Hi there all im very new to this site and to everything Lotus, Im looking a buying a new Lotus Elise and don`t know which one to buy.

My Lotus dealer has a new old shape Elise S with touring pack and air con with around 2K off list price or for the same price a can go for a new shape Elise with no extra`s. Love them both but not sure if the 1.6 would have the same grunt as the 1.8. Any advice very welcome

Many thanks

Hi Steven and welcome to the site.

It really is down to personal preference (and Road Fund Tax price!). My own preference is the old style Elise, over the new. There is no doubt that the new Elise will be a hit, especially with the non-enthusiast market. That Co2 figure is a big draw.

However, though the 0-60 figures aren't that different, it has been noted in road tests that the torque is down on the 1.6 and you have to rev it more to get it going. I also prefer the styling on the older one. Like I said a personal thing. You will also get the Touring pack on the old one, a definate improvement.

Just on another note (and as a professional car buyer) have you thought about pre-owned? Garages like Stratton Motors will have 1 year old cars at an even bigger discount, and that way you could get something with more grunt (my own preference would be for the SC). But I'm a power bloke!