[Apolo]

Hi lotus fellas,
I am toying with an idea to get an Evora as my next daily drive.

I had E36 M3 and E46 M3 as daily drive before, while BMW made good quality/high performance sports seden, the reliability wasnt great. After i got stranded twice on the road in cold, I swithched to a Subaru legacy GT wagon 5mt and was very happy wih the overall performance and reliability but I miss the agile handling from a sports car.

Now I am trying to decide either go back to E90 M3 and live with the fear & thrill at the same time or try out Evora. I only drive stick shift and like to have backseat so my optios are very limited.

Do you think Evora will be a good daily drive for some harsh winter?
Hopping to learn a lot more about Evora from you guys!
Apolo

 

[yellow99s]

An Evora clutch replacement is currently around a $9,000 job. Body panels cost more than some new cars. No way would I even consider daily driving one in Chicago and I drive my Elise there all the time.

 

[SwingLo]

Not a lot of Evora drivers in the area. Check with ShadowWulf on the forum. He's in WI and drives an Evora (same weather).

Honestly, as an Elise owner for 5 years, I would NEVER drive an Evora as my daily in this weather. First, I can't imagine handling would be all that good in the snow. Secondly, I don't trust other drivers. If they hit your car, you are out. This isn't a Subaru or BMW you can take to any number of shops in any number of areas.

Lastly, service. They have weird little 'issues'. I'll deal with that on my 'toy car', but my daily? No way. I need my daily to work and work reliably. LFSC is meh when it comes to service and now that FVMC is gone, there's no real Lotus service support in Chicago (TJ and Gator are in Indy).

Translation - great summer fun cars (or nice warm sunny days like today), but no way in hell a Lotus of any sort would be my daily in a) this weather and b) with this lack of dealer/service support.

 

[derrek1280]

Yeah... I just have too much respect for these cars to ever encourage anyone to drive them in the snow/ice/salt, etc... RWD, delicate bodies, expensive parts, plus not ever trusting other people driving around you.

 

[SwingLo]

Yeah, but all of that stuff COULD be deal with if you have a proper dealer/service network. Unfortunately, we live in the 3rd largest city in the nation and that simply does not exist.

Honestly it was one of the main reasons I didn't go Evora after my last Elise.

Also, read up - not major stuff, but lots of annoying little things that WILL drive you nuts.

 

[philethier]

An Evora clutch replacement is currently around a $9,000 job.

Just what I paid for my Legacy GT.

Dunno what the deal is with your wagon, but I have no complaints about the handling on my sedan.

Keep the Subie, get a used Elise for three-season fun.

 

[Apolo]

Thanks for the encouragement guys
You are all spot on my concerns and believe me I have read all the posts related to cost/issues but I have also tried very hard to convinced myself that the pain could not be that bad since Evora carried the reliable drivetrain from Camry.

Maybe I am too obsessed with sports car and I already have two (nsx & 911 turbo) for summer. I just wanting to extend the joy all year round.

Maybe moving will be a better option for me haha.

 

[Apolo]

I love my wagon and have done a lot works to improve it (brembo bbk, stiffer suspension, jdm bumper etc) but its still a heavy car compare to a true sports car's handling.
While I still enjoy driving it everyday, its been 9 years and why not try something new. Life is short and I am not getting younger

Just what I paid for my Legacy GT.

Dunno what the deal is with your wagon, but I have no complaints about the handling on my sedan.

Keep the Subie, get a used Elise for three-season fun.

 

[driftwood]

:up:

I already have two (nsx & 911 turbo) for summer

if i were in your situation i would keep the subi for the winter & 911, then sell the nsx & replace it with an evora

& i love the nsx (used to work for acura because of them)... but the evora is pretty much a newer & improved version of an NSX with different aesthetics & an option for a tiny back seat... honestly, if your nsx doesnt see winter then there is 0 reason an evora should either

:up:

 

[SwingLo]

On the contrary Mat, I'd sell the 911, because hell, everyone has a 911.

I'd keep the NSX because they are so timeless and headturning.

Replace the 911 with an Evora and enjoy our 3 days of summer in Chicago-land!

Any chance you have a red NSX and live in Geneva? Was driving on Sunday am and was behind one and then parked about 3 cars down from it at Starbucks on 38.

 

[derrek1280]

You could also just build a bigger garage.

Room for more fun cars!

 

[Lckitty]

Go drive the Evora and come tell us what you think. I'll bet you go Lotus.

 

[Apolo]

My two little girls have already reserved the NSX and 911 so selling them is not an option plus they are both kinda rare (94 turbo 3.6 and 05 GPW)
Other than Evora I just dont see other car excites me. Maybe the one series M as another option but sometime I still wake up with nightmare about BMWs service haha.

 

[Apolo]

I did test drove a 2011 Evora a week ago. I think Evora is a simple elegant sports car just the way I like. The only complaint if I may will be the shifter and fit/finish Which they already addressed for 2012 up model.

Go drive the Evora and come tell us what you think. I'll bet you go Lotus.

 

[Apolo]

On the contrary Mat, I'd sell the 911, because hell, everyone has a 911.

I'd keep the NSX because they are so timeless and headturning.

Replace the 911 with an Evora and enjoy our 3 days of summer in Chicago-land!

Any chance you have a red NSX and live in Geneva? Was driving on Sunday am and was behind one and then parked about 3 cars down from it at Starbucks on 38.

No mine is white. Thanks for the heads up on the dealer issue, I just read this not so positive post about Lake Forest...

 

[yellow99s]

White NSX? YUMMY, trade for an Elise?:drool:

 

[Apolo]

White NSX? YUMMY, trade for an Elise?:drool:

Haha thanks but no

 

[derrek1280]

My two little girls have already reserved the NSX and 911 so selling them is not an option plus they are both kinda rare (94 turbo 3.6 and 05 GPW)
Other than Evora I just dont see other car excites me. Maybe the one series M as another option but sometime I still wake up with nightmare about BMWs service haha.

So... give one the Evora, instead

The Evoras are pretty rare, too!

 

[ShadowWulf369]

I can't speak to the manual transmission on the Evora because mine is an IPS, but if I were looking for a daily driver in WI, a Lotus would not be it. I stored mine over this last winter and she just saw daylight for the first time two weeks ago. Even if you were to install winter tires on the car, a few inches of snow would stop you dead in your tracks. Needing to be towed out of a snowy ditch would terrify me too! For me, the Evora is much more a summer fun car than anything else. I have a base Mitsubishi Eclipse as my daily driver to handle winter, bad weather, and going places where I would have to worry about door dings and people parking by brale (namely: work!). But then again, maybe I just love the car too much and want to keep her pristine as long as possible. The Evoras have they're small bugs and right now, I would recommend not buying one that is out of warranty to help cover the glitches.

As for LFSC, I purchased mine from there last year, had it serviced there and will be going there for any future warranty work (I'm pretty sure my sub amp is a dud). From experience, I haven't had an issue with them, but that's not to say that they're perfect. I just haven't been wronged by them.

So, my opinion, don't buy an Evora as a daily driver, unless you plan to move south anytime soon. Hope this helps!

PS: adult people cannot fit in the back seat. Just sayin.

 

[Apolo]

Man You guy are harder to convince than my wife lol
The reason I wanted a back seat is to convince my wife that this is not just another toy purchase . I do occasionally take my 5 yr but I have two other vehicles(one SUV one seden) to haul people if needed.

Now I think about it, I do have enough toy for summer (I also track motorcycle)
so maybe I just need to find something more fun for winter.