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I am told by mechanics and automotive technicians...

 

I am told by mechanics and automotive technicians at LOTUS dealerships that the Elise and Exige are terrible cars to work on, have little to no safety features, and were not designed with accident safety nor maintenance accessibility in mind.  The automotive technician tells me everything has to be disassembled since there is no way to get the tooling in and no technician has small enough hands to maneuver any tools in the tight engine bay.  So, I asked them what would they recommend - they said Aston Martins V8 Vantage (Ian Callum era) are easier to work on and said the 2015+ model years were best.  Lamborghini Huracan was also on that list - they described it as an Audi mechanical car with Italian programming language - a technician from an Audi dealership told me his past experience at Audi didn't help much on the computer side as all the programming was completely different.  Porsches are considered reliable - but MacPherson Strut suspension - so I'm less enthused.  

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39 Comments view entire thread 

Average speed.

 
By: bimbeano : December 13th, 2023-22:16
This past week I drove around 500 km in and around my rainy village, traffic is totally ridiculous and I averaged around 33 km/h. I think some 100 of those 500 km were driven on highways. A good friend of mine also complains about this 'phenomenon' and th...  

The engine is on the rear, in the 911. :)))))

 
By: amanico : December 13th, 2023-22:35
I always wanted to drive the Exige!!! Wow, cool toys! Best, Pimpeano. Nico

I am told by mechanics and automotive technicians...

 
By: patrick_y : December 13th, 2023-22:37
I am told by mechanics and automotive technicians at LOTUS dealerships that the Elise and Exige are terrible cars to work on, have little to no safety features, and were not designed with accident safety nor maintenance accessibility in mind. The automoti... 

While 'inspecting' the Exige yesterday ...

 
By: bimbeano : December 13th, 2023-22:43
... i wondered about accessibility and maintenance cost as well to be honest . These Lotus' are completely different cars from any of the above you mention Patrick. If someone wants a lotus he doesn't care about all of this because he wants that raw feeli... 

That's true!

 
By: patrick_y : December 13th, 2023-22:50
An Elise/Exige is a different market than a Vantage. Although, here in USA - all of these cars are driven on city streets and very few cars (even the Lotus Elise) ever see any spirited driving or even see a racetrack. I asked the mechanics at the Lotus de... 

A standard A110 with a few options is 70K

 
By: bimbeano : December 14th, 2023-19:28
The 660cc 85 hp Caterham with decent specs is 45K The 2000 cc 170 hp with decent specs is 65K I do like the idea of the triple 660 cc .. it only weighs 440 kilos !!!!!!!

Ah occasion ?

 
By: bimbeano : December 15th, 2023-19:38
Moi je n'achete pas deuxième main messieur. Sauf si tu fait bon prix messieur.

It's good to be cheap!

 
By: patrick_y : December 16th, 2023-20:03
And the best way to be cheap is with a TESLA! RWD, Double Wishbone front suspension, fixed brake calipers from Brembo (although the brakes are horrible), good steering feel. And LOW RUNNING COSTS and LOW MAINTENANCE costs! Can't wait for Bim to go electri... 

About going electric ..

 
By: bimbeano : December 18th, 2023-22:33
I will probably opt for a Renault (what else LOL) in a year .. maybe two ... but keeping my petrol cars in the 'collection'. A Tesla Model 3 still has a small chance to make it into the Bim's barn ... but then there is ... The Alpine A290 next year ...  

For me ... but the only reason being ...

 
By: bimbeano : December 18th, 2023-22:39
.. very cheap to run and knowing Alpine/Renaultsport they'll make it a fun steering car anyway. And I must admit I also like new tech stuff although it still remains to be seen ;-). Most probably I'll go for the cheapo R5 125 hp version, as cheap as possi... 

I don't have to save ;-)

 
By: bimbeano : December 18th, 2023-23:12
Banks have enough money .. and so does everybody around me .... hmmm, makes me wonder why I'm always the only one that's broke

You are a Renault Purist!

 
By: patrick_y : December 18th, 2023-23:19
Will this Alpine A290 have a double wishbone front suspension and RWD? If so, I'm all for it!!! I'd want that over a Tesla too!

Don't know about the suspension, but ...

 
By: bimbeano : December 19th, 2023-08:26
.. it will definitely have FWD !!!! Which is positive since Renault heritage is mostly based on FWD ... well also RWD in the early years but which brand didn't have RWD ? The reason I find this positive is the fact that Renault knows how to make a proper ... 

I see! I've never owned an FWD car!

 
By: patrick_y : December 19th, 2023-09:03
I've only owned RWD cars. But the trend here in California is electric cars and here they are usually AWD or RWD. Hmmm... I wonder if the Porsche Boxster/Cayman will be coming out with a RWD electric car soon. That might be interesting!

Nice to see an Elise

 
By: jslater : December 16th, 2023-17:48
I still have m 1998 S1 and it still puts a smile on my face every time I get behind the wheel. Such a fun car to drive.

You don't see them often.

 
By: bimbeano : December 18th, 2023-22:30
Do you have any pics of your Elise to share ? Greetz, Filip

I love hot hatchbacks,

 
By: RabidManatee : December 19th, 2023-21:21
but that Exige looks like a LOT of fun. Color is great, too!