The Lotus Elise was unlike any other car ever made | Revelations with Jason Cammisa | Ep. 21
In this episode, automotive journalist Jason Cammisa walks us through the difficult birth and runaway success of the Lotus Elise, both Series 1 and Series 2.
The Lotus Elise isn't just lightweight - it weighed HALF as much as some contemporary "lightweight" sports cars (like the Porsche Boxster). That's because it was constructed like no other car ever.
To hit its outrageous weight target - the same as the original Lotus Seven - the Elise was never meant to have doors or a roof. However, safety regulations made a "step-in car" challenging, and so Lotus' lightweight mid-engine sports car grew doors. Gullwing doors at first - in theory.
In practice, the Elise is a marvel of simplicity. It's the first car ever whose chassis is constructed of bonded, extruded aluminum - a practice that's still not common today. Combined with fiberglass clamshells, the lightest Elises weigh as much as today's Formula 1 cars. And the heaviest barely touches 2000 lb.
The Elise and its derivatives (the hardtop Exige, Opel Speedster, Vauxhall VX220, Daewoo VX220, and Tesla Roadster) account for more than half of all Lotuses ever built, making this the company's most successful model.
And at the end of the video, Jason takes us for a drive in the Series 1 - originally outfitted for US sale by a company called Sun, using a Honda B18C5 engine from an Acura Integra. Now with a Honda K-Series K20A (not to be confused with the car's original Rover K-Series engine), we think you'll agree: in sound alone, it's one of the most incredible mid-engine sports car experiences of all time.
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Revelations | Untold Stories About Automotive Legends with Jason Cammisa
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Taking a second to appreciate the ripping sessions at the end of each video without any audio overlays 👊🏻
Induction noise is crazy 🤤
This. The world needs more pure engine noise
Wish they used a sample of the subject car's engine for the intro animation
@@Zirion123 Induction noise makes the world a better place.
@@mitchell-wallisforce7859 Said anyone who ever installed a cool air intake on their car. Guilty!
Your Clarkson impression 1 minute in was VERY good. Oh, and Hagerty, employ this team for years to come. This is the best automotive content on the internet. Hands down.
And on any magazines included Jasons videos by far outperform anything else
Let's also give the Goose what the Goose is due :P
He sounds more fun when he speaks murican. Yee haw. City folks. I'm gonna have to open up a can of whoopass
meh
His whole act seems like a Clarkson impression.....not quite as infantile,but close.
A brilliant overview. A lot of people don't get the Elise. I have had a 2005 since new...and had simultaneously over the years had S2000s, AMGs, M6 etc...but those cars came and went and we kept the Elise. It is simply fun to drive, and never fails to put a smile on your face. It has charm.
Is the elise friendly for daily driving compared to the s2000?
@@1HeatWalk I think a lot of it would be based on where you live and what you are used to. I am old and grew up around Triumphs, Healeys, Alfas etc from the 60s and 70s…so I am used to austere cars. If you grew up around newer cars with every luxury, it will be a pretty big shock to live with the Elise day in and day out. For me though, the biggest negative is the weather. I live in the south and the summers are brutal. We have ac but its useless with the top off. You just sit in traffic and broil. The top is not like an S2000 or M6 that goes up with a button push. If you think its going to rain, you better pull over and get the top up before it starts raining. Plus, despite the hype, manual transmissions suck in stop and go traffic. So yes, you can live with it everyday…but you just have to understand what you are getting into. If I was young again, I’d do it and drive the Elise everyday without thinking about it. Hell, half the time I drove my TR6 the back window was gone. These days I drive it only on nice weekends. My daily is a 25 year old Honda Odyssey. It’s like a Swiss Army knife. The S2000 is a mile ahead as a daily. It is brilliantly laid out, well made, real ac and stereo, and a fine top..and peppy, but not fast. The Elise is a lot more fun though. I wish I hadn’t sold my 2004 S2000. It was a fantastic car.
At least until the rover decides to become a roved. Then you Honda k swap it
@@jacobrzeszewski6527 That was funny. No Rover, though. Mine has the Toyota 1.8. Would love to have the 2.2 from my S2000 in there though.
I rented an Elise when in Vegas once and , yes, it's a bit of a bear to get into but once inside, it was the most fun I have ever had driving a car! I wish I could have taken it to a track. Jason, I really enjoy the work you do on these vids. Keep 'em coming.
