Hi all - planning to buy my first Lotus

[Richard]

Hello to you all!

I'm thinking about buying an Elise (S1), and had a couple of questions which I thought people on here might be well placed to answer.

The one I'm looking at (black) has a soft top. Realistically, I'd be expecting some degree of leaking when it rains, and aim to buy a hard top at some point soon (before winter). In the foreseeable future, it would be parked on the street in a fairly busy area, on the N Yorks coast. The concerns would be security, the amount of rain likely to get in, and how awkward cleaning seagull mess off the fabric roof would prove to be. (Are they usually mohair, or something else?)

Does anyone have any advice here? Would frequent cleaning of the roof material mean I'd have to treat it more often to keep it waterproof? Am I crazy for even considering this under the circumstances? I'd think that fitting a hard top would address all these concerns reasonably well (?), but anyone's experiences or suggestions are welcome.

Thanks!
Richard

[PaulT]

Hello to you all!

Hello yourself!

I'm thinking about buying an Elise

The one I'm looking at (black) has a soft top

They all have (well, y'know, apart from the 340R and 211 variants).

Realistically, I'd be expecting some degree of leaking when it rains

You can expect a small degree of leakage with a hard top too - it's the way it runs down the frame and onto your leg that forms the main part of the charm of ownership.

The concerns would be security, the amount of rain likely to get in, and how awkward cleaning seagull mess off the fabric roof would prove to be.

Security - well, sometimes the area would determine a small part of that but listening to gripes over the last 12 or so years we rarely hear of break-ins. You pay your insurance, you lock it up and walk away. Rain - it's manageable. In a big old downpour you might get your bum wet when you first get in. Cleaning - that's something I've never done with my soft top so I'm not the one to ask. They're pretty resilient and mine still stops the rain, it just manages to sneak down the sides a bit I'm on an S2 with a different roof but generally not far off the material / fit quality.

Hard tops are all well and good (had one, sold it) but you're buying a roofless car and if you're like a lot of us, you'll just want the roof off as much as poss. Fair enough, I can understand it in the proper winter months but when there's a lovely cold, bright day you'll be towing with the roof getting it off and wondering if it's all worth it. That said, we have some owners who fit their hard tops in the winter so that's just my opinion.

There is another option - you can get some pretty good shower caps that are like a mini car cover. You fasten it to the wing mirrors and rear clip slots and it gives the roof a lot of help with a downpour. Plus it's made of material that's easy to clean. Not too faffy either.

Regardless of the above, a) you're getting a Lotus and b) you'll really enjoy it. Pop along and see us this Tuesday (24th) evening at the Buckles Inn on the A64 because you'll get a lot of advice and be able to poke around owners' cars before you take the plunge. You don't even have to join the club, just come along.

[Moggy]

Hello to you all!

Hi

I'm thinking about buying an Elise (S1),

Great choice, better looking than those new fangled S2 or heaven forbid S3 Elises

The one I'm looking at (black) has a soft top. Realistically, I'd be expecting some degree of leaking when it rains, and aim to buy a hard top at some point soon (before winter). In the foreseeable future, it would be parked on the street in a fairly busy area, on the N Yorks coast. The concerns would be security, the amount of rain likely to get in, and how awkward cleaning seagull mess off the fabric roof would prove to be. (Are they usually mohair, or something else?)

Does anyone have any advice here? Would frequent cleaning of the roof material mean I'd have to treat it more often to keep it waterproof? Am I crazy for even considering this under the circumstances? I'd think that fitting a hard top would address all these concerns reasonably well (?), but anyone's experiences or suggestions are welcome.

Thanks!
Richard

As Paul Has already said most of it but in addition:- As you get in after a downpour with a hardtop on (and to a lesser extent soft top) the S1 roof tends to dump all the water on the roof into your crotch rather than anywhere else.
Keep the soft top for the wet days and don't bother with a hard top. I bought one which spent 7 wish years in the bath and now resides in the garage, rarely ever fitted -though thats the same for the soft top but as the car lives in the garage that isn't a problem.
The hard top also makes the car noisier inside.
Buy a shower cap and make good use of it
If you live in bomb (seagull) alley use a full car cover.

[Dennis]

We'll I like the S1 with the hard top on, it looks much better....I have been known to have it one thought the year......having said that mine has been hung up in the garage for the last 3 years

Bird poo, wash it off straight away be it on a soft top or hard top, it might actually be worse on the hard top as it eats through the paint and needs respraying, whilst the soft top can just be recoloured (DIY job for about £20)

I used to keep mine outside for about 4 years (with soft top and hard top) yes you got the odd run down the door but little on to me/the seat (other than when I opened the door as described above)

Get one and enjoy it

[Richard]

Great choice, better looking than those new fangled S2 or heaven forbid S3 Elises

Yes

Thanks to all three for your considered replies. You're clearly a welcoming bunch! It has been quite reassuring as well with the responses. I'll take a look into the shower caps - that's something I hadn't considered.

