Really glad you got a FE and it's great to to finally see it! Very very nice, as is your brothers one. I also got bit by the final edition "now or never" bug and got the Exige (420) i'd wanted for a long time. Very Interesting comparisons between it and my s/c'd 111R sports racer. I feel like the old cliche of "they don't make them like this any more" has never been truer and more heart felt, than with these cars. Now to continue enjoying them!
Congrats on the 420 a very special car. Lotus's official 75th Anniversary this year so hopefully there will be a gathering of the Final Editions at some point.
That is a fabulous spec Elise! 🎉 Glad you managed to get one and your brothers is also amazing in that yellow pearl! Would be great to see it at a club meet sometime!
Thanks would be good to get a gathering of the Final Editions at some point this year. There must be something going on for the 75th Anniversary too so I'm sure you will see it about. Cheers.
Lovely car & great “no compromise” super lightweight spec Jonny. Your garage definitely celebrates the end of a memorable Lotus ICE (and proper drivers car) era. Health to drive!
Thanks Jimmy hope all's well and you're still enjoying your GT430 health to drive in 2023 for you too. Hope to see you at some Lotus 75th Anniversary event before the year's out.
Great to see another video from you - your Exige videos were one of the big persuaders in my picking up an Exige Sport 350 Special Edition, as my first foray into sports car ownership, especially the end of year review pieces. Absolutely been bitten by the Lotus bug, love every journey in it.
Many thanks. I will keep up the ownership reviews of this Elise and I need to do one for the Evora which is somehow 5 years old already. Exige Sport 350 are fantastic cars, as are all Exiges, I'd love another but thought an Elise would be a better contrast to the Evora having a completely different drivetrain.
I remember you bought the car jan22! (I bought mine jan21). My catalytic converter broke down after 20.000kms but I could still drive the car, with engine light on and a bit louder. It's a great toy, I love it to bits!
Ordered in 2021 but didn't leave the factory until Jan 22. I can only dream of getting 20,000kms out of a cat! I hope this one lasts a lot longer than the first! It would be great to get the Champions together one day. I will let you know about any trips to Spa this year...
What a thing! Your chosen spec is such a fantastic tribute to the whole philosophy of the Elise. With my limited budget, I’ll stick with my 730KG S1 MMC 135BHP . Enjoy.
Thanks. S1 will always win any lightweight contest and in many people’s eyes still the best Elise but the Final Edition is where the story ends and it will be interesting to see what it weighs. It’s quite a different car to drive than my S2 SportsRacer which might still be my favourite Elise but I’m hoping for some drives in the Goldielocks which will challenge that. Much quicker on track I suspect but SR will take some beating as a road car.
I’m glad to finally see it. Congratulations! I noticed the hesitant low rpm throttle response in your car that they all seem to have and that I found very annoying in my Sport 240. I bit the bullet and installed an aftermarket ECU with tune by RRR engineering. It completely solved the problem. With a replacement of the restrictive exhaust manifold and air box at the same time, it picked up about 60 HP, but the real prize for me is the improved drivability when I’m not on the boil.
Must be spicy with 300bhp bit of a sleeper now. I don't notice the hesitation when driving so not something that has bothered me much to date but good to know there's a fix. Evora is similar so I suspect it might be some emissions mapping to blame.
@@DrPittenstein Yes, quite spicy with 300 BHP. The increased torque is welcome. I think you’re right about the tuning for emissions. Some journalists make brief mention of the issue (‘blipping for heel and toe downshifts sometimes yields delayed response,’ etc.) but presumably go easy on Lotus because they know the origins of the compromise. I can’t fault Lotus for that either, but it’s nice to have instant throttle response. It wasn’t an issue if revs were kept above 3-3.5K, but sometimes I like to drive at a more relaxed pace and suddenly gas it out of a corner or just do proper rev matching. I’m looking forward to updates on your and your brother’s cars.
@@jonathanknight8251 thanks plan was to go full Cup 260 spec but very high cost and prob worth less than a stock FE at the end. Would have been better off starting with a used 250!
