2005 Lotus Elise Consumer Reviews

Lots of fun and easy to drive. road feel is wonderful and the road noise inside is loud but the overall fun factor makes up for that. great weekend car and always special to drive.

one owner never been wrecked never been tracked 1 year only colour chilli peppre red selling due to health problems

Barbers Naval Air Station Lotus invites Ken Stanford from Exotic Cars to bring some of their clients to test drive this new concept from Lotus. I was fortunate enough to be one of them. Having owned Porsches ( all Turbos or 911's), and Ferrari's and Corvettes, and Datsun 280ZX, and others, this car was incredible on the track. Drove it in 28 hours from West Palm Beach, Florida to Las Vegas on the same day I took delivery back in 2005. If you want to learn a car and how it handles "sans" electronics, this is the car! Hands down.

In short this car is design for curves. Nothing for the price can compare to the raw feeling you get sitting in one of these vehicles. You feel connected to the road. No frills and fufu features like in most modern days cars. The attention factor is at 100% every where you go. You will feel like a celebrity.

If you want to drive the best handling car on the road, this is your machine ! With the Toyota engine and drive train, you will not find a more reliable sports car. This car attracts people. They love it. This is the most photographed car I have ever owned. Tires - to get the grip, the Yokohama tires are very soft. The rear tires last about 6,000 miles and fronts last about 12,000 miles. This depends on how you drive, but I know you will love taking a city street corner at 60 and the car does not break loose. It goes 0-60 in 4.4 sec. This car is nothing but driving fun.

The car is difficult to get ina and out of, and some of the materials used in the interior have not held up well considering the age of the vehicle, but the Elise is by far the most fun of any car I've owned. If you want a car that is quiet, comfortable and easy to get around in - this is not yoe vehicle. If you want a car that has a great HP/weight ratio, handles and brakes like a $300k exotic and makes you feel like you are driving a F1 racer every day - this is your car.

My 2011 Elise R is the best car I have driven in my entire life. I had before porsches, BMW, audits and a mustang gt500 and those care are like driving crown Victoria's next to the Elise. The information this car send to the driver is amazing! Super fast acceleration for only 192hp, the BEST handling than any car out there including ferraris and lamborghini, and I know this because I was a test driver for this two companies when I lived in Italy. The only issue is the small cabin but that is what lotus is all about, low weight, superior handling and great acceleration. The Toyota engine is not a Celica engine, it is just the bones/shell, it is all lotus engineering. Until you drive an Elise you'll understand it, and if you are able to get those revs all the way close to the redline you will hear a sound that releases the monster that Elise is all about. It gives you the chills! It is like you are inside a race car video game.

I LOVE IT!