Pop along and see us this Tuesday (24th) evening at the Buckles Inn on the A64 because you'll get a lot of advice and be able to poke around owners' cars before you take the plunge.

Probably won't be able to make it tomorrow with work, but I should get a chance to drop in during the June or July meetings. I'm quite determined to take the plunge - the chance to have my own Lotus isn't something I want to miss! If the one I'm looking at doesn't work out for whatever reason, I'll keep looking.

Take care.

[chiark]

Posts above cover it mostly . I've had my S1 for 18 months now and love it, but it lives in the garage having kicked out the daily driver.

Biggest difference I've found in preventing leaks is to get the windows properly aligned, which is an exercise in patience that I still haven't quite managed to get perfect. In a downpour, expect to get a wet leg when going around a roundabout as water floods through the bit at the top of the A pillar. My 8 year old son thought this hilarious, even when we turned the other way and his leg got soaked

The shower cap is essential in my view, even with the roof fitted, as the blooming things do like to leak.

I bought a hard top, and it makes the car noisier inside, and it still can leak.

The other thing to bear in mind is that this is a 16+ year old hand built british car: it'll need a bit of TLC if you want to keep it at its best. I'm sure you've seen buying guides etc, but the bit that was my biggest concern was the mounting points for wishbones and suspension. Most other things are easy to sort out, but that one's a biggie.
Head gasket hasn't gone in mine yet after 70k, but it'll go sometime... Not a big expense when it does.

I've replaced the leaking konis with decent S2 bilsteins, which is a simple job. Suspension has had a full refresh at the rear, new bushes, bearings, ball joints, toe links, re-passivated wishbones which again is straightforward but takes time... If you're not wanting to get your hands dirty I daren't think what it'd cost in labour for these jobs. Front will be done this month.

Saying all that, there's nothing like punting it along a Yorkshire road at a reasonable speed; nothing I've had has put quite such a grin on my face.

[Dennis]

Labour is not terrible, yes access can make it fun but many jobs are straight forward, suspension refresh could even be diy, with a few decent tools

[Richard]

Having now transitioned from 'planning to buy' to 'bought', the number of questions is rising rapidly. Largely along the lines of, 'Is it normal for x to be happening/not happening?'

I'll look forward to popping along to the Buckles Inn, either June or July, and meeting those of you there!

Take care, and thanks again for the replies

[Rick101]

Great news. Well done

[Dennis]

Yeah u will here tadts in the early days of ownership

Tats = They All Do That Sir

Give us some details of your purchase including photos (paste img links from photo bucket)

Also post your questions on n here until you join up fully

[Moggy]

Tarts = They All Do That Sir

You have obviously met some lovely ladies during your life Denis

[Dennis]

Just upgraded to a new iPad, Lucas' old one and the auto correct is even worse than the old one I used (good help you all)

[PaulT]

Just upgraded to a new iPad, Lucas' old one and the auto correct is even worse than the old one I used (good help you all)

gLOL - Dennis, we should have a page on here dedicated to your autocorrects

Richard...you have work to do in your profile > Car Details: Prospective buyer - will update soon..

[Richard]

Give us some details of your purchase including photos (paste img links from photo bucket)

Also post your questions on n here until you join up fully

I'll look at taking pictures sometime. Up until now, it is becoming clear how frequently the black paint will need cleaning.

In terms of actual 'is that normal' questions, there were two things which stood out on the surprisingly entertaining drive home. The soft top didn't seem too keen on remaining attached to the car - the plastic lip on the front edge started coming away from the header rail - thankfully I managed to pull over and reattach. I'm thinking the last person to put it on may have failed to tension it correctly. Hopefully it isn't an issue with the plastic itself. And then there was the fuel tank LCD display - it turns out that '15L' is secret code for 'empty' (which would have been useful information to have known). When I did add petrol, it didn't recognise the amount I was adding. It would be nice to get that working again at some point.

Richard...you have work to do in your profile

Fixed

[Dennis]

On the roof, after building up the frame, make sure the door it is centred, and the plastic strip is pushed under the lip it will go in a good few mm.

Then put the rear tabs in and then do up the press studs.

The tension the roof with the Allen keys (keep your eye on the the moving bits under the tabs to make sure it doesn't mark the paint. Then finally put up the cross bars.

Do the reverse when taking it down.

Re the fuel reading, that is part of the fuel pump, you might be able to get this separately but rather way it is a tank out job (not a technical job full day if you DIY)

Try filling it right up then run it down and fill back up a few times and see if the movement of the float fixes it