@@DrPittenstein That is a bit of a conundrum, isn’t it? Though if you execute your mods to allow easy return to stock form for sale, I suppose the FE will be worth more. Hopefully that day is far off.
@@craigyirush3492 Yes the 2zz remains, in my opinion, the best engine to go into the Elise. Magic combination. Supercharged 2ZR cars are faster up to 6250 rpm with much more torque (184lbs/ft vs 133lbs/ft) and to be fair the later cars sound better as standard than the 111R did with a stock pipe. Above 6250rpm the 2ZZ is still king and sounds unreal with a louder back box. Enjoy yours, very special car in my eyes.
Thanks for sharing your update. I love the 260 cup as well. I have added these louvres after a small ding cracking my front clam at Bathurst race track. I have a yellow 2014 Elise S which has been upgrade to 270 bhp has nitron suspension along with front splitter. Where did your brother get his wing and mounts ? Do you know how long the wing is ? I’m thinking about using an exige 380 cup wing which is 1300mm wide. I have provided an update on my progress on the lotusforums
Your car sounds epic already. The 260 wing shares a part number with the 311. The drill holes are different as the wing stays are closer together to use the same mounting points as the other Elise Cup cars (you can still see the 311 holes underneath). I believe it's a 311 wing that is cut down by the factory, so it's not as wide as the 311 wing. Hope this helps, I'm after one myself so hope to bring more videos of the car as it progresses soon.
@@DrPittenstein please let us know how you get on ! Thanks … I’m also waiting on a verdant green Emira with brown leather that’s due July to sept this year .. lotus bug !
This Elise 250 Cup with this spec all carbon is fabulous. She must be the lightest one in the world🥰. Be careful with the Yokos semi slick in winter, it is loosing grip😋 , I spinned in a straight line in mode "sport" (it was raining...)
Thanks. I hope to have it weighed soon and will upload a video of that when it happens. We have floods in the UK at the moment so car stays in the garage for now.
Yes but sad Lotus won't sell you anything like it again, they were so good at road racers. Hopefully the Emira will get some added lightness at some point but getting it below 1400kg will be a challenge!
Fantastic ! Well done to both brothers on their final Elise. How did I miss this ?... I'm 2 weeks late :-(. Oh well, caught up at last. Look forward to your continued Lotus adventures Dr.P . BTW, I think you made a good move 'book-ending' your Lotus' with the ultimate factory iterations of Evora & Elise... I guess the Exige Cup 430 would be a (fantastic) in betweener . Do you still have your Esprit ?
Thanks. The original plan was to get an Elise Sport 240 but it inevitably snowballed into a Cup 250! Exige Cup 430 is arguably the best of both in one car but the Evora GT430 is very special and better for me in a number of ways. Yes sold the Esprit to fund the Elise FE. It was amazing to own my childhood dream car but not comparable to the Evora to drive as you might expect. Must have been incredible in its day though, a great thing to have owned.
Great looking Elise. I see from the roads that you film on you live near Ringwood, I am not to far away from Ringwood hope you don't mind me asking where did you get the paint protection film fitted, I am just about to get my Yellow Elise SC front clam painted and want to protect the new paint.
Hi Julia thanks for watching. The ppf was by Bell and Colvill who use a company called allthatgleams I believe. They did a good job but I’m sure there are places nearer you that would be just as good. I’ve been impressed by First Choice detailing in Christchurch but they are very high end and do mainly supercars so won’t be the cheapest! all the best DrP
Yes it will be very interesting. I thought about buying some scales but they are very expensive. I will find a way to get it weighed and upload to the channel soon. It should in theory be very close to 900kg. Hopefully just under that but we will see soon.
@@chrisdobbie5265 thanks much appreciated but it’s ironic that it would have cost slightly less if I had bought one of those instead 😖 but 220 Elise are awesome cars too, what makes them all special is the weight and response which can’t be replicated by heavier cars at any price. 220 also has the same torque as the 250 so just as fast up to 5000rpm or so. Main benefits of Cup cars are felt on track, 220 still takes some beating on the road.
Hi, i enjoy your channel alot, massive Lotus fan myself. Im in my twenties, and im looking to buy an Elise S2. What is your opinion on it? Or should i save up for an Evora V6, or Exige S2 (roughly the same €€ in NL). Thanks in advance!