I think you are supposed to drop in backwards, ass first, and then turn 90 degree to get both legs in.
i have an urge to rent one now
I’ve owned my Elise for nearly 16 years. When I first bought it, I thought I might keep it a year or two, which had been my car ownership pattern up to that point. So far, nothing I can afford has been able to match the thrill of driving the Elise on the right road.
And hardly anything else will. Amazing vehicle
Try a motorcycle.
You sir, have been ruined. I am sorry for that in a way ;P I have a 94' 3000gt SL... fwd, freakishly heavy but it's still a blast to drive. I know if/when I get my Elise I'll be equally ruined. I look forward too it, but yet I dread it at the same time! I'm happy for you, don't stop enjoying it!
Totally agree, I’m at year 19! If only I could afford a 340R.. 😎
I love my bmw 135i 300hp RWD twin turbo, but i would prefer to have the Lotus Elise with Ayrton Senna sticker in the back.
Timing on this video is perfect. Last customer production Elise was finished this week, and it went to none other than Elisa Artoli, as you mentioned at 8:10.
That actually isn’t the Elise he’s talking about in the video (although ironically this video was uploaded the same day it rolled off the production line), she owns another Elise-a silver first gen pictured at 8:15. Her new one is a Sport 240 Final Edition in Championship Gold
@@armadillolover99Nobody said they mentioned her new Elise in the video. Thanks for sharing though.
I met Elisa once, and she autograoed my Elise shirt.
@@philipethier9136 and stole your p key?
I will NEVER tire of watching Jason Cammisa speak about cars. This is such a great informational series and Jasons character makes the series all the more entertaining to watch. Please keep this series alive forever
As an Elise owner, that's a well-researched review of the car. Good work Jason and team.
That is not an Elise owner.
I gotta say that K20 sounds absolutely insane! With the intake right behind your head it just sounds like an angry spirit descending down a mountain! Touge style of course :D
Yeah I definitely wasn't expecting it to sound that good. The induction noise was awesome
It makes me want to K-swap my Elise!
Yeah sounded super nice indeed!
@@unlovedcars9208 Lotus already 2ZZ swapped the S2 so I don't see why not lol
You should try a v6 exige !!
One of my favorite cars of all time. I am looking at getting the original here in Sydney, Australia. They are becoming pretty rare and expensive.
Yeah, most local examples are heavily tracked and have lived a hard life. I briefly looked at them a while back.....but could not get the ducks in a line.....gave up &ended up with an Abarth 124, pretty happy with that.
I had a few, the Rover K series are crap, the Toyota's are more reliable but lose some soul, they're all overpriced now. Great car, just not at the asking prices right now.
Isnt Moog's one up for sale in Sydney?
@@kidoctane current Abarth 124? Grey import to Oz? I'd love one, Stellantis should drop a sub 4.0 V8 in one and sell it as a Barracuda.
@@PiDsPagePrototypes Nope, they were officially imported here in Oz. They are sadly discontinued......another victim to the plague of SUVs.
I love that this car exists. It's crazy how cheap and light it originally was...to me it's as exciting to see as most exotics, but it costs way less and the person driving it is probably a lot cooler.
Once again Cammisa nails it. As someone who grew up riding motorcycles there was only one sports car that I had to have as an adult, and that's why there's an Exige in my garage. Nothing else comes close.
It's insane to think how "normal" bonded metal designs are today, and it's thanks to the Elise S1. Also, those hinges and pedals are GORGEOUS. Fantastic video as always, Jason!
It was very cool to be able to lend Jason our car for this video. Awesome photography. Happy to answer any questions about it. I’ve owned it since 2001, and it was imported via Germany to get LHD. The K20 was put in last year after the original B18 finally died at the track under full power. Lots of videos of it doing Autocross and track days on my own KZhead channel.
It was even cooler of you to lend the car. It's a very nice machine. Awesome noises coming from it! Thank you for your generosity.
Originally a Sun motorsports car?
Yes. Sun imported and converted it. Registered as an Integra based kit car.
@@adriancockcroft did they ever rescind the registrations on those? Or just stopped them from doing more? My old shop owner had one, B16 from a Civic type R though if I remember correctly.
@@hedonisticvanity California registers 500 Specially Constructed Vehicles a year, once its registered its done. The B16 or B18 was the early fit, but the K20 is an easier conversion and most cars have them now.
