one of my main grudges against the S2K and I'm still trying to get over my irrational fear I developed of standing water from driving the S. The only downside of wet weather driving in the Elise vs the S2K is drifting. I was always partial to drifting the S out of junctions in the wet, and the LSD made that very easy. In the Elise, there's no LSD so the wheel with less grip just spins and doesn't kick you into a drift. You have to give the Elise a lot more lock to drift the car the same way, as there's simply too much grip.
The engine is a funny one. Low down even from 2000rpm it pulls hard and responds very well. Anyone who's got in the car has commented on this, and have all noticed the difference from the responsive yet gutless engine in the S2K below 6krpm. What this means is that I spend a lot of the time off cam, which I simply couldn't do in the old car. I spend a shitload less on petrol but get there in the same time.
When I want a laugh, and it genuinely brings a smile to my face every time, I let it hit the 2nd cam profile and rev to just over 8000rpm. The engine is rather gravelly and mundane below it, but above it the engine takes on a very metallic and agressive tone, which people can hear for what seems like miles. The car feels like it sheds 200kg and starts to really push into your back in a way that I've only experienced in turbo cars. There's a definite jolt as it kicks in and like the S2K, on a wet road if you're not prepared it can spin the wheels.
Generally though, it's pretty difficult to spin the wheels up unless the tyres are cold. As I said in a post recently, it could be the position of the engine over the back wheels, the suspension layout, or the tyres, I'm not sure, but it just grips and grips. It has 220bhp/ton so it's not lack of power, it's just a very well sorted car.
Every time I drive it, people stop and stare. You just don't see Lotuses up here. I've seen an old yellow S1 sinceI bought mine, and a black one a couple of years ago - that's it. I know that down south where there are loads of racetracks they are fairly common but up here, they're like hens teeth. It's just such a radical shape for a roadcar, as people keep saying. It's nothing like a hot hatch, nor is it comparable to a saloon car with the roof chopped off, or a traditional shaped roadster like the S2K or MX5. It does what I wanted then, it looks like nothing else.
So it handles amazingly, acceleration is blinding and often hillarious, it's cheap to run and it looks the part. Ok so what don't I like?
Cons
Well the roof takes about 1min to take off or on, and being a lazy c**t that means I've done a lot less topless driving over the winter than I did in the S2K. That's also because the weather has been so shite though. The roof is simple enough to take off, but because you have to get out of the car to remove it I don't do it as much. Human nature.
It is VERY low down, it often shocks me if I step off a high kerb to get in just how low it is. It can be a pain if you have a sore neck or back getting in, and passengers often complain. Thankfully I don't have many. The main one is the mrs, but she's willing to put up with that.
Luggage space is pretty poor. I can't fit in my usual small suitcase if I'm away for a few days, that has to go in the passenger seat, but it will accommodate say 4 or 5 bags of shopping. I do internet shopping so it's not a big worry, but if I have a day out in town and spend some money I always have to think about if I can get what I've just bought home.
Motorway driving is not very enjoyable. It's so in touch with the road that you feel everything. That's great on a track or an a/b-road when you're having fun, but if you're going up a poorly surfaced motorway it can get very old. A 30mile journey to Glasgow can be very tiring. There's no way to fix that, it's just something you can either live with or you can't. I use the motorway maybe once every 3 months so it's not something that bothers me enough to buy a 4 door saloon.
You don't feel as isolated or cocooned as you do in the S with the roof up. Stones hit off the undertray and you hear them, and when you clatter over a pot hole you feel and hear it. You have so little weight because all the nice chunky bits of rubber and insulation simply aren't there. If you're expecting luxury for your 30k then forget it.
Summary
But on the whole, it was a great decision for me. I can understand why people like Russ went from an Elise to the S2K, but none of those reasons apply to me, and I wanted the fastest and best handling car I could buy. The 111R is it. The only difficulty is deciding what car to buy next. The only one I can think of is the Exige S, as nothing else except maybe an Aerial Atom could match up in the areas that are important to me. And I don't have a garage so cars without roofs are out.
