[Mk2] [Turbo] Should i swap my MR" Tubby for an elise?

[adamshaw]

Hi Guys

As you may have seen i have currently put my tubby up for sale in search of a lotus elise

However i have done a bit of investigation and there does seem to be a few issues with them.

My tubby is running good power and now having read up more on lotus elise's i am unsure wether to take the plunge and go for the change?

Whats you opinions guys?

Gladly appreciated?

TA

[Leon.]

Guess it depends on what you want from a car, if you fancy a change, and if you can budget for a good condition one.

They are quite different cars IMO, each do their own thing well.

I assume you've driven one?

[Tiamat]

Agree with Leeroy - they are compeltely different cars.
Personally I would happily swop my Turbo for an Elise - no turbo lag, convertible (well ish) and great fun to drive.
Bit like a faster MK1 really.

[Leon.]

swop

ahem, swap

Bit like a faster MK1 really.

No, not really.

[lukem]

i went from a rev3 tubby to a vx220 and was dissapointed. it was uncomfortable, noisy, bone shaking and no good in the city or above 70 mph. if however you drive constantly on b-roads, you'll enjoy it.
obviously handles like a bu88er but not so quick in a straight line. turbo torque was far more fun.

[Tiamat]

swop

ahem, swap

Bit like a faster MK1 really.

No, not really.

From online dictionary:

swop:
verb {I or T} -pp- MAINLY UK FOR swap

So both right technically!


And I consider an Elise to be like a faster MK1 as they both have great handling, N/A engines and are more of a sportscar then the MK2 which is really a GT car.
Certainly when I've driven them I would consider it to be closer to a MK1 then a MK2.

[Leon.]

From online dictionary:

swop:
verb {I or T} -pp- MAINLY UK FOR swap

So both right technically!

Bu88er! Thought I had you on that!

And I consider an Elise to be like a faster MK1 as they both have great handling, N/A engines and are more of a sportscar then the MK2 which is really a GT car.
Certainly when I've driven them I would consider it to be closer to a MK1 then a MK2.

I wasn't questioning you mate, I've never driven either, I was just trying to be sarcastic/dry I should have put on of these at the end

[Tiamat]

I wasn't questioning you mate, I've never driven either, I was just trying to be sarcastic/dry I should have put on of these at the end

Sarcasm? At me?
Where's that ban button.....
LOL

No problems mate - should have explained more anyway about why I said it.

Back on topic - the best thing to do is to test drive the Elise and see how it goes - just bear in mind next to a MK2 tubby the refinement is non-existent and its not such a good long distance car, plus you can kiss goodbye to bootspace.

[ff_mark]

One big difference you'd notice with an Elise is the 40-ish mpg

If you don't mind feeling like your climbing inside a washing machine each morning then they are great cars.

[ballsrburning]

Funnily enough I considered the same thing, the elise is ok but not very fast the standard car is 5.6 0-60 I believe (probably handles well though) the only one I would consider is the exige this is excellent especially the supercharged version which has plenty of power 0-60 in 4.1 sec and looks and handles excellently. The interior is basic though reallly basic but I guess thats lotus for you.

Didn't realise that toyota built the engines these days either, so should be good for reliability.

[adamshaw]

excellent replies guys, thanks for the info.

Only thing i am worried about is that the older versions (i would be lookign at) have rover engines!! so not too keen on that idea!

Headgaskets issues etc

[Tiamat]

excellent replies guys, thanks for the info.

Only thing i am worried about is that the older versions (i would be lookign at) have rover engines!! so not too keen on that idea!

Headgaskets issues etc

Not heard many problems with them - the only one I know is on my mate's R-Reg which is tuned to around 180/190 bhp and he cracked his manifold and bent a wheel. No headgasket issues.

[b2hbm]

Only thing i am worried about is that the older versions (i would be lookign at) have rover engines!! so not too keen on that idea!