I own 17 cars. They don't all run at the same time but they include two with 1000+hp turbo big blocks, a 5th gen Camaro, a 996 911 with GT3 suspension mods, a 7 series BMW, and a 3rd gen 640hp CTS-V. I daily a 190hp Elise. The 13 different back road routes I take to and from work are the highlight of my day. Everything else just feels tall, heavy and numb and heavy. So so heavy.
For 20 of the last 30 years, I only drove Alfa Romeos because a friend owned a shop that serviced them. When I moved away in 2008, I left my Spider, my Milano and my 164. Nothing captured my heart until the 2005 Elise I bought in 2010. Every day that car puts a smile on my face. Even as I miss my old Alfas, I will never, ever sell my Elise.
That K20A sounds so majestic 😭🙌🏾
Right? I recently got a CR-Z, while I've never done an engine swap nor mind the stock drivetrain, that does sound nice (and would be a fair bit more powerful).
Everyone loves the K series, but I’m a Toyota guy! I want to find a clean 4WD Matrix XRS or Vibe GT so bad! The 2ZZ is a fabulous engine
@@nathanchildress5596 They unfortunelaty never came in 4WD with the 2zz. You're either gonna have a XR awd with the 1zz (and auto only) or XRS fwd only
@@nathanchildress5596 As a Toyota guy, perhaps you'd be one to opt for a MR2 Spyder with the 2ZZ swap.
@David Haller What are you talking about? The gray one clearly has a K20A, the black one has a 2zz
This show gives me the same feeling about cars that Top Gear did when it was the classic trio. Jason does an amazing job conveying the auras of the cars. It's all topped off with a perfect driving segment at the end. Just perfect
That's exactly what I just said to my Freund when I recommended this series only an hour ago.
I love this! Please never stop making these. In Europe and Japan the 2ZZ makes even more HP. Have one in my Toyota.
How much more? I had the 03 vibe GT [tons of fun!] with 180 hp. They even lost a few hp with the update in 05.
@@willleslie4855 not much. In Europe 192PS and in Japan the TRD Sports M version 200PS straight.
One of the greatest British cars ever made. I had the pleasure of working with Julian Thompson, the designer of the S1.
Jason hitting it out of the park with E36 M3 then this! I am still the original owner of both (well an S2)! I love both them!
Love the plate IH8ERY1
you guys continue to put out phenomenal content with each release.
Man, this is probably the best KZhead video on Lotus, thank you very much ! Lotus is one on the greatest automotive brand and I’m glad to be a fan of it, and I’m glad it’s still under the radar because it used to be for passionates, they will always be in the sport automotive history ! And the Elise is my dream car !
What a high quality program. Love every part of it!
The 2nd Gen Elise is on my wish list - I will own one soon.
Right on!
I've had an early Toyota engined one for a few years, from before they added airbags and traction control for the US market. Great car :D
All da best man 🤞🏻
@@BlatentlyFakeName Does the fact that it has a toyota engine make the car reliable
@@gregorymoisan6854 They're pretty reliable, even the rover engine models aren't unreliable because the engine is well within its capabilities
Best car related show on KZhead!
Agree, dude is informative and funny
The S1 Motorsport Elise is one of the most gorgeous cars ever made, especially in British Racing Green with the black front spoiler and gold anodized wheels.
Lotus is soooo fricking underrated! Less Ferrari, more Lotus!
The Elise would have sold 100k units if they had more room. But the adaption of Toyota 1zz/2zz engines where the best decision ever.
@@RevengeAvenger the rover k series were pretty good engines aside from the cheap Head Gaskets though, they're light and reliable (besides the head gaskets, again), and you can make some decent power with them, hell there are 1.8 Naturally aspirated K series pushing 230 horsepower. Back then parts were also plentiful, now they're rare but still, quite a good motor
Lotus's light weight is an inspiring and revolutionary remarkable engineering
Funnily, there's a two seater roadster that used a monocoque aluminium chassis like the Elise, with a very similar arrow shaped layout, which was developed since 1992 in Japan and showcased months before the Lotus. Before the Tommy kaira ZZ, I haven't managed to find such a chassis in a production vehicle, be it low or mass produced. The ZZ was designed by an ex Formulas engineer, and with lightness, simplicity and '60s sportscars in mind. That's why it had exposed gear linkage, like Lotuses of many years later, and tipped the scale at 650-670kg (20 more with the hard top). But it had a carburetted SR20 punching 195 horses
the ZZ2 was goated on Gran Turismo as well
Great mention. Would you happen to be the same hexgraphica that was associated with DriveTribe, as mentioned in the HotCars article on the Tommykaira ZZ?