Hi thanks for your support. Never an easy answer to the endless Elise vs Exige debate also no wrong answer either both are exceptional driver's cars. S2 Elise are really special, for me the Toyota 2ZZ-GE was such a great match for the chassis, I loved my SportsRacer and my current Cup 250 has much more torque but doesn't get close to the 8900rpm redline. 111r/Elise R are a bit quiet as standard but sound incredible with a louder back box. Exige S2 are also fabulous, a better spec for track use is that's what you're into. 111r is beautifully set up for the road (could be peak Elise for road use for me) but is a bit soft for harder track use. Evoras are special cars too but more grown up, if you're still young and flexible you'll have no problem living with an Elise or Exige. Evoras are super impressive, super composed but Elise and Exige are more intense and exciting at road legal speeds. Best plan is obvs to try them all out and see which one you connect with the most. Good luck with the search, let me know what you choose.
@@DrPittenstein Thank you for your very detailed opinion/analysis of my question. Currently my budget allows me an Elise, and as you said, it is very important to me that even at legal speeds i can enjoy the car. I have raced for about 7 years (karting) but i want to keep that strictly for the track, also with cars. Ideally, an Exige V6s would be the best option, but for some reason they are incredibly expendive over here (70-80k) wich is out of my budget. Evora S on the other hand are pretty cheap in comparison (280's aswell, but i think its lacking in certain area's) for about 50-60k. Thanks again, im pretty sure i will wait for an Exige S2 (or S3) that fitd my budget. I'll also document it on YT. Question; have you ever driven a Donkervoort F22? My father is looking for one, and it seems like a beast ;)
@@neverenoughgames72 No I have never driven a Donkervoort, they are very expensive over here. I have 2 Caterhams though so love that sort of car, I'd love to try a BonkersDonker!
Well, my Cup 250 has had two bad O2 sensors, bad airflow sensor, the catalytic converter falling apart from the inside, ratting like a tin can filled with rocks, needing replacement, the pads of the cup seats falling off, the driver's side door window rattling like mad when fully down, miserable performance on cold start until engine warms up, stalling stalling stalling on cold morning starts, and a litany of other random electrical problems. All after a measly 8000 miles. Good luck!
@@DrPittenstein It’s in the shop for the winter holidays, just dropped it off today. Hopefully they can figure out what’s going on with the cold start stalling. Thanks for the well-wishes!
I agree, most of what I’m planning is reversible and I don’t think many would object to wheel arch louvres but being realistic though none of the Cup 260 mods would add value to it either - usual story with mods. Great value for any other Cup 260 obsessives out there one day, if there are any!
Yes towing eye makes the point, the Evora only weighs 1350kg wet and with full tank of fuel so not many sports cars on sale today that are that light. New Emira weighed over 1480kg when tested by a magazine.
Really glad you got a FE and it's great to to finally see it! Very very nice, as is your brothers one. I also got bit by the final edition "now or never" bug and got the Exige (420) i'd wanted for a long time. Very Interesting comparisons between it and my s/c'd 111R sports racer.
I feel like the old cliche of "they don't make them like this any more" has never been truer and more heart felt, than with these cars. Now to continue enjoying them!
Congrats on the 420 a very special car. Lotus's official 75th Anniversary this year so hopefully there will be a gathering of the Final Editions at some point.
That is a fabulous spec Elise! 🎉
Glad you managed to get one and your brothers is also amazing in that yellow pearl!
Would be great to see it at a club meet sometime!
Thanks would be good to get a gathering of the Final Editions at some point this year. There must be something going on for the 75th Anniversary too so I'm sure you will see it about. Cheers.
Lovely car & great “no compromise” super lightweight spec Jonny. Your garage definitely celebrates the end of a memorable Lotus ICE (and proper drivers car) era.
Health to drive!
Thanks Jimmy hope all's well and you're still enjoying your GT430 health to drive in 2023 for you too. Hope to see you at some Lotus 75th Anniversary event before the year's out.
Fantastic "all-in" spec, well done!