So if you're thinking about an Elise I hope that's helped. And if you're wondering if I regret the decision to leave the comfort of the S2K, that should also be answered.
By some twist of fate, the roads seem to have dried for the first time in about a month so I'm off out to enjoy.
Pros
Initially, the car didn't seem that much different on the road to the S2K because I was driving within the S2K's limits. Once I learned to push the car further into bends, trained myself to brake later and turn later/harder it began to reward me a huge amount. The cornering is nothing short of staggering, in any weather. Granted if the tyres are cold it's going to understeer and then snap into oversteer if you drive like a prick, but if you heat the tyres and brakes up first the results are awesome. I find myself speeding up at roundabouts where in the S I would hit the brakes. People seem to think I'm always racing by the supernatural way I take roundabouts and sharp bends. I'm not, I'm just driving in a way that feels natural to the car.
The car can plow through stretches of standing water where in the S2K I couldn't go through at anything faster than 60mph. This was one of my main grudges against the S2K and I'm still trying to get over my irrational fear I developed of standing water from driving the S. The only downside of wet weather driving in the Elise vs the S2K is drifting. I was always partial to drifting the S out of junctions in the wet, and the LSD made that very easy. In the Elise, there's no LSD so the wheel with less grip just spins and doesn't kick you into a drift. You have to give the Elise a lot more lock to drift the car the same way, as there's simply too much grip.
The engine is a funny one. Low down even from 2000rpm it pulls hard and responds very well. Anyone who's got in the car has commented on this, and have all noticed the difference from the responsive yet gutless engine in the S2K below 6krpm. What this means is that I spend a lot of the time off cam, which I simply couldn't do in the old car. I spend a shitload less on petrol but get there in the same time.
When I want a laugh, and it genuinely brings a smile to my face every time, I let it hit the 2nd cam profile and rev to just over 8000rpm. The engine is rather gravelly and mundane below it, but above it the engine takes on a very metallic and agressive tone, which people can hear for what seems like miles. The car feels like it sheds 200kg and starts to really push into your back in a way that I've only experienced in turbo cars. There's a definite jolt as it kicks in and like the S2K, on a wet road if you're not prepared it can spin the wheels.
Generally though, it's pretty difficult to spin the wheels up unless the tyres are cold. As I said in a post recently, it could be the position of the engine over the back wheels, the suspension layout, or the tyres, I'm not sure, but it just grips and grips. It has 220bhp/ton so it's not lack of power, it's just a very well sorted car.
Every time I drive it, people stop and stare. You just don't see Lotuses up here. I've seen an old yellow S1 sinceI bought mine, and a black one a couple of years ago - that's it. I know that down south where there are loads of racetracks they are fairly common but up here, they're like hens teeth. It's just such a radical shape for a roadcar, as people keep saying. It's nothing like a hot hatch, nor is it comparable to a saloon car with the roof chopped off, or a traditional shaped roadster like the S2K or MX5. It does what I wanted then, it looks like nothing else.
So it handles amazingly, acceleration is blinding and often hillarious, it's cheap to run and it looks the part. Ok so what don't I like?
Cons
Well the roof takes about 1min to take off or on, and being a lazy c**t that means I've done a lot less topless driving over the winter than I did in the S2K. That's also because the weather has been so shite though. The roof is simple enough to take off, but because you have to get out of the car to remove it I don't do it as much. Human nature.
It is VERY low down, it often shocks me if I step off a high kerb to get in just how low it is. It can be a pain if you have a sore neck or back getting in, and passengers often complain. Thankfully I don't have many. The main one is the mrs, but she's willing to put up with that.
Luggage space is pretty poor. I can't fit in my usual small suitcase if I'm away for a few days, that has to go in the passenger seat, but it will accommodate say 4 or 5 bags of shopping. I do internet shopping so it's not a big worry, but if I have a day out in town and spend some money I always have to think about if I can get what I've just bought home.