Yes
And the Renault Spider, as well.
I own an Elise 111R with a sports exhaust system. The 2ZZ GE Engine is a absolute riot of noise and acceleration when the Cam switches over. Every time I drive it brings a smile to my face. Just an amazing little sports car!!
I daily drive a Honda S2000 and people often envy the purity of the car, the driver-centric nature is unlike almost anything else on the road today. But. A K20a-swapped Elise? Oh man... that sounds special.
Scottish person here. This channel is incredibly good. This presenter is too. Thx.
Hi Scottish person. I’ve been to Scotland a few times. Absolutely beautiful beautiful country. Loved it Edinburgh is a lovely place. But it’s all nice hopefully visit again soon. 👌👌👌👌🏴🏴🏴
@@russcooke5671 you're welcome any time. Take a car next time and explore the rest of the country. Especially the west. Take care.
@@SigmaJAD I took a car the last time I went. E30 BMW. 325i. Convertible. It was a great cruising trip. I drove it all around Britain many many times.
@@russcooke5671 I've got a California driving tour in October. Hoping to be wowed like you. "Y'al drive between the ditches". (Power Nation). Take care.
@@SigmaJAD nice one mate I am jealous 👌👌😂😂
Great job on this one! I live in So. Cal. and own a pair of 2011 (S3) Lotus Elise SCs. Both cars have two mods you need to do to your SC: 1) Lotus Cup airbox extension with larger panel filter 2) stainless steel Lotus Cup Exhaust (also called stage 3 or supercharged stage 2 exhaust Lotus part no. LOTAC05450). These two mods will really wake your car up. It will be slightly louder, more poppity and faster. Plus, Cup exhaust weighs 13.2 lbs. less than the stock system and it uses the exact same oval Lotus tip, so it cannot be told from stock. Meaning; it will pass visual smog test every time. Finally, it will sound better than that K20-powered S1. Believe me. Mine do.
Love the vanity plate "I Hate Everyone"...also the Lotus open wheeled race cars livery of black and gold was the inspiration for the Special Edition Trans Am in 1976
The john player special livery is what I want on my coffin, it's the Yankee pinstripes of racing imo
Toyota should buy Lotus, and make the Elise the new MR2! Toyota can make a fortune selling them, if they are around 30k, and around 2,500 pounds. We need to make this happen! Start contacting Toyota! Get the word out!!!
Still looks so good after all these years. These will definitely get more rare and desirable as every new car gets heavier and numb.
Crazy I never realised they came out so many years ago look quite modern still in my opinion
I see Jason Camissa, I watch. It's that simple
Should be "I'm that simple" clown shoes LOL
Schmuck
You like him that much, I never heard of him before.
Always love the driving at the end; very skilled and so exquisitely filmed. Thank you Jason & the Hagerty people, you rock.
Been driving my Federal S2 for 17 years now and all 17 have been insured by Hagerty. Thanks for the great service and his great channel. Jason, always enter backwards and slide in-super easy that way!
Jason these videos are so well written, you’re setting a new baseline. These are so fun for us.
I'm a pretty casual car enthusiast. This channel is one of my favorites. I always learn a mix of history, engineering, and styling, all with the right amount of lighthearted fun. Keep it up!
the rover k-series was a great engine despite its head gasket issues. its a great engine anyway. they went up to 190hp and rover turbo’d it in their 75.
This “little throw around car” is what I call fun!!!! Turning quickly, feeling my body’s weight shift from side to side (in a controlled manner) as I’m turning the wheel, is all I want in a car!!! 😊❤😊
Evora owner here… love the Elise just as much. Might get one at some point. Thanks for the video!
I'm envious, I was looking for an Evora S or Evora 400, but they all land pretty far outside of practical cost for a second or third car. I wouldn't rather get a 991.2 Carrera S, but for the money I could. I could also enjoy it every day.
@@Tyrael112 unless you’re into a broken 996, 911 are more expensive to buy, to own, and far less interesting for anything you’ll find for less than $60k. You can find an Evora NA for low $40k, they’re extremely reliable and will appreciate in value.
do you want brittle glue with that?
I would have an Elise over any sports car on sale today, at any price. The Elise is the perfect blend of small physical dimensions, lightweight, convertible, and an engine powerful enough to excite paired to a manual transmission. All time dream car.