Headgaskets issues etc

I've got an S1 elise, so probably the age you're considering. The head gasket thing is fairly well known, lots of theories ranging from the thermostat position and general system design to head gasket locating dowels being changed from plastic to metal. I guess the latter probably has a major effect. Something to check in the history but remember the K series is relatively cheap and there's loads of tuners out there so it can't be all bad.

Personally if you're into the Mk2 MR2 then I don't think you'd like one as a long term car, and certainly not over winter in lousy weather. As a car just to use when you fancy it then they're brilliant but they do feel like kit cars, whereas all the MR2s (I've got a Mk1, had a Mk2) feel rock solid.

They're also very noisy, standard seats are uncomfortable on long drives but I wouldn't swop/swap mine for the world....

[bazippy]

Interesting reading all this! My long term car plan is to do something similar, but im holding onto the Tubby till im 25 then going to go for The Vx220 Turbo!all for abetter top speed and 0-60 in 4.7 i think it was or something like that! Like everyone says depends what u want from a car i jst want better and better handling if i can get it! good luck with whatever you choose!

[Chris]

Don't do it! I did it a few years ago. Spent £18k on my dream car Elise 111s with all the trimmings....Turned in into a fecking nightmare!! Cost me a fortune in less than a few months. Radiator failure, HG brakes.etc.etc. I was gutted. I sold my mint Red Tubby and my GSXR 600 and my CR 500 MX bike to buy it. Lost a fortune and guess what I'm back where I started. Running a tubby and a GSXR again

[b2hbm]

and I bet the dealer said "TADTS" ??? (they all do that sir)

It underlines the difference between toyota and lotus, with an MR2 you would be surprised at something breaking, with Lotus it's all part of the game.

Although I did use mine daily for several years until I retired and only had one significant hassle, made worse by poor diagnosis by the dealer, but it was still under warranty and I ended up going to Lotus themselves to sort it out.

One of the problems seems to be that folks buy them on the flash car image factor, but in reality you need to be a dirty-fingernails owner unless you've got very deep pockets.

[Chris]

I have no issues with getting my hands mucky, it's what I do for a living My arguement with them was when you pay that kind of money for a car (which had a years warranty) you don't expect these kind of issues or to have to rectify them yourself because the technicians are not competant enough. Mine only had 20k on the clock....I would not dare buy one with any milage on it's back

[b2hbm]

no offence implied Chris, I agree entirely that the cars should be much better than they often are. Mileage isn't that significant, mine had under 2k on the clock when it went screwy. The dealer had it 5 times in one month, trailered back 3 times, so I know the feeling.

The snap came after the latest "fix" and it didn't even last the 15 miles home. I rang Lotus direct and asked them if they'd like to be on TV.... a £26k sportscar (it was) and I was going to work on a bike because apparently their premier dealership couldn't fix it. Now that got their attention...

The biggest problem seems to be that the components are flimsy, you pay Porsche prices for Reliant Robin-quality parts, but Lotus have always been like that IMO.

[Peter C]

I considered an Elise to replace my ageing Mk2 NA but was put off by the reliability issues. A Boxter didn't feel right and I ended up with a Honda S2000. After 4 months I ended up selling the S2000 as I couldn't live with the rev happy engine. Lucking I've kept my old MR2 and I suggest you stick with your Turbo.

Peter

[N1 RRK]

Get the 111R series 2 elise lotus handling with the toyota 190bhp 1.8 vvti engine out of the celica! Goes like stink and has toyota reliability the rover k series engine in the 111S is a load of poo!!

I drove one to lemans and back and i felt as fresh as I did when I drove the mr2 down and my uncle who's 50 uses it as a daily driver so no excuses for the comfort just get those harnesses tight and u become part of the car and dont rattle around.

Plus i've been told the elise has a softer map than the celica as its lighter to make it more comfy doubt it would b that hard to put the celica map back on

Deffinatly get one the reason i'm getting a tubby is because at the mo I cant afford an elise.