Motorway driving is not very enjoyable. It's so in touch with the road that you feel everything. That's great on a track or an a/b-road when you're having fun, but if you're going up a poorly surfaced motorway it can get very old. A 30mile journey to Glasgow can be very tiring. There's no way to fix that, it's just something you can either live with or you can't. I use the motorway maybe once every 3 months so it's not something that bothers me enough to buy a 4 door saloon.
You don't feel as isolated or cocooned as you do in the S with the roof up. Stones hit off the undertray and you hear them, and when you clatter over a pot hole you feel and hear it. You have so little weight because all the nice chunky bits of rubber and insulation simply aren't there. If you're expecting luxury for your 30k then forget it.
Summary
But on the whole, it was a great decision for me. I can understand why people like Russ went from an Elise to the S2K, but none of those reasons apply to me, and I wanted the fastest and best handling car I could buy. The 111R is it. The only difficulty is deciding what car to buy next. The only one I can think of is the Exige S, as nothing else except maybe an Aerial Atom could match up in the areas that are important to me. And I don't have a garage so cars without roofs are out.
So if you're thinking about an Elise I hope that's helped. And if you're wondering if I regret the decision to leave the comfort of the S2K, that should also be answered.
By some twist of fate, the roads seem to have dried for the first time in about a month so I'm off out to enjoy.
#3
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I didn't want another red car!
I was just going to take my car for a test drive, and go back home till he got a black or storm one. Then the salesman kicked it up the street and I heard the noise, and as if by magic the sun came out and lit up the orange pearl.
I do think it suits red, but there are loads of great colours for it. I really like the white with cream and black leather option. Very tasty.
I was just going to take my car for a test drive, and go back home till he got a black or storm one. Then the salesman kicked it up the street and I heard the noise, and as if by magic the sun came out and lit up the orange pearl.
I do think it suits red, but there are loads of great colours for it. I really like the white with cream and black leather option. Very tasty.
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As a fellow owner I have to say that BB has missed one of the fundamental items of the car and given that this is a longer term review I should share it with you all.
All the owners of reds north of the border are complete c0cks and use any excuse to get their infantile sized kn0b out for everyone's amusement. This action is childish, immature and down right revolting given the nature of acquintance i.e. car appreciation.
If you can get past this issue then the Elise 111R is a fantadtic car for what it does well.
All the owners of reds north of the border are complete c0cks and use any excuse to get their infantile sized kn0b out for everyone's amusement. This action is childish, immature and down right revolting given the nature of acquintance i.e. car appreciation.
If you can get past this issue then the Elise 111R is a fantadtic car for what it does well.
#6
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Originally Posted by Kelk,Jan 20 2007, 02:36 PM
As a fellow owner I have to say that BB has missed one of the fundamental items of the car and given that this is a longer term review I should share it with you all.
All the owners of reds north of the border are complete c0cks and use any excuse to get their infantile sized kn0b out for everyone's amusement. This action is childish, immature and down right revolting given the nature of acquintance i.e. car appreciation.
If you can get past this issue then the Elise 111R is a fantadtic car for what it does well.
All the owners of reds north of the border are complete c0cks and use any excuse to get their infantile sized kn0b out for everyone's amusement. This action is childish, immature and down right revolting given the nature of acquintance i.e. car appreciation.
If you can get past this issue then the Elise 111R is a fantadtic car for what it does well.
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#8
Interesting about the standing water, if anything you'd think a light mid engined car would be far more of a problem.
I still kind of want one every time I see an Elise S2 on the road. But as I've bored everyone with before, the reality of the cheaper Rover powered ones really didn't live up to the reputation for me. Now I can just about afford one I should probably go try out a 111R, which I'm sure is much improved, but it's still going to be
I still kind of want one every time I see an Elise S2 on the road. But as I've bored everyone with before, the reality of the cheaper Rover powered ones really didn't live up to the reputation for me. Now I can just about afford one I should probably go try out a 111R, which I'm sure is much improved, but it's still going to be