It may as well be a Go-Kart.
You have a very informative delivery as an automotive journalist, I follow you and MotoManTV because you delivery of real and concise facts, and background information of each brand and model you are presenting. Also your style is very entertaining keep up the great work JC, there is no other like you in the crowded world of KZhead! Can’t wait until the next review!
Jason Cammisa watching your content for years, and you are the best from all the US journalists and definately all bloggers, thank you, for showing it the right way
So glad I stayed up late! Yes I have an exam in the morning, but this is totally worth it
Time is 12:00 am
11:20 am actually
@@ACommenterOnKZhead I mean, where I live. It is 12 am in the midnight for me
@@jebremocampo9194 there is NO video worth staying up late to watch that i cant watch the next day. Its not going to change or move ... lol
Jason Cammisa saying "al-yoo-mini-yum" absolutely made my day. Legend.
Elise was always in my dream cars list, a car that would transform even the least "car person" into one. But a curious fact: I have recently dismantled a W126 Mercedes and it has several bonded parts instead of welded ones, specially in the safety cell. And even layers of metal sheets bonded together like a sandwich to reinforce and yet keep it flexible. The dash is ridiculously light (you can lift and carry it with two fingers, seriously!) because its main structure is a very thin alloy with foam inserts and etc. It was mindblowing to imagine that despite the design cues from the W116, it is a very different animal in engineering and had a very advanced construction technique back in 1979.
Perhaps lotus's was the first to use that tech for the main monocoque instead of just subframes?
@@aaronjackson4497 The W126 has various bonded parts as well, I think that Lotus was the first to assume the use of that technique, because I honestly think that the market wouldn’t receive nicely the idea of a “glued” Mercedes back in 79… The W126 was already having a backlash into the purists of the time because of the absence of chromes and stuff…
Lotus was, and is, still one of my favourite car/race car manufacturers of all time. Loved this episode. As usual, kudos to Jason and crew; great editing and production values, and great writing, y'all! And when you said that black Elise was yours, I finally understood the dynamics behind the license plate...😂 ✌️❤️🙂🇨🇦
A Honda K20 in an Elise is NUTS! You can get a Honda K to have any power level you like! Its basically the LS of the 4 cylinder world. Love them!
It seems K swaps are becoming as ubiquitous as LS swaps.
...the LS was a LOTUS design too........
Gotta love Jason. I think he is the best automotive journalist in the world. ;-) I hope one day I can meet him and become friends. haha..I wish.
Him, Chris Harris and Matt Farah would be the trio Top gear actually need now
I had the pleasure to drive an Elise on a track and it has remained one of the most memorable car for me
I owned a Monster for years, and love that you took the time to get an actual Ducati sound. Best car show on the internet
Pretty awesome content! Love the S1 Elise! Also cool to know Artioli’s granddaughter drives an Elise! As she should!
I believe she has a KZhead channel in English. And he instagram handle should be IAmElise. Don't quote me on that though... :)
I have read that she's getting the last Elise to roll off the production line
@@JK061996 interesting, I didn’t know. Btw, nice profile logo.
@@inPrincipleGames thanks! The article I've read was published yesterday so it's very recent news.
@@JK061996 cool, I’ll look it up. Thanks
I enjoyed the way Jason switched between the UK and US pronunciations of Aluminium
I think this just became my dream car. So perfectionaly light 👌. An absolute masterpiece of engineering. Working in a body shop for a little while, I'm happy to see how strong this structural panel bond is!
One of my favorite cars of all time. I am looking at getting the original here in Sydney, Australia. Thanks for the sharing this video with my friend.
I own an Elise S1 with the Rover engine. Being short (160cm) makes much easier to enter and exit when the roof is on. I love my little weird yellow Lotus and how it drives. Plus it's a lot of fine to see people struggling to enter and exit 😋
As a someone who is stupid enough to buy one, could you please describe me how hard it is to keep it alive? Maintenance costs? Thank you
@@Donax695 it's quite cheap to maintain. The Rover engine is notoriously fragile but I haven't had any problem so far. I've changed the brake fluid system and the dumpers but except for that no major issue. There are plenty of forums where u can get hints of how to solve any kind of problem. However, when I bought it, one of my concern was to have a low cost fun vehicle and so far I guess I've achieved this goal.
