elise or RX-8

in two/three years time, one of my saving plans will have matured and i will have £20,000-£22,000 (depending on the interest rates) to buy a car.

originally, i had planned to find an nice old ferrari (365 boxer or 246 gt) and take a small loan to pay for the rest
but then i recently started to do a little research and the costs of keeping one of them have kinda shot down my dreams.

so in a fit of trying to be sensible (or realistic) i have come to two choices;
namely the Lotus Elise or the Mazda RX-8.

here goes.
as i said, my savings plan matures in just under three years and should get me around £20,000.
i can sell my current little car for about £2000.
that gives me at least £22,000 (not including other savings)

i have decided that it will have to be a 2nd hand car (mainly cos i'll need money for insurance and i'm not too keen on spending it all on a brand new car.

if i get the Elise, itself an impractical car, i will be keeping my little toyota Yaris as the sensible car.
or sell the Yaris as well and get myself an RX-8 as both a toy AND a sensible car (is it really that useable as a four seater?)

which seems the better idea?

i have no real idea of the actual running costs of both of these cars
(beyond insurance) so i'm really asking you guys for typical costs, hidden or other-wise and just a general opinion of my choices.

the other alternative is to skip the sportscar choice and go for a fast hatch like a Golf R32 or Alfa 146 GTA
but then these will present other problems.....

what do you think?

I can think of a few cars that I would MUCH rather have at the price range of the rx8 so I am already somewhat swayed away from recommending it already. Even though it is a very cool car.
but for the elise.. it is quite simply one of my dream cars. I cant think of anything I would rather have until you get in to $90k and up price range. So the choise is easy for me, Elise.

Yea...I would really really like to get my hands on a Lotus Elise...before...the realistic goal was to pick up a R32 GTR Skyline...for about 30k. But for 10k more...I can have myself a Lotus Elise...yes I know there's probably going to be a killer markup...but I am not buying one now...and who knows...down the line...I maybe able to afford one!

Are we talking a brit only version of the elise with the K series 111R engine in, or are we looking at the Toyota engined VVTi 111R?

If its the K series, don't bother! While the car is fabulous, the VVTi is much more than that. The RX-8 is a nice car, but not as timeless as the little Lotus, and its not as entertaining either.

well, i've been looking at all variants of the elise.
as i've said, my savings mature in a couple of years.
that means i'll be buying a car in three years time.

hopefully, i can get the 190 vvt-i engined one by then.
they're a bit out of my price range right now, being brand new and all....
and i have faith in the japanese engine to still be in top nick in three years time.
my faith in the k-series isn't all that.
especially as i keep hearing gasket problems and something about the 190 k series devouring an engine a month... or something like that.
but then again, i still see lots of excellent condition S1 elises in dealers.

that's kinda my dilema.
if i get an elise it will definitely be 2nd hand.
if i get a k series one it WILL be an S1 (original 135 if i can find one...)
i can easily afford that now and in three years i imagine it will be even cheaper.
that's how i will be able to keep my yaris and have the elise at the same time.
(but i am looking at the toyota powered 111s)

the RX-8,
well, like i said, my sensible hat says i should only have the one car
so make it a semi sensible one.
then again, i hear that it requires a lot of upkeep.
am i going to be able to find a good condition one in three years time
or is it likely that i'll be better off buying a brand new one?

just in case you don't know, RX-8 is about £22,000 brand new here.

but that's another thing on my mind.
should i get brand new or 2nd hand?

2nd hand elise doesn't seem too bad as most people simply have one as a pose-mobile
(remember guys, i'm in london...)
but i'm not so sure about a 2nd hand RX-8,
especially if it really does need so much care.

what have you heard about the rx8 having to have a lot of care? or are u just assuming it since it has a rotary and the rx7 has had its rep problems

very regular oil checks+top ups,
something about gunk in oil cos of condensation,
rotary seals wearing
and then problems because of the above.
i guess most of it is surrounding the whole engine oil situation.

that sorta thing.

i know for a fact that the toyota engine is virtually bullet proof and i will probably die before it would
and the old k-series in less stressed form will last forever with minor work needed in later years.

like i said, i'm not really sure so i figured those here who own one might be able to help.
i've got a thread up in the mazda section as well.....

You could get a pretty nice Vauxhall Monaro second hand with that price......

There is always the Series 1 Exige. I realise that it too has the Rover K series in it, but with regular TLC and good servicing, they are still a bloody fantastic sports car.

Theres always the Esprit too. Age is of no real concern aesthetically, as the shape remaind mainly unchanged for its entire life. Ok, the engine looks like a dyson vaccume cleaner, but its fast enough to create its own wheather. Early '90's can be very tepmtingly priced.

Sounds like in order to get the elise you have to make sacrifices si i vote against it.

And that RX8 has a nice chassis but lacks power.


IMO just get an STI or a EVO MR. Both as practical as they can be, and performance wise they will murder an RX8.

As many magazines put it they are the fastest real life cars.

They will never put a smile on your face like the lotus will. It is quite simply one of the best real sports cars ever, and is surely a future classic.

The Japs dilute the driving experience and controll with AWD and electronics. The Elise is a race car with number plates. For the enthusiast, its the uncompromising attitude of lotus that really appeals, and I can asure you that an Elise will outhandle the best and most exotic of sports cars, nevermind a WRX STi or Evo 8.

Top Gear even did a demonstration of how the lotus can outhandle the RAF's Hurricane jet fighter missile systems! Need I say more...

But the point is that you have to make far too many sacrafices. While the Elise is a fast car with beautiful handling, it's also uncomfortable, unreliable, poorly assembled, cramped (If you're 6 foot 5 at least) and too crass for real day-to-day use.

While an Evo, STi, RX8 or (dare I say) Monaro will offer fun (If less than that of the Elise), performance and all are quite reliable as well and each can seat four people in comfort.

Those are the sacrafices people hae to be prepared to make when buying an Elise.

As Jimster said, the Elise is a perfect car if you already have an awesome daily driver like an Audi S4 or a BMW 330Xi

But to sacrifice the daily driver just to have a weekend racer is not worth it. The car you spend most of your time must take precedence.

if i get the Elise, itself an impractical car, i will be keeping my little toyota Yaris as the sensible car.

This is a perfect situation. A (dare I say it) "normal car" for everyday situations, and an Elise for fun. I know I don't want to drag the wife and kids along with me when I'm out on a sunday afternoon in my weekend toy... who cares about 4 seats, the elise is about selfish, unashamed, indulgance. Weekend cars were the best thing ever thought of! hehe

This is a perfect situation. A (dare I say it) "normal car" for everyday situations, and an Elise for fun. I know I don't want to drag the wife and kids along with me when I'm out on a sunday afternoon in my weekend toy... who cares about 4 seats, the elise is about selfish, unashamed, indulgance. Weekend cars were the best thing ever thought of! hehe


See but me for once I want to enjoy every moment of my driving not just some weekends. So the daily driver takes precedence.

As they say in autox, every second of your daily driving is practice for it.

I can agree with that, however my everyday cars still bring a smile, all be it for different reasons.

I'd just feel bad for turning down such a brilliant car for any of the other choices. I think this is one of thoes head over heart situations.