Thanks. Fortunately for me it's an extravagance that can't be repeated!
Great to see another video from you - your Exige videos were one of the big persuaders in my picking up an Exige Sport 350 Special Edition, as my first foray into sports car ownership, especially the end of year review pieces. Absolutely been bitten by the Lotus bug, love every journey in it.
Many thanks. I will keep up the ownership reviews of this Elise and I need to do one for the Evora which is somehow 5 years old already. Exige Sport 350 are fantastic cars, as are all Exiges, I'd love another but thought an Elise would be a better contrast to the Evora having a completely different drivetrain.
I remember you bought the car jan22! (I bought mine jan21).
My catalytic converter broke down after 20.000kms but I could still drive the car, with engine light on and a bit louder.
It's a great toy, I love it to bits!
Ordered in 2021 but didn't leave the factory until Jan 22. I can only dream of getting 20,000kms out of a cat! I hope this one lasts a lot longer than the first! It would be great to get the Champions together one day. I will let you know about any trips to Spa this year...
@@DrPittenstein yes please do! I got 2yrs warranty on the new catalytic converter so I'll be having new ones the rest of my life...
BTW: Nürburgring surrounding roads are much better than around Spa
@@GrijzeRemmel yes a few laps of the NS also on the list for 2023!
What a thing! Your chosen spec is such a fantastic tribute to the whole philosophy of the Elise. With my limited budget, I’ll stick with my 730KG S1 MMC 135BHP . Enjoy.
Thanks. S1 will always win any lightweight contest and in many people’s eyes still the best Elise but the Final Edition is where the story ends and it will be interesting to see what it weighs. It’s quite a different car to drive than my S2 SportsRacer which might still be my favourite Elise but I’m hoping for some drives in the Goldielocks which will challenge that. Much quicker on track I suspect but SR will take some beating as a road car.
I’m glad to finally see it. Congratulations! I noticed the hesitant low rpm throttle response in your car that they all seem to have and that I found very annoying in my Sport 240. I bit the bullet and installed an aftermarket ECU with tune by RRR engineering. It completely solved the problem. With a replacement of the restrictive exhaust manifold and air box at the same time, it picked up about 60 HP, but the real prize for me is the improved drivability when I’m not on the boil.
Must be spicy with 300bhp bit of a sleeper now. I don't notice the hesitation when driving so not something that has bothered me much to date but good to know there's a fix. Evora is similar so I suspect it might be some emissions mapping to blame.
@@DrPittenstein Yes, quite spicy with 300 BHP. The increased torque is welcome. I think you’re right about the tuning for emissions. Some journalists make brief mention of the issue (‘blipping for heel and toe downshifts sometimes yields delayed response,’ etc.) but presumably go easy on Lotus because they know the origins of the compromise. I can’t fault Lotus for that either, but it’s nice to have instant throttle response. It wasn’t an issue if revs were kept above 3-3.5K, but sometimes I like to drive at a more relaxed pace and suddenly gas it out of a corner or just do proper rev matching.
I’m looking forward to updates on your and your brother’s cars.
@@jonathanknight8251 thanks plan was to go full Cup 260 spec but very high cost and prob worth less than a stock FE at the end. Would have been better off starting with a used 250!
Be good to see some videos on your car too sounds awesome 😎
@@DrPittenstein That is a bit of a conundrum, isn’t it? Though if you execute your mods to allow easy return to stock form for sale, I suppose the FE will be worth more. Hopefully that day is far off.
This and an Evora GT 430 - what a garage. And yes, this is preferable to an Emira, particularly as you have the Evora.
It was the last opportunity to spec an Elise from new. Adored my Elise SportsRacer (111r) this one has a lot to live up to!
@@DrPittenstein It does! I assume it’s quicker, but I’d rather have the high revving 2zz. I have a Federal Elise and love that engine.
@@craigyirush3492 Yes the 2zz remains, in my opinion, the best engine to go into the Elise. Magic combination. Supercharged 2ZR cars are faster up to 6250 rpm with much more torque (184lbs/ft vs 133lbs/ft) and to be fair the later cars sound better as standard than the 111R did with a stock pipe. Above 6250rpm the 2ZZ is still king and sounds unreal with a louder back box. Enjoy yours, very special car in my eyes.
