Lotus Elise as Daily Driver?

[nsxmatt]

I daily drive mine, rain, storms, to work, out of town, to the store, everything. I plan on driving it all winter also. It's a car, no biggie to me.

[RichS]

This thread needs to be locked...

[CosmosMpower]

Dumb idea especially if you live somewhere that it snows or rains all the time. If you must drive a roadster as a daily just buy a cheap Miata. You can park it anywhere, cheap maintenance, parts, insurance, good MPG and fun.

[LotinElite]

Just buy a cheap beater and DD that.

Your short commute is going to be harsh on the engine as it will not have time to warm up and burn off acids by the time you get there. More frequent oil changes and longer drives throughout the week can help mitigate the damage. Also, you'll be limited by RPM most of the commute anyway... I don't get it. +1 for the miata or something more to your liking.

[schodrow]

had a cheap beater to DD. Every day I would have to get up and decide which care to drive that day. Sold the beater after I hadn't driven it in 3 months.

[MikeinAlexandria]

With a three mile commute, you could get an Elise AND a Vespa 150cc scooter. Ride the Vespa to work on the nicest days (though the Elise might be great then too) and take the Elise when you need to.

I have to say though, my Elise has not quite warmed up after a 3 mile drive, unless it is getting onto a highway. When it is quite cold, the car takes a bit longer to warm up.

A/C wise, I dod the mod listed here, blocking off the air intakes in the hood and drilling out the covers in the passenger compartment. That actually did make the A/C work a bit better. DC area summers can be pretty miserable, and when it is really hot and you are sitting in traffic, the A/C doesn't work that well, but the rest of the time it's liveable.

[LotinElite]

Originally Posted by schodrow

had a cheap beater to DD. Every day I would have to get up and decide which care to drive that day. Sold the beater after I hadn't driven it in 3 months.

What you want to put your engine through is indeed your choice. For me, a daily three mile commute is definitely not one of those things.

[lotusforsale]

This almost belongs in the 'stupid comments' thread, but over the summer met a woman who had just bought a Ferrari 360.

She told me she and her husband had bought an Elise when the first came out, and had since sold it.

She said they considered it their daily beater (she actually used that phrase, NOT daily driver) and drove the Ferrari they had just traded in on the 360 they drove recreationally and on weekends.

She said something to the effect of (only loosely paraphrased), while pointing to my Lotus..."C'mon, you can drive and park those anywhere. If something happens to it, you don't care..."

I just bought a 'rare' Pontiac Solstice Coupe as my daily driver. The Solstice community to which I have been exposed is appalled that I use it as anything other than a weekend toy...they treat their Solstice's with all the care, respect, and genuflection with which many here treat their Lotus.

Perspective is a wonderful thing.

[nsxmatt]

Originally Posted by LotinElite

What you want to put your engine through is indeed your choice. For me, a daily three mile commute is definitely not one of those things.

You do know this isn't some rare engine that HAS to be driven a certian way? It's a celica motor, same motor some soccer mom in a Pontiac Vibe drove balls out from the time she hit the key till she dropped the kids off at school. One that used regular dino oil and 87 octane for 150k miles with no problems?

Some of you need to wake up and take your car off a pedestal. It's a great car, but it's still just a car. A cheap one at that with a mass production toyota motor that is made to short trip if need be.

If you want to keep it in the garage and wipe it with a pamper that's up to you. I'll be the one doing what the car was made for, driving it.

[Terminus]

Originally Posted by texige

If you live where ..., it doesn't rain much

Huh?
I live in the land of rain (Pacific Northwest) and mine works fine as a daily driver.
I use the softop from sometime in March through sometime in November and the hardtop for the 3-4months inbetween.
When I use the softtop and am parking it in the rain (or sun for that matter) I throw the shower/suncap on there.

[kestrel74]

Originally Posted by katch

reliable (Toyota drivetrain),

It's got a Toyota drivetrain !?!?!?!?!?!

[CosmosMpower]

Originally Posted by lotusforsale

She said they considered it their daily beater (she actually used that phrase, NOT daily driver) and drove the Ferrari they had just traded in on the 360 they drove recreationally and on weekends.

She said something to the effect of (only loosely paraphrased), while pointing to my Lotus..."C'mon, you can drive and park those anywhere. If something happens to it, you don't care..."


Perspective is a wonderful thing.

LOL, I said the same thing about my S2000 on the S2000 board and they just about had a heart attack, everyone got mad and the moderator sent me a nasty-gram. But it's true, it is my daily, I don't care if it's dirty, rained out, gets my muddy golf clubs thrown in it. It's a great daily beater.

[LotinElite]

Originally Posted by nsxmatt

You do know this isn't some rare engine that HAS to be driven a certian way? It's a celica motor, same motor some soccer mom in a Pontiac Vibe drove balls out from the time she hit the key till she dropped the kids off at school. One that used regular dino oil and 87 octane for 150k miles with no problems?