@@CC-qe1gq Would it be possible for someone with my height (190 cm) to drive it or would it be too uncomfortable or even flat out impossible?
@@stickywickedy I presume the main challenge would be to enter and exit the car but once in there's a lot or headroom. I guess you should test drive and check for yourself
@@stickywickedy Depends more on how fat you are - I've had mine for 20 years but im now 54 and 108kg and its a struggle to get. The size of your gut is the biggest obstacle as you have to double up at the waist to get in.
I absolutely love your videos, and as a long time Exige owner myself, this is such a welcome addition! Thank you for this!!
Great job on the history of the car. I was one of those who put a deposit down and waited over a year to get the car. It was around £20,000 by the time it was on the road with a radio but was selling for 26k as the waiting list was over a year by then. It looked amazing by the standards of the day and was amazing to drive. The attention to detail was excellent- fully flat under tray and lovely from all angles. I had an Miata (Mx5 in the UK) at the same time and there was no comparison- the Mazda was so much higher and softer. The Elise is one of the greats… I had quite a few including the Exiges- they were even better…
I live in Norfolk UK, this video made me so proud, thank you.
YES. some more quality content! Thanks to everyone who worked on this to make my day!
The elise was the true lotus modern should be and very perfect match to the philosophy from the founder himself,as Colin Chapman said "Simplify,then add lightness".
Really enjoyed the video. I always wanted an Exige, and enjoyed getting more in-depth knowledge of the construction which made it and the Elise so quick.
Great video! Thx... I've been thinking about getting an Elise again, my 2006 Elise looked like the batmobile, and handled like a champ!
I love the elise, i used to own a mk3 mr2 and still to this day everybody talks about elise being a better mr2 and its true.
The closest thing in the car world to a motorbike, no doubt, shame there are no more cars like this
Unfortunately a bunch of scaredy cats think it's some else's job to decide what is "safe" to own.
I always enjoy the drives at the end.....thanks for posting!
Watching Jason hustle the silver Elise down that beautiful twisty country road put a huge grin on my face. I used to have a 76' Porsche 914/4. It was very lite and handled like it was on rails. My first car was an inline four automatic Fiero, I bought for $2K. There's a guy in my Ohio city who has a British racing green Elise. I hope to make enough money to own one some day. Thank you.
That K20 swap Elise's intake sound is addictive
The camera was on the other side from the intake, it’s even louder in person…
Jason - Thanks for doing the Elise such justice ..And knowing you have that one is just ICING!
Having owned an '05 and being also... not slim, your ingress/egress is spot on. It looks like an exaggeration on camera but I can tell you that it isn't. Owning the car was fun and it got me the attention I think I so richly deserve. Went to a couple track days and even took it on a couple of 8-hour road trips and it was plenty comfortable. But at the end of the story, my mid-life crisis only lasted a year and a half and I sold it at a $12k loss. Plus, as fun as it was in the twisties, the straight-line performance was anemic. My friends with turbo-charged Mazdas would blow my doors off, whether from a dead stop or from a roll.
Great video and nice to see such praise. I love my 111R Elise and the true test of this vehicle is taking it on the windy-est road you can find.
It's so funny to see an S1 elise swapped from a K series to a K series :P But even the rover engine wasn't half bad (had one in my rover 200) just has frequent issues with HGs
the rover k-series is a great engine except for its head gasket issues. love it anyway.
This car was a us import series 1, so it would have had a b18 in it originally
The S2 version is the best-looking Elise to date.
They still look like new exotics on the street.
I agree but I still love the look of the 1st Elise. I like the 1st gen Hayabusa too so go figure.
The S2 gets more looks than many Ferraris, and more fun to drive.
@@spongeborgtheford4971 I do love the GT1 version of Elise S1. That is a great looker.
@@farishanafiah8461 LOL that's almost like cheating. Even the 911 vs 911 GT1
Hagerty has recently become one of my favorite KZhead channels. I know they’ve been around for years, but I feel they’ve been stepping up their content in recent years. The production value and overall quality of the videos is top notch.
