My Elise is my only car. I've driven it from NC to NE and back, and MD to FL and back, as well as dozens of shorter trips. I put 17,000 miles on my first Elise in just under a year and I'm on track for probably 18-20k this year (15k so far, I believe, in 9 months).

I do not commute--I work from home. I think that does make a difference in how livable the car is day-to-day. My roommate has a somewhat larger car (a Scion xA) so if I need to pick up large items I can borrow her car, but I've brought home lumber in the Elise (not recommended, it's not really fun).

I almost always still enjoy the car. The main exception is in heavy rain when it's just about time for new tires! And of course the expense of new tires, but that can be modulated with careful choices. Most days I'm delighted to be driving it.

 

I've put 12k miles on since november mostly commuting. I personally don't see what all the whining is regarding this being a daily driver. I would say that the only hassle is when you need to give someone a ride you have to coach them through the entry-exit routine. It think there are a few necessary upgrades/fixes:

1. Alignment--the car is so much more relaxing on the freeway since dietschworks aligned it. Rock solid at any speed. I've heard that they all come from the factory out of alignment.
2. Tires--went with S.Drives and matched the radius as close as possible to OEMs. Also get the tire pressure right...the car is downright civilized now. And the balancing has to be perfect...I went with a tire store that used a roadforce balancer and I made sure they got it perfect.
3. New speakers--I mostly an NPR/Pandora guy for my commute so I wasn't looking to be an audiophile...the oem speakers are garbage and the upgrade to JL was huge. The Blaupunkt head unit was fine once you figure out the lame menu system and get it set up right.
4. Ipod adapter. I just went with the 1/8" jack. It doesn't charge but I don't have to worry about compatibility.
5. Adjust your windows--it's easy to do. Don't be afraid to pull the panels off and start adjusting, it's easy and makes a huge difference. Also, hunt down any rattles as long as you're in there.
6. Get the later model center bracket installed on the hard top if you don't have it. it makes a huge difference with wind noise. Mine was done under warranty.
7. Lidbone or gas strut the trunk (boot). It's just much more convenient.
8. Adjust your side mirrors and get used to using them a lot. There is a nasty blind spot, but with the mirrors adjusted it isn't really an issue.
9. I'm fortunate to live in the SF bay area, so the HVAC is more than adequate for our mild climate, but I can imagine it can be a problem for more extreme environments.


I think it is a pretty practical daily driver...I get just shy of 30mpg and have a great time every time every trip. I'm hoping all the non-toyota parts hold up well because I'm planning on putting well over 100k miles on this car...

 

One more:

10. Change the tranny oil to MT-90. The difference is truly amazing, particularly when the car is cold.

 

I drive mine every day and it's my only vehicle. I don't need more than two seats and never haul anything so it's perfect. I do go to Costco with it and can spend a couple hundred for of food and still fit it all in the boot and passenger seat. Great gas mileage for a car as fast as the Elise. Simple maintenance that I can do myself for the most part and I'm not a mechanic at all.

If you don't mind the road noise, the ackward getting in and out, the lack of cargo space, bad in the snow, and that there's only two seats then you will love the car just like everyone else that owns one would say. If you want to enjoy driving every single time you drive your car, the Elise is for you. If you can afford one that is. I can barely afford my used 05 that I bought last year, but it's my favorite car to drive with the 06 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX I owned prior a close second as far as affordable (30k or less) cars go. :shift:

 

Although I own an Exige and I don't dd it, here's my thought because I can dd the Elise/Exige if I wanted to.

If I really step back and look into my life:
-I rarely ever have the need to haul people around.
-Rarely ever haul anything that won't fit in the boot of the Elise/Exige if I tried.
-Don't commute on broken up roads.
-Seem to cover more distance for pleasure than everyday commute.
-Have no concern for parking spots.
-Never encounter extreme weather.

So, there's pretty much no downside to driving an Elise/Exige for me.
I'm not the one to be concerned about some imaginary boat I might someday have to pull, or imaginary kids I might someday have to drive them around(for now), or some imaginary situation where I might have to drive off-road.

'Impractical' is subjective to each their own. It would be impractical to have a jackhammer as a dentist and visa versa. :shrug:

Just take look at what kind of driving you do, then decide.

 

Daily Driver

I've been using my 08 240S for a daily driver for almost two years.
It does have cargo limitations, but nothing I've owned from Benzs, to Porsches, and Ferraries can compare. I'm worried that I'm spoiled for life, and I'll have to drive a Lotus until I'm horizontal.

 

I also work from home and
it's my only car
but I have three motorcycles
what else do you ride / drive?

how far would you ride /drive?

how much sh** would you put up with to ride / drive?

It might not be what others want, but to me it's a blast!

first thing that excited me more than leaning a bike into a turn,


tweaker

 

My wife used the elise as a daily driver for 2 years and into her 6th month of pregnancy.

 

I have an 06 Exige, and I drive it everyday. But, I work from home...

 

My Lotus is also my DD. :up:

I have 4 cars and can't stand to drive anything but the Lotus. I absolutely love the feel of driving this car and get excited every morning I wake up, knowing that I'll be driving it. The same goes for after my day is done. I have my own business but have been working a large project that allows me to drive almost every day for about 100 miles.

