Lotus Ownership Blog

Its been a while since I've updated the blog so I thought I should mention whats been happening with the Elise over the last few months.

I had a minor problem with the alarm - it would randomly go off without reason. Luckily my new favourite mechanic (Andy at Quantum Mechanics) took a look and found a loose connection! All firmly connected now and working properly

Now the slightly less good news - I got stuck in some very heavy traffic and managed to overheat the engine. The cars still with Andy at the moment but it looks like its just the gasket on the inlet manifold. The head gasket seems intact and the engine is running fine. Hopefully get it back on the weekend

Aside from the 2 bits above the Elise has been absolutely faultless in the last 6 months, its happily clocked over 96k miles on the original engine and its as quick as ever....but I want it to go faster. Im starting to think about how to get some more bhp out of it. In an ideal world (where money is now object) then I'd quite happily throw an Audi/Honda engine in the boot but they're a bit steep - circa £10k at the moment.

Thinking about some lairy cams and a dirty head polish...hmmmm.

The Elise has been pretty reliable for the past few months (touch wood!) but it failed the MOT on a few bits and bobs...

ball joint
steering arm
front pads
leaky damper
drop link on arb
reg plate
emissions

I decided to get the whole lot done along with a few upgrades. Its come back from the garage with...

Fresh MOT and 'A' service (although I will still need to change the oil shortly)
Fit the CAT i bought a few months ago (decided to leave it on too)
Fit the S2 suspension bought a few months ago (car now about 20mm lower)
Stainless steel braided clutch hose (yay, no more red clutch syndrome!)
Steering rack fully reconditioned
New TRE
RH ARB drop link
New EBC pads
New undertray fittings
Bonnet hinge re-threaded (thanks to the bodyshop who stripped them when it had the new clam!)
New front plate for MOT time (its going in the shed till next year!)
Fresh tracking for the new suspension (might need a geo soon i think)

Its driving much firmer now so doesnt bounce as much over rough surfaces. The steering is loads better, the rack must of really needed a refurb.

Only probs at the moment are..

Spongy brakes (should be ok when theyve worn in)
Minor understeer and a bit 'floaty' at speed, could need a geo or could be me not used to the new suspension
Bloody exhaust heatshield bracket is rattling again!!
New cant rail gasket needed to stop the softtop squeaking
Heater knob thing needs adjusting.
Fit locking nuts (forgot again!)

Anyway, cant wait for the summer

The front screen has developed another crack on the front left corner so is booked in at RAC autowindscreens....second screen in 2 years!

Its also insurance time again, my renewal is pretty much what it cost last year so its not all bad. The accident and SP30 havent made any difference. I'll still have a scout around for something cheaper but its not a major worry. So much for insurance dropping loads when you turn 25!

Still waiting to fit the new suspension, CAT and clutch hose. D'oh!

I collected the Elise from the bodyshop yesterday after having a new front clam, minor repairs to the rear and a full respray. Its looking ten times better now, all the cracks in the gel coat have gone along with all the minor scratches and stone chips. Its looking like new.

I have also fitted some new headlight covers from eliseparts and the old silver front indicators have been returned to their correct orange colour. I'm looking into fitting something like amourfend to the front to minimise any damage from stonechips.

The inside however is in desperate need of a clean.

Heres some pics of the car being sprayed...