Highlights
- Largely factory standard early Elise in great condition
- Well maintained by main dealers and marque specialists
- Recent timing belt, water pump and service
- Bilstein suspension upgrade
- Cylinder Head Gasket has been upgraded and replaced
- Stored in a dry garage under a cover and reportedly never driven in rain
- Good history file with documented service records
- MOT valid until April 2027
The Appeal
Boomers had the Seven, but Gen X got the utterly brilliant Elise, a car infused with the spirit of the original Chapman icon, but arguably considerably better and more usable. The earliest cars are closest to designer Julian Thompson’s vision, which is why we rather like this highly standard silver ‘97 Series 1.
The large history file shows regular maintenance by main dealers and marque specialists, including a long list of recent work. Notable highlights include a cambelt and water pump change in April 2026 together with a good refurbishment. A full service was undertaken in 2024 with few miles since. The car features an upgraded factory straight through exhaust and Bilstein shocks were fitted in 2022. The current MOT runs to April 2027.
The vendor acquired the car in 2021 and tells us that it has always been garaged with a cover and never taken out in the rain. It presents very well in the photos.
The vendor says:
The Lotus Elise S1 has been a fantastic car to own — reliable, simple to maintain and a genuine analogue driving experience. The suspension upgrade has transformed the way it drives, improving both composure and confidence without losing the car’s character. It delivers the kind of direct, mechanical feel that is increasingly rare in modern cars.
Key Information
- Mileage: 66,000 miles (supported by service history records, not warranted)
- Country of registration: United Kingdom
- Technical inspection status: MOT valid until 21st April 2027 with advisories
- Technical specs: 1,796cc four-cylinder petrol, five-speed manual
- Paperwork: Service history file with documented records, service book, various invoices, V5C, handbook, 2 keys with fob
- Cylinder Head Gasket has been upgraded and replaced
Summary of recent work:
- 04/26 - 65,843 miles - Timing belt and water pump - £862.20
- 04/24 - Oil Change and Filter Rear light repair - £149.24
- 04/23 - Catalyst - £95.40
- 04/23 - 65,100 miles - service, water bottle, lower ball joint - £329.55
- 07/22 - 64,970 miles - Fit trickle charger - £46.80
- 05/22 - 64,683 miles - Rear light repair - £84
- 03/22 - 64,481 miles - Oil change, filter, and MOT - £191.39
- 03/22 - 63,440 miles - Bilstein suspension upgrade - £1,400
- 03/21 - 63,440 miles - B service - £240
Service history (further details in photos):
- 04/24 - 65,386 miles
- 04/23 - 65,100 miles
- 03/22 - 64,481 miles
- 03/21 - 63,440 miles
- 06/11 - 58,045 miles - Kevledon Motors
- 04/10 - 56,303 miles - Kelvedon Motors
- 04/08 - 52,406 miles - Vindis
- 08/06 - 49,987 miles - Brooke Kensington
- 05/05 - 48,135 miles - Brooke Kensington
- 04/04 - 41,554 miles - Steve Williams Sports Cars
- 01/03 - 32,994 miles - Steve Williams Sports Cars
- 12/01 - 27,016 miles - Bell & Colvill
- 07/01 - 20,224 miles - Lakeside Engineering (Lotus specialist)
- 03/01 - 13,932 miles - Lakeside Engineering (Lotus specialist)
- 04/00 - 11,722 miles - Haydon Cars Lotus main dealer
- 07/98 - 6,080 miles - SGT
- 08/97 - 1,196 miles - SGT
The Detail
- Well kept silver metallic paintwork with few signs of use
- Long list of recent work detailed above
- Vendor states the car is in very good mechanical condition with a clean engine
- Exterior has a few stone chips to front of car
- Two small marks, one under the grille and one at the rear
- Five spoke factory alloys in good order with quality Toyo Proxes tyres
- Black leather interior in good order commensurate with mileage
- Interior shows a couple of worn patches such as driver’s bolster
- We are told that all interior features work correctly
- Largely standard specification aside from the Bilstein suspension upgrade
- Supplied with straight-through exhaust adaptation to replace catalytic converter
- Minor advisories to note on MOT
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