I drive it everywhere, every day, every chance I get. I put over 30,000 miles on it the first year I owned it and am rolling into my 3 year of ownership.

It's not hard for me to see how some people might not like the feel of the Lotus every day, but I LOVE DRIVING THIS CAR!!! :evil:

 

You might want to do what I did and keep a daily log for a few months of where you go, how many passengers you have in your car and what you carry (and whether what you carry would fit into an Elise). My end goal with this was to make sure that I would even be able to drive an Elise. What I found was that most of the time I carried large items or a lot of items (such as a bicycle or packages from Costco). So, I knew I wouldn't be able to drive the Elise every day. Additional factors that my log did not tell me and that I realized only after I got the car were:

1. I don't want to take the car out if I know it's going to rain.
2. I didn't want to immediately rack up mileage.
3. While driving 36 miles to work is quite do-able, it can be quite a disappointing journey while stuck in 30 mph traffic or, worse, stop-and-go traffic (or going at least the speed limit on the highway but being stuck among large trucks kicking up rocks (frustrating for me because I'm trying to minimize rock chips)).

All in all, I think the Elise can easily be a daily driver; but that mostly depends on your lifestyle and situation.

 

(... I'm trying to minimize rock chips)

That made me chuckle.

 

KSM, I feel ya on this. Got the car painted, waiting on clearbra.... and i'm like a HAWK lookin' for those bastards!

As for daily livability? I'm more than happy dailying mine. Wouldn't have it any other way. Every time i have, i've gotten bored to death within a year. This is why I don't have my WRX anymore, and I have to do things like this:

...and i'm okay with it. Yes, that's a vacuum cleaner box. It all fit once I found places for it.

 

After five years of daily driving in all weather except snow (hey, I'm not crazy ), I finally treated the Elise to a little love and took it to a high-end detailer (Intrigue Detail here in Denver). Now it looks so beautiful, I almost don't want to daily drive it anymore...almost...I still get the same joy every time I hop in so I'm still going to drive it every day. There's always a back way to work that's fun to drive when the highway is crawling.

Tom

 

i DD my elise, no probs.

my two cents - get another 4 door car(something easy to drive, cheap etc) to have more flexibilities. Plus its fun to switch between cars.

P.S. when i drive my ****ty cars(have 2 more) i really enjoy parking - when you hit with bumper walls, cones etc - and just smile.

 

There are two types of Daily Drivers:

1) Those who drive theirs daily, by choice, but have other options in case they need to haul passengers, 'stuff', or if the weather is bad, or if they just need a break. In other words, these are 'Yeah, but...' daily drivers that choose to drive them daily, but have options when it doesn't fit a particular need.


2) Then there are the TRUE daily drivers who, because it is their only car, MUST drive them daily, and must make do with it no matter what the trip is for. Snow? Rain? Lotus. Hauling something frome Home Depot? Lotus. Picking up date and both dressed for a formal affair? Lotus. Major grocery shopping trip? Lotus. Gotta take the Lotus wherever you go, so you have to live with the parking arrangements at destination, 'cause you have no other choice? Lotus.

A couple have posted in this thread that it's their only car. I know for a fact Maggie truly uses hers as a daily driver, and can give you ALL the good/bad/reality of it.

If you are considering it as DD # 2 above, a TRUE daily driver, ask yourself: If you HAD to make do with a big go kart with a body on it. A TRUE go kart with all that involves...noise, size, comfort, more noise, lack of usable space, etc. etc....COULD you do it, and would you WANT to?

Really, think of a typical day/weekend for you...imagine doing everything in a go kart. How does that appeal to you?

 

++1 on the noise (exhaust note, wind, tire noise from other vehicles, etc.). For true daily-driving use, you're gonna wanna consider ear plugs or some other noise-cancelling or -attenuating headphones.

... unless you're already deaf.

 

I only use earplugs on long (8+ hour) trips. They really help with how exhausted I am at the end of a long day of driving. I don't care for the trouble of using them on shorter trips, I like to just get in and go.

I've driven the car in snow and ice on the stock tires. Very, very not recommended, though I had no problems. Pickup trucks were spinning out around me, and even though I didn't slide one bit it was very scary.

I avoid parallel parking as much as possible. I've parallel parked in residential neighborhoods (rarely), and maybe twice in the city. I'll happily walk further or pay for parking if necessary. Mostly I don't go to places that only have parallel parking, which really hasn't been a problem. The only time that might have been an issue was when I was working in Baltimore, but at the time I commuted with my father and we had a choice of three cars--his, my Miata (which I no longer have), and the Elise. We only took the Elise on days when we could get a garage parking spot. Now that I neither live up there nor have a Miata, I make do with the Elise.

I've driven this car all over the place. I've gotten it incredibly muddy (see picture, it took months to get it out from everywhere--there was mud on the roof!). I've driven the Dragon with a huge cardboard box in the passenger seat (had to duct tape it to the seat to keep it from joining me on the driver's side). I brought an extra large dog crate home in it. I drove to Disney World with a friend and everything two girls need for almost two weeks in it.