We'll doneJonny nice to see what you've been up to. buddsy
Not much on TH-cam that's for sure, they de-monetized me for not uploading enough videos last year! Hope all's well with you and yours.
@@DrPittenstein All good here in Norfolk thanks :-) YT are not the platform they once were for creators thats for sure!
Thanks for sharing your update. I love the 260 cup as well. I have added these louvres after a small ding cracking my front clam at Bathurst race track. I have a yellow 2014 Elise S which has been upgrade to 270 bhp has nitron suspension along with front splitter. Where did your brother get his wing and mounts ? Do you know how long the wing is ? I’m thinking about using an exige 380 cup wing which is 1300mm wide. I have provided an update on my progress on the lotusforums
Your car sounds epic already. The 260 wing shares a part number with the 311. The drill holes are different as the wing stays are closer together to use the same mounting points as the other Elise Cup cars (you can still see the 311 holes underneath). I believe it's a 311 wing that is cut down by the factory, so it's not as wide as the 311 wing. Hope this helps, I'm after one myself so hope to bring more videos of the car as it progresses soon.
@@DrPittenstein please let us know how you get on ! Thanks … I’m also waiting on a verdant green Emira with brown leather that’s due July to sept this year .. lotus bug !
This Elise 250 Cup with this spec all carbon is fabulous. She must be the lightest one in the world🥰. Be careful with the Yokos semi slick in winter, it is loosing grip😋 , I spinned in a straight line in mode "sport" (it was raining...)
Thanks. I hope to have it weighed soon and will upload a video of that when it happens. We have floods in the UK at the moment so car stays in the garage for now.
The most impressive thing is that you could still buy a stripped out road racer like that in the current anti-car governance.
Yes but sad Lotus won't sell you anything like it again, they were so good at road racers. Hopefully the Emira will get some added lightness at some point but getting it below 1400kg will be a challenge!
Fantastic ! Well done to both brothers on their final Elise. How did I miss this ?... I'm 2 weeks late :-(. Oh well, caught up at last. Look forward to your continued Lotus adventures Dr.P . BTW, I think you made a good move 'book-ending' your Lotus' with the ultimate factory iterations of Evora & Elise... I guess the Exige Cup 430 would be a (fantastic) in betweener . Do you still have your Esprit ?
Thanks. The original plan was to get an Elise Sport 240 but it inevitably snowballed into a Cup 250! Exige Cup 430 is arguably the best of both in one car but the Evora GT430 is very special and better for me in a number of ways. Yes sold the Esprit to fund the Elise FE. It was amazing to own my childhood dream car but not comparable to the Evora to drive as you might expect. Must have been incredible in its day though, a great thing to have owned.
Great looking Elise. I see from the roads that you film on you live near Ringwood, I am not to far away from Ringwood hope you don't mind me asking where did you get the paint protection film fitted, I am just about to get my Yellow Elise SC front clam painted and want to protect the new paint.
Hi Julia thanks for watching. The ppf was by Bell and Colvill who use a company called allthatgleams I believe. They did a good job but I’m sure there are places nearer you that would be just as good. I’ve been impressed by First Choice detailing in Christchurch but they are very high end and do mainly supercars so won’t be the cheapest! all the best DrP
Great Spec - really interested to know what your final Kerb Weight is compared to the standard Cup Elise 931kg ?.
Yes it will be very interesting. I thought about buying some scales but they are very expensive. I will find a way to get it weighed and upload to the channel soon. It should in theory be very close to 900kg. Hopefully just under that but we will see soon.
Beautiful car ! Wish I had gone for it an ordered a final edition now.
Thanks. There are a few for sale which one would you have gone for?
Will have to make do with my s3 220 for now 😢 have watched carfection video on the 260 cup several times and yours looks as awesome as that one!
@@chrisdobbie5265 thanks much appreciated but it’s ironic that it would have cost slightly less if I had bought one of those instead 😖 but 220 Elise are awesome cars too, what makes them all special is the weight and response which can’t be replicated by heavier cars at any price. 220 also has the same torque as the 250 so just as fast up to 5000rpm or so. Main benefits of Cup cars are felt on track, 220 still takes some beating on the road.
