2005 Lotus Elise, Hard Top, LSS Wheels, Touring Pack, much more!

You are bidding on a great example of a 2005 Lotus Elise. This is a very early production unit featuring twin oil coolers which would later only be included as part of the sport package. This left the factory with the touring package which included power windows. carpeting and sound deadening material in the rear bulkhead. It has since been fitted with various sport package items. most notably the LSS forged alloy wheels (the early 6. 5" versions. not the later 6" versions). This is a CRITICAL UPGRADE. The base model Elise was equipped with cast alloy 5. 5" rims that only accepted the stock skinny 175/55/16 Yokohama tire which is VERY expensive. Moving up to the larger forged rim opens you up to a much wider range of tires (195/50/16 Toyo R888s as favored by most track rats or 205/50/16 Dunlop Star Specs which are a great track/road hybrid). This gives the added benefit and of eliminating the understeer induced by the skinnier front tires. in 2009 the interior was fitted with brand new factory sport package seats with Probax padding and harness pass throughs. along with matching door panels. A custom carbon fiber center console and HVAC surround was also fitted. adding lightness and eliminating the cheap look of the plastic factory pieces. There is also both a factory hardtop ($$$) and the touring package (insulated) soft top. The car is also fitted with the no-longer-available LETSLA short shift kit which eliminates the notorious slop of the factory linkage and gives a satisfying mechanical feel and positive engagement. Other bits of rare unobtanium include the lift-point kit to prevent your Lotus Elise from being Qballed (Google images for 'Lotus Elise' and 'Qball"). There is also the popular 'Jack Helper' which provides a single jacking point to get both rear wheels off the ground. None of these items are still available in the aftermarket. Other nice accessories included are the Sector 111 Bootie (trunk liner). RLS (Really Light Stuff) iPhone bracket. Blackwatch Racing Dash Bag (I nice bespoke cordura 'glove compartment' perfectly fitted for the alloy parcel shelf - looks factory). And finally. it has the popular Larini SE rear-exit exhaust which just screams when on the second cam. yet is completely void of drone. And to top things off (or bottom things off really) is a three element Difflow diffuser. Factory diffuser (and various and sundry other factory parts) included with sale. The Good Hard Top Touring Package Early model with dual oil coolers (oil line recall performed) Sport Package wheels (6. 5" fronts) fitted with Dunlop Star Specs 2009 Exige seats and door panels (ordered new from Lotus Garage) CF center console and HVAC surround New Shocks (stock units) Larini SE exhaust and rear panel Difflow 3-element diffusor Lift Point Kit Jack Helper Letsla Shift Kit Front plate delete (done by Mulholland Motorsports) ABS doesn't work The Bad ABS doesn't work (this is only bad if you think 'ice mode' is good) High mileage (123K). but everything runs perfectly and it passes smog by a HUGE margin The Ugly Starshield has seen better days Could use a good detail Don't be put off by the mileage. This car was used primarily as a long distance tourer and has probably seen less use of the second (high lift) cam than a typical Elise with one third of this mileage. No real signs of mechanical wear. Engine is quiet. passes smog with flying colors. etc. Plus I'm old don't exactly drive with the piss-and-vinegar that I used to. Most Elises have been pretty well flogged most of their lives. I did a handful of track days (less than a half dozen) when I first purchased the car in 2009 and it has had an easy life since. Overall a nice. well-equipped car with many desirable (and now unobtainable) extras. It is also critical to understand that the Lotus Elise was equipped with a stock Toyota motor and 6-speed gearbox. Lotus did NOTHING to the internals. It is all Toyota from valve cover to sump. and you get that level of reliability with it. Lotus designed the intake and exhaust. but Toyota/Nippondenso controls and sensors are used throughout. I expect it to provide another six figures of trouble free mileage. Spend some time on lotustalk dot com. especially if you're unfamiliar with the 'second cam' which is one of the most exciting features of the car. Look into 'ice mode' on the ABS and you'll understand why having the ABS disabled is more of a feature than a bug. If you're on the fence about whether or not a Lotus Elise is right for you. I'd keep in mind the following: It CAN be used as a daily driver. but you will grow weary of the ingress/egress. and rather visceral race car experience the car provides. It is a much better weekend car. in which case you will spend your days longing for the rather visceral race car experience the car provides. The Lotus Elise is profoundly rare (The entire US bound production from 2005-2011 barely numbers more than a single year of Ferrari production). As such. these have become an appreciating asset. They've gone up in value roughly 10% in the past 18 months. Increasingly harsh federal regulations ensure that no 'purist' car like the Lotus Elise will ever become available again. Enjoy life while it is still legal to do so. This is a nicer example than most Elise's with half the mileage. Look around and compare. Send me a message to arrange an in-person inspection. And FINALLY. the answer to that all-important question "Why are you selling?": I'm a dyed-in-the-wool petrolhead. I've had vintage Jaguar E-types. Jeeps and many other mechanically interesting things. I've done six figures of glorious mileage in the Elise and traveled throughout the southwest in it. Loved it. but it is simply time for a new chapter in my motoring life. In keeping with the Sir Colin Champman philosophy of 'simplify and add lightness'. this next chapter will probably be a Triumph Bonneville T100 or a Moto Guzzi V7. Clear Title. Clean CarFax (available on request). On Feb-15-15 at 08:39:11 PST. seller added the following information:Answers to a few questions:The black marks on the sills are typical road tar. They are on the Starshield™ clear bra. and I haven't been successful at removing them with elbow grease and the old bug-and-tar remover. I just usually replace the Starshield every couple of years. I've thought about eliminating it permanently. but the nature of the shape of the Elise. with it's wasp-waist tapered middle means that everything kicked up by the front tires takes its toll on the sills. Recent major services (within the past two years):• Air conditioning hose replacement (one of the hoses leaked. probably terminated by the same clown that made those faulty oil lines that led to the recall). Air conditioning works perfectly. • Oil line recall performed• Clutch replaced. The clutch actually didn't need replacing and in fact showed little signs of wear. but the throwout bearing had become quite unacceptably noisy. so it was a case of 'while-you're-at-it'. Keep asking!On Feb-15-15 at 09:35:19 PST. seller added the following information: • Forgot to mention new shocks/coilovers (stock Bilstein units)On Feb-18-15 at 10:47:54 PST. seller added the following information:Answers to more questions:• Both original keys are included. but the little rubber pieces linking the fobs disintegrated years ago. I think they're available from BWR for $90. Both chipsets work perfectly. One is installed in an aftermarket fob and the other in a unikey. both of which are nicer than the factory units. Visit Lotustalk dot com to see the many popular bespoke aftermarket fob and unikey options for Lotus. • Front tires are in great shape. rears with 30-40% read left. My last alignment. done by popular Lotus mechanic/enthusiast Harrix at A1 in Alhambra has dramatically improved tire consumption. • Brakes have more than 50% pads left and it appears the rotors will be good for another round of pads. • Radio head unit is a nice Blaupunkt London MP48 which replaces the truly despicable MP54 stock unit. which I probably have in a box somehwere. The London MP48 matches the interior much nicer. has an aux input on the front and the controls look like they were done by the same guy who did the Lotus's little chrome and blue headlight/AC/odometer reset buttons. It integrates really well. The speakers are stock and horrible. They were horrible new. but at least they were light. If this bothers you. then you're probably buying a Lotus for all the wrong reasons. Please TEXT me at 818-395-2050 to arrange a pre-bid inspection. This will also allow me to vet out the scammers which is always fun.