Does that mean that *you* can use it as your only car, or as your DD? I don't know. How much are you willing to put up with?

 

Yep, I have an 05 Elise as a daily driver since October of 09 and echo all of the above comments. Change the speakers, stay away from trucks carrying rocks or construction debris, be careful in the rain, plenty of room for groceries or bulky items in the passenger seat, etc etc...
I do also have an 03 Dodge Neon to carry more than one person around when I have visitors, but honestly it just sits in the driveway while its battery sits in the garage on a Battery Tender. I'm at the point where it's easier to say "rent a car when you get here" than reconnect the battery.
My daily commute to work is about 23 miles one way, all highway and I have no problems driving around large trucks or inattentive drivers talking on the cell phone. Being aware of surroundings, knowing when to brake and when to downshift and move out of the way helps.

 

I daily my Lotus. The only time it becomes a hassle is when I need to pick up something or leave my car parked out of my sight for a long period of time. I enjoy driving the Lotus daily but also can appreciate having a regular car for a daily driver.

 

Certain weeks I use it as a daily driver, even in the cold Michigan spring and fall as long as their is no snow on the ground.

A guy with an older 996 stopped me when I was coming out of the local cafe to tell me how me almost bought and Elise, but he couldn't do it because they were just so uncomfortable, unreliable, impractical...etc. So he bought the 911 because it is just overall a "better car".

What drove me crazy was that it was an obvious case of sour grapes and his only point was trying to make me feel bad about my car. I had to cut him off and tell him "You have no idea what you're talking about and I can't waste my time talking to ignorant people." The guy was about 5'8 and 260-280lbs, . I was about to tell him that "If you're morbidly obese, of course you will be uncomfortable in it so don't blame Lotus." Decided to be the better man and walk away.

 

Who considers an Elise your everyday car?

Here in Wisconsin everyday that it's warm and sunny. (about 4 weeks a year) Then...

Everyday that I'm bored
Everyday that I'm tired of work.
Everyday that the dog pees on the rug.
Everyday that I'm sick of driving the family truckster.
Everyday that I need some G forces.
Everyday that someone at work pisses me off.

This could go on...

 

go test drive one then decide for yourself...:wallbang:

 

My Elise is my DD. I've put 13,000 miles on it in the 10 months I've had it. It is my only car. AC isn't that bad and I live in Houston. I wear a button down long sleeve shirt every day (and a tie 1/2 the time) to work and have to commute regularly between 2 buildings during the day. I don't stink to bad in the afternoon. You get use to the entry/exit, it's no big deal anymore.

I wouldn't have it any other way. Just drive defensively and ditto on what the others said...

 

Some Real Numbers from my 05 Elise:

Days of ownership: 169
Total Fill ups: 42
Total Gallons: 296.3
Total Miles: 9112
Total Costs: $874.51
Ave MPG: 30.7
Min: 26.63
Max: 33.36
Cost/gal: 2.95
Cost/day: 5.17
Cost/fillup: 20.82
gal/fillup: 7.06
Mi/fillup: 216.95
mi/day: 53.92
mi/$: 10.42

Total Service Costs: $1,243
(oil, radiator repair, cracked clam repair, tires, air filter, speakers, tesprit's mirror, DDM HIDs, replace rear letters, replace interior door handle, stage 2 exhaust)

I drive nearly every day (ironically my truck is my garage queen) about 80mi/day. Top off 98% of the time on back road highway speeds & some city (>100mph about once a week). I corner as fast as traffic will safely allow, and shift at redline at least once nearly every trip.

Love the car, always look forward to driving it, and I act like a 5 year old when my wife asks to drive it to work (I dont mind her driving it, my only problem is I CANT drive it when she has it).

Lots of stares, honks, yelling, thumbs up, and conversations. Some people hate you mr. rich guy. Watch out for rocks (starshield is a MUST), change oil, buy some wrenches, and buy tires in the 200-300 tread wear range (higher greatly decreases fun)

******************************
Conversely, heres data from my 91 CRXsi (same routine - except I could leave the crx home - I cant leave the lotus alone)

Days of ownership: 344
Total Fill ups: 42
Total Gallons: 375.18
Total Miles: 15497
Total Costs: $878.55
Ave MPG: 41.31
Min: 36.11
Max: 44.69
Cost/gal: 2.34
Cost/day: 2.55
Cost/fillup: 20.92
gal/fillup: 8.93
Mi/fillup: 368.98
mi/day: 45.05
mi/$: 17.64

Total Service Costs: Much less

 

I was using mine as a daily until last week when a 19 year old backed into it at work. I park my car a good football field away and she still managed to hit it . figure around 10k for new clam etc. for a 4mph crash!

 

Uggh, I'm sorry to hear that. When I had my '95 Corvette parked downtown, I had to alert a guy that he backed into my car and cracked the bumper. He had the nerve to say "No, I only tapped it". After that I never parallel parked my sports cars ever again. Can't imagine what I'd do if someone backed into my Elise.

As long as she's insured, won't they cover the $10K?