Hi, i enjoy your channel alot, massive Lotus fan myself.
Im in my twenties, and im looking to buy an Elise S2. What is your opinion on it? Or should i save up for an Evora V6, or Exige S2 (roughly the same €€ in NL).
Thanks in advance!
Hi thanks for your support. Never an easy answer to the endless Elise vs Exige debate also no wrong answer either both are exceptional driver's cars. S2 Elise are really special, for me the Toyota 2ZZ-GE was such a great match for the chassis, I loved my SportsRacer and my current Cup 250 has much more torque but doesn't get close to the 8900rpm redline. 111r/Elise R are a bit quiet as standard but sound incredible with a louder back box. Exige S2 are also fabulous, a better spec for track use is that's what you're into. 111r is beautifully set up for the road (could be peak Elise for road use for me) but is a bit soft for harder track use. Evoras are special cars too but more grown up, if you're still young and flexible you'll have no problem living with an Elise or Exige. Evoras are super impressive, super composed but Elise and Exige are more intense and exciting at road legal speeds. Best plan is obvs to try them all out and see which one you connect with the most. Good luck with the search, let me know what you choose.
@@DrPittenstein Thank you for your very detailed opinion/analysis of my question.
Currently my budget allows me an Elise, and as you said, it is very important to me that even at legal speeds i can enjoy the car. I have raced for about 7 years (karting) but i want to keep that strictly for the track, also with cars.
Ideally, an Exige V6s would be the best option, but for some reason they are incredibly expendive over here (70-80k) wich is out of my budget. Evora S on the other hand are pretty cheap in comparison (280's aswell, but i think its lacking in certain area's) for about 50-60k.
Thanks again, im pretty sure i will wait for an Exige S2 (or S3) that fitd my budget. I'll also document it on YT.
Question; have you ever driven a Donkervoort F22? My father is looking for one, and it seems like a beast ;)
@@neverenoughgames72 No I have never driven a Donkervoort, they are very expensive over here. I have 2 Caterhams though so love that sort of car, I'd love to try a BonkersDonker!
@@DrPittenstein Thanks for the replies. Caterhams are alsovery cool. Basiclaly anything with an engine and a steering wheel is ;)
Beautiful car
Thank you. One of one. As other cars get heavier and more numb the Elise just keeps getting better to drive, an automotive delicacy now!
Well, my Cup 250 has had two bad O2 sensors, bad airflow sensor, the catalytic converter falling apart from the inside, ratting like a tin can filled with rocks, needing replacement, the pads of the cup seats falling off, the driver's side door window rattling like mad when fully down, miserable performance on cold start until engine warms up, stalling stalling stalling on cold morning starts, and a litany of other random electrical problems. All after a measly 8000 miles. Good luck!
That sounds like more than your fair share, I hope it behaves itself from now on.
@@DrPittenstein It’s in the shop for the winter holidays, just dropped it off today. Hopefully they can figure out what’s going on with the cold start stalling. Thanks for the well-wishes!
Elisa Artioli got the very last customer one. (Sunshine).
Yup same colour but her’s is a 240 Final Edition, not a Cup 250. Very nice car 👍
This car would not be worthless if modified
I agree, most of what I’m planning is reversible and I don’t think many would object to wheel arch louvres but being realistic though none of the Cup 260 mods would add value to it either - usual story with mods. Great value for any other Cup 260 obsessives out there one day, if there are any!
You have a Lotus Elise Club 250??!! I hate you! That is my one dream car :). Forget Audi's. Forget BMW's. If it's not a Club 250, I'm not interested.
It's ok, you can relax, I only have a Cup 250 ;) never stop dreaming!
Towing eye is really surprising
Pole again by a mile! Thanks for your support since day 1. Much appreciated. Top man.
Yes towing eye makes the point, the Evora only weighs 1350kg wet and with full tank of fuel so not many sports cars on sale today that are that light. New Emira weighed over 1480kg when tested by a magazine.