Darry's story about buying his first Lotus Elise
"The best 'pure joy' investment of my life...this car puts a smile on my face every time I start it up"
Darryl recently took delivery of his Lotus Elise sports car from Lotus Cars Queensland and was sharing his elation with the Lotus Club Queensland group on Facebook. We asked Darryl if he would ike to share his story about what drew him to the Elise and here is what he had to say
“25 years ago while at a car show in Las Vegas, IÂ saw this stunning car. My first close up look at a Lotus sports car. With 40 years in the auto repair business, I worked on and drove pretty much every car out there. Owned a couple of high end BMWs, but my eyes were always on Lotus. I followed the Lotus Elise for a number of years, but never got the chance to even see one up close. A few months ago with semi retirement in hand, I looked into my bucket, and saw one item in it. A Lotus.”
"20 minutes into a test drive the deal was done in my head.
This is a pure driving machine.
Not as refined as other sports cars I have driven, but just a pure connection between you and the road via the car"
“The search started, and low and behold one in my favourite colour was available a reasonable distance from me. Off I went with wifey in tow to actually see and drive my dream car. There was a huge hesitation in play, with info in hand about this car being very “raw” and not friendly to drive on the street.”
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“20 minutes into a test drive the deal was done in my head. This is a pure driving machine. Not as refined as other sports cars I have driven, but just a pure connection between you and the road via the car. There is no need to drive fast, as driving at legal speeds is still a fun experience, without the insulating qualities of modern high end cars. There is no thoughts of body roll on round about. No hesitation on passing or changing lanes. Just be one with the car and enjoy.’
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“My wife still finds driving it a bit intimidating, so is mainly a passenger. I spent 30 years racing motorcycles, so I understand handling, braking, and acceleration from a pure performance perspective, and the Lotus fills the void left from not bike racing. It is also kind of fun when it attracts a ton of attention when you are out and about in it. The best “pure joy” investment of my life.”
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“As a mechanic I look at my new love and see a hand built piece of mechanical art. The exposed shift mechanism is just pure sexy. The no frills finish is just right for a proper sports car. The rather loud interior gets tiring after a couple of hours, signalling it is time for a break to stretch your legs. I am really amazed at how comfortable the seat is, with little padding, but obviously very well engineered. No need for a ton of padding to make up for a poor design. This car puts a smile on my face every time i start it up.”
Lotus ends production of the Lotus Elise in 2021
Darryl’s story is quite timely, with mixed emotions we share the news that the production of the iconic Lotus Elise will cease in 2021 with the brand entering a new era with their sports car range around the world.
We are fortunate enough to secure an allocation from the last batch of vehicles being made which will be delivered to Australia through the year.
Dubbed ‘the Final Edition’ they will be the last of their kind made available for sale – more information in our Car Sales section
