The Ultimate Driving Experience (1 year update)

First, let me dispel some misinformation that is being spread like wildfire about this car. First, the vast majority of customer reviews out there have been written by people who do not own the car and by many other people that have never even driven one. This car is an ultralightweight, high performance, driving enthusiast's machine.

If you are looking for creature comforts, a rocking stereo, or balance of performance and available options - look elsewhere, this car is not for you. The Elise offers no compromises and makes no apologies in it's design. Spirited, unencumbered driving is it's only purpose. Also, if you are looking for big power and big torque, the Elise is not for you.

However, the Elise is very quick and accelerates great in the lower gears - especially when it is on the high cam. The horsepower to weight ratio is actually better than on most other popular sports cars. This is due to the light weight (roughly 1950 lbs) and the 190 horsepower motor. With a couple inexpensive and minor modifications, you can easily get 1 hp for every 10 lbs of weight.

I have now owned my Elise for one year and it has performed exactly as advertised. The cornering, steering, suspension, road handling, and feedback are all phenomenal. It is a very mechanical (not electronic) connection between driver, car, and road... and I love it. Much of this feeling is due to the fact that the Elise has no power steering, no traction control, no stability control, no cruise, etc.

Ingress/Egress is a bit of challenge since you have to climb up and over the frame rail to get in and out. After having this car for a year now, I've got it down to a science: put your right leg into the foot well and sit on the frame rail, slide into the seat, and swing your left leg in. To get out: move the seat all the way back, put your left leg up on top of the frame rail, grab the rail with both hands, slide up onto the rail, and pop right out... now that's not so hard, is it? Of course I'm only 5'8" so taller drivers may have a little more difficulty.

Once you are in, it is really not all that uncomfortable despite the fact that the seats are narrow, hard, and have virtually no adjustment capabilities. The suspension is stiff and the ride is harsh. The cabin is noisy but I love the sound of the motor screaming right behind my head.

As for performance: in looking for the perfect sports car that I could actually afford, I have driven an Audi TT, Nissan Z, Honda S2000, Mazda RX8, Porche Boxter and 911, Corvette, and a few others that I couldn't actually afford. None could come close to matching the feedback, responsiveness, and sheer joy of this car. Take an Elise on a windy "S-curve" road or down a slalom course and you'll know what I'm talking about. Keep the tach above 4G in a lower gear and put the hammer down at the apex of a curve and you'll feel like you're on a ride at Six Flags.

The Elise uses a Toyota engine with variable valve lift and timing. When on the high cam, acceleration feels like a much more powerful car.

I absolutely love the fact that this car has no techy electronic gadgets to help you drive. It's just you and the machine, a return to the glory days of a man and his steed. With the absence of electronic stability systems, the car is still amazingly planted and forgiving. The limits of the car are so high that really only the very talented or very reckless drivers will probably ever exceed them.

I have gotten the backend to slide out a little (with considerable effort), and even then I never felt like I wasn't in complete control. Never has a car been more confidence inspiring or fun to drive. For motorcycle enthusiasts reading this review, think a 4-wheeled Yamaha YZF R6 or Honda CBR 600RR... only better because you don't have to worry about lowsiding when diving into a corner on a wet road or when hitting a patch of gravel.

I took an 800 mile road trip in my Elise over three days to speed up the break-in period. I never really felt too terribly uncomfortable so I really don't see what all the fuss is about a lack of comfort. Besides, this is a true sports car - again no compromises.

This is the first car that I've ever had that I feel has truly been worth every penny I paid for it. I've never had so much fun on four wheels. Thanks to good timing, I got my Elise loaded with Sport Pack, Touring Pack, and hard top in magnetic blue at MSRP with no 1.5 to 3 year wait. Many dealers are still tacking on extra dough to the msrp even though demand has dipped, so if you are really interested, then shop around. To me, this car has all I wanted: stellar performance that is unmatched in any other car I've driven (including a couple that are about three times the price) and killer looks that turns heads everywhere I go and makes people think that I actually did pay $150K for it.

My only complaints: the brake is a little squishy and set too low for good heel/toe action, the shifter is not the best but was improved greatly after a recall repair, and contents in the storage area behind the engine get a little wet if you drive in the rain due to the vents above the motor. Other than that, I have nothing bad to say about this car.