Seriously thinking of getting one, just wanted some buying info, running costs etc.

 

Had no problems with mine....

Was a 160 sport , only niggle I had was under 20-25mph I had to have it in first gear

 

Every year I say I'm going to get one. Never have.I will one day

Nice article in evo recently

 

By all accounts the vx220 is just as good , can't comment as I've not had the vx

 

Ive had a vx220 and vx turbo. Fantastic cars, even when you have a heavy foot you still get 30mpg. Nightmare to work on the engine though but parts are cheap.
They also feel imo a far more planted car going round the twistes than the subaru.
I reckon the elise is the same

 

Double post. Sorry

looks better as well

 

VX or Elise check very carefully for any crash damage. Not saying there will be any but I understand there are a few dodgy examples around.

 

I had a VX220 (NA) before buying my first scoob. I have to say, they were fantastic cars. Handling wise, it was the best car I've ever driven. Some people say they are the poor mans else, and I can almost agree. However, i thought the VX was better looking than the elise. It was also faster, cheaper to insure and more economical. Buying wise, just beware that if some tw*t decides to bump into you (in a car park for instance), the repair bills can be huge. Each clam is 3.5k each to replace. That was one reason I got rid, as i was permanently paranoid parking it up! One other reason I got rid was for safety reasons. I was parked up a few times in car parks, nose to nose with 4x4's and the thought of a collision with something like that scared the hell out of me. Buying advice, if you can afford it, go for the turbo over the NA. I soon got far too used to the NA and craved the turbo power.
Running costs, cheap as chips - 30-40 mpg, servicing costs are similar to a corsa. Just beware that lots of people have never even seen one yet alone worked on one, and that includes Vauxhall stealerships!

 

I'd love a s1 Elise, better drivers car IMO and the best they made. (perfect track toy)

 

I've had 2 Elises. Very cheap to run, 40 odd mpg on normal unleaded, tyres are cheap. One of the main expenses is head gasket failure (HGF) on the rover engines, even this is only around £500 only fix. There are other issues, but really nothing to get excited about as it's basically a Rover. I had late s1's, circa 1999 you'd get a 'facelift' S1 with different alloys and a few other mods. Look on youtube for how to get in and out, once you've done this and practiced a few times you won't look like a ****. For road presence, there's nothing short of £50k that matches it. I never wanted a vx.

 

If funds are tight, take a look at a mr2. Facelifted 2003's are around £2-£3k. Bullet proof, sameish mpg and a doodle to get in and out. Not the same image as an Elise but 6k cheaper and more reliable.Roof takes 10 seconds to put up or down, not 5 mins with an allen key. I've had one too, might get another.

 

Had an Exige S.

Awesome car.

 

Could you give us an idea on servicing costs, how often etc please.

 

Afraid I can't - only had it 5 weeks until some bint in a Merc decided to see how strong fibreglass is at 60 mph.

Not very, is the answer!

What I did glean in those 5 weeks from speaking to other owners, is that they are actually fairly inexpensive cars to maintain.
12 monthly service on mine.

Brakes last well due to the lightness and the Toyota engine just goes on for ever.
My only issue after a few 1000 miles were the tyres getting low (Yoko A048's) but even those aren't very pricey.

Just give a dealer a ring to find out the service costs?

 

Had an S2 Elise S (134bhp) for 18 months. Epic handling. The VX220 turbo i had go in was really, really fast but the seats were horrible. I don't know if there were other options in the seating department but i couldn't have driven it every day. My Elise was way more comfy and i had no problem doing 500 miles a week in it.
As for the VX being better looking??????????????????????

 

used to go get Butties in my mates Vx220 very fast cars but never felt fast if u know what I mean. not very much torque, just very light.

very uncomfortable so if your a fat bast don't get one, awful to get in LOL.

As always he was in that VX220 club, and the guys with the Turbo versions did seem to have more problems than his, his was bulletproof.

He eventually sold for a Clio V6, which of course was Torque city, can say much for Lotus sorry I often thought it ment LOTS OF TROUBLE USUALLY SERIOUS

 

suprised scatty hasn't spotted this, hes got a lime green exige lol

 

I had a 165bhp S1. In the end it just wasn't fast enough - on the road - but on track it was OK.

It just hadn't got the bollocks of say a scoob to overtake quickly & safely.

As for the car itself, the handling is very good with brilliant steering wheel feedback, however, they are a bit rough, with alot of rattles & knocks from suspension and the engine

Looks good though