[Whitey#1]

perhaps am zeroing in on the purchase of a new Elise. had a couple of questions, and hopefully they will be the last of many. at least for awhile.

1) with a soft top, does the cabin stay warm in the winter? or would i freeze if i had nothing but a soft top on?

2) regarding reliability.....since i am approximately 5 hours from the nearest authorized dealer i wouldnt want to have to make 2-3 trips a year for warranty work. does a new Lotus typically have small problems that require trips to the dealer every 3-4 months? or do typically they go for quite awhile without much trouble? one trip a year, no big deal. 3-4 a year, that would get old in a hurry.

Mike

p.s. yes, go ahead, zing me all you's want. but hopefully someone will answer the questions.

 

[dasmoofler]

My experience
1. yes
2. no

 

[sleepe]

cabin stays relatively warm...you can usually fix small problems on your own

 

[ZAMMY1]

the soft top keeps me warm. the heater is sufficient for pittsburgh weather.
the A/c is ok for here also.
as to reliability, i don't know, i only have 24,000+ miles on mine.
i don't run it in the snowy weather as it doesn't have snow tires.
buy it, you'll love it.
good luck, sam

 

[bueno]

perhaps am zeroing in on the purchase of a new Elise. had a couple of questions, and hopefully they will be the last of many. at least for awhile.

1) with a soft top, does the cabin stay warm in the winter? or would i freeze if i had nothing but a soft top on?

2) regarding reliability.....since i am approximately 5 hours from the nearest authorized dealer i wouldnt want to have to make 2-3 trips a year for warranty work. does a new Lotus typically have small problems that require trips to the dealer every 3-4 months? or do typically they go for quite awhile without much trouble? one trip a year, no big deal. 3-4 a year, that would get old in a hurry.

Mike

p.s. yes, go ahead, zing me all you's want. but hopefully someone will answer the questions.

In the winter, turn the heater on and you won't have a problem. Also, wearing warm clothes helps alot.

Trips to the dealer would be minimal, maybe once a year at best.

 

[advanracing62]

I don't drive mine in the cold either- but I know the heater will roast my nuts.

I bought my Lotus from a dealer 6hrs away, and that is the same dealer I would have to visit to get work done... I didn't even think about this before buying, neither should you

 

[RacyTracy]

1. Relatively....you won't need to wear a big parka while driving in the winter, but a light-weight coat might be nice.

2. No good way to answer. I had almost no waurantee work that needed to be done on mine....some people here have had quite a bit. If you're buying a used car, maybe most of the bugs have been worked out. If you're buying a new car, who knows? If you buy new, maybe you could at least stay in town for a day and put a couple hundred miles on it...just to check it out.

 

[klone]

1. I must be colder than most. My heater is pathetic in cold weather, so I am chilly driving in winter.

2. No serious issues, but most issues can be handled anyway. The only issue with a new Elise is the 1,000 mile ecu dump. After that, change your own oil and drive it like you stole it.

 

[6_speed]

1) The soft top that comes with the Touring package is thicker and provides better insulation from the weather. Does the car you are looking at has TP? In any case, any soft top should be better than none.

2) Depends on how many miles you plan to put on per year I guess. For me, routine maintenance once a year or 7000 miles whichever comes first.

 

[MikeinAlexandria]

My car has the touring package softtop. It is pretty thick, and even when I was not warmly dressed, it got pretty toasty with the heater cranked up (about 45 F out that day, and rainy) No leaks whatsoever either!

As for maintainance, it seems like an annual visit to a Lotus dealer is enough, inbetween there is plenty you should be able to do yourself.

I am loving my car. I think if you can accept the minor issues, like getting in and out, wearing narrow sneakers when you drive, being VERY careful backing up or when parking, and remembering that a cop is going to be much more willing to chase you for going 11mph over the limit than the soccer mom in the MINI-van who is going 18mph over the limit, you will be happy. At the very least, you will get attention everywhere you drive.

 

[ryoung99]

My problem with the soft top is not in the winter, it is in the summer.

The a/c could not cool the car down with the soft top on, too much heat coming through. With the hard top it is much better, thus we only use the soft top in the spring and fall.

 

[LARRY]

Cobra owner friend of mine says...

"In winter, if you can't find a warm woman....
....then a flying jacket will keep you warm."

And he doesn't have a roof or side windows.

So, keep the Lotus roof on and turn the heater on a bit.