Some of you need to wake up and take your car off a pedestal. It's a great car, but it's still just a car. A cheap one at that with a mass production toyota motor that is made to short trip if need be.

If you want to keep it in the garage and wipe it with a pamper that's up to you. I'll be the one doing what the car was made for, driving it.

Turns out it DOES have to be driven a certain way. Otherwise there wouldn't be a break in period that voids the warranty if not followed or a speed limiter below a certain temperature.

From the owner's manual:

"'Severe Service Conditions
Certain operating conditions can cause rapid degradation of the oil quality, either by the accumulation of dirt particles [and acid], or by the absorption of water from condensation.
-Stop/start driving with frequent short trips where the engine rarely warms up thoroughly (especially in cold weather)"

The above is pretty much what I said and a daily three mile commute to work certainly qualifies. You're right, this isn't some rare engine, however we do use relatively rare and premium oil which has different characteristics than what you're used to.

Also, a daily three mile commute isn't really good for any engine, but if you're going to be hard on an engine a Lotus isn't exactly the cheapest to fix. It's called a "beater" for a reason.

I don't hold the car on a pedestal but I do take good care of all of my vehicles, regardless of how "rare" the engine might be. The OP asked for opinions and I gave mine. Apparently that offends you, but that's not my fault.

[LARRY]

It's not a question of "is it a good daily driver?"

It's about the fact that these Lotus cars are race cars, barely legal for the street.

The Lotus gets very good gas mileage and is a blast to drive.

But it is more race car than cushy passenger car.

I drive mine daily. But I truly love the car. That's the only reason I can ignore it's eccentricities.

Test drive one. You'll know if you have to have it.

[LotinElite]

Originally Posted by katch

My boyfriend has an Elise so I am familiar with driving it.

.

Originally Posted by LARRY

Test drive one. You'll know if you have to have it.

[nsxmatt]

Originally Posted by LotinElite

Also, a daily three mile commute isn't really good for any engine, but if you're going to be hard on an engine a Lotus isn't exactly the cheapest to fix.

It's not a lotus engine and yes they are cheap to fix. And you are right, a 3 mile commute isn't good for the engine as far as causing you to change the oil more often and quicker fouling of the o2 sensor but that is it. I've worked in dealerships as a service manager/tech for over 10 years, i'm aware what different types of driving will do to a car. I've seen the 10 year old cars with 9k miles come in with clogged egr ports. The lotus's engine is not any different than a Celica with a different weight synthetic oil. That is a fact many people will not accept.

[SweetDaddyD]

Originally Posted by nsxmatt

It's not a lotus engine and yes they are cheap to fix. And you are right, a 3 mile commute isn't good for the engine as far as causing you to change the oil more often and quicker fouling of the o2 sensor but that is it. I've worked in dealerships as a service manager/tech for over 10 years, i'm aware what different types of driving will do to a car. I've seen the 10 year old cars with 9k miles come in with clogged egr ports. The lotus's engine is not any different than a Celica with a different weight synthetic oil. That is a fact many people will not accept.

Who's not accepting it? It was a major selling point for me. Reliability FTW!!!

Just turned 52K miles this morning and on my way out to work on a customers Lotus a couple hours away.

[nsxmatt]

Exactly! I'm right behind you with 46k and growing. Doing a almost 3 hour trip to Nashville tomorrow too!

[LotinElite]

Originally Posted by nsxmatt

It's not a lotus engine and yes they are cheap to fix. And you are right, a 3 mile commute isn't good for the engine as far as causing you to change the oil more often and quicker fouling of the o2 sensor but that is it. I've worked in dealerships as a service manager/tech for over 10 years, i'm aware what different types of driving will do to a car. I've seen the 10 year old cars with 9k miles come in with clogged egr ports. The lotus's engine is not any different than a Celica with a different weight synthetic oil. That is a fact many people will not accept.

I never said anything about a Lotus engine. You're right though, $150-$300 oil changes are very reasonable, I'm sure that's what the Celica crowd are paying as well. I agree that it's ridiculous to pay anywhere close to that for an oil change when you can easily do it yourself but that is the reality of the situation.

Bottom line is I guarantee you the same problem with the engine on my Honda, or a celica for that matter is going to be much less expensive than on the Lotus.

If you're aware of what different types of driving will do to a car why did you make a big stink about it in the first place? Literally all I said and what you took as blasphemy was "I wouldn't want to put a daily three mile commute on my engine."

[nsxmatt]

Originally Posted by LotinElite

I never said anything about a Lotus engine.

Originally Posted by LotinElite

if you're going to be hard on an engine a Lotus isn't exactly the cheapest to fix.