Honda K-swapped Elise S1. That's how mine eventually ended up, after taking it from a standard 118hp Rover K-series, to Sport 135 specs, then Sport 160 specs, then swapping cams completely to get it to 197hp, Quaife CR (with straight cut gears). Only downside I found on the Honda conversion is the gearbox that never hit that sweet spot like the Quaife did. I'm pretty sure the video was already filmed, but would have been nice, since you mentioned Elisa Artioli, to mention she was inside the first Elise, and now owns the very last Elise ever built too... BTW: the drawing at 3:55 isn't an Elise, but the M250. :)
Any chance we could see a revelations on the 959 in the future. This was the best episode so far btw
I hit the “👍🏻” 2 seconds after each video with Jason Cammisa starts….always 😌
Having owned one of those Matrix XRS models (one of the few automatics ever made), at the age of 25, when Getaway In Stockholm 2 had just come out.... Let's just say the main reason I walk the streets a free man today is there weren't more cops around with radar guns. (Trivia: They named it after the metal-matrix-composite cylinder liners in the 2ZZ-GE.) When I found out that insane high-revving beast of an engine was also the Elise powerplant, so much made sense. Admittedly it wasn't quite so spirited when saddled with almost twice the weight (2800 lbs / 1300kg), but still, that kick-in-the-pants of the secondary cam profile kicking in at the 7000rpm mark was a thrill unlike anything else I've driven. Thank you for this video, it helped me put a lot of things in context.
Loved this car from the moment I saw one in real life and then heard it....watching the owner, a late middle aged gent, get in was hilarious. I wondered what he must look like getting out then, as he had obviously forgotten something in the shops, needed to literally roll onto the ground to extricate himself from this gorgeous vehicle. My friend and I were in fits of laughter...he was not. Great video...subbed.
Love this! Light weight cars are and always have been my favorite!! 👌🏼👍🏼
Another fantastic video, you all do a great job of gathering all the fascinating tidbits. The only part I don't understand is the hate for the original Elise design, for the time period it was created in, it is quintessential 90's style.
Love all your videos, from editing to narrating. Keep it up!!!
Thank you for another great video Jason.
As an owner of the first Lotus production car that took us to the Elise, I will be forever indebted to the genius of Colin Chapman. The Europa was the Lotus submission for the ford GT 40 project. Beating Lamborghini to the showroom floor by 6 months it became the first mid-engine sports car to be available to the general public. Following the Lotus mantra "simplify and add lightness" my mid production Europa weighs in at 1500 Lbs. In the midst of the financial black hole of F1 racing, costs were optimized on the sourcing of parts. The Europa was originally powered by a modified Renault 16 power train rotated 180 degrees. 83 "earth pounding" horse power! That said, the power to weight ratio is still impressive even by today's standards. While the body shape of the Europa is the subject of heated discussion the performance is astounding. Thanks for your documentation of the amazing Lotus brand.
That K20a swap is the best thing ever happened
the end of each video sums all the great writing so good, love it!
I've owned my SC for a year and 5 days. Great and accurate review. Come on spring!!
Of all the cars I ever owned the first gen Elise is my favorite to this day. Sadly I had to sell mine back then and then life happened. I will get another one eventually
I think a Lotus Eclair would make for a sweet ride. 👀 Interesting plate on that S2.
The sound only bits at the end of these videos is the best part!!
Thanks for a cracking video on one of the most beautiful cars and especially for the outro with the pure engine notes ... Great content, cheers :-)
i like the elise but i have always had a thing for the 1977 Esprit thanks to watching James Bond The Spy Who Loved Me as a kid. an esprit turning into a submarine amazed my child brain, but i also just really like the way the Esprits look
I really like this guy, i feel like he explains automotive stuff in a purposeful sort-of relatable way, it's always so to laugh about while hearing the insiders perspective.
Always wanted one of these, finally got to a point in life where I could possibly pick one up comfortably. Found out the being taller than 6 ft is an impossibility with any Lotus. Knees almost entirely in the dash
Great piece! Unfortunate that today's cars are going in exactly the opposite direction: Bloated. I find it amazing that cars like the Acura TXL and Kia Stinger easily outweigh my Forester XT. And with EV's, it is going to take technology not yet mass produced to ever hope to keep weight down.
The ND Miata would like a word...
@@DaManDaMythDaLegend That is a start. The new 86/BRZ twins keep it down too, but after that, not much that isn't either north of 3000 lbs or an econobox orientation. Think the new Civic Si squeaks in just under 3,000, but I'd have to check.
@@DaManDaMythDaLegend Maybe some of the Mini line too, but of course with the Clubman and Countryman, no.
@@DaManDaMythDaLegend Is the ND Miata going to be the last pure ICE-based version?
@@VirtualGuth Seems to be that way. Electrification is confirmed for the next generation Miata.